Iraqi News Highlights Sunday Afternoon 5-7-23
Tlm724 Administrator Bondlady’s Corner
Parliament Hosts The Minister Of Oil Regarding The Agreement Between Baghdad And Erbil
political| 04:00 – 07/05/2023 Baghdad – Mawazine News The Oil, Gas and Natural Resources Committee announced, on Sunday, that it would host Oil Minister Hayan Abdul-Ghani regarding the agreement between Baghdad and Erbil on unifying exports through the Turkish port of Ceyhan.
The committee said, in a statement that Mawazine News received a copy of, that “the Oil, Gas and Natural Resources Committee, headed by Representative Haibat al-Halbousi, hosted, in the presence of the members, Minister of Oil Hayan Abdul Ghani, the Undersecretary of the Oil Minister for Distribution Affairs, and a number of general managers, to discuss supporting the ministry’s allocations within the 2023 budget.” “.
Representative Al-Halbousi confirmed that “the committee discussed the value of the ministry’s operational and investment budget for the year 2023, the agreement concluded between the federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government on unifying oil exports through the Turkish port of Ceyhan, and a statement of the dues of companies operating within the licensing rounds.”
Al-Halbousi stressed that “the committee will support the Ministry of Oil with the financial allocations it needs to sustain its work and develop its industry, and overcome all obstacles facing the ministry’s work, especially with regard to transportation and export,” stressing that “the committee will host the directors of the Economic Department and the Oil Marketing Company (SOMO) to discuss a number of files.” Ended https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=226312
Director Of The Private Sector Development Department: We Intend To Find Solutions To The Challenges Of Small And Medium Enterprises
Economy| 02:55 – 07/05/2023 Baghdad – Mawazine News, the Director General of the Private Sector Development Department, Muhammad Hanoun, discussed the obstacles and solutions used for small and medium enterprises, as part of the Business Development Program.
Hanoun said in a statement, “The Private Sector Development Department, in cooperation with the Progressive Company for Training and Organizing Conferences, held a discussion session with the owners of small and medium enterprises and entrepreneurs within the framework of the business development project that the department is working on with the Progressive Company.”
He pointed out that “the session was held in the presence of the Deputy Director General of the Private Sector Development Department, the presence of the department directors, the director and the work team of the progress company, and the presence of representatives of the Baghdad Chamber of Commerce, the Iraqi Federation of Industries, the station institution, and the Business Avenue institution.”
He added, “The project owners presented an overview of their projects and the challenges and obstacles facing their projects, in preparation for the department to hold other sessions with government institutions, business organizations and concerned international organizations to discuss these challenges and find solutions to them through reformulation of the procedures followed in order to improve the reality of these projects and increase their contribution to the gross domestic product.” and thus achieve economic growth. https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=226310
Al-Sudani Directs To Expedite The Implementation Of Points Of Sale With The Electronic Payment System
Economy| 09:13 – 07/05/2023 Baghdad – Mawazine News, Prime Minister Muhammad Shia Al-Sudani directed ministries and agencies not associated with a ministry and all governorates to expedite the implementation of points of sale with the electronic payment system (POS) and to make unremitting efforts for this.
A spokesman for the General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers, Haider Majeed, told the official news agency, “The Prime Minister, Muhammad Shia’a al-Sudani, directed ministries and agencies not associated with a ministry and all governorates to expedite the implementation of points of sale with the electronic payment system (POS) and to make unremitting efforts for that.” .
He added, “The directive came during the Council of Ministers meeting in its eighteenth regular session, held on 2/5/2023,” stressing that “the Department of Cabinet Affairs and Committees in the General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers will follow up on the implementation of the directive with the relevant authorities.” Ended 29/N33 https://www.mawazin.net/Details.aspx?jimare=226281
The International Monetary Agency Expects Iraq’s External Debt To Decrease In 2023
Money and business Economy News _ Baghdad The International Monetary Fund expected Iraq’s external debt to decrease in 2023, by $1.2 billion.
The fund said in its latest report for the month of May on “maintaining macroeconomic stability amid continuing uncertainty in the Middle East and North Africa region,” which was seen by “Al-Iqtisad News,” that “Iraq’s external debt is expected to decrease in 2023 by 1.2 billion.” dollars, to reach 22 billion dollars, up from 23.2 billion dollars in 2022,” noting that “it is also expected that Iraq’s external debt will decrease in 2024 to reach 20.8 billion dollars.”
He added, “Iraq’s external debt decreased significantly, starting from 2000, which was 122.4 billion dollars, to reach 48.6 billion dollars in 2020, to reach 33.1 billion dollars in 2021, and then reach 23.2 billion dollars in 2022.”
The fund indicated that “the highest external debt of the oil-producing Arab countries was for Bahrain, whose debt amounted to $197.1 billion in 2022, which is expected to rise to $200.1 billion in 2024, while the least indebted country among the oil-producing countries was Algeria.” whose foreign debt reached $1.5 billion in 2022. Views 64 05/07/2023 – https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=34047
Reforming The Banking Sector In The Vision Of The Prime Minister And The Central Bank
Sameer Al-Nusairi In his answer to the government’s vision and program for financial and banking reform, the Prime Minister indicated, when hosting him in the Iraq Forum, the weakness of the government and private banking sector.
He emphasized the role of the government and the new administration of the central bank in controlling the exchange rate of the dinar and its recovery against the US dollar and returning it to the point of balance in the foreign currency trading market. Great work challenges and obstacles for reasons related to the unstable economic situation and self-inflicted reasons borne by banks in terms of managing banking work, weak activity, and the lack of services and products that they provide to the public.
And banking services related to contributing to economic development and achieving economic growth through the basic activity of banks, which is financing, investing, attracting deposits, granting cash credit, opening documentary credits, issuing internal and external transfers, and financing projects.Small and medium-sized enterprises relying on their own financial capabilities, but their reliance was mainly on the Central Bank’s initiative to finance small and medium enterprises.
Thus, the activity of these banks was limited to participating in the currency sale window that the Central Bank carries out daily in what is known as monetary sterilization, with the aim of providing the Iraqi dinar to the Ministry of Finance, and covering trade And with the aim of maintaining the stability of the exchange rate of the Iraqi dinar against the US dollar, which helped banks obtain guaranteed financial returns due to the difference between the official price of the dollar and the parallel market rate.
In order for banks to be stimulated and empowered, in accordance with paragraph 7 of Article Twelve of the government curriculum and the Central Bank’s plan to reform and develop banks, to carry out their duties stipulated in the Banking Law and the instructions and guiding and executive regulations in force issued by the Central Bank in accordance with the new strategic features to re-evaluate the stages that the banking business went through.
According to the vision of the new administration, it adopts the evaluation, classification and reform of banks, in a way that contributes to their regularity in the global financial and banking system, by adhering to international standards in combating money laundering and compliance, and adopting discreet correspondent banks for commercial and financial mediation between importers and exporters (the ultimate and real beneficiary).
And that applying and serving the national economy and customers requires strengthening and accelerating the steps towards issuing the national strategy for lending, launching the financial inclusion strategy, initiating the implementation of infrastructure projects for the implementation of development projects for electronic payment, and the transition from the cash society to the non-cash society according to a specific period of time, and since the implementing agencies of policies and plans The central bank is the banks, so it requires taking the necessary steps to re-review, evaluate, and classify private banks and restructure government banks according to previously prepared studies with specialized international organizations.
It must be noted that there are special international standards for the classification of central banks agreed upon in most countries, such as controlling inflation and growth Economic, monetary stability, independence and the extent to which economic goals are achieved.
And because central banks are subject to classification and since they are the ones that monitor and supervise banks, then the classification of banks must be in accordance with international standard standards approved in most countries and by accredited international rating agencies, and focus on banks that have not been rated yet and they constitute the large percentage that exceeds 70% of the total number of banks, as well as rehabilitating troubled banks by merging or liquidating them.
We propose here to create a department or division in the comprehensive quality management of financial analysis and evaluation of banks by adopting standard accounting standards for the quarterly, semi-annual and annual evaluation in addition to what is currently in force in the international classification (CAMELS), which is based on the evaluation and classification on the criteria of capital, assets, liquidity, profitability and risk management,
but In view of the specificity of the banking business in Iraq, it is required to assign the department proposed to be created to carry out re-evaluation and classification by adopting additional standard criteria that are consistent with the Iraqi reality, such as approving the business results of banks and final accounts, and focusing on analyzing assets, revenues, expenses, capital adequacy, indicators of money employment, cash credit granted, its sectoral distribution, and the return-to-return ratio.
The capital, the return on assets, the liquidity ratio, and the extent to which banks adhere to the banking instructions in force, in particular the commitment to the Central Bank’s initiative to finance small and medium enterprises, and not deviate from their basic objectives.And the collection of non-performing debts and compliance with the Basel II and III agreement and the management of credit, liquidity, operational and market risks.
Another important note that must be clarified is the weakness of the banks’ capital, which led to a shortage of their savings, weak liquidity and credit capacity – assuming that the bank has completed the minimum capital, which is 250 billion dinars, noting that some of their capitals have been eroded due to the problems of managing their credits.
The proposal in this case is not only to work on re-evaluating or completing its capital, but rather to raise its minimum to at least 50% of its current capital by a decision of the Board of Directors of the Central Bank, and that this step will enable it to restructure it, increase its savings and enhance its credit capacity because our economy There is a need for large banks that activate the economic cycle, move the credit activity, and be managed by a professional banking administration that is independent of its owners, according to the modern concept of banking management.
The central bank can give good banks an appropriate period to gradually boost their capital.
Views 158 Added 05/07/2023 – 10:21 AM https://economy-news.net/content.php?id=34041
To read more current and reliable Iraqi news please visit BondLady’s Corner:
https://www.bondladyscorner.com/a
