Gulf Keystone Up on Shaikan Update
By John Lee. Gulf Keystone Petroleum (GKP) has given an update on its production operations at Shaikan in Iraqi Kurdistan, its key producing asset. The company's shares closed up 1.9 percent on Friday. Production Development plans to increase Shaikan production capacity to 40,000 gross barrels of oil per day ("bopd") by year-end 2014 are on […]
Iraq Stock Market Report
Advertising Feature Rabee Securities Iraq Stock Exchange (ISX) market report (week ending: 12th June 2014). Please click here to download a table of listed companies and their associated ticker codes. The RSISX index ended the week at ID1,727 (-5.8%)/ $1,853 (-5.8%) (weekly change). The number of week traded shares was 6.2bn and the weekly trading […]
Dijila Operations Command "Retreats from Kirkuk"
Lieutenant General Jabbar Yawar, Secretary-General of the KRG Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs and the Spokesperson of the Region’s armed forces, stated that Peshmerga forces (pictured) now control Kirkuk city after the Dijila Operations Command retreated from its position. He said, “Peshmerga forces are in control of the majority of the Kurdistan Region outside of KRG […]
And the Winners are? The Kurds
By John Cookson. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Checking back through e-mails I am amazed it was only 4 days ago on June 10th I messaged an editor pal of mine that something momentous was happening in Iraq. ISIS had occupied […]
The Wrong Time to Panic
By Mark DeWeaver. Iraqi stocks held up surprisingly well for most of this week despite the dramatic loss of much of Northwestern Iraq to extremists. Even following the fall of Mosul on Tuesday, Rabee Securities’ RSISX index was down only 2.6% for the week by Wednesday’s close. And while the ISX index fell 3.3% on […]
UAE Assures Project Implementation in Kurdistan
The United Arab Emirates Deputy Minister of Economy and Trade, Abdullah Saleh, visited the Kurdistan Region this week to attend the 2014 TradeUAE Iraq conference in Erbil. The conference included 115 Emirati companies specializing in a wide range of sectors, including energy, the food industry, petrochemicals, construction, as well as companies offering banking and communications […]
Worst Week in Year for Iraqi Bonds
By John Lee. Bloomberg reports that Iraqi bonds have had their worst week in a year, as a result of the escalating violence in the country. Yields on January 2028 debt rose five basis points to 6.93 percent, taking this week’s increase to 55 basis points, the most since the period ended June 21, 2013. […]
Women Make Gains in Elections
By Rabih Nader for Al-Monitor. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. During the Iraqi parliamentary elections held April 30, female candidates outperformed many of their male peers and transformed themselves into key players in the electoral scene. In the previous elections, there were […]
Keeping the Lights on in Baghdad: An Interview with Harry Istepanian
By Bob Tollast. This article constitutes an introduction on the recent history of Iraq’s electricity sector followed by a Q and A with Mr. Istepanian. As Iraq endures the most serious terrorist offensive since 2004, what is certain is that this year a separate fight will continue to improve services, also crucial to the legitimacy […]
Risky Business in Iraq
By John Cookson. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. As ISIS prepares to advance on Baghdad and Iraq slips towards civil war, the world's oil corporations are updating plans to evacuate worried staff, from Dohuk in the north to the southern powerhouse […]
Expert Bloggers for Informed Readers
The recent offensive by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) -- also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham (ISIS) -- has shown that events sometimes move very rapidly in Iraq. Containing the threat to the rest of Iraq has presented Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki with a new set of […]
Southern Oil Facilities "Very, Very Safe"
By John Lee. Oil Minister Abdul Kareem al-Luaibi [Elaibi] (pictured) said on Wednesday that Iraq's southern oil export facilities were secure, with shipments now running at around 2.6 million bpd, according to Reuters. Speaking to reporters ahead of an OPEC meeting in Vienna, he said: "All our exports now are from the Basra terminal in […]