Thursday Morning Iraq Economic News Highlights 4-20-23
Thursday Morning Iraq Economic News Highlights 4-20-23
The Dollar Falls To Less Than 1450 Dinars In The Iraqi Market
Market Economy News – Baghdad The exchange rates of the dollar in the Iraqi markets fell today, Thursday, to less than 1450 dinars.
Baghdad Sale: 144,500 dinars per 100 dollars Buying: 142,500 dinars per 100 dollars
South Sale: 145,000 dinars per 100 dollars Buying: 143,000 dinars per 100 dollars
North Sale: 144,500 dinars per 100 dollars Buying: 142,500 dinars per 100 dollars
Hours Before Eid.. The High Cost Hinders The Purchase Process In The Baghdad Markets
Economy |Today, Baghdad today - follow-up Despite the advent of Eid Al-Fitr after limited hours, large markets in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, continued to witness a weak turnout in the buying and selling movement, according to merchants and citizens .
Low-income citizens and shop owners confirm that all kinds of commodities are available in the local markets, but the citizens’ economic situation prevents them from buying, due to the rise of the US dollar against the local currency, the dinar, and the increase in commodity prices compared to previous years .
Low Turnout
Haider Hadi (45 years), a clothing merchant in downtown Mansour, Baghdad, said that the movement of purchasing power to shop during the last ten days of Ramadan for this year began with a downward curve and suffers from severe weakness and a significant decline compared to previous years .
Hadi told Anadolu Agency that the reason for the decline in the purchasing power of citizens is due to the fluctuation of US dollar prices and the difficult living situation for most Iraqis .
He added, "The most important week for this trade is the last of the month of Ramadan, and we do not expect the movement to increase, as there are only two days left until the Eid date, and the markets suffer from a lack of customers and shoppers ."
According to Hadi, this year is the worst for clothing merchants due to the weak purchasing power as a result of the high prices, the high cost of living, and the preoccupation with securing a living, in addition to other obstacles, including the absence of effective regulation of the market and the failure of chambers of commerce to protect the interests of merchants importing goods .
Economic Conditions
Reda Dakhil Kazem (33 years), the owner of a shoe store in the city of Mansour, said that the preparations for Eid al-Fitr and the sales movement at the end of Ramadan are normal, but the buying movement is not like the past, indicating that the reason for this is due to the difficult economic conditions in the country .
Kazem explained: "There are two days left until the Eid, and the general movement is weak during the last ten days of Ramadan. In previous years, we used to start the preparation season for the Eid ten days before, but these days the situation is different."
In Kazem's opinion, the prices of products and the economy in general are affected by the rise of the US dollar, and the security and political situation in the country has an impact .
According to the Iraqi shoe seller, the level of the citizen's purchasing power remained lower than before year after year .
Purchase Movement
Complaints about the state of the markets before the Eid also moved to the citizens after the merchants, as government employee Ali Faisal (40 years old), while shopping in a store, saw that the market prices are high and start to rise from foodstuffs, all the way to children’s clothes .
Sura, 28, a government employee, we found her shopping in a shopping center in Baghdad, accompanied by her little girl. She said that the commercial activity is good and regular, despite the high prices of commodities and necessities .
Despite this, Sari mentioned that the purchase movement seems weaker than in previous years due to the high prices and the increase in prices after the entry of goods from neighboring countries was prohibited .
Iraqis are living in difficult economic conditions, as a result of the repercussions of the financial crises that afflicted the country due to the high price of the dollar against the local dinar.
Source: Anatolia LINK
Parliamentary Finance For / Nina /: Voting On The Budget On This Date, And We Will Reduce The Deficit Rate
Thursday 20, April 2023 11:52 | politics Number of readings: 329 Baghdad / NINA / - The Parliamentary Finance Committee revealed its vision to address the deficit in the draft federal budget law, expecting a delay in the final vote on the law.
Committee member, Representative Jamal Cougar, stated, in a statement to the National Iraqi News Agency ( NINA ), that "the vote on the general budget will be delayed until the end of next May, when there will be joint meetings and seminars in which ministers and governors will be hosted by the Finance Committee.”
He added, "The deficit rate in the general budget will inevitably be reduced, after checking all the numbers with the concerned authorities, to reach the required reduction."
And he explained, "Reducing the deficit is one of the exclusive powers of the House of Representatives, which is" the reduction, transfer, and addition of paragraphs that are not subject to a financial commission.
He went on to say, "We can work to add paragraphs to cancel some expenses, add paragraphs to enhance other resources, and add paragraphs that will reduce the deficit rate," indicating that if the revenues are large, the deficit rate will decrease automatically , and if the revenues are small, we will inevitably go to cancel some paragraphs in The origin of the budget.”
Deputy: The Delay In Passing The Draft Budget Impedes The Government's Powers In The Possibility Of Spending
Iraq 2023-04-20 A member of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, Jamal Cougar, warned today, Thursday, of the consequences of delaying the approval of the budget for the current year, in light of the economic crisis related to its inability to pay the salaries of its employees and abide by its financial pledges. Cougar said in a press statement, “The approval of the 2023 budget
belongs to the government, as it was late in sending the final draft to the House of Representatives.
It is more important during the current period.”
Cougar pointed out, “With the approval of the budget, there will be large liquidity that will go to the private sector, to companies, and to the Iraqi market, which will help create job opportunities, turnover, and a large commercial movement.”
He pointed out that "the failure to approve the draft budget law during the next few period will threaten the investment side in Iraq to stop due to the lack of funds that cover operating expenses."
https://kirkuktv.net/AR/Details/14726
The Government: Resuming The Region's Oil Exports After Eid And Approving The Budget Before May
Time: 04/20/2023 01:17:10 Read: 4,004 times {Politics: Al-Furat News} The government spokesman, Basem Al-Awadi, announced that "there is a great glimmer of hope" for resuming the export of Kurdistan's oil "after the Eid Al-Fitr holiday," noting that work is underway to resume oil export at "the earliest possible opportunity."
Al-Awadi said, in a press statement, that the Prime Minister noted, during his dialogue with a number of TV channels, that the resumption of exporting the Kurdistan region's oil "could take place within days," adding that "the available information indicates that we are in the last moments (to resume export), and what It's just a technical procedure."
She indicated that the Federal Ministry of Oil and the Ministry of Natural Resources in the Kurdistan Region are implementing the agreement of the federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government, and "there are many technical procedures, including opening credits and accounts, correspondence with the Central Bank, and correspondence between the Ministries of Oil and Natural Resources, in addition to correspondence with companies that You buy oil."
He pointed out that SOMO "could, within a very few days, send an official letter to the Turkish Republic, in order to pump oil again," explaining: "Based on what the Prime Minister prefers and the information available from the Ministry of Oil, we are talking about a few days that will be decided." through this file.
He stressed that "the Iraqi government has a rush equal to the rush of the Kurdistan Regional Government to export oil. The Baghdad government has put the 400,000 barrels delivered by the Kurdistan Region as part of the Iraqi budget, and the more days these funds are delayed, the more damage there will be to Baghdad's budget and also to the rights of the Kurdistan Region." , stressing that the Iraqi government wants to "export oil today before tomorrow."
Al-Awadi added that "conviction, hope, and readiness are present, and work is underway" to resume exporting Kurdistan Region's oil at "the earliest possible opportunity" through the Turkish port of Ceyhan.
And he believed that even if there was a Turkish request for negotiation, "it is okay and it is a very encouraging factor, and it is possible for the three parties, Turkey, the Iraqi government and the delegation of the Kurdistan Region, to enter into negotiations and reach agreements," adding that "there are previous international agreements related to the issue of oil export, There are also bilateral agreements signed since 1973" between Iraq and Turkey.
He pointed out that "some of these agreements were renewed in the eighties. Turkey also knows that this issue is sensitive, and it needs resources like Iraq, so I do not think there is any difficulty with regard to the Turkish side."
He pointed out that "there is a very big glimmer of hope" for resuming the export of Kurdistan Region's oil "after the Eid al-Fitr holiday," noting that "the agreement is supposed to continue until the oil and gas law is passed, which is one of the important laws that was long overdue. He explained that" there is no
need prior agreements after enacting the law,” stressing the commitment of Prime Minister Muhammad Shia al-Sudani to the agreements reached within the coalition of state administration between the three components, and his work for the “legislation of the oil and gas law.”
Regarding the 400 billion loan to the Kurdistan Region, he explained that "the Council of Ministers agreed in its session on (April 18, 2023) to send a payment of about 200 billion dinars to the Kurdistan Region in order to provide assistance with regard to the salaries of the region's employees," indicating that it had arrived in the Kurdistan Region. "A technical issue that depends on the institutions."
And he continued, "We know that the process of stopping oil exports harms the budget of the Kurdistan Region," noting that the Kurdistan Region "is part of Iraq and there are agreements for an alliance to administer the state," and "brotherhood that brings us together above the agreements," which calls for the development of "rational and balanced policies."
Regarding the budget, Al-Awadi indicated that it could be approved "within 10 days, by the end of this month, and everything will proceed properly," adding that "the government will provide all facilities and assistance that enable the Kurdistan Region and its citizens to continue their normal lives," even if the approval of the budget is delayed further. So. LINK
More Than $10 Billion... Iran's Exports To Iraq Record An "Unprecedented Level"
Money and business Economy News – Baghdad The director of the West Asia office at the Iranian Trade Development Organization, Farzad Beltin, confirmed that merchandise exports to Iraq in the fiscal year ending March 20, 2023 exceeded the level of $10 billion.
Belten considered that the export of more than $10 billion in goods to Iraq in the aforementioned year "is a new, unprecedented level."
He added that exports to Iraq witnessed an increase of about 15 percent over the previous year ending March 20, 2022, as about $8.2 billion of them related to 100 items of main commodities exported to Iraq.
On the other hand, Belten confirmed that Iran's imports from Iraq recorded about $200 million in the fiscal year ending March 20, 2023, adding that Iraq is "one of Iran's strategic partners" with regard to foreign trade, especially exports. https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=33698
An Increase Of About 15%.. Iranian Exports To Iraq Achieved An “Unprecedented” Number Last Year
04/20/2023 2247 Earth News / Iranian media reported today, Thursday, that Iranian exports to Iraq during the ending fiscal year achieved an unprecedented number.
"Exports of goods to Iraq in the fiscal year ending March 20, 2023 - according to the Persian calendar - exceeded $10 billion, and this is an unprecedented new level," said Farzad Belten, director of the West Asia office at the Iranian Trade Development Organization.
He pointed out that "exports to Iraq witnessed an increase of about 15% over the previous year ending March 20, 2022, as about $8.2 billion of them relate to 100 items of main commodities exported to Iraq."
Belten explained that “commodities such as natural gas, steel alloys, dairy products, plastics, urea, oranges, eggs, sponge iron, pipes, profile iron, types of electrical transformers, and metal industries witnessed an increase over the previous year.”
He pointed out that "Iran's imports from Iraq recorded about $200 million in the fiscal year ending March 20, 2023," stressing that "Iraq is one of Iran's strategic partners with regard to foreign trade, especially exports." https://earthiq.news/archives/222647
Deputy Attributes Fears Of Approving The Tripartite Budget To The Instability Of The Iraqi Economy
1,089 A member of the Iraqi Parliament, Bassem Al-Gharibawi, attributed the biggest problem facing the approval of the three-year budget to the instability of the Iraqi economy.
Al-Gharibawi said in a press interview seen by “Takadum” that “the most important reasons that called for favoring the one-year budget is the instability of the Iraqi economy, which does not enable the government to provide funds covering three years,” noting that “there is a political desire to approve the budget as soon as possible.” ".
He stated, "The political forces have many demands related to approving the approval of the budget."
He added, "The decisive session for its approval will be after the Eid," noting that "all parties will work in the end to make the budget fair for all Iraqis." https://takadum-news.com/archives/160378
Iran's Exports To Iraq Record More Than 10 Billion Dollars
Economy| 10:47 - 04/20/2023 Follow-up - Mawazine News, Director of the West Asia Office of the Iranian Trade Development Organization, Farzad Beltin, confirmed that merchandise exports to Iraq in the fiscal year ending March 20, 2023, exceeded the level of 10 billion dollars.
Belten considered that the export of more than $10 billion in goods to Iraq in the aforementioned year "is a new, unprecedented level."
He added that exports to Iraq witnessed an increase of about 15 percent over the previous year ending March 20, 2022, as about $8.2 billion of them related to 100 items of main commodities exported to Iraq.
On the other hand, Belten confirmed that Iran's imports from Iraq recorded about $200 million in the fiscal year ending March 20, 2023, adding that Iraq is "one of Iran's strategic partners" with regard to foreign trade, especially exports. https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=225038
Iraq Market Stops Its Activity For Five Days
Market Economy News – Baghdad Today, Thursday, the Iraqi Stock Exchange announced the suspension of its activity for a period of five days.
The market said in a statement, "Based on the Cabinet's decision to declare an official holiday for a period of five days on the occasion of Eid Al-Fitr, it will not organize trading sessions, starting from Thursday, corresponding to April 20, until next Monday."
The statement added, "The first trading session after the Eid holiday will be on Tuesday, April 25, according to its official timings." https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=33701
Iraq Market Stops Its Activity For Five Days
2023-04-20 03:54 Shafaq News/ The Iraqi Stock Exchange announced, on Thursday, that it has stopped its activities for five days.
In a statement received by Shafaq News agency, the market said, "Based on the Cabinet's decision to declare an official holiday for five days on the occasion of Eid Al-Fitr, it will not organize trading sessions, starting from Thursday, April 20, until next Monday."
He added, "The first trading session after the Eid holiday will be on Tuesday, April 25, according to its official timing."
It is noteworthy that the Iraq Stock Exchange organizes five trading sessions per week, from Sunday to Thursday, and includes 103 Iraqi joint stock companies representing the sectors of banking, communications, industry, agriculture, insurance, financial investment, tourism, hotels and services. LINK