Zig’s Place Chatroom News Monday AM 1-24-22

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Butterfly   Poll: The Gulf region will witness faster growth in 2022

A Reuters poll of economists showed that the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries will witness the fastest economic growth in years, but economists have warned that the possibility of a decline in oil prices represents the biggest risk to these expectations.

Oil prices, which are a major factor driving the economy of the Gulf states, rose to their highest levels since 2014 last Wednesday, supported by escalating global political tensions in major producing countries, including the UAE and Russia, which may lead to a decline in supplies.

And 25 economists predicted in the poll, which was conducted from January 11 to 19, that the six countries will witness faster growth this year than was expected 3 months ago.

Saudi Arabia came at the top of the list of expectations, with a growth of 5.7%, followed by Kuwait and the UAE, with growth of 5.3% and 4.8%, respectively. It is expected that Qatar, the Sultanate of Oman and Bahrain will witness an average growth between 3% and 4% in 2022, and if this is achieved, this will be better. The rate of growth witnessed by these countries for several years.

“Despite the relatively tight fiscal policy and some external headwinds, we expect the GCC economies to experience faster growth in 2022 as they continue to benefit from the progress made last year,” Khadija Haq, head of research and chief economist at Emirates NBD, told Reuters. .

"Although the outlook for 2022 is still relatively constructive, a high degree of ambiguity remains, especially with regard to the evolution of the coronavirus pandemic," she added.

butterfly   At a time when the global economy is dealing with the possibility of continued inflation, expectations for prices in the region are modest but varying, and inflation is expected to remain between 2% and 2.8% this year, and the lowest reading was for the UAE, Saudi Arabia and the Sultanate of Oman at 2%, and it was the highest in Qatar at 2.8%.

Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter and the largest economic and political power in the region, will witness an economic growth of 5.7 percent this year. If this is achieved, it will be the fastest growth rate since 2012, when oil prices averaged about $111 a barrel.

In contrast to the increase in the average forecast in the poll conducted by Reuters last October, the expectations also showed higher increases and major declines, and the UAE economy is expected to grow by 4.8% this year, recording the fastest growth rate since 2015.

butterfly   Growth risks  -  Reliance on energy prices accompanies the risk that the economic recovery will be negatively affected by any price turmoil due to geopolitical tensions or the global economic slowdown.

And 9 out of 10 economists who answered an additional question said that any drop in oil prices and the emergence of new mutations from the Corona virus are among the biggest risks to economic growth in the Gulf Cooperation Council this year.

“Low oil prices remain the biggest risks to the GCC region, and supply chain disruptions will continue to play a role and negatively impact the global economy,” said Ralph Wegert, head of the Middle East and North Africa economic team at IHS Markit. The Gulf Cooperation Council may not be affected that much.”

Wegert added that the growth of the Gulf Cooperation Council is very much on the upside already, and the GDP growth in the Gulf Cooperation Council is based on the assumption of strong global demand for oil in 2022. Source: Reuters

butterfly   The Network Clarifies The Mechanism For Disbursing The Budget For The Current Year

Economic  Last Update 01/24/2022 | A member of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, former MP Muhammad Al-Shabki, clarified the mechanism for disbursing the budget for the current year in the event that it was not approved by Parliament or not sent by the government that the House of Representatives in its new session.

Al-Shabki told Al-Maalouma, "If the government does not submit any budget for the current year, it will resort to relying on the same 2021 data, in accordance with paragraph 13 of the Financial Management Law."

He added that "the government will adopt a 1 by 12 system in spending the budget in the event that it works on preparing the budget for the current year without being voted on and approved in Parliament."

And he indicated that "the Ministry of Finance adopted in its expenditures for the current year a system of 1 by 12, especially since the ministry worked to present the budget to the government, and in the event that it was not approved by Parliament, the data of the past year will be adopted in the budget disbursement mechanism." https://almaalomah.me/2022/01/24/578292/

butterfly   Bitcoin Breaks The $34,000 Barrier Downwards

ECONOMIC  01/24/2022 | 3:21 PM   Cryptocurrencies continue to bleed, which plunged the value of the most famous currency, including “Bitcoin”, to break the barrier of 34,000 dollars downwards for the first time since last July, and recorded its lowest level in 6 months.

Losses pervaded various currencies, such as Ether and Solana, in addition to the so-called meme currencies, causing the market to lose more than 400 billion dollars of its value in two days, and more than 1.4 trillion dollars in two months.

With the decline of Bitcoin, the currency has received consecutive strong strikes, 7 days ago, to exceed its total losses of 50% since last November.

The researcher in cryptocurrencies, Abdullah Al-Mashat, described in an interview with “Al-Arabiya” the significant decline in the value of cryptocurrencies, as it comes after a high peak recorded by that value, and therefore a 30% drop in cryptocurrencies is usual, but what happened far exceeds this percentage.

He pointed out that many of the small meme coins will disappear due to this strong tremor.

Many market dealers believe that there is no longer room to hide, as all risky asset classes are strongly vulnerable to correction, as several factors have played a role in the past few days in the decline of cryptocurrencies, including the upcoming US Federal Reserve policy of quantitative easing, and a warning from Russia to ban currency trading and mining. encrypted file, in addition to geopolitical reasons related to the Ukrainian file.

Accordingly, the market value of cryptocurrencies lost 1.4 trillion dollars of its market value within two months, after it touched the level of 3 trillion dollars, bringing its market value until yesterday, Saturday, about 1.6 trillion dollars, according to CoinMarketCap. https://almaalomah.me/2022/01/24/578418/

butterfly   The World's Richest People Lose $25 Billion In A Week

Economic Last Update 01/24/2022 | 11:52 AM  The decline in technology and cryptocurrency companies' shares caused a decline in the fortunes of a number of the world's richest people during the past week.

The founder of “Tesla” and “SpaceX” Elon Musk, lost $ 25.1 billion, while the fortune of “Amazon” founder Jeff Bezos decreased by $ 20 billion, and the founder of the cryptocurrency trading platform “Binance” Chang touches Chao lost $ 17.7 billion, while the number reached to $10.4 billion for Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.

And, according to the British newspaper, The Independent, on the “Bloomberg Billionaires Index”, Musk’s wealth decreased by 9 percent, but he still leads the world’s richest people by a huge margin, with a total wealth of $243.4 billion.

Bezos ranks second, with a total fortune of $167.6 billion, and is just behind him, French luxury retail magnate Bernard Arnault, with $167.5 billion.

Microsoft founder Bill Gates comes fourth with $128.6 billion, ahead of Google's Larry Page with $116.5 billion.

The technology-focused Nasdaq index fell, at its close on Friday, by 7.6 percent, the largest drop since March 2020, as well as the fourth consecutive weekly decline for the index, and the longest decline in nine months.

Investors are hoping that the Federal Reserve will decide the interest rate issue at its upcoming meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Analysts expect that the turmoil in the financial markets will continue this week, with a large number of companies such as Apple, Microsoft, IBM, Intel and Tesla issuing their earnings reports.

butterfly   The digital currencies also lost a significant percentage of their value, and “Bitcoin” plunged to its lowest level in months, and its value fell to less than 40 thousand dollars.

The price of "Bitcoin" fell more than 5%, on Monday, to its lowest level in more than 5 months.

“Cryptocurrencies are likely to remain under pressure as the Federal Reserve reduces its liquidity injections,” said economist Jay Hatfield. Bitcoin could expire in 2022 for less than $20,000.” https://almaalomah.me/2022/01/24/578346/

butterfly   The Iraqi Foreign Ministry Contracts With An American Pressure Company To Represent It In The United States

Economic Last Update 01/24/2022 | 1:10 PM  A report by the (Audi Reaper) magazine specialized in business revealed that Brian Galkin, partner in the American pressure company Livingston Group, which is based in Washington, DC, has an agreement to represent the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the United States.

The report, which was translated by the "Information" agency, stated that "the American company will engage in activities to strengthen relations between Iraq and the United States, including pressure, management, preparation and dissemination of media materials." According to the magazine.

He added, "The company will work to communicate with the White House and Congress to strengthen Iraq's relations with the United States, and it will deal with American multinational companies, think tanks and policy institutes in addition to Iraqis in the diaspora on behalf of the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the country."

And he added, "The American pressure company is headed by the former Speaker of the House of Representatives appointed Bob Livingston, where the value of the contract amounted to 500 thousand dollars and for a period of one year to represent Iraq," according to the allegations of the magazine.

It is reported that "Livingstone and his former chief of staff, J Allen Martin, and Catherine Kingsbury, a former advisor at the Solomon Group, are undertaking the Iraqi lobbying work, and reporting to the Iraqi ambassador to the United States, Farid Yassin."

It is noteworthy that "Livingstone represented Iraq from December 2017 until March of 2021 before renewing its contract." https://almaalomah.me/2022/01/24/578372/

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Zig   Parts of our chat are copied by "Dinar Recaps" one or more times daily....and that is where some people go to copy it as well https://dinarrecaps.com/our-blog

butterfly   Zig your chat is important if anyone comes to copy it to their website..

butterfly   Zig it truly amazes me that people don't do research but rely on others to tell them what is out there or not out there. You tell them the sky is red and they will believe you. Lordy Lordy no wonder we are at the bottom of the world educational system.

Butterfly   TLG to Represent Iraq in US 24th January 2022 in Politics

Brian Glackin, a partner at Washington DC-based lobbying firm The Livingston Group (TLG), has signed an agreement to represent Iraq's Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the United States.

Under the deal, the company will engage in activities to strengthen the ties between Iraq and the United States, including lobbying, perception management, and the preparation and dissemination of informational materials.

The Livingston Group (TLG) was founded in 1999 by Representative Robert L. "Bob" Livingston (R-LA), his former Chief of Staff J. Allen Martin and Legislative Director Paul Cambon.   (Source: FARA)

butterfly   Deal Signed to Develop Iraq's Mansuriya Gas Field 24th January 2022 in Iraq Oil & Gas News

The Chinese company Sinopec (China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation) has signed a deal to develop the Mansuriyah gas field in Diyala.

The field, near the Iranian border, is expected to produce 300 million standard cubic feet (Mmscf) per day of gas, which will be used for electricity generation and "various industrial projects".

With an area of 150 km2 and gas reserves estimated at 4.5 trillion standard cubic feet, Mansuriyah is the second largest gas field in Iraq, after the Akkas field in Anbar Province.

Sinopec will have a 49-percent interest in the field, with Iraq's state-owned Midland [Middle, Central] Oil Company having 51 percent.  Previous information suggested that the contract will run for 25 years, and may be extended for an additional five years.

In 2010, an agreement had been signed for the field to be developed by Turkish Petroleum (TPAO) (37.5%), Iraqi Oil Exploration Company (25%), Kuwait Energy (KEC) (22.5%), and Kogas (15%). This consortium stopped development in 2014 due to security concerns, and the agreement was reportedly cancelled in 2020.

The signing follows the initial announcement of the award in April 2021. At the ceremony, the Minister for Oil clarified that the "final" contract will need to be signed by the next government.   (Source: Ministry of Oil)

Butterfly   Al-Fayyadh “touches” a plot to tear up the Shiite house: Al-Sadr will not participate in it

2022-01-24 08:54   Al-Fayyadh touches a plot to tear up the Shiite house - Al-Sadr will not participate in itShafaq News/ The head of the “National Contract” coalition, Faleh al-Fayyad, called on Monday for the unity of the Shiite political house, stressing the integration between the framework and the Sadrist movement.

Al-Fayyadh said in a statement received by Shafaq News Agency, “Mr. Al-Sadr will not participate in the conspiracy to tear up the Shiite house that we see on some parties,” noting that “the coordinating framework is not an anti-Sadr bloc, and I do not like to say that the framework is coherent in the face of the Sadrist bloc.”

Al-Fayyadh pointed out to “the difficulty of determining the end of the scene in light of the continuous changes witnessed by the political process,” warning at the same time against “any non-constructive line-ups that took place, intentionally or unintentionally, to tear the Shiite ranks apart,” stressing that “whoever pushes towards this will be an opponent.” politically.”

Al-Fayyad, who is the head of the Popular Mobilization Committee, considered that “everyone who tries or thinks to weaken the Shiite component contributes to the division of Iraq and does not believe in the homeland.”   shafaq.com

butterfly   The National Union officially names Barham Salih as a candidate for the presidency

2022-01-24 08:29   The National Union officially names Barham Salih as a candidate for the presidencyShafaq News/ An informed political source revealed, on Sunday, that the leadership council of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan voted on Barham Salih as the party’s candidate for the presidency of the republic for a second term.

The source told Shafaq News Agency, that the leadership council of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan held a closed meeting today in Sulaymaniyah Governorate headed by the co-chair of the party, Bafel Talabani.

He added that the meeting discussed his candidate for the post of President of the Republic of Iraq, and unanimously approved that Barham Salih be the only candidate for the presidency.

And in the political tradition, during the past presidential sessions, a candidate from the National Union received the position of the Presidency of the Republic.

The Kurdistan Democratic Party won 31 parliamentary seats in the Iraqi legislative elections, compared to 17 seats for the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan. Following these results, the KDP announced the candidacy of Hoshyar Zebari for the presidency.   The new parliament’s presidency has set a date no later than the end of February 8, to receive the nominations for the presidency.   shafaq.com

butterfly   The National Union officially names Barham Salih as a candidate for the presidency

2022-01-24 08:29   The National Union officially names Barham Salih as a candidate for the presidencyShafaq News/ An informed political source revealed, on Sunday, that the leadership council of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan voted on Barham Salih as the party’s candidate for the presidency of the republic for a second term.

The source told Shafaq News Agency, that the leadership council of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan held a closed meeting today in Sulaymaniyah Governorate headed by the co-chair of the party, Bafel Talabani.

He added that the meeting discussed his candidate for the post of President of the Republic of Iraq, and unanimously approved that Barham Salih be the only candidate for the presidency.

And in the political tradition, during the past presidential sessions, a candidate from the National Union received the position of the Presidency of the Republic.

The Kurdistan Democratic Party won 31 parliamentary seats in the Iraqi legislative elections, compared to 17 seats for the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan. Following these results, the KDP announced the candidacy of Hoshyar Zebari for the presidency.

The new parliament’s presidency has set a date no later than the end of February 8, to receive the nominations for the presidency.   shafaq.com

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