"Sunday News" Posted by Samson at KTFA 3-14-2021

KTFA:

Parliamentary Finance expects a new date for approving the budget ... and this is the fate of the abundance of oil

03/14/2021 13:31:40

A member of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, Sherwan Mirza, preferred to vote on the federal budget for 2021 this week.

Mirza told {Al-Furat News} that "approving the budget is very likely during this week, within the coming sessions," indicating that "the Finance Committee needs another meeting before approving it."

With regard to the price of a barrel of oil, a member of Parliament added, "The price of a barrel specified in the budget is a conservative one, and we do not know how it will become in the coming months." He pointed out that "when there is financial abundance, it goes to cover the deficit."

Earlier, the Speaker of Parliament, Muhammad al-Halbousi, affirmed that Parliament was keen to proceed with the laws suspended in previous sessions, most notably the Federal Supreme Court Law, which was suspended throughout previous sessions. Al-Halbousi indicated that the draft budget law will be in the coming days within the council’s agenda to vote on it.   LINK

Samson:   Nassif calls for employing the budget surplus to finance the Faw port

14th March, 2021

On Sunday, Representative Alia Nassif called on the government to seize the opportunity of high oil prices to use the surplus from the budget to finance the Faw port project

Nassif said in a press release received by "Al-Eqtisad News", that "the current price of a barrel of oil and the recent rise in global markets indicates that there is no actual deficit in the budget, whether the planned price of the barrel is modified or not, and therefore the cost of the Faw port must be paid." And amounting to six billion dollars

She added, "Employing the surplus from the budget in this giant vital project will relieve the state of the burden of paying the amount in the future and make the executing company obligated to complete the project as soon as possible, noting that the revenues will come to the state treasury when the first phase of the port is opened    LINK

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Samson:  Crude oil prices are on the way to $ 100

14:59 - 14/03/2021

Analysts said that crude oil prices are on their way to highs not seen since 2014.

With the energy sector approaching its best quarter ever, with year-to-date gains of nearly 40%, Craig Johnson, head of technical analysis at Piper Sandler, said, "There are clearly signs of some hikes in additional oil prices."

Johnson said, "I can in fact see a number that could be higher than $ 100 a barrel, within 6 to 12 months from now," according to what he said to "CNBC", and seen by "Al Arabiya.net." He explained that the SPDR Energy Sector Index Fund is also showing signs of rising after the difficult year 2020. He cited a chart of the documents of the 23-stock exchange traded fund, indicating the formation of a technical figure indicating the rise represented by a double bottom and two tops. “We are seeing a multi-year reversal in terms of the performance of the SPDR Energy Fund compared to the S&P 500 and it is clear that there are some very positive trends happening here,” he said. "These are long-term issues and trends that are beginning to unfold."

With OPEC likely to keep production stable until at least the summer, Nancy Tengler of Lafer Tegler Investment expects a further rise in oil prices. She believes that with the supply not increasing until October, it means that the price of oil can easily rise from its current levels. Our expectations are somewhere around $ 80 a barrel for the summer, Tingler said.

For its part, JPMorgan chose Chevron and ExxonMobil among its best picks from among "major oil companies" on Friday, citing increased cost efficiency, and said that the balance sheet leverage could return to pre-epidemic levels this year.   LINK

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Samson:  The head of a parliamentary bloc suggests that the dollar exchange rate will change in the 2021 budget

19:30 - 13/03/2021

Head of Bayariq Al-Khair Parliamentary Bloc, MP Muhammad Al-Khaldi, on Saturday, suggested changing the exchange rate of the dollar in the 2021 budget.

Al-Khalidi said to the agency / information /, that "the parliamentary pressure to change the exchange rate of the dollar from its current position at 1450 dinars per dollar continued and did not stop, but rather doubled in recent times."

He added, "The high selling prices of crude oil and the improvement in the general economic situation have made the exchange rate remaining in its current position not compatible with the nature of the economic scene, especially since there are large segments of Iraqi society affected by the price due to the high prices of basic materials in the markets."

Al-Khalidi said, "The continued parliamentary pressure leads to a change in the exchange rate of the dollar in the 2021 budget, especially since many political forces have begun to realize the importance of the decision, especially since its justifications have disappeared with the recent rise in crude oil selling prices."

Several representative political forces continue their campaign towards restoring the dollar’s ​​exchange rate to its previous position, or at least setting an average price that reduces the financial burden on large segments, including the poor, due to the increase in food prices.   LINK

KBC123:  Wow!  Great find!  Thank you Samson!

Samson:  Renewed protests in Lebanon due to the collapse of the lira

19:16 - 13/03/2021

Dozens of Lebanese demonstrated today, Saturday, in more than one region of the country, coinciding with the record collapse of the Lebanese pound, in which it fell to 12 thousand pounds for the dollar.

The protesters gathered in Martyrs Square in central Beirut, and were joined by retired military personnel, who withdrew after a number of young men tried to storm an entrance to the Parliament and throw stones at the security forces, while Parliament police used tear gas to disperse the protesters.

The demonstrators also blocked Beirut Sidon road with burning tires, in protest against the deteriorating living conditions and the high exchange rate of the dollar.    LINK

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Samson:  Deputy: Negotiations with the Kurds on the budget will continue until tomorrow dawn

14th March, 2021

The deputy of the Saeron Alliance, Riyad Al-Masoudi, confirmed today, Sunday, that negotiations will take place with the Kurdish delegation and will continue until dawn tomorrow, Monday, to reach a specific agreement regarding the passage of the budget, while he indicated that the two most difficult articles in the negotiations are the tenth and eleventh regarding Kurdish oil.

Al-Masoudi said in a statement to "Tigris", that "the Kurdish delegation will conduct negotiations during the next 24 hours continuously with the parliamentary committees, political blocs, and the leaders of the three parties and presidencies. The negotiations will continue until Monday dawn, the day the political forces vote on the budget."

He added that "the negotiations may postpone the two articles on the proportions of Kurdistan until more in-depth negotiations are held, and that the threat to pass them by Baghdad with the political majority."

He pointed out that "the drafting of articles ten and eleven are the most difficult in the budget law, as they concern the proportions of Kurdistan and its Muslim oil to Baghdad through SOMO," explaining that "there is great political pressure on the Parliamentary Finance Committee to pass the budget as soon as possible."   LINK