Iraq Economic News and Points To Ponder Monday Evening 8-24-26

Basra Oil Service Firms Threaten To Halt Work Over Currency Losses

2026-08-24 Shafaq News- Basra    Private companies working in Basra's oil sector threatened on Monday to suspend operations and lay off more workers, protesting that payments on their dollar-denominated contracts are being settled in Iraqi dinars at the official exchange rate.

During a demonstration they organized in the southern province, Aziz al-Khalidi, a representative of the companies, told Shafaq News that the firms carry out work for Iraq's licensing rounds, the contracts under which international companies develop the country's oil fields, under agreements signed in dollars.

Their payments are transferred in foreign currency to the state-owned Trade Bank of Iraq and to private banks, he said, but are received in dinars at the official rate of 131,000 dinars per 100 dollars.

The companies are then forced to buy dollars on the open market to meet their obligations, where 100 dollars costs around 155,000 dinars, Al-Khalidi said. “We lose more than 20 percent. The loss is roughly equivalent to the profit margin contractors typically expect in the sector.”

Al-Khalidi said the central bank had earlier granted the companies two exemptions worth 70 million dollars each, for a total of 140 million dollars, but the arrangement ran for one or two months before it was canceled.

The firms later received an allocation of 30 million dollars to cover their domestic and international transfers and obligations, he said, though disbursement stopped before the central bank's new management allowed it to continue for one month only.

Most of the companies have cut their workforces on oil-sector projects by as much as 80 percent because they cannot absorb the currency losses, al-Khalidi said. He warned that work on the licensing rounds could stop and more workers could be laid off unless a mechanism is put in place to guarantee the firms are paid in dollars.

Read more: New pricing rules trigger Iraqi oil demonstrations

https://www.shafaq.com/en/Economy/Basra-oil-service-firms-threaten-to-halt-work-over-currency-losses

Foreign Reserves Drop 11.6% In H1 2026

2026-08-24 Shafaq News- Baghdad   Iraq’s foreign reserves fell by $11.257 billion, or 11.6%, in the first half of 2026, reaching $86.175 billion at the end of June from $97.432 billion at the end of 2025, the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) said on Monday.

The reserves initially rose to $101.082 billion in January and $102.131 billion in February before declining to $100.341 billion in March, $97.809 billion in April, $93.673 billion in May, and $86.175 billion in June.

Over the first half of the year, investments within the reserves fell 12.1%, from 93.266 trillion dinars ($71.195 billion) at the end of 2025 to 81.998 trillion dinars ($62.594 billion) in June. Cash held in the CBI’s vaults dropped 67.8% over the same period, from 1.907 trillion dinars ($1.456 billion) to 614 billion dinars ($468.7 million).

On a monthly basis, investments declined by 6.116 trillion dinars ($4.669 billion) in June, while gold holdings fell by about 3.88 trillion dinars ($2.962 billion). Cash, however, rose from 366 billion dinars ($279.4 million) in May to 614 billion dinars ($468.7 million) in June.

https://www.shafaq.com/en/Economy/Foreign-reserves-drop-11-6-in-H1-2026

North Gas Responds To Concerns Over Iraq Oil Reforms

2026-08-24 Shafaq News- Kirkuk   Measures affecting Iraq’s oil sector should take into account operational requirements and their impact on production, and they are part of a time-limited trial that will be evaluated once it ends, North Gas Company said on Monday.

The company said the Oil Ministry had assured that workers’ rights and entitlements, as well as funding for maintenance and production, would not be affected. “The ministry considers these needs a priority for maintaining the efficiency of facilities and keeping production running.”

The statement followed reports of government plans to introduce reforms in the oil sector, including changes to some administrative and financial arrangements.

https://www.shafaq.com/en/Economy/North-Gas-responds-to-concerns-over-Iraq-oil-reforms

Iraqis Buy 691 Properties In Turkiye In Seven Months

2026-08-24 Shafaq News- Ankara   Iraqis purchased 691 properties in Turkiye during the first seven months of 2026, including 663 homes and 28 commercial properties, while overall foreign home sales fell 7.3%, Turkish Statistical Institute (TURKSTAT) data showed.

Iraqi home purchases climbed 47% in July to 144 from 98 in June, placing Iraq fourth among foreign buyers, behind Russia with 394 purchases, Iran with 189, and Ukraine with 145. Commercial purchases also rose to eight from four.

Across January through July, Iraqi buyers purchased 663 homes, nearly unchanged from 665 in the same period of 2025. Monthly purchases stood at 106 in January, 74 in February, 80 in March, 66 in April, 95 in May, 98 in June, and 144 in July.

Foreign nationals bought 11,203 homes in Turkiye during the seven-month period, down 7.3% year on year, although July sales rose 1.9% to 2,120.

https://www.shafaq.com/en/Economy/Iraqis-buy-691-properties-in-Turkiye-in-seven-months