The Prime Minister Directs The Shift Towards Electronic Payment For Electricity Bills
Thursday, November 20, 2025 | Economy Number of views: 383 Baghdad/ NINA /Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani directed the Ministry of Electricity to transition to electronic payment for electricity bills, particularly for high loads and commercial, industrial, and agricultural sectors supplied with electricity.
The Prime Minister’s Media Office stated in a press release: “Al-Sudani chaired a meeting today, Thursday, to follow up on the electricity billing file, in the presence of the Minister of Electricity, the Head of the Board of Advisors, senior staff from the Ministry of Electricity, and a number of officials concerned with this file.”
The statement added: “During the meeting, the current distribution plan and a roadmap for resolving bottlenecks were discussed, along with a report on the plan to reduce energy losses and waste, aiming to reach a 40% reduction in current losses and to take deterrent legal measures regarding losses in certain areas.”
The meeting also discussed calculating the value of supplied energy and the energy metered, comparing them to the actual collection amount, and conducting a general review of electronic billing over the past two months across the country, measuring the extent of the increase achieved. https://ninanews.com/Website/News/Details?key=1262925
Iraq Enters The Era Of “Digital Maturity”… Huge Leaps In The Use Of The Internet And Social Media
Money and Business Economy News – Follow-up Iraq is witnessing a significant acceleration in the use of digital technology in its various forms and methods, coinciding with the entry of thousands of international companies into the Iraqi market. This surge in digital consumption is attributed to what could be considered excessive usage.
According to official figures released by global digital companies, most notably We Are Social, this trend is occurring amidst warnings about the continued escalation of reliance on rapidly advancing technologies and their increasing dominance over the lives of Iraqi citizens, despite the positive aspects of the current digital maturity.
The latest digital data released for October 2025 revealed radical shifts in the Iraqi technological landscape, with the country recording record jumps in internet and smartphone usage rates, a clear indication that Iraq is entering a phase of accelerated “digital maturity”.
A report issued by We Are Social, which highlights the adoption of connected services, showed that Iraq is witnessing an unprecedented phenomenon in the use of social media, which grew by a tremendous 17% in just one year, with the number of digital identities exceeding 40 million.
In detailing the figures, the report explained that the number of mobile phone subscriptions in Iraq has exceeded the actual population, reaching 50.8 million subscriptions, in a country with a population of 47.3 million people, and with a penetration rate of 108% of the total population, the concept is established that the Iraqi citizen depends entirely on the mobile phone as a main gateway to the world, with the phenomenon of an individual owning more than one SIM card being widespread.
These figures come in conjunction with the rise in the country’s urbanization rate to 72.2%, which has facilitated the deployment of communications infrastructure in cities and densely populated areas.
The internet is no longer a luxury in Iraq, but a necessity for daily life. The report indicated that 39.6 million Iraqis use the internet, which is equivalent to 83.8% of the population. This widespread use, which grew by 4.7% compared to last year, practically means the disappearance of the “digital divide” that the country suffered from in previous decades, paving the way for distance education services and digital work.
The most controversial and interesting figure in the 2025 report is the “rocketing” increase in the number of social media users, with 5.8 million new users joining these platforms in the last 12 months alone.
Ali Nouri, a researcher and specialist in digital media, believes that “the number of social media accounts exceeding (40.1 million) the number of actual internet users reflects a deep division of Iraqi society in the virtual space, and the multiplicity of accounts for one individual across different platforms, which makes these platforms the new ‘public arena’ for Iraqis.”
Nouri affirms: “This new digital landscape opens the door for the business sector; the data clearly indicates that the Iraqi market is fully ready for a revolution in e-commerce and financial technology (FinTech), and with a user base of this size, companies that do not have a clear digital strategy will find themselves out of the competition.”
He continues, “These figures place the Iraqi government before urgent obligations, most notably the need to move from the traditional e-government to a ‘smart government’ that provides its services through mobile phone applications to suit the behavior of citizens, in addition to the urgent need for strict legislation related to cybersecurity to protect the data of millions of new users.” https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=62508
The Iraqi Stock Market Saw Its Name Traded With A Financial Value Exceeding 8 Billion Dinars In A Week
Stock Exchange Economy News – Baghdad The Iraq Stock Exchange announced on Thursday that its shares were traded with a financial value of more than 8 billion dinars during the five trading sessions held this week, which is nearing its end.
According to market indicators, the number of shares traded during this week exceeded 30 billion shares, with a value of more than 8 billion dinars.
The ISX60 market trading index closed the first session of the week at (957.96) points, while the index closed at the end of the week at (964.96) points, thus achieving an increase of (0.73%) compared to its closing at the beginning of the session.
The ISX15 market trading index closed the first session of the week at (1181.26) points, while the index closed at the end of the week at (1191.65) points, thus achieving an increase of (0.87%) compared to its closing at the beginning of the session.
During the week, (4719) buy and sell contracts were executed on shares of companies listed on the market.
https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=62510
Worth One Billion Dinars, Al-Rafidain Bank Raises The 39th Installment Of The Leadership And Excellence Initiative.
banks Economy News – Baghdad Rafidain Bank announced today, Thursday, the release of the thirty-ninth installment of the Leadership and Excellence Initiative dedicated to supporting small and medium enterprises, with a total funding of 1 billion Iraqi dinars distributed across 91 projects.
The bank’s media office said in a statement received by “Al-Eqtisad News” that the release of this batch comes as a continuation of efforts to finance entrepreneurs and youth within the Central Bank of Iraq’s initiative aimed at revitalizing the labor market and supporting productive projects.
The statement added that the number of loans funded since the launch of the initiative until now has reached 4,040, while the total value of the amounts granted has reached 52.941 billion Iraqi dinars, which reflects – according to the bank – its commitment to supporting entrepreneurial projects and enhancing their role in driving the national economy and enabling young people to establish sustainable projects. https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=62513
Dollar Exchange Rates Fall In Baghdad
Stock Exchange Economy News – Baghdad The exchange rate of the US dollar against the Iraqi dinar fell this morning, Thursday, in the markets of the capital, Baghdad.
The dollar exchange rate witnessed a decline in the two main exchanges in Al-Kifah and Al-Harithiya in Baghdad, recording 141,150 dinars for every 100 dollars, after it reached 141,300 dinars for 100 dollars on Wednesday.
Selling prices in exchange shops in the local markets of Baghdad recorded a decrease, with the selling price reaching 142,000 dinars for 100 dollars, while the buying price recorded 140,000 dinars for 100 dollars.
https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=62494
Gold Prices Fall Due To The Strength Of The Dollar
Economy | 09:33 – 20/11/2025 Mawazin News – Follow-up: Gold prices edged lower under pressure from a stronger dollar and receding expectations of a Federal Reserve interest rate cut in December.
Spot gold fell 0.1% to $4,077.13 per ounce by 03:05 GMT, while U.S. gold futures for December delivery declined 0.2% to $4,075.80 per ounce.
The dollar rose to its highest level in more than two weeks against its rivals, making gold more expensive for holders of other currencies.
Traders estimate a 33% chance of an interest rate cut at the Fed’s December 9-10 meeting. Non-yielding gold tends to perform better in low interest rate environments and times of economic uncertainty.
Attention is now focused on the U.S. non-farm payrolls report for September, due later today after being postponed due to the recent U.S. government shutdown, which is expected to provide further clues about the Fed’s policy path.
In other precious metals, silver rose 0.2% to $51.44 an ounce in spot trading, platinum climbed 0.9% to $1,559.54, while palladium added 1.1% to $1,395.37. https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=270530
Oil Prices Rise To $63.72 Per Barrel
economy | 08:42 – 20/11/2025 Oil prices rose slightly, recovering from losses in the previous session, as markets assessed the latest US proposals to end the war in Ukraine and braced for a US deadline to wind down operations with two major Russian oil companies.
Brent crude futures rose 21 cents, or 0.33%, to $63.72 a barrel by 01:42 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 24 cents, or 0.40%, to $59.68.
As part of US efforts to end the long-running conflict, Washington imposed sanctions on Rosneft and Okoil, Russia’s largest oil producers and exporters, with a November 21 deadline for them to close operations.
Rosneft has reduced its stake in the Kurdistan Pipeline Company of Iraq, a major oil exporter, to less than 50% in an effort to shield the oil export subsidiary from US sanctions.
Tony Sycamore, a market analyst at IG, said in a note: “We maintain a bullish bias on crude oil as long as it remains above its year-to-date low of around $55.00.” https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=270527
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