Iraq Economic News And Points To Ponder Monday Afternoon 3-23-26
The Coordinating Body Will Meet Tomorrow, Tuesday, To Decide On A Replacement For Maliki
latest news Monday, March 23, 2026 Baghdad – One News 3/23/2026
Saudi Arabia’s Al-Sharq TV reported that the Coordination Framework will hold a meeting on Tuesday to discuss nominating a replacement for former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
The channel added that disagreements within the framework led to the postponement of deciding on the mechanism for choosing a replacement, in light of differing positions among the leaders.
She indicated that some leaders informed Maliki of the need to withdraw from the prime ministership race, but he refused and stipulated that a vote be held within the framework to withdraw his candidacy.
According to the sources, a proposal was put forward to conduct a secret paper vote to choose the alternative, with three options on the table including Maliki, the current Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, and a possible third candidate.
She also explained that the coordinating framework has several options: either keeping al-Maliki, nominating al-Sudani, or choosing a new name, amid a clear division among its components.
The channel confirmed that Tuesday’s meeting could be crucial in determining the course of the prime ministerial nomination, given the escalating controversy surrounding the decision-making mechanism within the framework.
https://1news-iq.net/الإطار-التنسيقي-يجتمع-يوم-غد-الثلاثاء/
IEA Prepared To Unseal Strategic Oil Reserves
2026-03-23 Shafaq News- Paris The International Energy Agency (IEA) is weighing a release of emergency oil stocks as tensions linked to the Strait of Hormuz closure strain global supply, IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol indicated on Monday, describing the situation as the most severe since the energy crises of the 1970s.
Speaking at the National Press Club, Birol noted ongoing assessments of supply conditions and coordination with member states. “If necessary, we will of course do so. We are looking at the conditions,” he added, stressing that no fixed crude price would trigger another coordinated release.
“The most important and only solution to this problem is to open the Strait of Hormuz,” he remarked.
IEA member countries agreed on March 11 to release a record 400 million barrels of oil from strategic reserves to counter the sharp rise in global crude prices.
On Saturday, US President Donald Trump pledged to launch broad strikes on Iranian energy sites within 48 hours if Tehran does not fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz. In response, Iran threatened to fully close the maritime gateway and target regional energy infrastructure if its power facilities face attacks. https://www.shafaq.com/en/Economy/IEA-prepared-to-unseal-strategic-oil-reserves
Oil Prices Oscillate With Trump’s 48-Hour Ultimatum To Iran
2026-03-23 Shafaq News Oil prices swung between gains and losses on Monday as investors weighed rising U.S. and Iranian threats over energy facilities against the release of millions of barrels of seaborne Iranian oil after Washington temporarily removed sanctions.
Brent crude futures rose 65 cents to $112.84 a barrel by 0446 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate was at $98.75 a barrel, up 84 cents. Both contracts were down more than $1 earlier in the session.
The spread of more than $13 a barrel between Brent and WTI is the widest in years.
"Oil sentiment may lurch on threats and rhetoric in the near term, but its more durable direction will continue to be shaped by the state of Middle East oil flows," said Vandana Hari, founder of oil market analysis provider Vanda Insights.
On Saturday, U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to "obliterate" Iran's power plants if it did not fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, barely a day after he talked about "winding down" the war, now in its fourth week.
Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf wrote on X that critical infrastructure and energy facilities in the Middle East could be "irreversibly destroyed" if Iranian power plants were attacked.
"It clearly means more escalation, which means higher oil prices. Some are incorrectly thinking, however, that Iran may cave," said Amrita Sen, founder of Energy Aspects.
"Trump is trying to show he can out-escalate and that way ends in scorched earth for Gulf infrastructure."
The crisis in the Middle East is "very severe" and worse than the two oil shocks of the 1970s put together, Fatih Birol, the executive director of the International Energy Agency, said on Monday.
The war has damaged major energy facilities in the Gulf and nearly halted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which handles about 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas flows.
Analysts estimated a loss of 7 million to 10 million barrels per day of oil production in the Middle East.
Iraq has declared force majeure on all oilfields developed by foreign oil companies, three energy officials said.
Crude production at Basra Oil Company has been cut to 900,000 bpd from 3.3 million bpd, Iraqi Oil Minister Hayan Abdel-Ghani said in a statement issued by his ministry.
Indian refiners plan to resume buying Iranian oil while refiners elsewhere in Asia are examining such a move, traders have said.
"Drawing not only on the subtext of Trump’s remarks but also on a distillation of his barrage of often opaque, at times contradictory, statements, we detect a desire to bring hostilities to an end, alongside a growing focus on reopening the Strait of Hormuz," Hari said.
However, it is unclear that threats to strike Tehran’s energy infrastructure "will prove effective so long as Iran retains the capacity to launch retaliatory, like-for-like attacks on neighbouring states," Hari added.
https://www.shafaq.com/en/Economy/Oil-prices-oscillate-with-Trump-s-48-hour-ultimatum-to-Iran
Oil Prices Retreat $17 Following Trump’s Five-Day Truce
2026-03-23 Shafaq News Oil prices plunged by more than 13% on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would postpone any military strikes against Iranian power plants for five days, hours ahead of a deadline that threatened further escalation in the conflict now in its fourth week.
Brent crude futures traded at about $104.1 a barrel, or down 7.2%, at 1130 GMT after sliding as much as 15% to a session low of $96 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate was down 7.8% at $90.55 after losing 13.5% to a session low of $85.28.
The U.S. president had warned that Iranian power plants would be destroyed if Tehran failed to "fully open" the Strait of Hormuz to all shipping within 48 hours, setting a deadline of around 7:44 p.m. EDT (2344 GMT) on Monday.
His comments sparked threats of retaliation from Iran's Revolutionary Guards, which said they would attack Israel's power plants and those supplying U.S. bases across the Gulf region if Trump followed through with his threat to "obliterate" Iran's power network.
The war has damaged major energy facilities in the Gulf and nearly halted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which handles about 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas flows. Analysts estimated a loss of 7 million to 10 million barrels per day of oil production in the Middle East.
(REUTERS) https://www.shafaq.com/en/Economy/Oil-prices-retreat-17-following-Trump-s-five-day-truce
Iraqi Oil Tanker Clears Hormuz In First Transit Since Conflict
2026-03-23 Shafaq News- Baghdad A supertanker carrying two million barrels of Iraqi crude has successfully passed through the Strait of Hormuz, marking the first confirmed shipment from Iraq via the waterway since the outbreak of the regional conflict.
Shipping data compiled by Bloomberg showed the tanker Omega Trader, operated by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, has arrived in Mumbai in recent days.
The vessel’s tracking signal had last been recorded inside the Gulf more than ten days earlier, reflecting disruptions to maritime traffic during the escalation.
The transit underscores tentative movement in oil flows through Hormuz after weeks of disruption, with several vessels recently completing deliveries, primarily to India. Reports indicate New Delhi engaged with Iranian officials to secure safe passage for energy shipments, with Iran’s navy escorting at least one liquefied gas carrier through the strait.
https://www.shafaq.com/en/Economy/Iraqi-oil-tanker-clears-Hormuz-in-first-transit-since-conflict