In the past few weeks, there has been a major debate in Iran about the validity of economic data presented by the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) and government officials. It all started with a detailed report by the CBI stating that the Iranian economy grew by 4.6% in the 12-month period ending in spring 2014.
Within days, Gholamreza Mesbahi Moghaddam, head of the Budget and Planning Committee in the Iranian parliament, commented that the published figures were "wrong and misleading" and “like a fable.” The CBI reacted immediately and outlined its evidence for its reported economic growth.