By John Lee. Reuters reports that Iraq cut its gold holdings by a quarter in November. Data from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) showed that the country's stocks fell to 29.9 tonnes. (Source: Reuters)
Iraq Cuts Gold Holdings by a Quarter
Archive | Iraq Banking & Finance News
Iraq Business News brings you the latest Iraq banking & finance news, with information on developments and opportunities.
Deputy Governor of CBI Released
By John Lee. The Iraqi authorities have reportedly released the deputy governor of the Central Bank of Iraq, Mohamed Salih, who has been detained for more than month on charges related to corruption. In October, Prime Minister Maliki removed the head of the central bank, Sinan al-Shabibi, accusing him of mismanagement and currency manipulation. He […]
Questions About Practices of Private Iraqi Banks
By Omar al-Shaher, for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Privately held Iraqi banks have almost entirely relinquished their traditional functions — such as giving out loans, lending credit and issuing letters of credit — due to default risks. Instead, they are […]
Try Iraq for a True Frontier Market
By John Lee. Writing in the Financial Times, a partner at a London-based financial advisory business suggests Iraq as a true frontier market investment. Citing precedents such as Japan in the early 1960s and Russia in 1995, Richard Greer, a partner at Laurel Capital Kingsway LLP, says: "The greatest opportunities for emerging market investors have […]
CBI Expects 9% Growth, Reserves of $105-$110bn
By John Lee. The Acting Central Bank Governor, Abdul-Basit Turki, has told Reuters that Iraq’s economy should grow 9 percent this year, as it increases its oil production. He also predicted international currency reserves of between $105 billion and $110 billion by the end of this year. Central Bank predictions for last year were for […]
The New Iraq: 2013 Discovering Business
This week marks the 150th edition of our Iraq Business News newsletter, and we are delighted to mark the occasion by bringing you a major new guide to business in Iraq. Published by Allurentis, in association with Iraq's National Investment Commission (NIC) and UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), the fourth edition in the annual New […]
Tags: Allurentis, National Investment Commission, NIC, The New Iraq - 2013 Discovering Business, UK Trade and Investment, UKTI
Asiacell to be Top Holding in Invest AD's Iraq Fund
By John Lee. Abu Dhabi's Invest AD plans to buy into the Asiacell IPO (initial public offering), making it the top holding in its Iraq fund. Sherif Salem (pictured), the manager of the Invest AD Iraq Opportunity Fund, and one of our Expert Bloggers on Iraq Business News, said: "Asiacell is going to be one […]
Tags: Abu Dhabi, Asiacell, Euphrates Iraq Fund, Invest AD, IPO, North Bank, UAE, United Arab Emirates
Asiacell IPO Opens for Subscription
By John Lee. Shares in Asiacell, the first of Iraq's mobile phone operators to list on the stock exchange, are now open for subscription. According to a statement from the company: • Investors are now invited to complete and submit their application forms to subscribe • 67.503 billion shares, representing 25% of Asiacell's share capital, […]
Private Bank Earnings Jump 90%
By John Lee. Twenty-two of Iraq’s 30 private banks made a combined profit of $366 million (427 billion Iraqi dinars) during the first nine months of the year, according to a study released by the Association of Private Banks in Iraq. Al-Hayat newspaper says this is a 90 percent increase in profits over the same […]
US Judge Leads Workshop on Letters of Credit
The U.S. Embassy to Iraq hosted a workshop at Iraq's Judicial Development Institute from December 17-20 on the role of judges in adjudicating disputes involving letters of credit. U.S. Federal Judge Jed S. Rakoff, representing the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Commercial Law Development Program (CLDP), led the workshop with the assistance of the Institute of […]
Tags: letters of credit
Iraqi Firms Need Foreign Expertise as much as Capital
By Sherif Salem. While attending an investment conference in Erbil in November, I was struck by a theme that came through in almost all my meetings with listed-company executives: a desire to engage with foreign companies. It seems as if expertise is more in demand than capital as companies look to grow and take advantage […]
Tags: Al Hilal Industries, Al-Kindi Veterinary Vaccines Drugs, Asiacell, FDI, Foreign Direct Investment, Invest AD, Korek, Mamoura Real Estate Investment, Sherif Salem, Zain
How Much Does Iraq Really Need For its Budget?
By Seerwan Jafar. This article was originally published by Niqash. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Iraq’s 2013 budget amounts to US$118 billion. But the figures don’t add up. Doing the sums results in one conclusion: unless something is done differently, Iraq […]
Tags: Iraq Budget News