KTFA Members "News and Views" Friday Late Afternoon 9-25-2020
KTFA:
Samson: The global economy exceeds June estimates
25th September, 2020
The International Monetary Fund spokesman stated that the global economy is recovering beyond estimates made in June, and that the next estimates, which will be published on October 13, will be more.
It is up compared to its predecessor, which was published on June 24, and that its horizons will be wider.
He also stressed that these data do not mean the end of the difficulties of the global economy after the pandemic hit it.
Despite the recovery of the Chinese economy, outside its walls there are many unknown prospects for developing countries and several emerging markets. LINK
DELTA: KRG FINANCE AND ECONOMY RUNS FIRST CURRENCY EXCHANGE
SULAIMANI — After announcing plans to do so earlier this month, the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) Finance and Economy Ministry ran a currency exchange on Wednesday (September 23) in Erbil city.
A source told NRT Digital Media that $35 million ($41.9 billion Iraqi dinars) was exchanged.
“The [finance and economy ministry] received 122,800 Iraqi dinars for each $100,” the source said who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media, noting that the public treasury took in 600 million Iraqi dinars ($501,000) as a result.
“From now on, if any money that is the government’s property and enters the Region, including oil money, it will be exchanged like that,” the source added.
On September 19, the ministry said it would exert greater control over the exchange of US dollars and Iraqi dinars in the Kurdistan Region, taking over responsibility for currency auctions from the Central Bank of Iraq.
The move comes as part of an effort by the KRG to capture more internally-generated wealth through stricter enforcement of taxation and fee collection.
The government is facing a severe budget shortfall and is unable to pay its full public sector wage bill amid low oil prices and budget dispute with Baghdad.
DELTA
MilitiaMan: A change in pattern... Very good find Delta~ Thanks. Nice to see the change, we know that for the next part of the reforms will require them to do this. The fees and taxation being strictly monitored, sounds like the new system is in place now.
***************
Samson: The United States is committed to partnering with Iraqi Universities
24th September, 2020
The United States is committed to partnering with Iraqi Universities to improve education and promote exchange. We are also working closely with the Iraqi government to protect Iraq’s cultural heritage sites”.
Learn more in this video! VIDEO LINK - IN ENGLISH LINK
*****************
Samson: Massive net deficit in Iraq's budget within one month
The Ministry of Finance's report on expenditures and state imports for the month of July showed a net deficit during the month amounting to 5 trillion dinars, according to Manar Al-Obeidi, a member of the Future Iraq Center for Economic Studies.
"The value of oil imports amounted to 2.8 trillion dinars only, while non-oil imports amounted to 300 billion dinars, in contrast, total expenditures amounted to more than 8.7 trillion Iraqi dinars, and therefore the total deficit for the month of July is 5 trillion Iraqi dinars," Al-Obeidi said in a statement.
The total cumulative deficit from the beginning of the year to the month of July amounted to 8 trillion Iraqi dinars, and it is expected that during the end of the year the deficit will reach more than 20 trillion Iraqi dinars, as the amounts of services to the licensing companies, which are usually spent at the end of the year, were not spent, according to Al-Obaidi.
He pointed to a decrease in non-oil imports compared to previous months, as they did not exceed 300 billion dinars, despite all pressures to reform customs and tax systems, which represent the largest part of non-oil resources. And he believed that the continuation of this bleeding without finding real solutions will lead the country to a set of difficulties that will undoubtedly lead to a major economic deterioration that no political party will be able to control in any way unless it puts in place quick solutions, especially in the area of reducing and controlling expenses.
Al-Obaidi added that the loss of more than 20 trillion dinars is not a small amount, as it represents more than 10 percent of the GDP, and we must work to stop this continuous bleeding while oil prices remain at the current levels.
Iraq suffers from a financial crisis due to the decline in oil prices due to the Corona pandemic crisis that paralyzed economic sectors around the world, as Iraq relies on revenues from selling crude to finance about 95 percent of state expenditures. LINK
Samson: Baghdad crime-fighting arrested a gang that stole more than a billion dinars
21:25 - 09/24/2020
On Thursday, the Security Media Cell announced the arrest of a gang that stole more than a billion dinars in Baghdad.
The cell stated in a statement it received "the information", “Based on the directives of the Minister of Interior and direct follow-up by the Undersecretary for Police Affairs and under the direct supervision of the Major General of Human Rights, Director of Baghdad Crime Combat, the Mansour Crime Control Office, in cooperation with the Salhiya Office, managed to arrest two accused On charges of stealing a car and a sum of money, after the Directorate was informed of the existence of an incident of coerced theft in the Al-Harithiya region, which is the theft of an amount of money amounting to one billion two hundred thirty-five million Iraqi dinars with a white Elantra wheel by defendants disguised as military clothes.
And she added, “A working team was formed and moved to the scene of the accident, and by collecting information from the sighting of the surveillance cameras, the perpetrators were identified and after the tracking down, an ambush was set up for one of the accused in Kirkuk governorate, the first suspect who confessed to participating in the crime with his brother was arrested, which was done He was also arrested and the full amount was seized in Al-Harithiya, and he confessed to the crime, as their papers were transferred to the judiciary. LINK
****************
Sudan Agrees To Normalization With Israel, With Conditions
24th September, 2020
Al-Sharq Al-Awsat newspaper revealed, today, Thursday, that the American administration reached an agreement with Sudan that includes removing Khartoum from the American list of countries sponsoring terrorism, indicating that it may be announced within days, in addition to an initial agreement on the role of normalization. Arab relations with Israel in establishing peace in the region and preserving the rights of the Palestinians.
The newspaper quoted its own sources as saying, "Khartoum has staked its position on normalization by fulfilling its demands, which also include providing a package of financial aid and facilitating its access to loans from international financial institutions."
She added that the two sides reached an agreement providing for US $ 7 billion in support for Sudan, deleting Khartoum from the list of states sponsoring terrorism, defining its role in Arab-Israeli peace agreements, and negotiating between the two parties to issue legislation to ensure that Khartoum will not be prosecuted in any future issues.
The sources added, "Sudan agreed in principle to normalize its relationship with Israel, on condition that the package of demands that it presented to the American team in the high-level Abu Dhabi talks that lasted for three days would be implemented." The sources pointed out that the US team made more than one contact with President Donald Trump and his advisor, Jared Kushner, during the rounds of talks.
In Khartoum, the head of the Sudanese Transitional Sovereignty Council, Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, is expected to hold a joint meeting between the Sovereignty Council and the Ministers, to come up with a unified position on negotiations with the American side, especially the issue of normalization with Israel. LINK