Iraq Business News brings you the latest Iraq banking & finance news, with information on developments and opportunities.
The Iraqi Foreign Ministry has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the General Secretariat of the League of Arab States, which includes exempting Iraq from 75% of its debts within the support funds provided to Arab countries, scheduling the remaining amount and paying for its contributions to the budget of the General Secretariat of the […]
By John Lee. Moody's Investors Service has affirmed the Government of Iraq's long-term issuer and senior unsecured ratings at Caa1 and maintained the stable outlook. The decision to affirm Iraq's Caa1 ratings reflects credit challenges posed by very weak institutions and governance that in Moody's view, will continue to limit policy effectiveness, constrain the government's […]
The Ministry of Planning and the United Nations signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish the Iraq Reconstruction and Recovery Trust Fund in support of the Government's Recovery and Development Framework. Iraqi Minister of Planning Dr. Nouri Sabah al-Dulaimi signed on behalf of the Government of Iraq. Marta Ruedas, the Deputy Special Representative of […]
By John Lee. On Wednesday 24 July, Khaled T. Kanaan, Chairman of the Jordan Iraqi Economic Association (JIEA), met with HE Mr. Ali Mohsen Al-Alaq, Governor of the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI). The meeting was a follow-up to the "Digital Transformation in Financial Sector Forum" held in Baghdad on 10 July, which was jointly […]
By John Lee. The Trade Bank of Iraq (TBI) has announced a loan of 1 trillion Iraqi dinars ($843 million) to the state-run Grain Board of Iraq, which is affiliated to the Iraqi Ministry of Commerce. According to a press release, the loan is an effort to help Iraqi farmers for clear their dues and […]
On July 19, 2019, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Article IV consultation [1] with Iraq. An improved security situation and the recovery in oil prices have improved near-term vulnerabilities. Large fiscal and current account surpluses—around 8 and 6 percent of GDP, respectively—were recorded in 2018, allowing the government to […]
On Thursday, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated two militia figures, Rayan al-Kildani and Waad Qado, and two former Iraqi governors, Nawfal Hammadi al-Sultan and Ahmed al-Jubouri, pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13818, which builds upon and implements the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act and targets perpetrators […]
By John Lee. Iran’s gas and electricity exports to Iraq are reportedy expected to reach $5 billion by the end of the current Iranian calendar year, which ends on March 21, 2020. Mehr news agency quotes the Secretary General of Iran-Iraq Joint Chamber, Seyed Hamid Hosseini, as saying that if Iraq agrees it is possible […]
By John Lee. The state-owned Trade Bank of Iraq (TBI) is reported to be planning to expand its operations in China and the Gulf. Chairman Faisal al-Haimus [al-Haimus] told Reuters that the bank want to increase revenues from retail banking and international operations from 25 percent to 30 percent by 2022. He added that it […]
The Al-Bayan Center for Planning and Studies has just published a new report from our Expert Blogger Ahmed Tabaqchali: The current debate over the interpretation of the 2019 budget that governs the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) share of the federal budget in return for contributing 250,000 bbl/d to federal oil exports has echoes of the […]
By John Lee. The World Bank will reportedly lend a total of $200 million to Iraq for upgrades to its electricity grid. According to Basnews, the agreement was signed by Finance Minister Fuad Hussein and Yara Salim, a representative to the World Bank. "There will be attempts to address the problem of power supply in […]
By Padraig O'Hannelly. Iraq's Deputy Minister at the Ministry of Construction, Housing, Municipalities and General Works has presented details of reconstruction projects underway in areas affected by terrorism. Dr Dara Reshid, who is also Vice President of the Reconstruction Fund for Areas Affected by Terroristic Operations (REFAATO), told CWC's Kirkuk & Mosul Megaprojects conference in […]
