Tishwash: During Saturday’s session, legislation is expected, including the budget and three other laws.
Member of Parliament Mohammed Al-Ziyadi confirmed on Thursday that the Iraqi parliament will resume its sessions starting next Saturday, following a decision to cancel the legislative recess.
Al-Zayadi told Al-Maalouma News Agency that “the House of Representatives will begin its sessions on Saturday, as part of the final legislative term, after the legislative recess was cancelled,” noting that the parliament’s agenda includes a number of important laws that are a priority for the next phase.
He explained that “among the most prominent laws that will be discussed and approved during this session are the law restructuring the Popular Mobilization Forces, amending the industrial investment law, and the education law, in addition to voting on the 2025 budget schedules.”
It is noteworthy that Parliament held a deliberative session earlier this week dedicated to discussing the repercussions of the imposed war on Iran, during which the representatives called for the necessity of activating and strengthening air defense systems to ensure the protection of national autonomy. link
Tishwash: Government advisor: A positive oil price shock reduces the budget’s need for borrowing.
The Prime Minister’s financial advisor, Mazhar Mohammed Saleh, confirmed that the geopolitical circumstances resulting from the ongoing war between Iran and Israel undoubtedly contributed to generating a “positive oil price shock,” as oil markets have recovered from the decline in the oil asset cycle (i.e., the previous negative oil shock) in the recent period, with oil prices now making their way towards a rapid rise.
Saleh explained to Al Furat News Agency that “the average oil price decline of $10 per barrel of exported oil from the levels of the beginning of the current year 2025 has returned to witness an increase to its previous stable conditions before the decline, and within a few days, with an increase estimated at about $10 per barrel of exported crude oil, and in an opposite manner under the influence of the positive oil price shock.”
He added, “This will undoubtedly reduce the general budget’s need for large-scale actual borrowing if public spending is based on the annual minimum of 160 trillion dinars per year, and at an average annual oil price of $75 per barrel. This means covering operating and investment expenses relatively comfortably if the oil barrel maintains an annual average that exceeds or approaches the aforementioned average increase in exports throughout the current fiscal year. This is an activity for the general budget in 2025 that is similar to the spending developments that occurred in 2024.”
Saleh pointed out that “what we see is that the current high price structure will likely stabilize without declining even if hostilities between the two parties to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East cease. This is due to the influence of hedging factors and the buildup of fossil fuel stocks at the global level, in addition to the rapid expiration of the downward cycle of oil assets after taking its current stable form and maintaining balance in energy markets under the influence of the continued multiplicity of geopolitical tensions in more than one place in the global energy demand belts.”
He stressed that “this does not preclude diversifying non-oil revenue sources in a transparent and more governed manner, and imposing discipline on any unnecessary expenditures that can be postponed at the present time, in light of the policy.” link
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Tishwash: The President and Prime Minister affirm Iraq’s categorical rejection of any violation of its sovereignty.
President of the Republic, Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid, and Prime Minister, Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, affirmed during their meeting in Baghdad, on Wednesday, Iraq’s categorical rejection of the violation of its sovereignty by the Zionist entity, and the endangerment of its airspace in light of the recent regional escalation.
According to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s media office, received by Mawazine News, during the meeting, the general situation in the country and security developments in the region were discussed as a result of the continued Israeli aggression against the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the widespread threat it poses to the security and stability of the region and the world.
The statement added that “Iraq supports all legal and diplomatic steps taken by the government to protect its sovereignty, including resorting to international bodies and working to resume negotiations between Tehran and Washington as a way to reduce tensions.”
The meeting also witnessed an emphasis on the importance of national unity and the solidarity of all political and social forces to support the state’s efforts in confronting the increasing challenges resulting from regional developments. link
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Tishwash: Al-Sudani declares 2025 the year of Iraqi industry.
Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani announced that 2025 will be the year of Iraqi industry, in a new confirmation of the government’s progress with its plans to support national industry and achieve self-sufficiency in vital sectors such as food and energy.
This came during his inauguration, yesterday, Wednesday, of a group of strategic industrial projects in Babil Governorate, which included the mills of the Union Company for the production of zero flour in the Madhatiyah district, which were completed in only (11) months, with a production capacity of up to one million tons annually, which covers about (50%) of the local market’s need and reduces dependence on importing flour, which used to cost the country more than (750) million dollars annually.
The Prime Minister emphasized that “these projects represent a clear example of the government’s approach to supporting the manufacturing and food industries, through effective partnerships with the private sector and providing an appropriate investment environment.”
Al-Sudani also launched the executive works of the Diwan factory for the production of transformers, cables and smart meters, which is a strategic project to localize electrical industries, and is being implemented with the latest technical specifications with a budget of up to (300) million dollars.
Al-Sudani said: “I announce that the year 2025 will be the year of Iraqi industry, and we are continuing to open major industrial projects and lay the foundation stone for new factories, in the belief that the national economy cannot rise without a strong national industry.”
He pointed out that the government is working to enhance food and energy security and reduce dependence on foreign resources, especially in light of the current global crises, stressing that Iraq possesses the capabilities and competencies that will enable it to rise again as a regional industrial power.
The Prime Minister explained that Babylon Governorate is on the verge of a qualitative transformation in the field of industry, as it includes more than (2000) operating factories, in addition to the government’s readiness to declare it an integrated industrial city after completing the requirements for establishing new industrial cities in it, with support from the federal government.
Al-Sudani concluded by saying, “We strongly support the loyal people of Iraq who are shaping the industrial future, and we are working to remove all obstacles facing the industrial sector, so that it can be the primary driver of economic growth and job creation.” link
