(Photo: Sputnik International)

TEHRAN, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- A so-called "smart intervention" by the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) has stabilized local currency rates over the past weeks, Eghtesad online news website reported on Saturday.

On Saturday, One US dollar was traded for 105,000 Iranian rials after having approached 120,000 rials on Wednesday. One euro was traded for 129,000 rials, down from Wednesday's 133,000 rials.

Iran's economy has struggled since US President Donald Trump pulled out of the 2015 nuclear accord in May and re-imposed sanctions, including restrictions on oil exports and banking.

The Iranian rial lost more than 50 percent of its value this year while food prices increased by about 70 percent compared to those in the previous year, according to CBI data.

The CBI collaborated with law enforcement forces in the past months to crack down on "illegal middlemen," websites and telegram channels that it claimed to have created the unprecedented volatility in the forex and gold markets.