Tishwash: Parliamentary Finance: No new appointments in the 2025 budget
The Parliamentary Finance Committee confirmed, on Sunday, February 9, 2025, that there are no appointments in the federal budget for the current year.
Committee member Mustafa Al-Karawi said in a statement followed by Al-Jabal, “According to the latest amendments, there is no fundamental change in the budget law, and no new appointments have been included, but it is possible for the government to move within the budget schedules to reactivate some of the previous specializations and texts.”
He stated that “the amendments sent by the Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers were limited to Article (12) related to the cost of extracting oil in the Kurdistan Region,” indicating that “the amended article is supposed to enter into force soon, which will allow the start of exporting oil from the region’s wells through the SOMO company.”
The Ministerial Council for the Economy recommended a few days ago to stop listing new investment projects except for necessary ones.
The Council sent its recommendation to the Council of Ministers regarding new investment projects to stop listing these projects except for the necessary ones, with the approval of the Council of Ministers and the endorsement of the Ministry of Planning and Finance to provide financial allocation before entering into any financial obligations link
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Tishwash: The dollar stabilizes in the parallel market.. Is the price madness over?
The US dollar exchange rate is witnessing remarkable stability in the parallel market in Iraq at the present time, after a period of fluctuations and rising prices.
This stability is mainly attributed to the decrease in demand for the dollar for import purposes.
Economic expert Salah Nouri told {Euphrates News} that: “The stability of the dollar exchange rate in the parallel market is due to the decrease in demand for imports by traders who import goods from neighboring countries, as a result of anticipation of the outcome of the US decisions regarding sanctions.”
Nouri stressed that “the decrease in the dollar exchange rate has a positive impact on citizens’ purchasing power, but to varying degrees depending on the type of goods, such as basic food items other than medicines.”
Is the price madness over?
This stability indicates the possibility of an end to the “price madness” that the dollar market witnessed in the previous period; however, the economic expert believes that this stability is dependent on the decisions of the United States of America regarding sanctions, which means that the market may witness other fluctuations in the future.
Its impact on citizens
The decline in the dollar exchange rate has a positive impact on citizens’ purchasing power, as they can buy more goods and services with the same amount of Iraqi dinars. However, this impact varies depending on the type of goods, as citizens benefit more from the decline in the prices of basic food items other than medicines. link
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Tishwash: Saeed Tavakli: Iraq signs new gas export contract with Iran
The CEO of the National Iranian Gas Company, Saeed Tavakoli, confirmed today, Saturday, “The export of gas to Iraq is currently ongoing, and we have recently signed a long-term contract with Iraq.”
Tavakoli told the Iranian Mehr News Agency regarding US President Donald Trump’s decision last Wednesday to cancel the exemption granted to Iraq to import electricity and gas from Iran as part of new sanctions against Tehran, “The decision represents an escalation of US pressure on Iran, as it pressures Iraq to reduce its dependence on Iranian energy.”
Saeed Tavakoli stressed, “The export of gas to Iraq is currently underway, and since we have recently extended a good contract for exporting gas, it is likely that the cancellation of the exemption granted to Iraq to import electricity and gas from Iran was for another form of gas import.”
The Iranian official continued, “Fortunately, the Iranian-Iraqi contract is in place, but the volume of exports increases and decreases according to the contractual terms.”
Regarding gas imports and swaps, Tavakoli also said, “We do not import gas, but gas imports and swaps, such as electricity, are carried out from Armenia.”
The CEO of the National Gas Company also stated regarding the drop in temperatures and the state of gas supply: “Currently, the network conditions are stable, and in the current situation, 72 percent of the gas produced is consumed in the domestic sector, and thanks to the cooperation of citizens, the gas supply network will remain stable in the coming days.”
Iranian officials said last year that Iraq owed Iran $11 billion in debt due to the gas it purchased, and the payment of this debt was postponed by Iraq to the extent that Iran was forced, in response, to reduce gas exports due to the heavy debt. link
