Iraq’s Central Bank Says Dollar Gap Narrowed To 9% From 24%
2026-10-29 | 17:34 BAGHDAD - 964 Media — Central Bank of Iraq Governor Nizar Nasser Hussein said Thursday that the gap between the official and parallel dollar rates had narrowed to 9% from 24%, and denied the bank was printing new currency.
Hussein made the remarks to parliament’s Investment and Development Committee, which visited the Central Bank to discuss how the change in the exchange rate is affecting investment, local companies and the wider economy, according to a statement from parliament’s media office. He said no currency was being printed and called talk of printing inaccurate, the statement said.
The statement did not say how the 9% figure was calculated or when the gap stood at 24%. On Thursday morning, Baghdad exchange shops were selling $100 for 168,500 dinars, about 11% above the official rate of 152,000, according to 964media’s daily rate check. Measured against the official market price instead, the gap is just under 10%.
In September, before the devaluation, Baghdad shops sold $100 for about 160,250 dinars against an official 132,000, a gap of about 21%.
The denial follows months of speculation about removing zeros from the dinar. The Central Bank denied on Aug. 26 that new banknotes with zeros removed had been printed, and a government source told the state-run Iraqi News Agency on Oct. 1 that no plan or timetable for redenomination had been approved.
Lawmaker Nahida al-Daini, who presides over the committee as its eldest member, led the visit. The committee was briefed on steps the Central Bank has taken to support the economy, the statement said. They include backing state and private banks to offer citizens soft loans of 5 million to 15 million dinars (about $3,300 to $9,900 at the official rate). The statement gave no other details of the loans.
The committee called for limiting the exchange rate’s effect on the cost of investment projects, raw material prices and contract obligations, and on market stability and people’s purchasing power.
It also called for closer coordination between the Central Bank, government bodies and the banking sector, and for easier bank financing, so that investment projects can continue without new burdens on investors or citizens. The committee said it would keep monitoring the economy and draft recommendations to support investment.
The devaluation took effect on Oct. 7. The Central Bank now buys dollars from the Finance Ministry at 1,500 dinars, sells to banks at 1,510 and sets the public rate at 1,520, up from 1,300, 1,310 and 1,320. The bank cited economic and financial pressures for the change and said its foreign reserves were sufficient to meet all monetary needs.
The government says it plans to bring the parallel rate down to 1,550 dinars per dollar. Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi said Friday that Washington would send $1 billion in cash, and Mahmoud Dagher, an adviser to the Central Bank governor and the bank’s spokesperson, said Tuesday that two aircraft had arrived, each carrying about $500 million
https://en.964media.com/54420/
The Devaluation Of The Dinar Reflects The Government's Inability To Increase Revenues
Information/Baghdad... Former member of the parliamentary finance committee, Muhammad Ibrahim, confirmed that there was inflation in the amounts of the 2027 budget, noting that the 2025 data amounted to approximately 142 trillion dinars and it was possible to build on it in preparing the budget for next year.
Ibrahim told Al-Maalomah, “The government resorted to the option of reducing the value of the dinar against the dollar in order to bridge the funding gap between expenditures and revenues, as reducing the value of the currency will give it additional amounts from the exchange rate difference.”
He added that "reducing the value of the local currency will prove the existence of the financial deficit, which confirms the government's failure to raise the revenue ratio by finding other solutions to make expenditures equal to revenues to a certain extent."
He explained that "there are leaks indicating that next year's budget will reach 217 trillion, a figure that is extremely exaggerated. The government should have relied on the 2025 data, which amounted to 142 trillion, as this would be a more realistic budget at the very least." (End of quote)
Al-Zaidi Urges INIS Free Of Political Quotas
2026-10-29 / Shafaq News- Baghdad Iraqi Prime Minister and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Ali al-Zaidi stressed on Thursday that the Iraqi National Intelligence Service (INIS) must be kept free from quota-sharing along party, factional, and sectarian lines.
According to a statement from the prime minister's media office, al-Zaidi made the remarks during a visit to the Service's headquarters, where he met with its leadership and officers.
Al-Zaidi affirmed his full support for the Service, pledging to provide all the resources it needs, working to develop and upgrade it “in accordance with the latest scientific nd technical methods.”
Al-Zaidi also stressed the need to make every effort to defend the country and protect its security and stability, noting that the crises and wars affecting the region require intensified security efforts across all fields.
The Integrity Authority has signed a memorandum of understanding and a cooperation program with the Office of the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation, which includes cooperation on legal assistance and the recovery of funds and assets requested in corruption cases.
The cooperation program with the Office of the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation, as part of the third meeting of heads of law enforcement agencies in member countries under the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, held in Baku, was signed.
The memorandum of understanding with the Azerbaijani side was signed to enhance bilateral cooperation in preventing and combating corruption, and to exchange information, expertise, and studies, and to develop the capabilities of the parties involved, and to include cooperation on requests for legal assistance and the recovery of funds and assets requested in corruption cases, and to follow up with the relevant national authorities, and also to include the organization of training programs, workshops, and joint awareness activities; to spread a culture of integrity and transparency and to strengthen anti-corruption measures.
In a related context, the Authority signed a cooperation program for the years 2027-2028 with the Office of the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation, as part of the memorandum of understanding signed between the two parties in 2023, which includes the program of holding meetings and seminars on mechanisms for preventing and detecting corruption, and financial investigation, and the recovery of assets resulting from corruption and their detection and recovery.
This also includes training the agency's agents, exchanging specialized editions, and holding regular meetings for the joint work team to enhance coordination and exchange of expertise between the two parties.
On Monday, al-Zaidi issued an order ending Hamid al-Shatri's assignment as head of the INIS. Al-Shatri was appointed to the post in December 2024, during the government of former Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani.
https://www.shafaq.com/en/Iraq/Al-Zaidi-urges-INIS-free-of-political-quotas