Sunday Morning Iraq Economy News Highlights 1-15-23
Sunday Morning Iraq Economy News Highlights 1-15-23
The budget figures cause “terror.” The people are waiting for “approval,” and the government’s procedures are proceeding like a “turtle.”
Posted On2023-01-14 By Sotaliraq private.. On shifting sands, the draft federal budget law for the year 2023 is still progressing, which may be considered the largest in the history of Iraq, after its initial features were revealed.
The preparation of the draft budget took a long time, especially since it has been in the corridors of the government and the relevant ministries for more than five months, which has caused boredom among the Iraqi people, who are waiting for it “impatiently” after its absence for more than two years, hoping that it will provide them with even a small benefit.
Iraq did not approve the 2022 draft budget due to the political crisis that has gripped the country since the “early” elections were held on October 10, 2021.
* Unknown date Speculation increased, and parliamentary and popular opinions differed about the date of the budget law from the government to parliament. However, most indications may indicate that the expected date may be within the next month.
The representative of the Kurdistan Democratic Party bloc, Mahma Khalil, confirmed that the approval of the budget law will not exceed the month of February, indicating that there are no major obstacles to the completion of the draft law.
Khalil said in a statement, "The preparation of the draft budget law is in its final touches, and that it will be sent to parliament very soon."
And he adds that “the approval of the budget bill will not exceed the month of February next,” noting that “there are no major obstacles to the completion of the bill.”
Huge spending
And the financial advisor to the Prime Minister, Mazhar Muhammad Salih, suggested that the spending ceiling for the current year 2023 budget would reach the barrier of 200 trillion dinars.
In an interview, Salih mentions that “although there are statements about an extremist trend in increasing public expenditures, even in light of the conservative price of a barrel of oil that does not exceed 65 dollars (and it may reach 70 dollars per barrel) and an oil export capacity of about 3.4 million barrels per day. The general budget 2023 is the one who will decide in the end, is there a default deficit or not? Or how big is that supposed deficit?
And Saleh stresses, “The need to include the financial surpluses collected at the end of the fiscal year 2022 and count them as an opening balance for the current year 2023 budget legally.”
And the financial advisor points out that “extreme estimates of public spending say: The budget will have a spending ceiling of about 200 trillion dinars, and that the increases or surpluses will go in three directions, the first to enhance the capital of development funds included in the government curriculum, and the second to cover part of the operational budget and new appointments.” And the third will be allocated to the state’s strategic and service projects, including the unimplemented allocations in the Emergency Law for Food Security and Development No. 2 of 2022.
And he points out that “in various cases, I expect the spending ceiling in the next budget to exceed the barrier of 150 trillion dinars, up to 200, if the (hypothetical deficit) is in a way that does not exceed 15% of total spending, due to the presence of financial savings from last year 2022.”
For his part, a member of the Legal Committee, Representative Aref Al-Hamami, expected the draft budget law to arrive next week.
Al-Hamami mentioned in an interview that “there are two types of laws, one of which has a political nature and requires political consensus to be approved.”
And he points out, “The Federal Budget Law 2023 will be the first law that will be discussed after the resumption of parliament’s work next week.”
Although the draft budget remains a set of conclusions and expectations for financial returns and spending rates, it is the most important project that goes out from the government to parliament for approval in a way that serves society by providing job opportunities and moving towards the right investment that supports the state away from the only source, which is oil. LINK
Economists Warn Of "Massive" Anger In The Street: The Dollar Will Reach 170 Thousand
Localities / Economy |Today, 15:10 |Baghdad today – Baghdad Today, Sunday, the expert in economic affairs, Raad Al-Masoudi, confirmed that the dollar is facing two strong pressures in the Iraqi markets, warning of the overwhelming anger of the street.
Al-Masoudi told (Baghdad Today) that "the rise in the exchange rate of the dollar in recent weeks has led to an increase estimated at 7-10% in prices on average in the Iraqi markets," adding, "But its frequencies will be greater due to the high import costs with the presence of speculation." And monopoly and weakness in the control tools, which means that the citizen’s attrition will be at the highest levels.”
He added, "The smuggling of the dollar out of the country and the pressure of the US Treasury on the central bank constitute two strong pressures on the exchange rate, pointing out that its rise to 170 is very possible," noting that "the danger of the high price of the dollar and its impact on the markets will create a stifling economic crisis that may lead to a wave of Massive demonstrations, especially since the poverty rate in the country exceeds 30%, which means that the situation will be very complicated if there are no logical solutions to the current crisis.
And yesterday, a member of the House of Representatives, Raed al-Maliki, announced the collection of parliamentary signatures to discuss the policies and procedures of the Central Bank regarding the rise in dollar exchange rates and the decline in currency exchange, in the presence of the Governor of the Central Bank.
According to documents issued on the 10th of this month and obtained by (Baghdad Today): "Signatures of more than thirty deputies were collected demanding a discussion of the Central Bank of Iraq's actions regarding the rise in dollar exchange rates and its instability in the local markets."
On the other hand, the political researcher, Laith Shubar, revealed information that he said was "revealed for the first time", summed up by Iran's possession of huge funds from the Iraqi dinar through which it buys dollars from the Iraqi market and drains it.
Shubar said in a televised statement, followed by (Baghdad Today), that "we have information that Iran has 50 trillion dinars of the Iraqi currency seeking to replace it with dollars, and this information is revealed for the first time," noting that "if the Iraqi dollar market remains wide open for purchase, the dollar will not It reaches not only 200,000 dinars, but up to 500,000 dinars for every 100 dollars.
He explained that "Iraq not only has to take governmental measures, but also international ones, and it must approach the UN Security Council to hold a special meeting on this matter, because this file concerns the livelihood of citizens and affects the national security of the country, because it will drain all the hard currency that Iraq possesses."
And with calculations conducted by (Baghdad Today), the 50 trillion Iraqi dinars are equivalent to about 32 billion dollars, while the daily sales of the dollar in Iraq are approximately $100 million, which means that this issue needs about a full year for the money in Iran’s possession to end. LINK
A Deputy Warns Of The Existence Of Two Prices For The Dollar: The Iraqi Economy Is In A "Dangerous" Condition
Posted On2023-01-15 By Sotaliraq Representative Muhammad Sahib al-Darraji warned, on Saturday, of a dangerous situation for the Iraqi economy due to the existence of two prices for the dollar.
Al-Darraji said in a tweet on Twitter, "The uncontrolled rise of the dollar must be confronted with measures at the level of controlling the exchange rate. And at the level of addressing the effects of the depreciation of the dinar on the vulnerable classes of society."
He added, "The presence of two different prices for the dollar: official in the Central Bank and real in the commercial markets, portends a dangerous situation in the Iraqi economy."
A member of the House of Representatives, Muhammad al-Ziyadi, called earlier on the Prime Minister, Muhammad Shia’ al-Sudani, to stand with the interest of the poor and find the necessary solutions to address the dollar price crisis, while stressing that the continued sale of oil in US dollars will not provide any result. LINK
Parliament Resumes Its Sessions By Ignoring The Dollar Crisis
Posted On2023-01-15 By Sotaliraq Baghdad / Firas Adnan Yesterday, Saturday, Parliament began its sessions in its third term by ignoring the most prominent crisis facing the Iraqi street, which is the rise in the exchange rate of the dollar and its impact on the local market.
Representative Amer Abdel-Jabbar said, "82 deputies signed a request that the rise in the price of the dollar be discussed in the first parliament session."
Abdul-Jabbar continued, "The agenda for yesterday was devoid of this paragraph, although the changes in the price of the dollar greatly affected the citizen, with a clear price hike in the markets."
He pointed out, "The citizen does not bear the burden of the government's mistakes, which must provide radical solutions," noting that "Parliament is with dealing with money laundering operations and pursuing the corrupt, but this is not done at the expense of the citizen."
Abdul-Jabbar pointed out that “the issue of the dollar falls directly on the central bank and the executive authority. As for the role of parliament, it is a supervisory one represented by hosting the governor of the central bank, Mustafa Ghaleb Makhaif, and if necessary, hosting the Prime Minister, Muhammad Shia’ al-Sudani.”
And he stated, “If the government does not put in place radical solutions, then we will go to use our powers in interrogation, because we do not accept that the citizen bears the price.”
For his part, the other deputy, Sharif Suleiman, stated that "Parliament must put in its first concern the issue of changing the exchange rate of the dollar and its impact on the Iraqi street."
Suleiman continued, "The representatives will not stand by and watch the rise in the exchange rate," stressing that "the role of the House of Representatives oversight over the rest of the authorities helps it to remedy the crisis."
Parliament finished its first session of the new legislative term, reading a report and discussing the Fourth Amendment Law to the Industrial Investment Law for the private and public sectors No. (20) of 1988 and the first reading of the draft Communications and Informatics Law. The session also witnessed, according to an official statement of the parliament, the oath of three new deputies, Ghazwan Ali Muhammad Munshed and Kazem. Attia Kazem and a leftist student. LINK
Deputy Demands To Expedite The Approval Of The Budget For The Provision Of Services
Sumerian special 2023-01-14 | Source: Alsumaria News 1,459 views
Today, Saturday, the independent deputy in the State of Law, Muhammad al-Ziyadi, called on the Iraqi government to expedite the approval of the budget law to provide services.
Al-Ziyadi said, in his interview with the program "Bel Mukhtaz" broadcast by Alsumaria TV, that "Al-Sudani's visit to sign a memorandum of agreement with the German company "Siemens" has positive and negative aspects, as it does not satisfy many neighboring countries and some personalities inside Iraq," noting that "the conference Held in Saudi Arabia for the sake of the Arab summit, which was attended by most of the Arab countries, we have not seen any benefit from it for Iraq so far.
He added, "The Iraqi government must work seriously to end security breaches by neighboring countries, given that Turkey is still bombing," noting that "the Iraqi parliament must stand on many crucial points regarding this matter."
He continued, "The conflict in international oil prices due to the winter weather in Europe and the repercussions of the Russian-Ukrainian war caused delay in approving the budget law for the purpose of determining the price of oil in it," noting that "there are many political problems in the budget law."
Al-Ziyadi called for "accelerating the approval of the budget in order to work on providing services to citizens," stressing that "the fifth session of parliament differs from the previous one because of the presence of many independent figures."
Regarding the rise in dollar prices, Al-Ziyadi explained: "We are living in a big problem because of the financial policy followed by the previous Iraqi governments, especially in writing the dinar against the dollar."
He pointed out that "in the event of a decline in oil prices, the government may have to raise the price of the dollar to pay the salaries of employees," adding: "If the Sudanese government continues in this manner, it will be similar to what preceded it." LINK