Tishwash: Iraq spends half of its budget on imports, and these countries are at the forefront of suppliers
The Ministry of Planning revealed “the volume of Iraq’s annual imports.”
The Ministry’s spokesman, Abdul Zahra Al-Hindawi, said in a statement to the official media, that: “Iraq imports many goods and merchandise from various countries of the world, including foodstuffs of various kinds and shapes, including electrical, construction, engineering, chemical, agricultural, medical, health supplies, and cars.”
He added, “The volume of annual imports reaches no less than 50 billion dollars.”
He continued, “Iraq imports from the countries: Jordan, Turkey, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the Emirates, China, India, Japan, Brazil, the United States, and a number of European countries link
Tishwash: Billion Dollar Ambition.. Iraq Provides Facilities to Egyptian Companies and a Delegation from Them to Visit Baghdad Next Month
Egypt aims to increase the volume of trade exchange with Iraq by about 41% to one billion dollars during the coming year, compared to 707 million dollars annually, according to an Egyptian government official, at a time when major Egyptian companies expressed interest in investing in several sectors there in a meeting with Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani.
The official’s statements came hours after Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’a’s visit to Egypt, where he met with a group of businessmen representing major Egyptian companies, who expressed their readiness to work in Iraq in various fields, especially the development road project, pharmaceutical industries, hospitals, infrastructure, and construction industries, according to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office.
Al-Sudani pointed out during the meeting that “the doors are open to Egyptian businessmen and companies, whose presence in Iraq is important to us, due to their successful experiences, and within a political direction to lead the two countries towards more cooperation and integration,” according to the statement.
The government official added that according to the latest statistics, the value of Egyptian exports to Iraq amounts to about $700 million annually, while the value of imports from Iraq does not exceed $7 million.
In contrast, an Egyptian delegation headed by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Industry and Transport Kamel El-Wazir intends to visit Iraq on September 9, with the aim of completing procedures for strategic partnerships between Egyptian and Iraqi companies, and with the Iraqi government, according to what was revealed by Alaa Ezz, Secretary-General of the Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce.
Ezz added that the meeting with Al-Sudani, which included representatives of several companies including Hisham Talaat Moustafa, Hassan Allam, Orascom and El-Sewedy, witnessed the presentation of “the contribution of Egyptian companies to the infrastructure in the field of housing and construction in Iraq,” adding: “We asked the Prime Minister to deal with Iraq as a partnership and not as a labor market, meaning that Egyptian factories will manufacture production requirements in Iraq, either by acquiring their troubled factories or partnering with them to operate them.”
Pharmaceutical Partnership
Ezz explained that they also asked the Iraqi Council of Ministers to establish a partnership between the two countries in the field of medicines in stages, by establishing Egyptian factories to produce medicines, adding that Iraq imports 90% of its medicine needs, worth 3 billion dollars, revealing that the Iraqi side promised to issue government guarantees to Egyptian companies that will operate in Iraq.
This is not the first time that Egyptian companies have expressed a desire to work in Iraq. Last June, two Egyptian sources said that the Iraqi Ministry of Health was holding talks with Egyptian contracting companies to participate in the implementation and rehabilitation of 12 hospitals in the country with a total investment of $480 million.
Role of contracting companies
In addition to the pharmaceutical sector, Egyptian contracting companies are moving towards expanding their business abroad and seizing business in countries that are allocating billions in investments for reconstruction and development, especially Iraq and Libya.
Iraq needs $88.2 billion to implement reconstruction projects inside the country, which witnessed great destruction during the war against ISIS, according to previous statements by the Iraqi Ministry of Planning.
Tarek Shukry, head of the Real Estate Development Chamber at the Federation of Egyptian Industries, said that the Iraqi Prime Minister addressed his country’s need to build 2.5 million housing units, and implement other projects in the fields of infrastructure, water, roads and utilities.
Shoukry added that the Egyptian Minister of Investment and Industry will be a link between Iraq and Egyptian businessmen, especially with regard to the details of the required investment projects, land locations, offering systems, methods of granting them, financial transfers, granting visas, and other important matters for investors.
Shoukry said that the Iraqi Prime Minister promised to send all the details of the projects within two weeks. link
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Tishwash: OPEC Secretary General arrives in Baghdad
The Secretary-General of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Haitham Al-Ghais, arrived in Baghdad on Wednesday.
The official spokesman for the Iraqi Ministry of Oil said in a statement today, August 28, 2024, “The Secretary-General of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Haitham Al-Ghais, arrived in Baghdad on a two-day visit.”
He added, “The visit comes within the framework of bilateral communication on developments in the oil market, in addition to enhancing and expanding the horizons of cooperation in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and OPEC Plus.”
The ministry spokesman said, “Al-Ghais’s visit schedule includes meeting with the Iraqi Oil Minister and a number of Iraqi officials.”
Sabah Subhi, a member of the Oil and Gas Committee in the Iraqi Parliament, had previously told Kurdistan 24, “Iraq has exceeded its share of oil exports in OPEC, and must reduce its exports next year. Therefore, Iraq is obstructing all attempts to resume the export of oil from the Kurdistan Region.”
Sabah Subhi added, “The Iraqi Ministry of Oil is obstructing all attempts to resume the export of oil from the Kurdistan Region.”
He explained that “Iraq exceeded its share of oil exports in OPEC by 1.4 million barrels out of the 3.6 million barrels allocated to it,” adding that “OPEC has repeatedly warned Iraq against exceeding its share of oil exports.”
As of March 25, 2023, crude oil exports from Kurdistan fields and Kirkuk province to Turkey via the Turkish port of Ceyhan have been halted.
In addition to suspending all oil activities of foreign companies operating in Kurdistan fields, after the decision of the International Arbitration Court in Paris that these exports are illegal.
This decision comes as a result of a lawsuit filed by the federal government against Turkey at the International Court of Arbitration in Paris in 2014, due to its allowing the flow of Kurdistan oil into its territory and its export without Baghdad’s approval.
According to an agreement concluded between Baghdad and Ankara in 2010, the State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO) is the only entity authorized to export, market and sell Iraqi oil in global markets.
Kurdistan used to export 450 thousand barrels daily to Turkey, to secure the salaries of its employees and its financial revenues, due to the absence of an oil and gas law regulating the management of oil wealth in Iraq.
On April 4, 2023, Erbil and Baghdad reached an interim agreement until the Iraqi parliament passes the oil and gas law.
This agreement stipulated that the Kurdistan government would hand over 400,000 barrels per day to SOMO, form a joint four-party committee to oversee the sale of oil in global markets, open an independent account at the Central Bank to deposit financial revenues, and appoint a representative from the regional government as Deputy Director General of SOMO. link
