Iraqi oil soars above $80 a barrel
Iraqi crude oil prices recorded more than $80 per barrel Tuesday (January 14, 2025), boosted by expectations of US sanctions on Russia.
According to data, “Brent crude oil recorded $80 per barrel for the first time since October, driven by concerns about imposing new sanctions on Russia.”
According to the data, Basra Heavy crude recorded 77.33 cents per barrel, while Basra Light crude recorded 80.55 cents per barrel, in recent trading today.
Meanwhile, Reuters quoted a senior official in the administration of US President Joe Biden as expecting that the new sanctions would cost Russia billions of dollars per month.
He explained that “the United States of America imposed sanctions on more than 180 oil tankers, many of which are part of the Russian shadow fleet.”
According to the data, sharp declines were recorded on Wall Street after strong US jobs data, with Trump approaching the White House.
Iraqi Customs: 2 trillion dinars in revenues in 2024 and plans to increase them in 2025
On Wednesday, the Director General of the Iraqi Customs Authority, Hassan Al-Akeili, revealed the most important issues discussed during his hosting in the Parliamentary Finance Committee.
Al-Akeili told Shafaq News Agency, “The hosting included emphasis on completing the electronic system applied in the Customs Authority and expanding it to include all customs centers during this year, with the start of using the latest methods in customs expansion according to modern technologies and artificial intelligence.”
Al-Akeili announced that “the Customs Authority achieved nearly 2 trillion dinars and 131 billion dinars during the year 2024, and aspires to achieve more than this number in the year 2025.”
For his part, member of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, Mustafa Al-Karawi, said, “The committee hosted the directors of the General Authority of Customs and the General Authority of Taxes to discuss non-oil revenues and the possibility of increasing them, in addition to the work of the authority and the plans it has set for the current year.”
During his interview with Shafaq News Agency, Al-Karawi expressed his hope “to establish an advanced electronic system to control non-oil revenues,” indicating that “according to the Ministry of Finance’s report, non-oil revenues amounted to 11 trillion dinars in 2024.”
The head of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, Atwan Al-Atwani, said during the hosting session attended by Shafaq News Agency correspondent, “The Finance Committee hosted today the general managers of the General Authority of Customs and the General Authority of Taxes to discuss the work of the authorities and the reality of non-oil revenues and enhancing them in the general budget.”
Al-Atwani added, “The Finance Committee hosted this week the Minister of Finance, Taif Sami, and the Directors General of the Ministry of Finance to enhance the state’s revenues, especially non-oil revenues.”
He stressed that “developed countries have begun to invest in oil in various ways, including investing in refineries and factories to boost oil and non-oil revenues to boost revenues for the state treasury.”
Shell Oil Company announces readiness to increase investments in Iraq
British oil company Shell announced today, Wednesday, its readiness to increase its investments in Iraq.
A statement from the office of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani received by Al-Maalouma Agency stated that “Al-Sudani received today, Wednesday, at his residence in the capital, London, the CEO of Shell Oil Company, Wael Sawan.”
He added, “During the meeting, the cooperation between Iraq and the company, which is one of the most important oil, gas and petrochemical companies in the world, was discussed, especially since the government announced many investment opportunities in these sectors.”
According to the statement, the company’s CEO announced “readiness to increase investments in Iraq, especially in the field of associated gas, in addition to investing in the free gas sector, for which the government has launched a licensing round to invest in several areas of Iraq.”
