video| 10:08 – 19/01/2023
Baghdad – Mawazine News
Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa Al-Sudani crowned the Iraqi team with the title of the Gulf Cup 25.
Our team won the title, after beating its Omani counterpart by three goals to one in the match held at the Palm Trunnell Stadium in Basra.
{Euphrates News Economy} A report published by the American newspaper {Wall Street Journal}, on Thursday, shed light on the “dollar” crisis in Iraq and the accompanying rise in the prices of imported foodstuffs and goods.
The newspaper said Iraqis attribute this to the marked change in policy of the US Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve Bank in New York in recent weeks.
The newspaper quoted US and Iraqi officials as saying that the Federal Reserve began last November to impose stricter controls on the transactions of Iraqi commercial banks in dollars, in a move aimed at reducing money laundering operations.
Since 2003, Iraqi banks have operated under less stringent rules, but nearly two decades later, U.S. and Iraqi officials say it is time to make the Iraqi banking system more compliant with global money transfer controls.
Since the new measures came into effect, about 80 percent of Iraq’s daily international financial transfers, which previously totaled more than $250 million a day, have been blocked.
This is due to a lack of sufficient information about the destination of the final funds or other errors, according to U.S. and Iraqi officials and government official statements.
With the dollar scarce, the Iraqi currency depreciated by as much as 10 percent, leading to a sharp rise in the prices of imported goods, including commodities such as eggs, flour and cooking oil.
“Shock Policy”
“For 20 years, we have followed the same system,” says South Islamic Bank Chairman Mahmoud Dagher, former Central Bank of Iraq official. But the Fed’s shock policy has created a crisis within the Iraqi economy.”
To supply Iraq with dollars, U.S. Air Force planes deliver dollars to Baghdad every few months, according to the newspaper.
But most of the inflows of the US currency flow electronically through transactions conducted by private Iraqi banks, which are processed through Iraq’s official account at the Federal Reserve Bank, where revenues from oil sales are deposited.
U.S. officials say strict rules for electronic transfers imposed on private Iraqi banks came as no surprise to officials in Baghdad.
They added that it was jointly implemented in November after two years of discussions and planning by the Central Bank of Iraq, the US Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve.
U.S. officials noted that the appreciation of the dollar exchange rate was not due to the new measures.
Increased scrutiny of dollar transactions has led Iraqis to rush towards the parallel domestic market to buy the US currency, amid a torrent of criticism from Iraqi officials, bankers and traders of the new system, who said it caused unnecessary financial shock and exacerbated their already existing economic problems.
Iraqi delegation to Washington
Prime Minister Mohamed Shiaa al-Sudani said the Fed’s action hurts the poor and threatens his government’s 2023 budget.
Al-Sudani added in an interview that “this is embarrassing and decisive” for him, and said he would send a delegation to Washington next month with a proposal to suspend the implementation of the new measures for six months.
Under the new measures, Iraqi banks are required to use a new electronic platform linked to the Central Bank of Iraq in order to apply for the dollar, after which the application is reviewed by the Federal Reserve Bank.
U.S. officials say the new system aims to limit the use of the Iraqi banking system to smuggle dollars and money laundering havens across the Middle East.
Under the old rules, Dagher says, Iraqis were not obligated to disclose details of who the money was sent to until after the transfer had taken place.
A spokeswoman for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, commenting on accounts held for foreign governments, including Iraqi accounts, said: “We have a strong compliance system for these accounts that speaks over time in response to new information.”
A U.S. official said the new measures would limit “the ability of malicious actors to use the Iraqi banking system.”
The U.S. Treasury Department and the Central Bank of Iraq declined to comment.
The Central Bank of Iraq said in a Dec. 15 statement that the new online platform requires “full details of customers who want to transfer money,” including end beneficiaries.
“A number of errors are being discovered, forcing banks to re-implement the operation,” the statement added. These measures will take additional time before they are accepted and passed by the international system.”
Four Iraqi banks were prevented from participating in the currency auction supervised by the Central Bank of Iraq: Asia Islamic, “Asharq Al-Awsat”, “Al-Ansari Islamic” and “Islamic Holding”, according to Iraqi officials and judicial documents.
Executives at Asia and Ansari declined to comment, while the other two banks could not be reached, according to the newspaper.
U.S. officials have been pressing Iraq for years to tighten its banking controls. In 2015, the Federal Reserve and Treasury temporarily halted the flow of billions of dollars to the Central Bank of Iraq over perceived concerns that they would be transferred to ISIS terrorists, officials said at the time.
Some Iraqi officials supported tighter oversight of Iraqi private banks, including a member of parliament’s Integrity Committee Hadi al-Salami, who said: “We need to stop this immediately.”
The impact of the new strict controls on Iraqi banks’ dollar transactions, which have fallen sharply since they came into force last November, can be seen, according to data published on the website of the Central Bank of Iraq.
For example, on Oct. 17 last year, before the new rules came into effect, daily transfers from Iraq’s official accounts at the Federal Reserve and other offshore institutions amounted to $224.4 million, compared to $22.9 million on Jan. 17, down about 90 percent.
U.S. officials say these financial turmoil will ease as Iraqis comply with disclosure requirements required by the new measures.
Iraqi bankers and currency dealers say the new rules are aimed at stopping dollar smuggling. For example, as they say, importers used to visit invoices of goods that did not originally arrive in Iraq, but were paid for in dollars to unknown parties outside the country.
“Dollars certainly go to Iran, Turkey, Syria, Yemen, Lebanon and sometimes Dubai,” says Hamza al-Sarraf, an exchange shop owner in Baghdad’s Karr district.
Due to new compliance requests and being prevented from using banks, Iraqi importers have been forced to delay the submission of applications or find other ways to pay suppliers such as using informal money transfer networks known as hawala. Some traders load dollars and ship them out of Iraq in cars, the teller said.
Thursday – 26 Jumada II 1444 AH – January 19, 2023 AD
From one of the exchange shops in Baghdad (AP)
Washington: Ali Barada
US and Iraqi officials revealed that the decline in the value of the Iraqi dinar and the rise in the prices of foodstuffs and imported goods in the country is due to the remarkable change in the policy adopted by the US Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve in New York to curb money laundering and the illegal appropriation of dollars by Iraqi commercial banks for the benefit of Iran and other countries subject to sanctions in the Middle East.
And the American Wall Street Journal reported that the Federal Reserve began last November to impose stricter controls on the transactions of Iraqi commercial banks, which had been operating under less stringent rules since the US invasion in 2003.
US and Iraqi officials said, “It is time It is time to make the Iraqi banking system comply with international money transfer practices.
Since the new measures went into effect, 80 percent or more of daily dollar transfers to Iraq, which previously totaled more than $250 million a day, have been blocked due to insufficient information about money destinations or other errors, according to official Iraqi data.
With dollars scarce, the Iraqi currency has fallen by as much as 10 percent against the dollar, leading to a sharp rise in the prices of imported goods, including staples such as eggs, flour and cooking oil.
The newspaper quoted the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the “Islamic South Bank” Mahmoud Dagher, a former official in the Central Bank of Iraq, that “for 20 years, we have followed the same system,” but the shock policy pursued by the US Federal Reserve caused a crisis within the Iraqi economy.
However, US officials stress that the strict rules for electronic transfers of dollars by Iraqi private banks were not surprising to officials in Baghdad. Rather, it has been implemented jointly since last November, after two years of discussions and planning between the Iraqi Central Bank, the US Treasury and the Federal Reserve Board.
They added that the rise in the dollar exchange rate was not due to the new measures. The scrutiny of transactions in dollars led to a rush towards the green currency in Iraq in light of a torrent of criticism of the new regime.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani, who took office as the currency began to decline, said the Fed’s action “harms the poor and threatens the Iraqi government’s 2023 budget.”
Iraqi officials linked to Iran drew harsher criticism. “Everyone knows how the Americans use currency as a weapon to starve people,” Hadi al-Amiri, the leader of the “Popular Mobilization” militia, told the French ambassador in Baghdad, Eric Chevalier.
US officials said the new system “aims to limit the use of the Iraqi banking system to smuggle dollars to Tehran, Damascus and money laundering havens throughout the Middle East.”
The Wall Street Journal quoted a US official as saying that the measures would limit “the ability of malicious actors to use the Iraqi banking system.” The Treasury and the Central Bank of Iraq declined to comment.
The Central Bank of Iraq described the new electronic platform, in a statement issued on December 15, as asking for “full details of customers who want to transfer money.”
And the Central Bank of Iraq prevented four banks, namely the “Islamic Asia Bank”, the “Iraqi Middle East Bank”, the “Al-Ansari Islamic Bank” and the “Al-Quboud Islamic Bank”, from conducting any transactions in dollars.
US officials have been pressing Iraq for years to strengthen its banking controls. And in 2015, the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department temporarily halted the flow of billions of dollars into the Central Bank of Iraq over fears that the currency would eventually reach Iranian banks and possibly divert to Islamic State militants.
Some Iraqi officials supported tightening supervision of private banks. Representative Hadi al-Salami, a member of the Anti-Corruption Commission in Parliament, said that Iraqi political parties and militias control most of the banks, and use them to smuggle dollars to neighboring countries.
It can be seen the impact of the controls on the transactions of Iraqi banks in dollars. On October 17, daily transfers amounted to $224.4 million. According to the data, on January 17, it reached only $ 22.9 million, a decrease of nearly 90 percent. The official exchange rate is 1,470 dinars to one dollar. But in banks and exchange offices, the dollar is sold at 1,620 Iraqi dinars, an increase of up to 10 percent from the price last November.
economy| 02:33 – 19/01/2023
Baghdad – Mawazine News
Al-Rasheed Bank began on Thursday selling dollars to passengers through the Baghdad International Airport branch.
A statement by the bank, received by Mawazine News, a copy of it, said that “the bank, through the branch of Baghdad International Airport, began selling dollars to passengers from inside the airport and a maximum of (5000) dollars per passenger, provided that the date of travel is the same day and the date of applying for the dollar.”
The statement added that “the branch will last for 24 hours to receive those wishing to buy from passengers as of today.”
Al-Rasheed Bank begins selling dollars to passengers through the Baghdad International Airport branch
political| 03:25 – 01/19/2023
Baghdad – Mawazine News
, President Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid confirmed today, Thursday, that there are plans to increase the number of oil and gas projects, while stressing the need to encourage and support the private sector.
Rashid said, during a dialogue session within the activities of the World Economic Forum in Davos under the title “The Future of the Middle East”, that “Iraq suffered in the past from wars, conflicts, terrorism, sanctions and fighting with neighboring countries,” stressing that “Iraq is a rich country, and it has become more secure.”
He added that “Iraq benefited from the high oil prices,” stressing that “the government is serious about implementing its programs.”
He pointed out that “the government’s new program is based on two aspects, the first is immediate, which is the implementation of immediate projects related to health, housing and education, and the second is strategic projects, including oil and gas projects.” indicating that “
He pointed out that “there are ambitious projects related to the extension of the Fao project linked to oil pipelines, railways and a number of projects, and there are projects related to agriculture such as fertilizers,” explaining that “all these projects are under preparation,” expressing his hope that “there will be international cooperation in the implementation of these projects.” Projects, and that the matter is not limited to the Iraqis, as Iraq needs international assistance and foreign investments.
He noted that “there are multinational companies currently operating in Iraq, and it is possible to expand this to include regional countries and share benefits between these countries.”
The President of the Republic stressed “the need to resolve conflicts and problems in the Middle East without interference from outside,” stressing that “wars will not help our countries.”
“Our imports from Turkey amount to $22 billion annually,” he said, stressing “the need to encourage and support the private sector.”
https://shafaq.com/ar/سیاسة/المالية-النيابية-تحدد-موعد-قرار-قانون-الموازنة-من-قبل-الحكومة
PoliticiansParliamentary FinanceBudget 2023
2023-01-19 06:53Font
Twilight News / The Parliamentary Finance Committee revealed, on Thursday, the reason for the delay in sending the draft general budget law for the year 2023 to the Council of Ministers, stressing that the Council of Ministers will discuss the budget at next week’s session.
Committee member Moeen Al-Kazemi told Shafaq News that “the inflation in some projects in the general budget law for the year 2023 caused the delay in sending them to the Council of Ministers.”
He pointed out that “the Ministries of Finance and Planning are now making the latest amendments to the draft budget law before sending it to the Council of Ministers.”
He added that “the Ministries of Finance and Planning are working to complete the final draft of the budget law and send it to the Council of Ministers before the next session.”
Al-Kazemi said that “the Council of Ministers will discuss and approve the budget law in a session next week after its completion by the Ministry of Finance.”
https://shafaq.com/ar/سیاسة/المالية-النيابية-تحدد-موعد-قرار-قانون-الموازنة-من-قبل-الحكومة
political| 11:53 – 19/01/2023
Baghdad – Mawazine News
Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa Al-Sudani stressed on Thursday the importance of speeding up the adoption of the budget by the House of Representatives.
“The Sudanese chaired a meeting dedicated to discussing the final details of the draft federal budget law 2023,” the Prime Minister’s Information Office said in a statement.
The Prime Minister explained that “the draft budget law took time of discussions, in order to reach a budget consistent with the priorities of the ministerial curriculum, and meets the objectives of the government program in fighting poverty, providing basic services to citizens, economic reform, and combating corruption.”
He pointed out that “the importance of accelerating the adoption of the budget law by the House of Representatives, as it is directly related to many economic and social issues and files, and helps the government implement its programs and strategy in vital fields and sectors, which would provide the best services to citizens.”
PoliticiansBreakingThe General BudgetMohammed Shiaa Al-Sudani
2023-01-18 23:31Font
). Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa Al-Sudani chaired, on Thursday morning, a meeting on the “final details” of the country’s draft general budget for the current year.
“Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa Al-Sudani chairs a special meeting to discuss the final details of the draft federal budget law 2023,” his media office said in a brief statement received by Shafaq News Agency.
In the middle of this month, Iraqi President Abdullatif Jamal Rashid informed Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa Al-Sudani of his intention to approve the draft federal budget law of 2023, as he announced her arrival at the presidential office.
Al-Sudani announced, on (3/1/2022), the increase in the amount of salaries in the general budget for the year 2023, but that the draft law needs a lot of time.
Al-Sudani said in a press conference that the amount of salaries in the budget increased from 41 to 62 trillion dinars, explaining that the budget needs a lot of time.
The Parliamentary Finance Committee indicates that the completion rate of the draft budget 2023 amounted to more than 95%, while pointing out that “last touches” are delaying its discussion in the corridors of the Council of Ministers.
https://shafaq.com/ar/سیاسة/السوداني-ير-س-اجتماعا-يخص-التفاصيل-النها-ية-للموازنة-العامة
EconomyErbilBaghdadBreakingThe DollarHeight
2023-01-19 04:55Font
Twilight News / The exchange rates of the US dollar against the Iraqi dinar jumped on Thursday in the main stock exchange in the capital Baghdad and in Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region, to record above 165,000 dinars.
A correspondent for Shafaq News Agency, the Central Al-Kifah and Harithiya exchanges in Baghdad, recorded at 1.5 pm 165,100 Iraqi dinars for 100 US dollars.
While the prices during its opening this morning were 162,000 dinars for 100 dollars.
Our correspondent pointed out that the sale and purchase prices increased in banking stores in the local markets in Baghdad, where the selling price amounted to 165,500 Iraqi dinars per 100 US dollars, while the purchase prices amounted to 164,000 Iraqi dinars per 100 US dollars.
In Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region, the dollar prices on the stock exchange also recorded a significant rise, as the selling dollar price reached 165,750 dinars per 100 US dollars, and the purchase price reached 165525 dinars per 100 US dollars.
https://shafaq.com/ar/اقتصـاد/ل-ول-مرة-100-دولار-يقفز-فوق-165-الف-دينار-في-العراق
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