Some "Saturday News" posted by Samson 1-1-2022

KTFA:

Samson:  Iraq enters the new year with great celebrations

31st December, 2021

Entered Iraq, the New Year 2022, with great celebrations held in the streets of Baghdad and the provinces.

And the Iraqis expressed their joy and happiness in the new year by launching fireworks that decorated the sky of Iraqi cities.  LINK

Samson:  The Iraqi Stock Exchange announces the suspension of its activity for one day

1st January, 2022

Today, Saturday, the Iraqi Stock Exchange announced the suspension of its activity for a period of one day.

The market said in a statement, received by Mawazine News, that “the trading sessions for tomorrow, Sunday, will not be organized based on the decision of the Council of Ministers to declare an official holiday for this day on the occasion of the New Year holidays.”  LINK

The statement added, “The activity will take place after the official holiday and starting next Monday, according to its official timings.” 

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Samson:  Mayor of Baghdad: We will organize major celebrations on Army Day, the departure of foreign forces, and the upcoming convening of the new parliament

12/31/2021 22:14:42

The Mayor of Baghdad, Alaa Maan, announced the organization of major celebrations in the capital, Baghdad, on January 6, to celebrate the new year, the anniversary of the establishment of the Iraqi army, the departure of foreign combat forces, and the approaching convening of the first session of the new Iraqi parliament.

A statement of the secretariat, a copy of which was received by {Euphrates News} Agency, said that Maan “presents the most beautiful words of congratulations to the Iraqi people and their valiant security forces on the occasion of the new year, wishing it to be a year of goodness, love, peace and reconstruction for all Iraqis.”

The Mayor of Baghdad also promised that the new year 2022 will be full of vital service projects and effective in advancing the reality of the beloved capital, Baghdad, and its urban and aesthetic scene.

He pointed out that “the celebrations of the Baghdad Municipality in the new year and the anniversary of the founding of the valiant Iraqi army this year will be special because it coincides with the departure of foreign combat forces in light of the success of the government program of Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi, which achieved a large number of achievements at the internal and external levels, as well as on the occasion of the upcoming convening of the first session of Parliament the new”.   LINK

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Samson:  What did the 12 billions of dollars do to the state treasury?.. a reassuring answer for the first time

31st December, 2021

Friday, a former member of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, Jamal Cougar, commented on Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi’s announcement of providing $12 billion from the reserves of the Central Bank of Iraq.

Cougar said in a statement to (Baghdad Today), that “increasing the reserves of the Central Bank and providing the financial cover for it, will contribute to Iraq being safe from economic crises.

He added, “When the Corona crisis swept and hit the global economy, the only recourse for the Iraqi state was the bank reserve.”

Noting that “when the reserve reached $48 billion, a warning was sent to the Iraqi government against withdrawing more because in this case the Iraqi dinar will lose its purchasing power.”  LINK

Samson:  Analyzes suggest that Al-Sadr will support Al-Kazemi as prime minister of the next government

29th December, 2021

The London-based Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper reported, in a report this week, that the current Prime Minister, Mustafa Al-Kazemi, is one of the most prominent names nominated for the position of prime minister inside closed rooms, while Al-Jazeera TV reported in a report titled “Al-Sadr is the King-maker in Iraq” that Al-Kazemi succeeded in exploiting the card of his alliance with Al-Sadr, as the most prominent fruit of the relationship between Al-Kazemi and Al-Sadr was the passage of the new election law that Muqtada Al-Sadr supported and resulted in him obtaining the highest percentage he had previously won in Parliament (73 seats). again at the head of the government.

But despite everything, Al-Sadr eventually achieved the largest electoral victory known to the current he leads since 2003, which will allow him to consolidate his position as a king-maker, and continue to shape government policies through his alliance with Al-Kazemi.

Simultaneously, the Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper report said that Al-Kazemi succeeded within a year and a few months in many files, most notably the elections.

But in Iraq, the verse appears to be reversed in terms of the success or failure of any official or government. In the event of the failure of the Prime Minister and his government, the political forces that share all power with him, even the minute details, disavow in order to bear responsibility alone, according to the report. But if successes are achieved, she shares power with him, and thus she will gain a measure of success, but she either obstructs this success or stands against it publicly so that his points are not counted in favor of the prime minister.  

As for the battle to renew the presidency, the anti-Kazemi forces refuse to renew it. Against these forces stands the Sadrist movement led by Muqtada al-Sadr, who wants a national majority government and largely supports the renewal of Al-Kazemi for a second term.

The Kurds, who are divided over their candidate for the presidency, are searching with the Sunnis for a formula that satisfies the two Sunni alliances, the Taqad party led by Muhammad al-Halbousi, and the Azm alliance led by Khamis al-Khanjar, in return for their support for the candidate for the presidency, which is disputed between the two Kurdish parties.  

The Kurds are discussing with the Shiites a formula that satisfies the two opposing Shiite parties (Al-Sadr and the coordination framework) to choose a new prime minister among several candidates, including Al-Kazemi.

The Kurds tend to consociationalism, which is not consistent with Al-Sadr’s vision, but they agree with the leader of the Sadrist movement in supporting Al-Kazemi, whom the Coordinating Framework Group is not satisfied with. LINK

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Samson:  Oil Prices Are Expected To Rise To $120 Per Barrel In 2022

1st January, 2022

The Omicron variant of the emerging corona virus has caused ambiguous expectations for energy markets during the new year, according to the “Wall Street Journal.”

Crude oil prices last year reached their highest levels since 2014 before governments restricted travel to disrupt the Omicron mutant in late November, raising questions about the black gold’s continuing upward trajectory.

And the head of commodity and derivatives research at Bank of America, Francisco Blanche, believes that Brent crude prices could exceed $100 a barrel to reach $120 during 2022 unless there is an increase in hospital admissions for Covid-19 patients or a massive outbreak of the coronavirus. In China, the largest buyer of crude oil in the world.

The world still uses less oil than it did before the time of the Corona virus epidemic, as it consumes about 96.2 million barrels per day in 2021, according to the International Energy Agency. Balance expects the demand for crude oil to reach pre-pandemic levels – 100 million barrels of oil per day – during the third quarter of 2022.

Some banks also expect another rise in oil prices in the coming years due to the lack of investment in fossil fuels and the trend towards alternative energy, including increased investment in electric vehicles. And demand for oil rose with the recovery of economies during 2021, at a time when producers are still holding millions of barrels.   LINK