Iraq Economic News and Points To Ponder Monday Morning 5-25-26
Iraq And Saudi Arabia Strengthen Their Partnership In Combating Corruption And Recovering Stolen Funds.
Money and Business Economy News – Baghdad The Federal Integrity Commission and the Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia discussed on Monday mechanisms to enhance cooperation in the field of asset recovery and corruption crimes.
A statement issued by the Commission and received by “Al-Eqtisad News” stated that “the Federal Integrity Commission held joint dialogues with the Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to discuss mechanisms for enhancing cooperation in the field of recovering funds obtained from corruption crimes, within the framework of the memorandum of understanding concluded between the two sides, which reflects the growing Iraqi-Saudi relations and the development of joint cooperation in combating corruption to confront this cross-border phenomenon.”
During the events, which were attended by a group of employees from the Authority and the Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Authority affirmed that “cooperation between Iraq and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is witnessing increasing development in the field of preventing and combating corruption, and exchanging technical and legal expertise.”
She called for "forming an effective international alliance to 'break the restrictions' and obstacles to recovering funds and wanted persons, by overcoming obstacles such as differences in legislation and legal systems, banking secrecy, dual nationality, and immigration and asylum problems."
For his part, the Director General of the Recovery Department, according to the statement, reviewed “the most prominent successful recovery operations achieved by Iraq,” indicating that “among them is the recovery of tens of millions of dollars from Switzerland belonging to funds seized before 2003 by an element of the former regime, after he exploited the Oil-for-Food Program and tried to disguise the sources of the funds and register them in his name.”
He explained that “investigations, inquiries, and coordination with several national and international bodies contributed to the recovery of those funds, while he revealed the existence of near-final understandings with one of the Arab countries to recover funds obtained from theft and embezzlement operations that were smuggled to two countries by one of the convicted women, belonging to one of the institutions of the Iraqi state.”
The statement added that "the participants in the dialogues, which took place via an electronic circuit, made interventions and discussions about the most prominent obstacles to recovery, and ways to benefit from international organizations specializing in providing support and assistance in this field, while emphasizing the importance of bilateral memoranda of understanding, especially with the States Parties to the UN and Arab Conventions against Corruption, and the need to expand openness and cooperation between sister countries to organize meetings and specialized events related to integrity, preventing and combating corruption." https://www.economy-news.net/content.php?id=69519
Iraq Has Been Off The List Of Gold Buyers Since The Beginning Of 2026
Money and Business Economy News – Baghdad Iraq did not record any new gold purchases during 2026, despite a number of central banks around the world continuing to increase their holdings of the precious metal.
Iraq holds a reserve of 174.6 tons of the precious metal, placing it 28th globally among the largest countries possessing gold reserves.
Poland topped the list of the world's largest gold buyers this year, adding more than 20 tons to its reserves by the end of February, as part of a long-term plan to raise its stock to 700 tons, driven by growing security concerns on NATO's eastern front.
According to data from the World Gold Council, which was reviewed by "Al-Eqtisad News", Uzbekistan came in second place with an addition of 16.48 tons, followed by Kazakhstan with 6.51 tons, while other countries recorded limited increases, including Malaysia, China and the Czech Republic.
In contrast, some countries resorted to selling part of their gold reserves, with Russia topping the list of sellers with a net decrease of 15.55 tons, followed by Turkey with a reduction of 8.08 tons, amid financial pressures and internal economic challenges.
Experts noted that the increasing global demand for gold reflects a growing trend to diversify reserves away from the US dollar, especially after the freezing of about $300 billion of Russian central bank assets in 2022, which prompted a number of emerging economies to strengthen gold as a reserve asset less vulnerable to geopolitical fluctuations and financial sanctions.
https://www.economy-news.net/content.php?id=69518
Türkiye Announces Its Intention To Increase The Trade Volume With Iraq To $30 Billion Annually.
Money and Business Economy News – Baghdad The Turkish ambassador to Baghdad, Anil Bora Inan, confirmed his country’s desire to raise the volume of trade with Iraq to $30 billion annually.
According to the official newspaper, Inan said, "Turkey has a principled approach to its relations with Iraq, regardless of regional developments, especially with regard to trade and economic ties based on mutual interests.
With its strong private sector, investment potential, and advanced expertise in key industries such as defense, it is well-positioned to help Iraq expand its economic base, actively support the development corridor project, and strengthen Iraq's links to international transport networks. Turkey is already playing an important role in supporting the Iraqi economy."
The ambassador described Iraq as "one of the leading trading partners in the region, with Turkey's total exports to Iraq exceeding US$12.3 billion in 2025, and we aim to increase the volume of trade between the two countries to at least US$30 billion in the coming period," noting that "Iraq is Turkey's fifth largest export partner and the third largest market for our contracting sector."
He said: “Turkey continues to work with the Iraqis to develop and strengthen trade relations on a sustainable and institutional basis that we believe will provide a safety net against ups and downs,” noting that “the two countries have cooperated on the Development Road project, which is expected to contribute to regional and international supply chains, facilitate trade exchange and stimulate economic growth, as they have formed joint permanent committees in many economic fields.
Therefore, developing Turkey’s trade with Iraq, maximizing the volume of bilateral trade, and ensuring trade flow has always been, and will remain, among the primary objectives.” https://www.economy-news.net/content.php?id=69516
Kurdistan Finance Ministry Deposits 50 Billion Dinars In "Non-Oil Revenues" Into Baghdad's Account
Money and Business Economy News – Baghdad The Ministry of Finance and Economy of the Kurdistan Regional Government announced on Monday that it had deposited 50 billion dinars in "non-oil revenues" for the month of May into the account of the Federal Ministry of Finance.
The ministry stated in a statement received by “Economy News”, that “a decision was issued by the ministry to deposit an amount of (50,000,000,000) dinars as non-oil revenues for the region for the month of May, in cash into the bank account of the Ministry of Finance in the federal government at the Erbil branch of the Central Bank of Iraq.”
https://www.economy-news.net/content.php?id=69514
Bloomberg: UAE Ships Resort To "Dark Passage" Through The Strait Of Hormuz
Arabic and international Economy News - Follow-up Bloomberg noted that ADNOC's ships and tankers resorted to a "dark passage" through the Strait of Hormuz, bypassing the Iranian and American navies by ceasing to transmit their signals during the crossing.
Bloomberg reported that Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) is quietly transporting oil and gas shipments using its own fleet, bypassing both the Iranian navy and US warships.
The agency confirmed that ADNOC is quietly working to transport oil and gas shipments from the Gulf region to its energy-poor customers.
Based on practices that include "dark passage"—ships sailing through the Strait of Hormuz with their transponders switched off—ADNOC has proven to be one of the most successful producers in getting supplies out of the Middle East, according to tracking data, traders, and sources familiar with the matter, as reported by Bloomberg.
Satellite data shows that the company's LNG carriers stop at Das Island, the export facility located within the Gulf, where empty tankers head towards the eastern entrance of the strait near Fujairah anchorage and stop transmitting their signals before crossing the waterway to load their cargoes. https://www.economy-news.net/content.php?id=69521