Iraq Economic News and Points to Ponder Wednesday AM 3-19-25

To The Ministerial Council For The Economy
 
Samir Al-Nusairi  Finally, forecasts indicate that the Russian-Ukrainian war is nearing a halt with US intervention.
 
We recall that when the war broke out three years ago, oil prices soared to over $110 a barrel, resulting in a surge in oil revenues for both rentier and oil-producing countries.
 
This included Iraq, given its rentier economy.

Unfortunately, the achieved abundance was not utilized to activate the real economy.
 
Rather, operational allocations in the general budgets increased, and the deficit exceeded 60 trillion dinars.
 
Now, with the inevitable expectation that the war will soon end, oil prices will fall, and it is expected that its average price will reach less than 60 dollars per barrel.
 
And we are still without other significant sources of national income.
 
The Iraqi economy, God forbid, will enter a new economic and financial crisis.
 
We expect the deficit to rise, the inflation rate to rise, and the government will be forced to borrow domestically and abroad.
 
Borrowing from the central bank will be required,
foreign exchange reserves will decline, and
external and domestic debts will rise.
 
Since these expectations could soon be realized, they require swift action.
 
Here, we propose that the Ministerial Council for the Economy hold extraordinary sessions to discuss the expected new crisis and prepare for confrontation in a manner that preserves the path of economic, financial and banking reform and finds solutions and remedies to protect our national economy.
 
views 381     Added 03/17/2025 - 9:55 AM  https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=53476

Parliamentary Finance: The Necessity Of Activating Tax Collection Mechanisms. 

Money and Business  Economy News – Baghdad  The Parliamentary Finance Committee stressed the need to activate tax collection mechanisms, stating that this remains weak despite the multiple financial resources that could support state revenues.
 
It also urged the activation of privatization as a primary option to
 
     boost revenues and
     reduce operational burdens on the government.
 
Committee member Jamal Koujar explained in an interview with the official newspaper, followed by "Al-Eqtisad News," that
 
"tax collection is a basic resource for the state in all countries of the world,
 
but its collection in Iraq remains very weak."

He emphasized "the need to establish a comprehensive government program to ensure full collection of tax collection, and to search for new alternatives away from old mechanisms."
 
Koger pointed out that there are several issues that must be considered in this context.
 
First, a clear government program must be put in place to fully collect taxes.
 
Second, alternatives to traditional mechanisms must be sought.
 
Third, incentives must be provided to those who collect taxes, as well as those who pay them.
 
Finally, privatization represents the optimal solution to fully collect taxes.
 
Koger added that privatization will help the government in two key areas:
 
     first, reducing the burdens associated with hiring, and
     second, reducing operating expenses.
 
He emphasized that these mechanisms, if implemented in practice, could yield significant positive returns.
 
The member of parliament pointed out that the expected revenues from these reforms will depend on the mechanism implemented by the government.
 
If it opts for privatization, this will boost state revenues and reduce its financial burdens.
 
views 66     Added 03/18/2025 - 8:54 AM  https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=53522

Kazan Forum: A New Mechanism To Attract Investments From Islamic Countries And Iraq
 
Economy    WAA  The Russian market has become more open to halal investments.
 
Since 2023, regions in the Russian Federation have witnessed a successful experiment in partnership financing, leading to the development of a new mechanism to attract investments from Islamic countries.
 

Now, plans are underway to expand this experiment and extend it until the fall of 2028.
 
The Russian Parliament announced plans to extend the experiment for an additional three years, expanding the list of Sharia-compliant financial transactions, including mutual property insurance.
 
These amendments are expected to enhance the attractiveness of Islamic finance, attracting investors from OIC countries, including Iraq.
 
Statistics indicate that the volume of Islamic banking transactions will double by 2024 in the Republic of Tatarstan, one of four Russian regions implementing the experiment.
 
According to Taliya Minullina, head of the Tatarstan Investment Development Agency, the experiment could become permanent.
 
Investments through Islamic finance in Russian projects are estimated at more than $10 billion, and experts expect this figure to grow tenfold in the next two years.
 
Mignolina also emphasized that the formation of an Islamic financial market in Russia will boost investment and create a more stable environment.
 
To ensure the success of this initiative, Islamic finance specialists are being trained in cooperation with AAOIFI, the Bahrain-based organization responsible for Islamic financial accounting standards.
 
Work is also underway to launch a Sharia-compliant halal investment platform, in partnership with two Arab institutions, to finance startups in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).
 
The platform is scheduled to launch in May 2025.
 
With the growth of Islamic finance, trade between Russia and the Islamic world has witnessed a significant increase, reaching $106 billion during the first nine months of 2024, of which $5.9 billion was for Tatarstan alone, marking a 40% increase compared to the previous year.
 
According to Abdullah Platik, Secretary General of the General Council for Islamic Banks, recent years have witnessed a growth in the number of transactions between Russia and OIC countries, which enhances opportunities for future cooperation.
 
Further development of Islamic finance in the Russian Federation in the near future may raise economic relations with countries of the Global South to a new level.   https://www.ina.iq/230205--2025-.html   

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