Iraq Economic News and Points To Ponder Tuesday Afternoon 9-29-26
Dhi Qar Gas Storage Project Begins Trial Operation
2026-09-29 Shafaq News- Dhi Qar A new liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) storage facility at the Nasiriyah gas depot in Iraq's southern Dhi Qar began trial operation on Tuesday, a move Deputy Oil Minister for Gas Affairs Ezzat Saber Ismail said would strengthen storage capacity and help stabilize supplies across the province.
Speaking at the launch, Ismail said the depot's two tanks have a combined storage capacity of 5,000 cubic meters. The South Gas Company supplies the site through a feeder pipeline at a rate of 300 to 400 tonnes a day, compared with Dhi Qar's daily demand of 250 to 350 tonnes.
The facility will also support state-run and private plants that fill household gas cylinders, which produce about 25,000 to 30,000 cylinders a day, equivalent to roughly 300 tonnes of gas. Ismail said the project would also help meet demand for cooking gas and automotive LPG. https://shafaq.com/en/Economy/Dhi-Qar-gas-storage-project-begins-trial-operation
South Korea Takes 3.8M Barrels Of Iraqi Crude In August
2026-09-29 Shafaq News- Baghdad/ Seoul Iraq, OPEC’s second-largest producer, ranked sixth among South Korea’s largest crude oil suppliers in August 2026, shipping 3.826 million barrels after recording no imports in July, official Korean data showed.
The August volume, however, was down 65.5% from 11.105 million barrels in the same month of 2025.
South Korea’s overall crude imports reached 91.335 million barrels in August, down 2.2% from 93.351 million a year earlier and 2% from 93.180 million in July.
Saudi Arabia topped the supplier list with 21.669 million barrels, followed by the United States with 17.926 million and the United Arab Emirates with 16.761 million. Kuwait ranked fourth with 7.580 million barrels and Oman fifth with 4 million.
Australia followed Iraq with 3.616 million barrels, ahead of Mexico at 2.982 million, Algeria at 2.480 million and Kazakhstan at 2.074 million. https://shafaq.com/en/Economy/South-Korea-takes-3-8M-barrels-of-Iraqi-crude-in-August
USD/IQD Climbs In Baghdad And Erbil Markets
2026-09-29 Shafaq News- Baghdad/ Erbil The US dollar opened higher in Iraq on Tuesday, trading around 157,000 dinars per $100.
According to a Shafaq News market survey, the dollar traded in Baghdad's Al-Kifah and Al-Harithiya exchanges at 157,000 dinars per 100 dollars, up from Monday's 156,000 dinars.
In the Iraqi capital, exchange shops sold the dollar at 157,500 dinars and bought it at 156,500 dinars, while in Erbil, selling prices stood at 157,400 dinars and buying prices at 157,350 dinars.
https://shafaq.com/en/Economy/USD-IQD-climbs-in-Baghdad-and-Erbil-markets-1
Bought Followers, Lost Money: Inside Iraq's Social Media Account Trade
2026-09-28 19:00 Shafaq News- Baghdad Riam Fadhil, 25, wanted her cake and pastry business to launch with a ready-made audience. Rather than spend months building one on social media, she bought an existing account with hundreds of thousands of followers, hoping it would lend her venture credibility and faster reach.
Fadhil told Shafaq News she paid one million Iraqi dinars (about $760) for an account with roughly 300,000 followers, but the purchase did not deliver. "After I started posting, I noticed that most of the followers were men, and their numbers began dropping rapidly," she recalled. Real engagement never materialized, and the comments that did appear were mostly negative or mocking.
When she returned to the seller and demanded a refund, he refused, telling her the account had previously been used to sell motorcycles and that payments cannot be returned once a sale is complete.
Trade in social media pages has become noticeably more common in recent months, she observed. Some belong to well-known activists or influencers who sell them, while others are stolen accounts with large followings that are resold for profit.
Legal Gray Area
Specialists interviewed by Shafaq News warn that the practice carries security and social risks as the Iraqi law contains no direct provision punishing it as a standalone crime. Only indirect provisions apply, tied to the nature of the transaction and its consequences.
Platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube prohibit selling, buying, or transferring accounts without their approval, and can permanently close an account once a sale is detected. Legal experts said buyers may face difficulty seeking compensation through the courts when a transaction violates a platform’s terms of service, though the outcome would depend on the circumstances of each case.
Legal expert Mohammed Jumaa said that no law prevents the sale or purchase of accounts on Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, or similar platforms, “making the act permissible in the absence of a prohibiting provision.”
“Such sales fall under the general rules governing sales and privacy,” he explained, adding that the law doesn’t bar the sale of an account unless it violates privacy, as when the account holds personal photos, messages, or other private material.
Read more: Iraq’s influencers: How CBI rules could push a booming digital economy underground
Jumaa said both seller and buyer could face legal liability if private photos or confidential information from a sold account were published.
A sale can also become a criminal matter, Jumaa warned, particularly when the account is used for electronic extortion or to lure victims for human trafficking. In such cases, Jumaa said both parties could face criminal liability if the account were used for offenses such as electronic extortion or human trafficking, “depending on their knowledge and involvement.”
Because many account sales are not carried out under written contracts, he added, a seller can easily deny involvement.
Scams on Telegram
Jamil Rashid, 20, wanted to share his daily life online and speed up his reach, so he turned to a Telegram page that specializes in selling accounts. After agreeing on a deal with a seller and transferring the payment, he lost all contact: the seller vanished and closed the account. Rashid never received what he paid for.
Shafaq News identified account markets on Telegram and Facebook, in groups with more than 600 members each, listing accounts with varying follower counts and prices set by audience size and other details.
Inside the Trade
One seller active in one of these groups, Hamed Ali, described to Shafaq News how the accounts are built. The process begins with videos on subjects that draw wide attention and high view counts: accidents, fires, brawls, and murder cases, which pull in viewers and followers. "Once the account reaches a suitable number, I put it up for sale."
Building an account takes months of consistent posting, so Ali creates and manages several at once. Some owners of failed or abandoned projects also sell their accounts instead of closing them for good, he added.
Buyers receive guarantees, according to Ali, who described an account as reliable and safe from shutdown when the buyer deals with trustworthy people, but he didn’t specify any formal or legal form of guarantee.
For young people and teenagers, he pointed out, the trade offers moderate but quick profit with no effort beyond a phone. “Prices only go up, and an account is ready for sale at a minimum of 10,000 followers, selling for $25 to $30. Accounts at that price point are the fastest to sell.”
Technical Risks
Firas Faqouri, a technology specialist, told Shafaq News that buying and selling accounts is a losing proposition in many cases. TikTok and Instagram bar account sales and ownership transfers, he noted, because each account is tied to its own data and algorithms.
Once an account passes to a new owner, a change in content style can alter posting patterns and the target audience, he explained, affecting engagement and reach and potentially leading to weaker performance or action by the platform, depending on its policies.
Security is another concern, Faqouri cautioned. A buyer may lose the account if the seller cannot be trusted, since in some cases the previous owner can recover it through recovery details linked to them, even after the email address and password have been changed. “The buyer can end up losing both the account and the money paid.”
Read more: CBI: Social media influencers are financial crime threat
https://shafaq.com/en/society/Bought-followers-lost-money-Inside-Iraq-s-social-media-account-trade
Ten Arrested Over Alleged Samawah Hospital Receipt Manipulation
2026-09-29 Shafaq News- Al-Muthanna Iraq’s Federal Commission of Integrity announced on Tuesday the arrest of 10 hospital employees in Samawah, the capital of southern Al-Muthanna province, over alleged manipulation of payment receipts and misappropriation of fees involving more than 1,000 patient records.
The commission's Al-Muthanna Investigation Office examined records from 2024, 2025 and 2026, finding nearly 800 without payment receipts and around 200 accompanied by receipts bearing names different from those of the actual patients.
Based on the findings, the judge of the Al-Muthanna Integrity Investigation Court issued arrest and search warrants for the 10 employees under Article 315 of the Iraqi Penal Code.
https://shafaq.com/en/society/Ten-arrested-over-alleged-Samawah-hospital-receipt-manipulation
****************
Anti-Corruption Court Sentences Fourth Iraqi MP In A Month
2026-09-29 06:36 Shafaq News- Baghdad Iraq's Central Anti-Corruption Criminal Court sentenced sitting lawmaker Mohammed Farman Shaher Salman al-Jubouri to seven years in prison for illicit enrichment, the Federal Commission of Integrity said on Tuesday, the fourth member of parliament jailed on the same charge this month.
The court ordered al-Jubouri to repay illicit gains of 11.8 billion Iraqi dinars and $1.73 million, and fined him an equal amount. The total comes to 28,157,250,476 dinars, more than $21 million, according to the commission.
The verdict was delivered in al-Jubouri's presence under Article 19 of the Commission of Integrity and Illicit Gain Law No. 30 of 2011, as amended. A separate three-year sentence for concealment will not be served, because the court applied “the heavier of the two penalties.”
Lawmaker Bahaa al-Din al-Nouri received a seven-year sentence on Sept. 16. On Sept. 23, the same court handed seven-year terms to lawmakers Alia Nassif and Ashwaq Salem Hassan.
Nassif was ordered to pay more than 61 billion dinars and Hassan nearly 12 billion dinars, with both totals covering illicit gains and matching fines.
The rulings are part of Dawn Crackdown, a nationwide anti-corruption campaign that Iraqi authorities launched on June 28 against current and former officials, lawmakers and business figures.
Read more:Corruption arrests in Iraq pass 210 under PM al-Zaidi
https://shafaq.com/en/society/Anti-corruption-court-jails-fourth-Iraqi-MP-in-a-month
Source: US Approves Najaf Exemption For Iran Flights
2026-09-29 Shafaq News- Baghdad/ Washington The US administration has agreed to exempt Najaf International Airport from restrictions affecting Iranian airline operations, an Iraqi government source told Shafaq News on Tuesday, citing the airport's use of Iraqi ground-handling staff and its ability to process transactions outside the US dollar.
The source said other Iraqi airports rely on foreign ground-handling companies that halted services to Iranian carriers over concerns about US sanctions, while Najaf uses Iraqi ground-service staff and can process transactions in euros, Iraqi dinars or Iranian tomans.
Najaf Airport is also administratively under the provincial government rather than the Transport Ministry and had continued servicing Iranian carriers until a US decision prompted Najaf Governor Yusuf Kanawi to halt those operations.
The source said Iranian airlines could resume flights once Iraq’s Council of Ministers or the Najaf governor issues the necessary authorization, without exposing the airport to US sanctions.
On September 28, Iraqi Airways announced that it had resumed its own flights to Iranian airports through Najaf. However, the resumption did not apply to Iranian carriers. A Najaf Airport source later told Shafaq News that restrictions on Iranian airlines remained in force and that the airport had received no official instructions allowing them to resume flights.
Read more: US sanctions reshape Iraq-Iran travel, airline operations
https://shafaq.com/en/society/Source-US-approves-Najaf-exemption-for-Iran-flights