An Economic Expert Told Nina: Iraq Needs Economic Reform Policies That Will Last Longer Than The Lifespan Of Its Governments
Saturday, November 22, 2025, 11:12 AM | Economy Number of views: 288 Baghdad/ NINA / Economic expert Dirgham Muhammad Ali affirmed that the formation of the next government presents it with the challenge of completing existing development programs and implementing new ones to rescue the economic situation from the repercussions of escalating rentier spending. In a statement to the Iraqi National News Agency ( NINA) , Muhammad Ali said, “The rentier economy in Iraq has posed a significant challenge to the current government, imposing a high ceiling on investment spending.
The next government needs to complete some of these programs, such as reforming the banking system, investing in associated gas, and moving forward with the development path, in addition to finding radical or phased reform solutions to the near-absolute rentierism of the national economy.”
He pointed out that “combating financial corruption and administrative bureaucracy must be completed with concrete steps if we want to reform the economic system,” noting the existence of enormous challenges facing the reform process, such as high government expenditures and the difficulty of implementing reform policies within a system of accumulated corruption that has eroded the institutional structure of the Iraqi state for several decades.
Mohammed Ali stressed the necessity of establishing a supreme body for economic reform, under judicial and parliamentary oversight, to implement reform policies that would outlast the lifespan of governments, thus ensuring long-term reform. /End https://ninanews.com/Website/News/Details?Key=1263156
Dollar Prices Remained Stable In Local Markets As The Stock Exchange Closed
Saturday, November 22, 2025 16:58 | Economy Number of views: 124 Baghdad/ NINA / The dollar exchange rate remained stable in Baghdad markets on Saturday evening, as the stock exchange closed at the start of the week.
The dollar held steady in the Al-Kifah and Al-Harithiya exchanges, recording 141,300 dinars per 100 dollars, the same rate as in the morning.
The selling price at currency exchange shops in Baghdad’s local markets also remained stable, at 142,250 dinars per 100 dollars, while the buying price was 140,250 dinars per 100 dollars.
In Erbil, however, the dollar saw a slight increase, with the selling price reaching 140,900 dinars per 100 dollars and the buying price 140,700 dinars per 100 dollars. /End https://ninanews.com/Website/News/Details?key=1263222
Gold Prices Stabilize Above $4077 Amid Rising Expectations Of A US Interest Rate Cut
Saturday, November 22, 2025, 07:25 | Economy Number of views: 194 Baghdad/ NINA / Gold prices stabilized in spot trading at $4,077.19 per ounce, after falling more than 1% earlier in the session, supported by comments from US Federal Reserve officials that bolstered bets on an interest rate cut next month.
US gold futures for December delivery rose 0.4% to $4,076.90 per ounce, while the precious metal is on track for a slight weekly loss of 0.1%.
As for other precious metals, silver fell 1.2% to $49.99 per ounce, platinum rose 1.2% to $1,529 per ounce, and palladium declined 0.4% to $1,372.44 per ounce. /End https://ninanews.com/Website/News/Details?key=1263099
Basra Crude Oil Closes With A Weekly Loss Of More Than Two Dollars
Economy | 10:12 – 22/11/2025 Mawazin News – Baghdad: Basra Heavy and Basra Medium crude oil futures closed lower for the week. Basra Heavy closed down 96 cents at $59.59 on Friday, posting a weekly loss of $2.48, or 4%.
Basra Medium also closed lower, falling 96 cents to $61.34, and recording a weekly loss of $2.58, or 4.04%. Oil
prices continued their decline for the third consecutive session as the United States pressed for a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine, which could allow more oil supplies to flow into the global market. Both crude contracts are on track to fall by more than 2% this week, driven by concerns about increased supply. https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=270638
Bloomberg: Iraq To Sell Lukoil Oil To Avoid Supply Disruptions
Energy Economy News — Baghdad Oil from Lukoil’s stake in an Iraqi field continues to flow to global markets, easing concerns about supply disruptions following sanctions imposed on the Russian energy giant.
It emerged this month that Lukoil was forced to declare force majeure on oil shipments from its stake in the West Qurna 2 field—a move that allows the company to be released from its contractual obligations. Payments to the company have also been frozen, according to Bloomberg.
This decision — which came after the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sanctions against the Russian company in October — raised questions about whether the oil would continue to flow.
However, informed sources indicated that oil from the field is still being shipped to customers, and that the Iraqi state oil marketing company SOMO is handling the sales and currently holding the proceeds within Iraq. The sources requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter.
The continued operation of West Qurna-2, Lukoil’s largest offshore upstream asset, exemplifies how countries are trying to avoid supply shocks following US sanctions. OFAC imposed sanctions last month on Lukoil and Rosneft, two of Russia’s largest producers, with implementation scheduled for November 21. Some of the restrictions on Lukoil have been postponed until next month.
Iraq was in talks with the US Treasury Department about trying to transfer ownership of Lukoil’s stake in the field before the sanctions took effect, or extending the deadline.
The West Qurna 2 oil field has the capacity to produce approximately 500,000 barrels per day of crude oil destined for refineries in Asia and Europe. Sources indicated that SOMO sells a portion of the field’s oil directly to refineries, while the remainder is distributed among other production companies operating within Iraq.
Companies that work with entities subject to US sanctions risk being cut off from the Western financial system and denied access to dollar transactions — a worrying prospect for producers, since oil is sold globally in dollars, and companies make payments to contractors in this currency to finance infrastructure.
The Iraqi Oil Ministry did not respond to a request for comment outside of working hours. Lukoil also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Iraqi government compensates international oil companies by paying them in crude oil instead of cash for their work in the country. These companies also receive a share of “equity crude” based on their ownership percentage in the oil fields, which they can sell on the open market or use in their own refineries.
International companies such as ExxonMobil and Chevron are in talks about acquiring some Iraqi oil fields.
Read on: The list of companies seeking to buy Lukoil’s assets expands to include Exxon, Chevron, and Abu Dhabi.
Swiss energy trading firm Gunvor abandoned its bid to acquire all of Lukoil International’s assets after the U.S. Treasury Department described it on social media as a “Kremlin puppet,” asserting that it would never get approval to complete the deal. https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=62573
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