KTFA Members "Saturday Iraq News" 2-11-1012
KTFA:
Clare: The Central Bank of Iraq meets the US Federal Reserve Bank and the US Treasury at the same time
February 11, 2023
On Friday 10/2/2023, the delegation of the Central Bank of Iraq met for long hours with both the delegation of the US Federal Reserve Bank and the US Treasury Department in Washington, DC.
The two parties expressed their willingness to work jointly to meet the challenges of working on the electronic platform for remittances and cash.
The delegation of the US Federal Reserve Bank and the US Treasury discussed a number of support and attribution mechanisms for the Central Bank of Iraq, in order to enhance its capabilities to deal flexibly with crises during this stage.
The US Federal Bank confirmed that the Central Bank of Iraq's measures are in the right direction to build a solid banking sector.
Mr. Assistant Deputy Secretary of the US Treasury showed ways to fully support the efforts of the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Mr. Muhammad Shia'a Al-Sudani in economic reform, and the readiness of the US Treasury Department to provide the required support.
The meeting listened to a presentation by the Governor of the Central Bank of Iraq regarding the bank's directions in achieving its most important goals to ensure general stability in prices, and options and proposals in the field of accelerating, expanding and streamlining the work of the electronic platform for external transfer.
The Governor of the Central Bank of Iraq, Mr. Ali Mohsen Ismail, confirmed the bank's intention to launch the second package of facilities that would enhance the stability of the exchange rate.
Central Bank of Iraq
Media Office
11/2/2023
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Clare: J.P. Morgan to facilitate payments from the Iraqi banking system to China, CBI
2/11/2023
On the sideline of his visit to Washington, the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) Governor, Ali Al-Allaq, met with Daniel Zeliko, Vice Chair and Chair of the Governing Board of J.P. Morgan Development Finance Institution.
J.P. Morgan is a global leader in financial services, offering solutions to the world's most important corporations, governments, and institutions in more than 100 countries.
According to a CBI statement, both sides discussed financial issues, including reserves and liquidity management, and the J.P. Morgan technical support to the Central Bank and the banking sector in Iraq.
The meeting agreed that J.P. Morgan would facilitate payments from the Iraqi banking system to China to directly finance the private sector imports.
"CBI is committed to applying international standards in anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) measures," Al-Allaq said.
Trade between Iraq and China rose to a record level last year, making Iraq the Asian country's second most important trading partner.
According to data from the Chinese embassy, goods worth around $53.37 billion were traded between the two countries, up around 43.1% from 2021.
Iraq has become one of the biggest beneficiaries of China's Belt and Road Initiative as China deepens its economic ties across the Middle East through billion-dollar construction and energy contracts.
Beijing struck $10.5bn in new construction deals in Iraq last year, part of a "strong shift" in its engagement towards the Middle East despite a broader downturn in Chinese outbound investment.
"In terms of contracts, Iraq is China's biggest partner. It is also its second largest commercial partner," China's ambassador to Baghdad, Cui Wei, said in a press conference in October 2022.LINK
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Clare: It continued for many hours.. The Iraqi Central Bank reveals the details of its meeting with the Federal Reserve and the US Treasury
2/11/2023
The Central Bank of Iraq revealed, on Saturday, the details of its meeting with the US Federal Reserve Bank and the US Treasury Department, which it said lasted for many hours.
In a statement received by Shafaq News agency, the bank stated, "The Central Bank of Iraq delegation met for long hours with both the US Federal Reserve Bank and the US Treasury delegation in Washington, D.C. at the same time."
According to the statement, the two parties expressed their willingness to work jointly to meet the challenges of working on the electronic platform for remittances and cash.
The delegation of the US Federal Reserve Bank and the US Treasury discussed a number of support and attribution mechanisms for the Central Bank of Iraq, in order to enhance its capabilities to deal flexibly with crises during this stage.
The US Federal Bank confirmed that "the Central Bank of Iraq's measures are in the right direction to build a sober banking sector."
The Assistant Deputy Secretary of the US Treasury indicated ways to fully support the efforts of the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shia al-Sudani in economic reform, and the readiness of the US Treasury Department to provide the required support.
The meeting listened to a presentation by the Governor of the Central Bank of Iraq regarding the bank's directions in achieving its most important goals to ensure general stability in prices, and options and proposals in the field of accelerating, expanding and streamlining the work of the electronic platform for external transfer.
The Governor of the Central Bank of Iraq, Ali Mohsen Ismail, confirmed the bank's intention to launch the second package of facilities that would enhance the stability of the exchange rate. LINK
Henig: News about the arrest of a bank manager on charges of smuggling millions of dollars out of Iraq with forged invoices
Feb. 11, 2023
Baghdad/Al-Masala: Sources revealed the arrest of an Iraqi bank manager on charges of smuggling millions of dollars out of Iraq.
Sources said that the director of an Iraqi bank was arrested for his involvement in smuggling hundreds of millions of dollars out of the country, through forged invoices. LINK
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Henig: Babylon.. Oil derivatives smuggling factory seized and owner arrested after fleeing to Baghdad
2023-02-10 | 05:32
Al-Sumaria News - Security The National Security
Agency announced on Friday the seizure of a factory for smuggling oil derivatives in Babylon, while pointing to the arrest of its owner after fleeing to Baghdad.
The agency's media said in a statement received by Al-Sumaria News that the detachments of the National Security Agency "managed to seize a refinery and smuggling of oil derivatives in Babylon."
The statement added that "the National Security Agency was also able to arrest the owner of the factory after he fled to Baghdad." LINK
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Henig: ExxonMobil is close to leaving Iraq. Find out the details of the upcoming deal
Economy News - Baghdad
ExxonMobil is close to exiting the West Qurna 1 field.
Iraq Oil reported in a report translated by Al-Eqtessad News that the company is "negotiating a two-part deal to sell its 32.7% stake in the West Qurna 1 oil field to the Malaysian company Pertamina and the Iraqi state-owned Basra Oil Company."
The sale, if it takes place, will "resolve the dispute that ExxonMobil has submitted to international arbitration. It will also strengthen China's foothold in Iraq's oil sector, with China's PetroChina, which currently has a 32.7 percent non-operating stake in the project, taking over as operator."
According to the website, two Iraqi oil officials confirmed the broad outlines of this proposed deal, "where Pertamina will receive an additional 10 percent stake in the project, bringing its total stake to 20 percent, while the Basra Oil Company will buy the remaining 22.7 percent of ExxonMobil." LINK
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Henig: Jojoba plant in the deserts of Iraq. What is its economic value? How does it support the agricultural sector?
10/2/2023
BAGHDAD – 100 years ago, Iraq was called the "Land of Blackness" because of the greenness of its large land resulting from the cultivation of many crops, fruits, vegetables, grains and others, but today the country suffers from a significant decline in agricultural areas.
Although the country is suffering from drought, the green carpet has returned to cover some areas, especially in the south, where the cultivation of jojoba has begun to flourish in many areas. And what is its use? And how does the government invest it?
Agriculture in Numbers
During the seventies and eighties of the last century, Iraq adopted development programs and policies for the agricultural sector, but it did not achieve its goals fully as a result of the abnormal conditions that the country went through, from many wars and then an international blockade that extended between 1991 and 2003, which reflected negatively on agriculture and natural resources, especially water.
As a result, figures obtained by Al Jazeera Net correspondent from government sources confirmed that the contribution of the agricultural sector to GDP for 2022 is estimated between 2.5% and 3.5% as a result of water scarcity and lack of government support from fertilizers and seeds, but government efforts are now heading to the "jojoba" plant, which turns the arid desert into a green carpet.
What is jojoba?
According to agricultural engineer Ali Al-Qaragholi, one of the advantages of the soil in Iraq is that it embraces the cultivation of any plant, including the jojoba plant, which is a dicotyledonous plant, adding, "Jojoba has a strong root network consisting of a deep wedge root that reaches a length of more than 10 meters and branches from it a group of non-superficial side roots, and it is also characterized by the fact that its root network may reach a length of more than 10 times the length of the visible part of the plant above the ground, depending on the quality of the soil. and the ability of the roots to penetrate into them."
Speaking to Al Jazeera Net, Al-Qaragholi explains that the jojoba plant is considered a single genus, and is characterized by several stems that are in total a circular shrub ranging in height from one meter to 4 meters, depending on the rate of rainfall or irrigation water, while its leaves are very similar to the leaves of the olive tree, but they are thick and their texture is similar to the texture of the skin.
As for the flowers of the plant, they are odorless and have colors that do not attract insects, according to Al-Qaragholi, who explained that as a result, the pollination process is carried out by the wind, as the light weight of pollen grains and their disc shape help them to move through the wind for distances of more than a thousand meters.
Jojoba fruits are of the "can" type and bear on both sides of the modern branches, and may be individual and sometimes even or in clusters ranging in number of fruits from two to 10 fruits according to many factors that control this, according to Karagholi.
Benefits & Investment
The goboba plant is a type of nut and its extracted oil is used in lotions of lotion liquids, soaps, medical applications and ointments, Dr. Kazem Dili Hassan, dean of the College of Agricultural Engineering Sciences at the University of Baghdad, told Al Jazeera.
Regarding the benefits of this plant, Dr. Hassan adds that the oil constitutes 50% of the content of the jojoba seed, as it is classified as a safe waxy oil that traps moisture, which prevents dryness, and contributes to the manufacture of skincare, body and cosmetics.
"Jojoba wax oil is also used in painting furniture and floors, making high-quality, slow-burning candles, and is also used in biofuels," the agricultural academic added.
Muthanna Governorate (south) is the first in the country to actually start investing in the jojoba plant by exploiting the desert areas scattered in it.
Speaking to Al Jazeera Net, the Director General of the Muthanna Investment Commission, Adel Al-Yasiri, said, "The Commission tended to exploit the Muthanna desert through agricultural investment, where it was actually started planting 500,<> jojoba plants."
Al-Yasiri revealed the Investment Authority's plan to reach the cultivation of one million dunums of this plant during the current year, in addition to asking the owners of strategic projects invested in the governorate to allocate 10% of the project area to plant jojoba plants or palm trees, according to him.
He stressed that the plan of the Muthanna Investment Commission is to transform the desert of the southern province into an integrated food and economic basket for many strategic and food crops that contribute effectively to the development of the economic reality of the province in particular and Iraq in general, as he put it.
Poor agricultural culture
Despite the high hopes, agricultural expert Tahseen Al-Musawi believes – in his interview with Al Jazeera Net – that the culture of growing jojoba plants in Iraq is weak, as well as guidance messages through research and relevant institutions.
Al-Moussawi explained that going towards the cultivation of jojoba will contribute to the reclamation of desert areas, stabilizing the soil and preventing erosion, explaining that "the age of one plant may reach 200 years and perhaps more, as this plant tolerates thirst, salinity and temperatures that reach more than 45 degrees Celsius, in addition to the possibility of growing jojoba in all types of soil, even in rocky ones."
The agricultural expert said that jojoba cultivation needs a national project adopted by state institutions, with government support to benefit from Egypt's experience, which succeeded in investing jojoba to stimulate its green economy, according to him.
Source : Al Jazeera LINK
Henig: More than $ 53 billion in trade exchange between Iraq and China during the year 2022
2023-02-10 03:38
The Chinese Embassy in Iraq announced on Friday that the volume of trade exchange between the two countries exceeded 53 billion US dollars during the past year.
The embassy said in a statement published today that the volume of trade exchange between China and Iraq reached 53.37 billion US dollars in 2022, an increase of 43.1% year on year.
Last October, Chinese Ambassador to Baghdad Cui Wei told a press conference that "Iraq is the largest country for the Chinese side in terms of contracts and the second partner in terms of crude oil and the volume of trade." LINK
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Henig: More than $ 53 billion in trade exchange between Iraq and China during the year 2022
2023-02-10 03:38
The Chinese Embassy in Iraq announced on Friday that the volume of trade exchange between the two countries exceeded 53 billion US dollars during the past year.
The embassy said in a statement published today that the volume of trade exchange between China and Iraq reached 53.37 billion US dollars in 2022, an increase of 43.1% year on year.
Last October, Chinese Ambassador to Baghdad Cui Wei told a press conference that "Iraq is the largest country for the Chinese side in terms of contracts and the second partner in terms of crude oil and the volume of trade." LINK
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Henig: Baghdad: We seek to pay the money owed to Russian companies
Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein announced that Baghdad will not violate US sanctions and wants to discuss with Moscow ways to pay the money owed to Russian companies.
During his visit to Washington, Hussein said: "We have a problem with payments. How can we pay Russian companies? That's a real problem."
"That's a problem, because if we pay, our financial system must eventually work through the international system. There are many sanctions for dealing with the Russian side. Our financial and banking systems are connected to Europe, America and many others."
"Doing business financially with Russia means opposing these sanctions. This means that we will create problems for our banking system. Of course, our mission and responsibility is to protect our banks, the central bank and other banks."
"We are discussing these matters with the U.S. side. But we know this is not so easy. As I said, our priority and first task is to protect our banks. When we go back to Baghdad, if the Russians want to discuss these things, we will explain to them why it is so difficult for us."
"If we can reach an agreement with the Russian side in order to protect our banking system, we will do it, because we understand that we have to pay the Russians. The question is when are we going to do it, and when are we going to discuss it with the Russians."
He noted that Moscow and Baghdad have strong ties, and that Russian business is widely represented in Iraq.
"As you know, we have many Russian companies, especially in the oil fields in Iraq, that have been operating for a long time, and we have good historical relations with Moscow."
He noted that cooperation between Russia and Iraq under sanctions against Moscow was discussed during the recent visit of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to Baghdad.
Source: TASS LINK