Iran's parliament has approved $462 billion budget bill for the current Iranian year, which ends March 2013, AP reported. It's about 9 percent less than the budget approved in the previous calendar year. This is a result of the new official exchange rate of the U.S dollar, which has increased to 12,260 rials to the dollar. The previous budget was based on the rate of 10,500 rials per dollar. The Iranian currency has lost much of its value because of Western sanctions over Iran's nuclear program. The country has also increased the price of exporting oil to $85 from $81.5 per barrel. More than 80 percent of Iran's foreign revenue comes from crude exports. After Thursday's approval in parliament, the budget must still be approved by a constitutional watchdog.
