**IRAN DAILY
-- China ready to invest in combined-cycle power plants in Khuzestan
The executive director of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)’s Iran Office announced that Chinese economic agents are ready to invest in constructing combined-cycle power stations in the southwestern Iranian province of Khuzestan.
This initiative aims to address the country’s severe energy shortages while leveraging the province’s vast oil and gas reserves, contributing to sustainable energy supply and economic development in the region.
-- CBI says inflation down to lowest in four years
Figures released by the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) showed the country has managed to bring down inflation to its lowest since 2020 when prices started to rise because of US sanctions and the economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.
CBI figures covered by the IRIB News showed that Iran’s annual inflation rate had dropped to 37.3% in the calendar month to November 20.
The CBI said the figure was the lowest reported in four years.
-- Government prioritizes realization of blue economy: Minister
The Minister of Industry, Mine, and Trade highlighted blue economy initiatives as a top priority for the government, stating that the current administration plans to operationalize a sea-based economy as well as activating a fund to guarantee marine works.
On Thursday, during a visit to Lamerd in southern Fars Province, Mohammad Atabak visited industrial projects in the Lamerd Special Economic Zone, and held a meeting on investment and infrastructure progress.
** KAYHAN INTERNATIONAL
-- Minister announces 50% hike in liquid fuel delivery to power plants
Iran’s Petroleum Minister Mohsen Paknejad has announced that the delivery of liquid fuel to power plants in the first four months of the 14th administration increased by about 50% compared to the same period last year.
Paknejad emphasized that this achievement was only possible through the determination and effort of colleagues in the refining and distribution sector, whose performance is commendable.
-- Oil falls on demand growth concerns, robust dollar
Oil prices fell on Friday on worries about demand growth in 2025, especially in top crude importer China, putting global oil benchmarks on track to end the week down more than 3%.
Brent crude futures fell by 32 cents, or 0.4%, to $72.56 a barrel by 1309 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures also eased 32 cents, or 0.5%, to $69.06 per barrel.
-- CBI: Inflation rate hits 4-year low
Figures released by the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) show the country has managed to bring down inflation to its lowest since 2020 when prices started to rise because of U.S. sanctions and economic impacts of coronavirus pandemic.
CBI figures showed that Iran’s annual inflation rate had dropped to 37.3% in the calendar month to November 20. The CBI said the figure was the lowest reported in four years.
** TEHRAN TIMES
-- Iran’s presence in Syria: security chief explains the ‘why’ and ‘how’
In an interview with Khamenei.ir, Ali Akbar Ahmadian, Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council (SNSC), provided a comprehensive explanation of Iran's presence in Syria over the past decade.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government collapsed earlier this month after an insurgency in the country’s northwestern Aleppo province quickly spread across the nation in the face of the Syrian army’s lack of resistance.
Assad's Syria was a close Iranian ally, maintaining a strongly anti-Israel stance. With Syria's future uncertain following Assad's departure, Western media narratives frequently portray the situation as a significant setback for Iran, suggesting that Assad's Syria was heavily influenced—militarily and politically—by Iran, and his fall represents the loss of a key asset.
-- “Rojin's Dream” wins award at Duhok International Film Festival
The semi-feature documentary “Rojin's Dream” directed by Serwa Aliveysi from Iran won an award at the 11th Duhok International Film Festival in Kurdistan region, Iraq.
The festival, held from December 9 to 16, presented the Best Kurdish Documentary Award. The film tells the story of a disabled couple who yearn to have children, Honaronline reported on Thursday.
In addition to “Rojin's Dream,” the Iranian short film “Limo Knew Everything” by Edris Mahmoudian received the festival’s Special Mention for the Kurdish Short Film.
-- Iran's finance minister meets D-8 secretary-general to discuss trade, investment
Iran's Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs Abdolnaser Hemmati met with Secretary-general of the D-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation Isiaka Abdulqadir Imam on Thursday to discuss boosting trade and investment among the eight developing Islamic nations.
The meeting took place on the sidelines of the 11th D-8 summit held in Cairo, Egypt. Hemmati, who accompanied Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian to the summit, reiterated the bloc’s target of achieving $500 billion in trade volume by 2030.
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