KTFA:

Clare:  Professor Frank Gunter launches a new white paper on de dollarisation of Iraqi economy.

29th May 2024

‘Two Cheers for Iraq: The Dinar – Dollar Exchange Rate Challenges’

Professor Frank Gunter publishes a new paper commissioned as part of a series by IBBC’s advisory council on the challenges of de-dollarisation for Iraq. 

The Advisory Council members and IBBC members have actively contributed to the paper in the past 4 months. It will be presented online on the 18th June in a webinar and in person at the Spring Conference on 2nd July. The Arabic translation will be published soon.

Professor Gunter provides an analysis of the drivers of impact on the dinar exchange rate and examines how best to deal with the parallel market of dinars to dollars. He outlines the practical policy initiatives that should reduce the gap between the official and parallel exchange rates in the medium-term.

KTFA:

Clare:  The government sees clear indicators: the parallel dollar will be equal to the official one

5/26/2024   Baghdad

Today, Saturday (May 25, 2024), Mazhar Muhammad Saleh, the economic advisor to the Prime Minister, confirmed that the dollar exchange rate in the parallel market is close to matching the official price, in conjunction with the increased capacity of banks to meet requirements.

Saleh said in a press statement followed by “Baghdad Today” that “the price of the dollar will be 1320 dinars in the coming days,” noting that “the important factors that work to reduce the value of the US dollar against the Iraqi dinar in the parallel exchange market will remain centered on two important variables, the first of which is the rise Abilities of operating banks to comply with external transfer rules.

KTFA:

Clare: Floating the dinar... Will it achieve monetary stability in Iraq?

Moaz Fraihat - Washington May 17, 2024   The stability of the Iraqi dinar in recent years has always faced major challenges, as it witnesses price fluctuations, not to mention a gap between what the central bank determines and what is sold in the parallel market.

In order to avoid the “volatility” syndrome and the “gap” in the price of the Iraqi dinar against foreign currencies, some experts believe that the solution lies in a kind of “surgical” operation for the country’s monetary system that may be painful, but it achieves long-term monetary stability for the national currency through... "float".

The cash selling price, according to the Central Bank, is 1,305 dinars per dollar, while the price for transfers abroad is 1,310 dinars per dollar, and the price in the parallel market is about 1,450 dinars per dollar in mid-May, according to local media , while it reached levels of 1,600 dinars per dollar in previous periods.