"Tidbits From TNT" Sunday 8-20-2023

TNT:

Tishwash:  Iraq is the focus of attention of the producing countries in the world

 The Assistant General Manager of the Oil Marketing Company, Ali Nizar, stressed the need to use technological development in the oil sector, especially in the marketing sector.

In a statement to "Al-Iqtisad News", Nizar pointed out the importance of balance in oil pricing so that it is a fair price for producers and consumers to preserve the markets, pointing to the need to protect the marketing side from bureaucracy and instructions that may be commensurate with contracts or simple institutional instructions, but may constitute an obstacle to marketing. .

He added that Iraq, in its current situation, is the focus of attention of consumers because the producing countries in the world have reached their peak production and began to decline, while Iraq has many promising reserves, which we have always used this aspect to obtain an advantage in marketing negotiations   link

Tishwash:  The World Bank: Iraq's economy is "fragile" and its debts have risen to $152 billion

The World Bank announced that the Iraqi economy is fragile, and that the country's debts have increased to 152 billion dollars, noting that the Central Bank auction caused the redirection of hard currency to the parallel market, which led to a decrease in the value of the dinar against the dollar.

The World Bank said in the report issued on the economy in Iraq and its debts, under the title: (Renewed Pressures: Iraq's Recovery is in Danger), that "the Iraqi economy suffers from stagnation in non-oil gross domestic product, industries, and agricultural activities, which was accompanied by high inflation rates, as it lacks Iraq, under its current government, for wide-ranging structural reforms that would strengthen its economy away from oil.

He stated that "the annual budget approved by the government authorities is witnessing a significant increase in the volume of public expenditures by 59% over the previous year, which represents 74.3% of total spending, which will lead to a large fiscal deficit of 51.6 trillion Iraqi dinars - equivalent to 39.7 billion dollars." - Which represents 14.3% of the volume of public imports, more than half of the recent record reserves that were accumulated in the wake of the boom in oil prices.

And regarding the policies of the (central bank) in devaluing the local currency, the World Bank stated that "the devaluation of the Iraqi dinar led to an increase in overall and basic inflation, due to the heavy dependence on import operations in light of weak local production that is not supported by government authorities, which exposed the country's fragile economy." ".

The World Bank report added that "the standards of transactions adopted by the (Central Bank) through auctions for the sale of currency; caused the redirection of hard currency to the parallel market, which caused a decrease in the value of the dinar against the dollar."

According to the World Bank, "Iraq's lack of diversification of income sources due to the chaotic policies of successive governments led to a contraction of the gross domestic product by 1.1% in 2023 and an increase in the country's public debt to reach 58.3%, after it was 53.8% in the previous year, which will reach 152 billion." dollars, an increase of $10 billion, while the total external debt amounted to $50 billion, and the internal debt amounted to $102 billion, which means that government authorities borrowed about $60 billion internally in the previous three years, at a rate of $15 billion annually, with annual interest on internal debts amounting to 16 to 17% of the total debt.

According to the bank, “the prospects for the economic future in Iraq are still exposed to great risks, due to excessive dependence on oil, which makes it vulnerable to shocks in oil markets and global demand, as evidenced by the recent decline in oil prices, in addition to the factors driving fragility that pose fundamental challenges.” economy, such as rampant corruption, poor service provision, infrastructure development, and security risks.

The World Bank added that "the continuation of government authorities in pursuing these policies will make the country's budget in favor of the political parties that have delayed the wheel of development and made it suffer from major imbalances despite the passage of two decades of allegations of the end of the war."   link

************

CandyKisses:  Politician: The government is required to pressure Washington to remove its forces from Iraq

Information/Baghdad...

Political analyst Sabah al-Uqaili said on Sunday that Washington's pressure towards Baghdad towards changing the name of advisers in Iraq to combat forces is a violation of agreements with the Iraqi government, pointing to the importance of the government's move to resolve the file of the US presence on the ground of Iraq.

Al-Uqaili told Al-Maalouma that "there is an urgent need for the government to pressure Washington to remove US forces from the country, within the agreements concluded with it in 2008 and 2020."

He added, "There is a bet on Iraqi diplomacy to establish sovereignty and independence and obligate the other side to respect the agreements that guarantee the complete exit of US forces from Iraq."

And he indicated that "Washington's move towards pressure towards converting the name of the American advisors into combat forces is contrary to the agreement with the Iraqi government in 2020, as the agreement stipulated the presence of advisers and trainers with a known number at the request of the government, and the deployment of foreign forces outside the Iraqi borders, but this matter did not happen." "

Mot:  ..... When You Get That Callllllll 

Mot:  ... Tell me the Rest of the jingle~~