Iraqi News Monday AM 1-30-22
Iraqi News Monday AM 1-30-22
TLM724 Administrator BondLady’s Corner
The Purchasing Power Of The Citizen Decreased By 22%
Monday 31 January 2022 214 Baghdad: Haider Falih Al-Rubaie Specialists in economic affairs identified a number of reasons for the high levels of inflation in the country, and their reaching rates they described as “dangerous”, putting at the forefront of these reasons the increase in the prices of food, health services, transportation and electricity, stressing that the high levels of inflation have eaten up approximately 22% of the purchasing power of the citizen. , and led to an increase in poverty rates, and while they agreed that changing the exchange rate is the main cause of high inflation rates, they stressed the need to launch more initiatives aimed at establishing small and medium enterprises, especially in the industrial, agricultural and investment sectors.
The latest statistic published by the Ministry of Planning showed a rise in annual inflation rates of 8.4%, which represents a “danger bell” for a number of economists, who warned of the dangers of rising inflation rates on the national economy in general.
Economic Risk
Despite the significant negative effects of inflation on the national economy in general, however, the economist, Manar Al-Obaidi, believes that the increase in its rates has a direct impact on the life of the citizen, leads to high rates of poverty, and paralyzes the increase in per capita GDP.
Al-Obaidi pointed out that “measuring the level of price increases for each item or service, is after measuring the level of its impact on the citizen. The importance of the food sector is approximately 28% for the citizen, followed by the housing and rental sector, whose importance is 17%.”
The economic expert pointed out that “inflation rates in Iraq rose in important sectors, including those that are of great importance such as the food sector, as well as important and necessary sectors for people’s lives, such as the health, electricity and water sectors, which witnessed clear increases.
Food Security
Al-Obaidi believes that the food sector plays an important role in the process of rising inflation rates, because of its great relative importance, which necessitates working to achieve food security by adopting agricultural, industrial and agricultural projects and increasing equivalent productions such as canning and storage, stressing that these steps would Contribute to alleviating the rise in prices globally, and provide Iraq with food security away from external influences, and away from the impact of the exchange rate.
The expert pointed out that "the health sector, other goods and services, and electricity supplies are among the sectors with the highest rise in prices, as they witnessed an increase of more than 30%, and these percentages require active intervention from various parties to reduce them."
Investing Money
With the aim of reducing the effects of inflation on the Iraqi economy, Al-Obaidi urged the harm of investing the surplus funds of the state and the reserves of the Central Bank, to launch initiatives that work to establish various projects that can contribute to reducing inflation rates, and to strive seriously to find real productive job opportunities that distance us from the “social welfare” state.
“We are experiencing today, especially with the high unemployment rates that have turned from a problem into a real disaster, rising with more than 500,000 people entering the labor market annually.
Al-Obaidi also stressed the importance of “investment in education,” stressing that human capital is one of the factors affecting the rise in unemployment rates, and therefore real strategies must be worked out to implement education projects that raise the rate of human capital, which will contribute to reducing unemployment rates significantly. .
Exchange Rate
In turn, the economist, Dr. Ali Hadi Al-Nusaifi, attributed the inflation rates to these levels to the change in the exchange rate and the devaluation of the local currency by 22% in parallel with the size of the bill of large foreign imports that are financed in dollars, stressing that this led to the citizen losing a percentage of purchasing power.
His income is much greater than the rate of devaluation of the currency due to the lack of control over the markets and its outrageous rise, indicating that this rise was paid for by the low-income brackets, and then led to the expansion of the poverty gap and the increase in the size of unemployment.
Al-Nusaifi also indicated, among other reasons, that he said that they contributed to the increase in inflation rates to those rates he described as “dangerous,” including “the absence of a production function, exports being limited to oil resources, high costs on commodity requirements, and high taxes.”
Suggestions And Solutions
In order to reduce the effects of inflation and reduce its high rates, the expert Al-Nusaifi suggested a number of points that he called on the government to implement, putting at the forefront of those points, strengthening the ration card program, and working on the “cash allowance” to replace the commodity, provided that the value of the goods in the market is taken into account, as well as Re-working the supported central market program, activating the market monitoring program, and reducing taxes and customs on some productive activities. Funding initiatives for small projects of not less than 10 trillion dinars to reduce unemployment and reduce the poverty gap before it is classified in extreme and dangerous levels. LINK
The Stability Of The Dollar Exchange Rate Against The Dinar
Economie| 10:52 - 31/01/2022 Baghdad - Mawazine News, today, Monday, the dollar exchange rates maintained their stability in the local markets. And the selling prices of the dollar were 148,000 dinars per 100 dollars, while the purchase prices of the dollar were 147.750 dinars per 100 dollars. https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=183218
Central Bank Sales Of Dollars Recorded More Than 197 Million
Economie| 01:58 - 31/01/2022 Baghdad - Mawazine News: The bank's sales of hard currency, today, Monday, decreased slightly, by 2.96 percent.
The Central Bank auction today for the sale and purchase of foreign currencies witnessed a decrease of 2.96% to reach 197 million and 370 thousand dollars, covered by the bank at a base exchange rate of 1460 dinars per dollar.
Most of the bank's sales went to enhance balances abroad in the form of remittances and credits, which amounted to 145 million and 900 thousand dollars, while the remaining amount of 51 million and 470 thousand dollars went in cash.
This has been 27 banks to fulfill requests to enhance balances abroad, and 20 banks to meet cash requests, in addition to 196 mediation companies. https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=183240
The Appearance Of Muhammad Salih On The Budget Delay: The State's Financial Activity Will Continue... But!
Posted On 2022-01-31 By Sotaliraq Yesterday, Adviser to the Prime Minister for Financial Affairs, Mazhar Muhammad Salih, outlined the economic impact resulting from the delay in approving the general budget.
Saleh said, in a press statement followed by (Al-Mada), that "the effective financial management law is an exceptional and important alternative to managing the country's public finances, in case the approval of the general budget is delayed for any reason, as is the case at the present time, and it is a specific financial policy.
Through it, disbursement mechanisms are exercised in a manner similar to the actual current expenditures that were disbursed successively in the previous year 2021 and according to an exchange rule of 1-12 per month.”
He added, "If this mechanism is available, the financial activity will continue without creating booms that suit the higher and desired levels of growth in the economy in its current situation, especially in the implementation of projects, programs and investment activities, as well as providing new government job opportunities, which means that the current financial activity is an activity The minimum, which represents the last year and does not correspond to the desired activities that the budget aspires to in accordance with the levels of population and sectoral growth desired, to meet its needs, which are definitely the largest, especially the issue of new investments and their impact on reducing unemployment in the labor force and business activity in the private sector and its important impact in promoting the activity of National income if it is achieved.
He pointed out that “there will remain a gap between the required financial planning that fits the annual increase in population and development needs, which is approved by a general budget planned according to the needs and expansions of economic life and the development of its conditions in accordance with the objectives of the annual budget law and for each year, and the absence of a budget that is replaced by the adoption of last year’s standards to meet the needs of economic growth population this year.
He continued, "There is an overlap and divergence between financial needs and desires and the available financial policies that depend on last year's standards for the current year," noting that "the longer the budget law legislation is disrupted, the slower new expenditures that serve the growing economic activity and record a state of quasi downturn in the national economy.
He pointed out that "the general budget expenditures constitute approximately 50% of Iraq's gross domestic product, but in this case and the absence of legislation, the expenditures will remain slow and do not reflect the criteria of a financially prosperous year in oil revenues such as the current year, unless the budget is enacted as soon as possible and in accordance with standards development and stability for 2022. LINK
Al-Ghazi Clarifies The Agreement To Protect The Saudi Investor And Confirms The Imminent Opening Of A New Border Crossing
Economie| 09:03 - 30/01/2022 Baghdad - Mawazine News The Secretary-General of the Council of Ministers, Hamid Al-Ghazi, announced today, Sunday, that the opening of the Jamima port with Saudi Arabia is dependent on a single procedure, while noting that the Council of Ministers has approved an agreement to protect the Saudi investor.
Al-Ghazi said, "The opening of other border crossings with Saudi Arabia is a matter of discussion between the two sides, and we have the Jumaima port, whose approvals and procedures have been completed," noting: "We asked the Saudi side to complete the procedures from their side to start opening this port."
He added, "After the opening of the Arar port, we faced many problems and obstacles, and they were resolved in coordination between the two parties through the Iraqi Border Ports Authority and the Saudi Ministry of Transport," noting that "the near opening of the Jumaymah land port, which is among the papers presented now."
He stressed that "the level of trade exchange stopped for many years, and after the opening of the Arar port less than a year ago, we reached a trade exchange of 15% between the two countries, and this means moving in the right direction and real growth by developing the economic aspect to reach the level of ambition between the two countries."
Regarding the provision of guarantees to the investor, Al-Ghazi explained that "capitals are looking for guarantees and this is their right, and Iraqi laws such as the investment law are among the best laws in the region that guarantee the rights of local and foreigners, and this is what has been clarified to businessmen," noting that "there is an agreement that has been approved by the Council of Ministers.
The ministers, their vote and approval were sent to the House of Representatives to vote on it, which is to protect the Saudi investor, and we asked the Joint Businessmen Council not to stop or wait.”
He added, "The Iraqi government is capable of protecting the Saudi investor as well as protecting the Iraqi investor, providing him with a safe environment and simplifying the procedures for him, and we made it clear that there is a fatal routine and this is what was inherited from laws and legislation and chaos in the instructions and regulations,"
noting that "the availability of real will and desire between The two countries are heading towards developing relations, and economic and commercial work will lead to a development in political work, and this is what we saw from the Iraqi-Saudi Coordination Council to unify positions between the two countries abroad.”
Al-Ghazi indicated that "the government is determined to overcome many obstacles, and I, as a national coordinator in coordination with the Saudi side, have overcome many problems, including extortion and threats," noting that "there are mafias and some weak-minded people who live on blackmail and threats. https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=183181
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