Iraqi News Highlights and Points to Ponder Friday AM 1-12-24
The Journey Of The Dollar In Iraq To The Latest Reports And The Corridors Of Banks Increases Citizen Anxiety
January 12, 2024 Baghdad/Al-Masala Al-Hadath: The Iraqis expressed their deep concern about the turmoil in the US dollar exchange market, as the exchange rates witness continuous fluctuations around the clock, despite the attempts of the Central Bank of Iraq to control them and return to the approved official exchange rate of 132 thousand dinars for every 100 dollars.
Citizen Ali Al-Hassani said, “Exchange rate fluctuations have become a source of great concern for citizens, as they directly affect their purchasing power, especially in light of the continuous rise in the prices of goods and services.”
He added, “The government is required to take urgent measures to control the exchange rate and protect citizens from the consequences of turmoil in the financial markets.”
For his part, economic expert Yasser Al-Mutawali said, “The disturbances in the dollar exchange market are due to several reasons, most notably the continuation of the war in Ukraine, the rise in oil prices, and the decline in the value of the Iraqi dinar against the dollar.”
He added, “These factors directly affect the Iraqi economy, and lead to high inflation rates, and an increase in poverty and unemployment.”
He pointed out that “the government is required to take effective economic measures to confront these challenges and protect the Iraqi economy from global turmoil.”
The economic expert stressed that “continued disturbances in the dollar exchange market will lead to destabilization of the country’s political and social stability, and will increase the already high rates of poverty, unemployment, and high prices.”
He called on the government to “take quick and urgent measures to control the exchange rate and protect citizens from the consequences of turmoil in the financial markets.”
On February 7, 2023, one hundred days after assuming the presidency of the government, Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani confirmed that “the currency window was a black spot in the banking system,” pointing to “the vote on the Central Bank’s request to adjust the exchange rate to 1,300 dinars for every one dollar.” .
The turmoil in the dollar exchange market is a worrying phenomenon that greatly affects the lives of Iraqi citizens. Constant fluctuations in prices make it difficult for citizens to determine the costs of their daily lives and plan their financial future.
Moreover, these disruptions severely undermine confidence in the financial system and pose a major challenge to the government’s efforts to achieve economic stability.
The efforts of the Central Bank are evident in its attempts to address these fluctuations, as it seeks to return to the approved official exchange rate. However, it appears that these efforts still face major challenges, whether due to the effects of global economic conditions or internal challenges.
The state of instability in the dollar market is reflected in various aspects of Iraqi society’s life. Citizens live in a state of uncertainty about their financial future, and their concerns increase about the impact of these fluctuations on purchasing power and the extent of their impact on the standard of living. This concern is in addition to other economic and social challenges facing Iraqi society.
In light of this complex context, it appears that achieving stability in the dollar exchange market requires effective measures and international cooperation. This requires strengthening internal economic measures and adopting effective strategies to deal with international challenges.
The government must take the necessary measures to ensure market stability and reduce pressure on citizens, so that Iraq can achieve sustainable economic development and raise the standard of living for its citizens.
According to economists, the widening gap between the official and parallel rates of the dollar against the dinar weakens confidence in the local currency, reduces incentives to deposit money in Iraqi banks and prompts savers to exchange the dinar for the dollar, which leads to higher prices and a decrease in the real or purchasing value of the Iraqi currency.
On Tuesday, February 7, 2023, the Council of Ministers approved a decision to adjust the dollar exchange rate to 1,300 dinars. https://almasalah.com/archives/79126
Former Chairman Of The Energy Committee
Iraq’s oil is the most resilient in the future of the world and the greatest danger is the Strait of Hormuz.. Adnan Al-Janabi
The former Chairman of the Parliamentary Energy Committee, Adnan Al-Janabi, confirmed that Iraqi oil is safe as long as the sea corridor through the Strait of Hormuz is stable, while he stressed that Iraq is the last country that will be affected by reducing global dependence on oil in the future, due to its large reserves and low production costs.
Iraq’s oil is the most resilient in the future of the world and the greatest danger is the Strait of Small
A former minister warns of Al-Shahristani’s scenario: The oil law will pass provided that Al-Sudani’s opponents remain silent
Adnan Al-Janabi in an interview with journalist Haroun Rashid, followed by Network 964:
In light of everything the region is going through security-wise and militarily, the only frightening thing that could affect oil in the world, and not just in Iraq, is if any security destabilization occurs in the Arabian Gulf region, especially in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iraqi oil, within its OPEC quota, can currently guarantee exports from the southern port alone across the Gulf, even if this is not true from a strategic standpoint. It is necessary to work on adopting multiple ports lest what happened with the Turkey line be repeated, and the port most likely to be approved in this regard is the Aqaba port. Through Jordan.
Regarding future plans, Iraqi oil is one of the least depleted in the world, and it is the least expensive to extract, but this means that if we cannot keep up with reserves and export rates, there will come a time within a decade or more, when the demand for oil decreases, by moving from fuel.
From fossil fuels to alternative energy, we will face a question: Who will continue to export? The answer is clear, as whoever produces oil at the lowest costs and has large reserves will find it easier to export.
Despite the advantages and problems mentioned, Iraq must prepare and develop its production and export capabilities in preparation for the future, in addition to not stopping investment in the oil sector, so that we are ready for that moment when export restrictions are lifted and we have a production capacity of up to 6 million barrels per day. https://964media.com/292187/
Rady: America Controls Oil Revenues And Delivers Them To Iraq By “Distillation”
Policy Information / Baghdad… A member of the State of Law coalition, former MP Rasul Radi, confirmed today, Friday, that the American administration controls the Iraqi funds related to oil revenues through the Federal Bank and delivers them to Iraq by “distillation,” pointing out that Washington’s decisions are not strange to Iraq and everything is expected from them.
Radi told Al-Maalouma, “All information confirms that the Iraqi economy is hostage to the US Federal Bank, which controls the most important revenues on which the Iraqi government depends, which are oil revenues.”
He added, “Everything is possible and not surprising from the American administration if it takes an economic decision that harms the interests of Iraq, especially since oil sales revenues are placed in the aforementioned bank and Iraq obtains them through (distillation) when needed.”
He stated that “America has control over the Iraqi funds held by the Federal Bank, which has caused a rise in the dollar exchange rate and the occurrence of some financial harassment in the recent period.” LINK
Prime Minister: The Path Of Reform Is Long, And The Government Has Begun To Lay The Groundwork For It In The Long Term
Economy News – Baghdad Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani confirmed, on Thursday, that the path of reform is long and the government has begun to establish it in the long term.
The Prime Minister’s media office stated in a statement, seen by Al-Iqtisad News, that “Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani received the ambassadors of the Iraq Economic Contact Group (IECG), which represents the major economic countries, France, Britain, Italy, Spain, the United States, Japan, and Canada. In addition to the European Union ambassador.
During the meeting, the Prime Minister appreciated “the efforts made to support Iraq in the various past stages. He also expressed his thanks to the United States and Italy, which chaired the group, for the work and communication they provided,” stressing “continuing cooperation with the next presidency represented by the United Kingdom and France, for example.” Achieving the goals for which this group was formed.”
He reviewed, “The government’s vision regarding the economic, financial, banking, and customs reforms that it has begun implementing, and its seriousness in establishing a future work approach, in addition to its efforts in implementing its commitments within the ministerial program, and the five priorities that were included in its executive program.”
He touched on “the strategic projects that will be an important basis for Iraq’s economic renaissance, which are the path of development and gas and renewable energy projects,” noting that “the government is aware that the path of reform is long, but it has begun to establish it in the long term, which will help future governments carry out their tasks.” .
For their part, representatives of the contact group expressed “great interest and optimism in government policies in the field of the economy, and pointed to past accumulations that the government has begun to address.”
The Italian ambassador praised “the government’s description of achievement, and the preparation of a different budget that includes new ideas such as the Iraq Fund for Development and the provision of sovereign guarantees to the private sector.”
The US Ambassador to Iraq also praised “the government’s successful steps in the field of banking reforms, and its approach to reforming government banks by relying on major international companies, as well as its move towards activating the electronic payment system.”
The French ambassador to Iraq praised “the government’s policies in reforming border crossings and customs by adopting the ASYCUDA system and preparing a financial budget for three years.”
The meeting concluded with an agreement to form a working group and an action plan for a period of 6 months, interspersed with meetings between representatives of the group’s countries, ministries and advisors to the Prime Minister concerned with following up on the work. This will be followed by holding a meeting chaired by the Prime Minister to evaluate what has been presented.
Views 45 01/11/2024 https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=39343
Provoking Points To Ponder on Adversity:
Trouble is the thing that strong men grow by. Met in the right way, it is a sure-fire means of putting iron into the victim’s will and making him a tougher man to down forever after.- H. Bertram Lewis
Every time you meet a situation, though you think at the time it is an impossibility and you go through the torture of the damned, once you have met it and lived through it, you find that forever after you are freer than you were before.- Eleanor Roosevelt
I have always fought for ideas – until I learned that it isn’t ideas but grief, struggle, and flashes of vision which enlighten.- Margaret Anderson
I have learned in the great University of Hard Knocks a philosophy that no woman who has had an easy life ever acquires. I have learned to live each day as it comes, and not to borrow trouble by dreading tomorrow. It is the dark menace of the future that makes cowards of us.- Dorothy Dix
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