According to a report released on Friday by the Iraq Future Foundation for Economic Studies and Consultations, Iraq’s trade volume with a number of important international partners reached $65 billion in the first half of 2024, representing a 10% increase from the same period in 2023.
China, India, Turkiye, South Korea, the United States, Germany, Jordan, Brazil, Japan, Saudi Arabia, and Australia are among the nations involved in this trade.
According to the foundation’s report, “Iraq exported goods valued at $45 billion to these countries during the first six months of 2024, representing an 11.6% rise year-on-year” and that “China was the top importer of Iraqi goods, followed by India, South Korea, and the US, with crude oil being the primary export commodity” were among the countries that the country sent goods to.
In contrast, it revealed that “Iraq’s imports from these countries totaled $19.6 billion, marking an 8.1% increase compared to 2023.” China was the largest exporter to Iraq, followed by Turkiye and India.
“Iraq’s trade balance with these countries showed a surplus of $26 billion, up 14.4 percent from 2023,” reads the report.
In addition, the report stated that “The UAE and Iran have yet to disclose their trade volumes with Iraq for the first half of 2024,” despite the fact that “Iran’s exports, including electricity and gas, were valued at $10 billion” in 2023 and “The UAE exported goods worth $22 billion to Iraq.”
“Iraq’s largest trade imbalance was with Turkiye, amounting to $5.2 billion—up 15.3% from the same period in 2023,” the Iraq Future data added.
“Iraq’s total trade with these countries could reach $130 billion by the end of 2024, with the inclusion of trade with the UAE and Iran potentially pushing the total to nearly $160 billion,” the report predicted in terms of the future.
