Iraq Economic News and Points To Ponder Monday Afternoon 5-18-26
Calls To Expedite The Submission Of The Budget To The House Of Representatives And Warnings Against Delaying Its Approval
Economy News — Baghdad Member of Parliament Ahlam Al-Kakaei warned of the repercussions of the continued delay in approving the general budget, indicating that the absence of the budget has caused the suspension of many projects and has directly affected the service situation and development plans.
Al-Kaka’i added, in a statement to the official newspaper, that “Parliament extended its holiday due to the issue of forming the government cabinet, before later heading to the legislative holiday, which may lead to further delays in approving the budget if there is no political will to expedite its resolution.”
She stressed that “the continued delay in the budget will affect the launch of new projects and the completion of stalled projects, as well as disrupting the financial obligations of government institutions, stressing the need to expedite the submission of the draft budget to the House of Representatives for discussion and approval.” https://www.economy-news.net/content.php?id=69165
CBI: Iraq Posts About $25 Billion Trade Surplus In 2025
2026-05-18 / Shafaq News- Baghdad Iraq recorded a trade surplus of approximately $24.686 billion in 2025, driven by exports outpacing imports across all four quarters of the year, according to data released Monday by the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI).
Total exports reached roughly $90.43 billion against imports of $65.74 billion, based on foreign trade figures calculated on a free-on-board (FOB) basis —a methodology that values goods at the point of loading in the exporting country, excluding shipping and insurance costs.
Exports declined gradually through the first three quarters before a marginal recovery in the final months of the year. The first quarter led with $24.11 billion, followed by $23.29 billion in the second quarter and $21.41 billion in the third, before edging up to $21.62 billion in the fourth quarter.
Imports followed a broadly similar downward trajectory. The first quarter recorded $18.16 billion, with the figure falling to $15.99 billion in the second quarter and $16.10 billion in the third, before dropping to $15.49 billion in the fourth —the lowest quarterly import figure of the year.
The surplus was sustained in every quarter without exception, with exports consistently exceeding imports throughout 2025, the data showed. https://shafaq.com/en/Economy/CBI-Iraq-posts-about-25-billion-trade-surplus-in-2025
US Denies Official Petraeus Role In Baghdad Visit
2026-05-18 / 04:25 Shafaq News- Washington Former CIA Director Gen. David Petraeus does not hold any position within the US mission in Iraq, a US State Department spokesperson told Shafaq News on Monday, dismissing speculation surrounding his recent visit to Baghdad.
Petraeus visited the Iraqi capital on Friday and held meetings with senior Iraqi officials, without any official clarification regarding the purpose of the trip or the capacity in which he attended.
The visit fueled media reports suggesting that Petraeus, who previously commanded US forces during the Iraq war, had been assigned a special mission or was acting as an envoy for US President Donald Trump. Some reports linked the visit to what they described as growing US pressure on the Iraqi government over Iran-aligned armed factions operating in Iraq.
For Shafaq News, Mostafa Hashem, Washington, DC.
Read more: Iraq after the regional ceasefire: US bases and unresolved political questions
https://www.shafaq.com/en/Iraq/US-denies-official-Petraeus-role-in-Baghdad-visit
A Najafi Source: Al-Sadr's Contact With Al-Zaydi Constitutes A "Shock" Within The Coordination Framework Forces, And There Are Fears Of Support For Al-Hanana
latest news Monday, May 18, 2026 Najaf – One News A source in Najaf revealed that the phone call made by the leader of the Shiite National Movement, Muqtada al-Sadr, to Prime Minister Ali al-Zidi constituted a “shock” within the forces of the Coordination Framework, in light of what he described as growing fears about the repercussions of al-Sadr’s support for al-Zaidi on the balance of political power.
The source said that al-Sadr’s support for al-Zaydi “will put him in a stronger position against the interventions of some of the cadre leaders”, noting that al-Sadr sees in al-Zaydi “a figure who possesses the necessary determination to correct the course of the political process and save the country”, as he put it.
He added that al-Sadr supports the government's approach to combating corruption, and believes that the current stage requires giving the Prime Minister more space to implement real reforms away from political pressures and partisan rivalries.
The source indicated that the atmosphere of concern within the coordination framework escalated after the contact, amid estimates that any rapprochement between Al-Sadr and Al-Zaydi could redraw political alliances during the next stage. https://1news-iq.net/مصدر-نجفي-اتصال-الصدربالزيديشكّل-صدم/
An Economic Expert Says Iraq Needs About 7 Trillion Dinars To Cover Operational Expenses This Month.
Baghdad – One News Nabil Al-Marsoumi, an expert in economic affairs, confirmed that Iraq needs about 7 trillion dinars to cover operational spending during the current month, noting that current oil revenues do not exceed 2 trillion dinars, which is insufficient to secure salaries and the costs of electricity and imported gas.
Al-Marsoumi explained that the budget deficit is likely to worsen starting this May, due to the significant decline in oil revenues resulting from a decrease in Iraqi exports by more than 90%, which led to revenues dropping to about one billion dollars last April.
He added that the oil revenues achieved last March amounted to about two and a half trillion dinars, while salaries alone require more than 7 trillion dinars, which means there is a large financial gap that threatens to cover basic operating expenses, including the import of gas, electricity, medicine and social welfare. https://1news-iq.net/خبير-اقتصادي-العراق-بحاجة-إلى-نحو-7-تري/
A Member Of The Parliamentary Finance Committee Told NINA: "The Next Stage Will Be Very Difficult... Economically."
Saturday, May 16, 2026| Economy Baghdad / NINA / Member of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, MP Mustafa al-Karawi, affirmed that Iraq is facing a very difficult economic phase, attributing this to the widening budget deficit, low revenues, and the failure to find alternatives to oil to finance the country's economy.
Al-Karawi told the Iraqi National News Agency ( NINA 😞 "Following the economic crisis that occurred in the region due to the Iran-US war and the previous Iraqi government's inability to find solutions for oil exports, the budget deficit and low revenues have widened due to the failure to find alternatives to oil by increasing non-oil revenues."
The Finance Committee member emphasized: "The coming period will be very difficult due to the lack of non-oil funding sources, as non-oil revenues constitute only 10% of total revenues. This will significantly impact the revenue generated and its direct dependence on external regional conditions."
He explained: "The continuation of this situation will greatly affect the provision of services and the implementation of investment projects due to the lack of financial liquidity."
He expressed his hope that the new government would find real solutions to build a strong domestic economy and establish systems to effectively manage non-oil revenues, significantly reducing dependence on oil. /End 8. https://ninanews.com/Website/News/Details?key=1295740
Between An "Army Of Employees" And A Million Graduates... The Iraqi Economy Teeters On The Brink - Urgent
Baghdad Today – Baghdad At a time when concerns are rising about the future of the labor market in Iraq, attention is turning to a cumulative economic crisis that is threatening the state’s ability to continue its open government employment policy, amid warnings of a wave of unemployment that could worsen with the increasing number of university graduates in the coming years.
In this context, economist Raad Al-Masoudi warns that government departments are no longer able to absorb more employees within state institutions, stressing that the output of Iraqi universities will approach the one million graduate mark within a few years, a number that exceeds the capacity of the government sector to accommodate.
Al-Masoudi told Baghdad Today on Saturday (May 16, 2026) that the employment policy that expanded after 2003 has, over time, turned into a tool used by some political forces to gain popular support by opening the doors of appointments during election seasons, instead of adopting the criteria of the actual needs of institutions.
He added that the inflated number of employees has created a state of “disguised unemployment” within many government departments, at a time when other ministries and institutions are suffering from a real shortage of specialists, which has led to a clear imbalance in the structure of the state’s administrative apparatus.
He pointed out that the salaries file now consumes the largest part of the operational expenses of the general budget, noting that oil revenues are barely sufficient to cover salaries, given that the Iraqi economy depends almost entirely on crude oil exports.
Al-Masoudi stressed that the current stage requires “deep economic surgery”, starting with rebuilding the private sector and opening the doors to real investment, in addition to supporting the stalled sectors, especially industry and agriculture, in order to create sustainable job opportunities for young people away from temporary government appointments.
He called for the adoption of a comprehensive national strategy to address economic imbalances, warning that continuing the current approach would put the country in front of more serious challenges, especially with regional turmoil and oil market fluctuations, which could affect Iraq’s ability to secure its basic revenues in the future.
After 2003, Iraq witnessed an unprecedented expansion in government employment, as state institutions became the largest refuge for job seekers, in light of the weakness of the private sector and the decline of productive sectors.
With the increasing number of graduates annually and the country's reliance on oil as a primary source of revenue, warnings have begun to escalate about the dangers of continuing this economic model, which consumes most of the state's resources in salaries and operating expenses, while investment and real production remain limited.