Thursday Morning Iraq Economic News Highlights 6-8-23
Thursday Morning Iraq Economic News Highlights 6-8-23
Almost Final Confirmation From The Framework About The Budget Pass Session.. Will We Witness A Vote?
06/08/2023 Earth News/.. The coordination framework, which brings together the Shiite political forces, confirmed today, Thursday, the existence of a political agreement to resolve the passing of the budget law today.
“There is a political agreement to pass the budget law during the day, and to postpone the session until the evening, because there are some problems with the budget paragraphs, and they are on their way to a solution,” MP Mahdi Taqi told Earth News.
And Taqi stated that “solutions have been reached by the Kurdistan Democratic Party regarding the region’s paragraphs within the budget, and the budget law will be passed according to what was amended by the Finance Committee and with the agreement of the political blocs, and not as stated in government texts.” https://earthiq.news/archives/243623
Legal Expert: Passing The Budget Without Taking Into Account The Decisions Of The Federal Court Will Put Parliament In Front Of A Constitutional And Legal Violation
Thursday 08, June 2023 12:02 | Economical Number of readings: 205 [rtl]Baghdad / NINA / The legal expert, Counselor Salem Hawas, affirmed that the agreement to approve the draft general budget, which is scheduled to be voted on today, despite the objection of some and without taking into account the previous decisions of the Federal Supreme Court Regarding the export of oil through the oil distribution company, SOMO, will put Parliament before a clear constitutional and legal violation. .
Hawass said in a statement: “When the Finance Committee completed the discussion of the budget and most of its items were completed, despite the objection of some of the deputies to some of its items and the statement of some deputies that it will pass despite the objections to it, these objections will deepen the gap of differences and confuse the political process and increase the number of appeals against it.” Federal Supreme Court.
He explained: “The reason for the delay in voting on the budget, despite the loss of half of its fiscal year, is the existence of a defect in the constitution, as it did not specify a specific time limit and did not oblige the House of Representatives or the government with a specific time on the one hand, and the lack of agreement between the political blocs on its items throughout this period on the one hand.second".
The legal expert concluded by saying: "The parliament's vote on the budget and its approval without taking into account the decisions of the Federal Supreme Court regarding the export of the oil of the Kurdistan region through the window of the Oil Export Company / SOMO / as a principle and as a judicial precedent, will expose the budget after voting on it to appeal, and therefore Parliament will be obligated to implement the decisions The Federal Court, in accordance with the provisions of Article 94 of the Constitution, which states: The decisions of the Federal Supreme Court are final and binding on all authorities https://ninanews-com.translate.goog/Website/News/Details?key=1058395&_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en
Al-Sudani: The Budget Amendments Are Political, Not Technical, And This Is About Voting On Them
Information/Baghdad.. The representative of the State of Law Coalition, Muhammad Saadoun al-Sudani, confirmed, on Thursday, that some of the amendments made to the budget are not considered professional or technical amendments, but rather political, and therefore whether or not to vote is a political decision.
Al-Sudani said in an interview with Al-Maalouma, that "there is a parliamentary consensus to pass the federal budget to allow the government to implement its program, and to export and market the region's oil through the SOMO company."
He added, "The approval of the budget will benefit the people, and the national duty requires everyone to move towards the voting session to pass the budget, and to allow the government to complete its program, which included promising projects and paragraphs to improve the standard of living and services.”
And he indicated that "members of Parliament and political parties are required to pass the budget so that the government can provide the needs of the people, and start practical steps for the Sudanese government."
He pointed out that "the region has no other choice but to export and market oil through the SOMO company, especially after the recent decision of the Paris court, which prohibits the export and import of oil from the region, and therefore the region is obligated." to export through the aforementioned company.” LINK
Al-Zajrawi: Transferring 6 Trillion Dinars To Support The Investment Budget Of The Governorates And Ministries
Thursday 08, June 2023| Economical Number of readings: 103 Baghdad / NINA / - Member of Parliament Thanaa Al-Zajrawi revealed a transfer of 6 trillion dinars to support the budget investment in the governorates and ministries.
Al-Zajrawi stated in a statement, "These amounts will contribute positively to the establishment of projects for the governorates and ministries," indicating that "| The priorities on which these amounts will be distributed to the governorates and ministries have not yet been declared. /
Parliament’s Finances Reveal The Fate Of Kurdistan’s Budget Amendments.. “The Agreement Has Been Achieved.”
06/08/2023 Earth News / The Parliamentary Finance Committee revealed today, Thursday, the fate of the amendments made to the paragraphs related to the Kurdistan region within the budget law.
Committee member Mueen Al-Kadhimi told Earth News that "the amendments made by the Finance Committee to Articles 13 and 14 were taken into consideration by the negotiators of the coordination framework, and this was achieved in the agreement reached with the Kurdistan Democratic Party."
He added, “As it has become obligatory for the regional government to produce no less than 400,000 barrels of oil per day, and for the federal government represented by the Ministry of Oil and the SOMO company, the process of selling and exporting, signing contracts with foreign companies, and depositing the revenues of these quantities in an approved account with the central bank,
and the prime minister of the region has the authority to exchange From it, and in the event that it is not possible to export 400 thousand barrels, these quantities are delivered to the federal government for local consumption in refineries and others, in addition to the delivery of non-oil revenue statements, and it is considered a clearing regarding what is allocated to the region 12.67%.
And he explained, “As for the observations and paragraphs that were added to Article 14, which call for spending an additional 10% on the salaries of employees of the Kurdistan Region, these may be among the recommendations that are submitted to the Kurdistan Regional Government to deal with this file internally for them and not necessarily include it in the budget,
and thus these procedures are consistent with the directions The Finance Committee, and it is assumed that there will be a meeting before it, a preliminary meeting of the Finance Committee, before the plenary session of the House of Representatives this Thursday evening. https://earthiq.news/archives/243634
"Manipulation And Speculation".. Economists Attribute The Dollar's Rise In The Parallel Market To "Non-Economic" Reasons
2023-06-08 Shafaq News/ The exchange rates of the dollar in the parallel market are still high by about 20 points from the official price that was set in the budget for the current year, which is 130,000 dinars compared to 100 dollars, and it has not decreased despite the central bank’s attempts to correct the course of foreign transfers towards their stated goals, which is to cover imports .
Many reasons
The financial and economic expert, Hilal Al-Taan, said in an interview with Shafaq News agency; The reasons for the dollar’s rise in the parallel market are several, including the presence of exchange offices that manipulate the price of the dollar up and down according to their interest, as well as a number of black market traders who manipulate prices.
He continued, "Administrative and financial corruption is the main reason for smuggling currency abroad, and there are no strict laws to control the sale of dollars and punish smugglers of foreign currency."
non-economic items
The economist Dergham Muhammad Ali said in an interview with Shafaq News agency, "The exchange rate of the dollar is controlled by the banks participating in the currency auction. There are two non-economic elements that control the exchange rate. It must create a parallel exchange rate that stifles the market and raises the level of pressure on the citizen.”
He added, "The second element is the delay in the budget, which some political forces often acquire a part of, either through projects or institutions that dominate them. Whenever the budget is delayed, those parties and forces need funding, so they resort to creating a gap between the official and parallel exchange rate to increase their financial revenues."
Checking remittances
The economist, Muhammad al-Hassani, said in an interview with Shafaq News Agency, "Despite the increase in the bank's daily sales, especially foreign remittances, to feed Iraq's imports, these remittances need to be checked by financial institutions that Iraq has contracted with in order to prevent smuggling and money laundering, and therefore it takes a long time to finish. From it, which pushes the trader to the parallel market to obtain the dollar as quickly as possible.
Also, "most of the small traders resort to the parallel market to obtain dollars to finance their simple trade instead of obtaining it from the Central Bank, because they do not have their own companies, which increases the demand for dollars more than the supply."
The exchange rates of the dollar in the parallel market rose to approaching 150,000 dinars against 100 dollars, despite the Central Bank’s attempts to reduce the gap between the parallel market and the official rate that is fixed in the budget at 130,000 dinars against 100 dollars. LINK
Securities Expect A Decline In The Price Of The Dollar After The Approval Of The Budget
Economy , 08/06/2023, Number of readings: 147 Securities expect a decline in the price of the dollar after the approval of the budget 74566
Baghdad-Iraq today: The head of the Securities Commission, Faisal Al-Haimus, expected that the markets would witness a decrease in the exchange rate of the dollar against the Iraqi dinar after the approval of the general budget.
Al-Haimus said in a statement, “The stability of the dinar price will enhance confidence between investors and the Iraqi market for securities, and it is expected that the dollar exchange rates will decline against the Iraqi dinar and its stability after the approval of the 2023 budget.”
He added, "The commission supports the Iraqi dinar, and its stability must be a common interest," noting that "the central bank has taken measures to reduce the fluctuation of the exchange rate and expected its stability at 1320 dinars to the dollar."
Al-Haimus attributed the fluctuation of the exchange rate to the failure to approve the budget and the failure to launch projects, calling for government support and speedy approval of the budget to stimulate stability in the exchange rates of the dinar against the dollar. LINK
Chambers Of Commerce Identify Three Reasons Behind The Rise In The Exchange Rate Of The Dollar In The Iraqi Markets
Baghdad today – Diyala Today, Thursday, the head of the Chambers of Commerce in Diyala, Muhammad Al-Tamimi, identified 3 reasons behind the high exchange rate of the dollar in the local markets.
Al-Tamimi said to (Baghdad Today), "The return of the compass to the high exchange rate of the dollar in the parallel market in Diyala and the rest of the provinces is due to 3 important reasons."
He added, "The most prominent reasons are smuggling and the presence of influential parties within the government institution whose interests intersect with any attempts to correct the course of the national economy," stressing that "the deep state has effective tools in thwarting any attempts towards any decisions that harm its interests."
He explained that "there are influential forces benefiting from the parallel market for the dollar, because it generates very huge sums of money on it, and the government's efforts to end smuggling and control the rhythm of the currency market mean cutting large sums of money."
Al-Tamimi pointed out that "controlling the national economy and dismantling the tools affecting it is not an easy task, and it is a battle similar to the battle with terrorism," stressing that "there are parties that do not want to continue the compass of economic reform in Iraq, or at least keep it within certain limits away from the interests of adults."
The exchange rates of the dollar against the Iraqi dinar are witnessing a significant increase in light of a battle waged by Prime Minister Muhammad Shia al-Sudani to reduce prices locally.
A war waged by the Prime Minister, to control exchange rates, sometimes with procedures from the Central Bank of Iraq and others related to exchange offices and private banks.
Here we find that despite the strict measures imposed by the executive authority, private banks and exchange offices found doors to manipulate prices away from the sight of the regulatory authorities.
The Association of Iraqi Banks is present and absent from the Iraqi arena. Despite the manipulation of the dollar exchange rate, it did not move a finger and take concrete steps on the ground as a supervisory authority that follows up on the work of banks.
The citizen, in turn, is first and foremost affected by the manipulation of the dollar exchange rate. The livelihood is now at the mercy of the merchants who raised prices under the pretext of the dollar. LINK
Alekti Resolves His Position To Attend The Session To Pass The Budget
Policy – Baghdad A member of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, Salih Faki, confirmed today, Thursday, that the representatives of the Union bloc will attend the parliament session for this day .
Faki said to (Baghdad Today), "The National Union and its deputies are determined to proceed with approving the draft general budget, as it was long overdue ."
He added that "the National Union bloc will attend the session scheduled for this day and vote on it, to proceed with this project to serve the citizens of Iraq and the region ."
For his part, the representative of the Kurdistan Democratic Party bloc, Sabah Sobhi, revealed that "radical changes" had been made in the draft budget law in favor of the Kurdistan region .
Yesterday, Wednesday, the State Administration Coalition held a meeting, in the presence of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, to resolve the file of approving the general budget to discuss changes in the draft budget, without disclosing the nature of those changes .
It is scheduled that the House of Representatives will hold its regular session today, Thursday, and devote it to voting on the draft financial budget law for the years 2023, 2024 and 2025, amid confirmation by the majority of parliamentary blocs to attend the session and vote in favor of the law .
The Presidency and the Kurdistan Regional Government have previously objected to the amendments made to the paragraphs related to the region in the financial budget that the Iraqi Parliament seeks to approve, describing it as a violation of the laws, the constitution, and the agreements concluded between Erbil and Baghdad, which resulted in the formation of the current federal government headed by Muhammad Shia al-Sudani . LINK