Gold Smuggling...A Double Threat To The Economy And The Iraqi Dinar
 
November 18, 2024  Baghdad/Iraq Observer  The smuggling of Iraqi gold represents the latest chapter in the money laundering  operations that the country is suffering from, as the Iraqi authorities were recently able to thwart an attempt to smuggle large quantities of gold through Baghdad International Airport, at a time when the Federal Integrity Commission announced intervention and opened an investigation into the case.
 
The head of the Integrity Commission, Muhammad Ali Al-Lami, announced the directive of the legal department in the commission to open a comprehensive investigation into the attempt to smuggle gold via one of the Iraqi Airlines planes.

The commission confirmed that the case is one of the largest cases of financial and administrative corruption, stressing the importance of following up the case in all its details and taking action.
 
Necessary actions.
 
For its part, the Border Ports Authority indicated that “the attempt was foiled after the discovery of 13 gold bars with a total weight of 13.7 kg, which were carefully hidden in the weighing hall at Baghdad Airport,” explaining that
 
“the bars were discovered using modern baggage detection devices, and it confirmed that the investigations We are continuing to identify those responsible for this attempt.
 
In turn, legal expert Ali Al-Tamimi confirmed that  “Money Laundering Law No. 39 of 2015 imposes penalties of up to 20 years in prison and fines that are not less than the value of the smuggled money, and may reach five times that.”

Al-Tamimi added to “Iraq Observer” that  “Iraq can sue countries that contribute to destabilizing its economy, based on Articles 1, 2, and 3 of the United Nations Charter, which gives Iraq the possibility of resorting to the United Nations and the International Court of Justice to protect its economic interests.”
 
Reports and analyzes indicate that gold smuggling in Iraq is no longer an individual issue, but has become part of an interconnected corruption system supported by influential parties, as these operations are exploited to feed the black market and weaken the national economy.
 
Specialists believe that the continuation of this phenomenon represents a direct threat to national resources, as smuggling operations are no longer limited to gold only, but also  include oil and currencies,  which increases the economic crisis in the country.

Innovative methods
 
In turn, Member of Parliament Alia Nassif confirmed that “gold smuggling operations are conducted using innovative methods,” warning that   these operations aim to systematically destroy the Iraqi economy.

She pointed out that  large quantities of local and imported gold are melted down and converted into bullion to be smuggled abroad, which opens the way for money laundering and financing illegal operations.
 
Nassif called on the regulatory authorities and the Central Bank to   
     trace the sources of funds used to buy gold and   
     ensure the validity of the procedures followed at border crossings and customs.

She also stressed the need to investigate how funds are transferred through the currency sales window and their role in financing these operations, stressing that these financial crimes do not threaten Not only national wealth,  but also increases the exchange rate gap between the official market and the parallel market.    https://observeriraq.net/تهريب-الذهب-خطر-مزدوج-على-الاقتصاد-وال/   

Rusli Al-Maliki: This Is How Citizens Can Be Encouraged To Benefit From Their Cash Savings That They Are Afraid To Deposit In Banks.
 
November 15, 2024  Baghdad/Iraq Observer  Rusli Al-Maliki: This is how citizens can be encouraged to benefit from their cash savings that they are afraid to deposit in banks.
 
 [approximate translation of video]
 
Peace be upon you, followers of Iraq and Buzz. 
Iraqi financial institutions complain about the hoarding of citizens’ money in their hands and in their homes instead of putting it in banks.
 
Iraqi banks, for Iraqis, are not trustworthy.   The bureaucracy and the backward system of banks do not leave an opportunity to put Iraqi money in citizens’ money, but there is another way.
 
This money can appear in a way that benefits the country and provides job opportunities. 
Large taxes must be imposed on the country, which is by expanding cities outward.
 
This is done through ring roads, extending the infrastructure, and selling land to citizens, land that is suitable for housing or divided as housing.
 
Here, this money will go out to work in the field of investment, in the field of contracting, in the field of construction, and in selling and buying.

The country will find itself with large amounts of money that have come out of pockets and homes and have been put in this field.  
This will provide large job opportunities.  
This will provide good taxes for the state.  
This will provide pressure relief on cities and the state.
 
What you will spend on infrastructure you will get through the taxes on the white goods and the purchases that you take.

There is more than one solution to benefit from this money.  
We only need urban planning and city expansion. 
Thank you.

Watch the video below:
 
https://youtu.be/0Z89Jag0D3I?si=7TO4x1QgKiKe5AfM
 
https://observeriraq.net/رسلي-المالكي-هكذا-يمكن-تشجيع-المواطني/

The Central Bank Organizes A Symposium In Cooperation With The University Of Mosul
 
November 18, 2024   Within the framework of   
     seeking to develop the educational environment and
     enhance academic and financial cooperation in raising community awareness and on the
     importance of banking compliance,
 
the Central Bank of Iraq / Mosul Branch organized a scientific symposium in cooperation with the Department of Banking and Financial Sciences at the College of Administration and Economics, University of Mosul.
 
 The symposium was titled (Compliance and its role in reducing money laundering operations) in which a number of government and private banks in the governorate participated, in addition to the teaching staff at the university.
 
The attendees stressed the importance of the symposium, which was devoted to the vocabulary of compliance  because of its repercussions on the stability of the financial system, which in turn helps. In protecting the national economy of Iraq.
    
 Central Bank of Iraq      Media office      November 18, 2024   https://cbi.iq/news/view/2713   

Delete The Zeros And Evaluate The Dinar 
Economical 11/18/2024  Ali Daadoush  We explained, in a newspaper column a while ago, the concept of deleting zeros, and today we are talking about the concept of currency revaluation, which means a calculated upward adjustment of the official exchange rate of a country relative to the chosen baseline, as the baseline can include (wage rates, the price of gold, or specific foreign currency), and revaluation is the opposite of devaluation of a currency.
 
In the fixed exchange system (the system followed by Iraq), only a decision from the state (the central bank) can change the official value of the currency, and
 
developing economies are likely to use the fixed exchange system in order to limit speculation and provide a stable monetary system in the country.
 
In a flexible exchange system, revaluation occurs on a regular basis, as evidenced by noticeable fluctuations in the foreign exchange market and associated exchange rates.
 
For example, the United States continued to apply a fixed exchange rate until 1973, when President Richard Nixon decided to withdraw the United States from the gold standard and switch to a flexible exchange rate system.
 
As for China, although it has an advanced economy, Its currency remained stable until 1994, before the Chinese government re-evaluated its currency in 2005, which was linked to the US dollar. After this re-evaluation, it was linked to a basket of currencies. Universality.
 
The decision to revalue the local currency affects the economy in general, as it affects both the currency being examined and the valuation of assets held by foreign companies in this particular currency.
 
Given that revaluation has the ability to change the exchange rate between two countries and their currencies, the values ​​may have to be adjusted. The carrying amount of assets owned abroad to reflect the effect of a change in the exchange rate.
 
For example, let us assume that a foreign government sets (10 units) of its currency as equivalent to one dollar in US currency. To revalue its currency, the government may change the price to (5 units) per dollar.   
This results in its currency becoming twice as expensive when evaluated in US dollars compared to what it was. It was previously.
 
If the above currency revaluation occurs, any assets held by a US company in the foreign economy must be revalued.
 
If the value of an asset held in a foreign currency was previously valued at $100,000 based on the old exchange rate, the revaluation would require a change of $200. One thousand US dollars.

This change reflects the new value of the foreign asset in the local currency by adjusting the revaluation of the currency in question.
 
Another example is what the Iraqi government did in 2023 when it raised the value of the Iraqi dinar from 1,450 dinars/dollar to 1,300 dinars/dollar.   https://alsabaah.iq/106053-.html   

Economic: Re-Exporting Kurdistan Oil Will Cause Iraq To Lose $5 Billion And A Budget Deficit
 
Economy ​ 11-16-2024, 13:09 | Baghdad today – Baghdad  Economist Nabil Al-Marsoumi confirmed today, Saturday (November 16, 2024), that re-exporting Kurdistan’s oil will cause Iraq to lose $5 billion, while noting that  it will cause a budget deficit.
 
Al-Marsoumi said in a post on Facebook, followed by Baghdad Today, that the Kurdistan Petroleum Industry Association (APIKUR) welcomed the proposal to amend Article 12 of the Budget Law,
 
but believes that there is sufficient scope in the current wording to cover its previous requests related to commercial conditions and guaranteeing payment. Payments for past and future exports through the Iraqi-Turkish oil pipeline.”

He added,  "The amendment stipulates that the Federal Ministry of Finance shall compensate the Government of Kurdistan from sovereign expenditures for the costs of production and transportation, for the quantities of oil produced in the region that are received by (SOMO), or the Federal Ministry of Oil, provided that the fair estimated costs of production and transportation are calculated for each.

" Field by field, by a specialized international technical advisory body, determined by the Federal Ministry of Oil in agreement with the Ministry of Natural Resources in the region,” indicating that
 
“production and transportation costs are compensated by the Federal Ministry of Finance.” As an advance, at a rate of $16 per barrel, it will be settled later after the completion of the specialized technical consultant mentioned above, and retroactively from the date of commencement of delivery.”

Al-Marsoumi continued,  “According to the results of Deloitte’s audit for previous years, the region was only receiving 44% of oil revenues, and
 
the rest is received by foreign oil companies to cover the costs of production, transportation, marketing, and the profits of foreign companies, which are specified in most contracts at 20% of oil profits after deducting costs.” amounting to 40% of the price of a barrel of oil to recover part of the costs incurred by foreign companies when investing in the oil sector in Kurdistan.

He explained,  "In light of these facts and because of Iraq's commitment to OPEC Plus restrictions, the amount of Kurdistan's exports amounting to 400 thousand barrels per day will require reducing the same amount from the central and southern fields, which will lead to a decline in oil revenues by about 5 billion dollars annually,
 
which means an increase in the budget deficit by the same amount due to... Differences in costs and profits of foreign companies and the lower quality of Kurdistan’s oil.”

He stated,  "The solution lies in Iraq's request to OPEC Plus to exempt it from the mandatory and voluntary cuts imposed on the production quota so that there is an economic feasibility in re-exporting oil from Kurdistan." 
 
https://baghdadtoday.news/262139-اقتصادي-إعادة-تصدير-نفط-كردستان-سيؤدي-لخسارة-العراق-5-مليارات-دولار-وعجز-بالموازنة.html   

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