Once sanctions are lifted, Iran will seek to boost its economy with investment from outside Iran will encourage foreign partners and investment as sanctions are lifted and the country seeks to boost its economy after July’s nuclear agreement with the world powers, President Hassan Rouhani said.

“Foreigners must bring investment and technology and partner with Iranians so that both sides can benefit by winning a share of the Iranian and regional markets,” Rouhani told reporters in Tehran on Saturday. “The ultimate aim is to create employment for our youth.” The nuclear agreement is helping to ease the Islamic Republic’s political isolation, and has attracted European delegations in recent weeks keen to explore the opportunities arising from the removal of economic sanctions. Rouhani’s government has come under attack by hardline politicians at home for conceding too much to the six world powers as part of the agreement. Some of his critics also say that opening of Iran’s doors to foreign companies will only result in the import of western consumer goods without yielding much benefit for poorer Iranians. Iran’s inflation slowed to 15.6 per cent in June and Rouhani Saturday said the government is targeting single-digit inflation by the end of its term in 2017. The last time Iran’s rate dipped below 10 per cent was in 1990, according to data on the central bank’s website. The president also said lower oil prices have created challenges for the nation -- a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries -- while saying that Iran has managed to increase its crude output from 2.7 million barrels a day to 2.9 million since he took office in August 2013.

This article was written by Golnar Motevalli and Ladane Nasseri for Bloomberg BusinessWeekme on Aug. 30, 2015.