The President Of The Republic Heads To Switzerland Tomorrow To Participate In The Meetings Of The World Economic Forum In Davos

Sunday 19 January 2025 17:20 | PoliticsNumber of readings: 222   Baghdad/ NINA / President of the Republic Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid will head to Switzerland tomorrow to participate in the World Economic Forum meetings in Davos./ LINK

Central Bank Of Iraq: 95% Of Dollar Sales To Boost Foreign Balances

01/19/2025  Mawazine News – Economy   The Central Bank of Iraq revealed, on Sunday, that foreign remittances constituted more than 95% of its daily sales, with the participation of 6 banks and 19 exchange companies.

According to a statement issued by the bank, its sales in today's auction amounted to 281 million, 623 thousand, and 107 dollars, at a basic exchange rate of 1310 dinars per dollar for documentary credits and international settlements for electronic cards, and 1310 dinars per dollar for foreign remittances, while cash dollars were sold at 1305 dinars per dollar.

The bank indicated that most of the sales, worth 269 million, 823 thousand, and 107 dollars (equivalent to 95.91%), were allocated to strengthening foreign balances through remittances and credits, compared to cash withdrawals, which amounted to only 11 million and 800 thousand dollars.

With regard to the participating banks, the number of banks that purchased cash dollars was only one bank, while 5 banks met requests to strengthen balances abroad.  19 exchange companies also participated in the daily auction.   https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=258782

Relative Stability Of The Dollar Exchange Rate In The Markets Of Baghdad And Erbil

 01/19/2025  Mawazine News – Economy  The dollar prices stabilized in the markets of the capital Baghdad, while they witnessed a decrease in Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region, with the closing of the stock exchanges on Sunday.

The dollar prices remained stable in the Al-Kifah and Al-Harithiya stock exchanges in Baghdad, recording 150,650 dinars per 100 dollars, the same prices recorded this morning.

Exchange rates also stabilized in the local markets in Baghdad, where the selling price reached 151,750 dinars per 100 dollars, and the buying price reached 149,750 dinars per 100 dollars.

As for Erbil, the dollar prices recorded a decrease, where the selling price reached 150,000 dinars per 100 dollars, while the buying price reached 149,900 dinars per 100 US dollars. https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=258781

Gold Prices Stabilize In Baghdad

Stock Exchange  Economy News – Baghdad   The prices of "foreign and Iraqi" gold stabilized in the local markets in the capital, Baghdad, today, Sunday, (January 19, 2025).

Gold prices in the wholesale markets on Al-Nahr Street in the capital, Baghdad, this morning recorded a selling price for one mithqal of 21 karat Gulf, Turkish and European gold of 577 thousand dinars, and a purchase price of 573 thousand dinars.

The selling price of one mithqal of 21-karat Iraqi gold reached 547 thousand dinars, and the purchase price was 543 thousand.

As for gold prices in goldsmiths’ shops, the selling price of a mithqal of 21-karat Gulf gold ranges between 580,000 and 590,000 dinars, while the selling price of a mithqal of Iraqi gold ranges between 550,000 and 560,000 dinars.   https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=52080

Iraq's Oil Exports To America Decline During The Week

Energy   The US Energy Information Administration announced today, Sunday, that Iraq's oil exports to the United States of America decreased during the past week.

The administration said in a table seen by "Al-Eqtisad News" that "the average US imports of crude oil during the past week from 10 major countries amounted to 5.964 million barrels per day, down by 322 thousand barrels per day from the previous week, which amounted to 6.016 million barrels per day."

She added that "Iraq's oil exports to America amounted to 152 thousand barrels per day last week, down by 28 thousand barrels per day from the previous week, which amounted to 180 thousand barrels per day."

The administration also indicated that "the largest oil revenues for America during the past week came from Canada at a rate of 3.985 million barrels per day, followed by Mexico at an average of 362 thousand barrels per day, followed by Saudi Arabia at an average of 333 thousand barrels per day, and from Colombia at an average of 262 thousand barrels per day."

According to the table, "the amount of US imports of crude oil from Venezuela was 240 thousand barrels per day, from Brazil it was 129 thousand barrels per day, from Ecuador it was 103 thousand barrels per day, and from Libya it was 86 thousand barrels per day https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=52078

l-Nusairi: Banks Are The Lever Of Sustainable Development

Banks  Economy News – Baghdad   Economic and banking advisor Samir Al-Nusairi confirmed, on Sunday, the completion of the Central Bank’s procedures for implementing the goals and initiatives of its third strategy 2024-2026, which is concerned with developing and restructuring the banking sector in accordance with what the consulting and auditing companies that are currently cooperating with the Central Bank and with the government in this field have reached, and that it should not be limited to support, but rather go beyond that to include the banking sector in making economic, financial, banking and investment decisions.

Al-Nusairi spoke about the challenges of the Iraqi economy and the opportunities for reform of the banking sector in the government’s program and the prospects of the Central Bank’s future vision for the role of the banking sector in sustainable development.

 In light of the efforts currently being made to activate and revolutionize the productive economic sectors other than oil to diversify sources of national income and achieve financial sustainability, and the role of the Central Bank in regulating foreign trade financing and completing infrastructure projects to achieve comprehensive digital transformation and expand the use of electronic payment tools in achieving financial inclusion.

He explained that the opportunities for reforming and developing the banking sector in 2025 are as follows:

1- Developing the Iraqi banking system and its compliance with international banking and accounting standards.

2- Enhancing citizens’ confidence in the banking sector locally and internationally recognizing its transparency, progress, and strict commitment to international standards and obtaining the confidence of solid correspondent banks to deal with it.

3- Converting banks to their primary function, which is financing and bank lending for development.

4- Banks that do not provide loans and banking facilities that help in development as a lever for sustainable development lose their meaning as banks, which requires a specific position towards them from the Central Bank in 2025.

5- Seeking to move from a cash economy to a digital economy and withdrawing money outside the banking cycle and introducing it into the banking system.

He pointed out that all the above goals, although the period specified for their implementation according to the timetable of the government program and the strategy of the Central Bank ranges between (1-4 years), what was achieved in 2023 and 2024 constitutes about 60% as announced, which led to the evaluation and classification of banks based on their achievement of the planned goals.

There are banks that are moving towards the required development and banks that still need an additional period of time to achieve the goals, and there are troubled banks that are now making exceptional efforts from the Central Bank and the administrations of these banks to rehabilitate them.

He added that what concerns us here is the real functional role of banks in providing loans and banking facilities and moving from a banking role to a developmental role. There are two important observations that must be taken into consideration regarding the issue of providing loans and banking facilities to stimulate the economy and development.

The first: The nature of banks’ activities depends on the nature of the activities of the economic sectors, and as long as economic activity is focused on trade (imports), banks’ activity remains focused on external transfers and what is related to that, so unless other sectors move (industry, agriculture, tourism, etc.).

It is worth noting that without controlling imports, these sectors will not develop. Second: It is necessary to provide the legal environment and extend the authority of the law in order to control the speculation market in the US dollar on the black market and to eliminate the phenomenon of illegal trade through unofficial outlets.   https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=52082

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