The Governor of the Central Bank of Iraq, Ali Al-Alaq, announced today, Wednesday, that all transfers are subject to auditing, while indicating that the decline in oil prices has nothing to do with the rise in exchange rates.

Al-Alaq said, according to the official agency, that “the Central Bank provides the dollar at the official price to all commercial and personal channels, travelers, and all types of operations that represent legitimate activities, operations, and requests.”

He pointed out that “any price outside the country is a price that only indicates the presence of abnormal operations that attempt to deviate from the official and legal system and correct fundamental channels,” stressing the need to “focus on the amount of sales carried out by the Central Bank at the official price and those requesting the dollar, whether they are merchants, importers, individuals, or travelers.”

He pointed out that “methods have been put in place for each channel that ensure the provision of the dollar on the one hand, and a very large degree of oversight to verify the integrity of the prior operations before they are implemented,” noting that “this is a major shift in foreign transfer operations, as they were previously audited at a later stage, and today all transfer operations are not carried out or implemented except after being subjected to the auditing process.”

He explained that “the decline in the price of oil has nothing to do with the rise in the exchange rate because Iraq has foreign currency reserves that enable it to defend the exchange rate.”

Oil Prices Hit $73.67 Per Barrel

 Baghdad  Oil prices steadied in early trading on Wednesday after rising in the previous two sessions, as investors awaited the Federal Reserve’s expected decision to cut interest rates. Price action Brent crude futures for November delivery fell 3 cents to $73.67 a barrel by 0053 GMT. U.S. crude futures for October delivery fell 11 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $71.08 a barrel.

Both benchmarks rose about $1 a barrel on Tuesday amid continued supply disruptions in the United States, the world’s largest oil producer, after Hurricane Frances, and as traders bet demand could pick up after what would be the first interest rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve in four years.

Prices were also supported by the prospect of wider violence in the Middle East, which could cause potential disruptions to production in a key region after simultaneous explosions of Hezbollah pagers, which the group blamed on Israel. The market was also supported by expectations that the United States would buy oil to shore up its strategic reserve.

New Mechanism For Collecting Tax Amounts Electronically

Money and business  Economy News – Follow-up  Baghdad Municipality has adopted a new mechanism for collecting collection fees via electronic payment instead of the previous traditional method of cash payment.

Director of the Adhamiya Municipality Department, Musab Al-Obaidi, said in an interview with “Al-Sabah”, followed by “Al-Eqtisad News”, that the municipality has converted the collection system from the paper system by the authorized person (field collector) to the electronic payment method, to ensure the implementation of government instructions in this regard and reduce routine and save time and effort for the employee and citizen alike.

He explained that the municipality has given the citizen the choice of paying the amount via (MasterCard) or charging him 5 percent of the value of the amount if he pays it in cash at the department’s headquarters to encourage electronic payment.

He added that the categories that pay fees to the state know the amounts owed in advance through the established criteria. For example, fees for commercial stores are estimated at 10 percent annually of the value of the lease contract, in addition to other known fees such as waste removal fees, professional fees and advertising.

Al-Obaidi attributed the adoption of this mechanism to several reasons, most notably contributing to enhancing banking culture and how to deal electronically with card payments, in addition to getting rid of torn currencies and additional amounts deducted from citizens through efforts and estimates.

Citizens had previously demanded through “Al-Sabah” to cancel the role of the field collector and rely on electronic payment to avoid the estimates and efforts that some employees fall into, which negatively affect them by adding amounts to the established wages, thus burdening them.

US Ambassador: Iraq Is Capable Of Creating An Economic Model To Be Emulated

  US Ambassador Alina Romansky confirmed on Wednesday that Iraq is capable of creating an exemplary economic model, while pointing to cooperation with Iraqi organizations to improve water access for more than 100,000 people.

Romansky said, according to the official agency, at the conference launching the National Strategy for Environmental Protection and Improvement in Iraq: “This is a pivotal and important stage that will support Iraq’s efforts in building the country and the changes taking place today and for future Iraqi generations,” noting that “this will be a vision for Iraq’s requirements and confronting the environmental challenges that Iraq has faced from population growth and natural resources that have restricted development in Iraq.”

She added that “drought continues to harm the agricultural sector and affects the security and safety of the country, and that this strategy is an opportunity for us to work together and unite to take action,” indicating that “in the past two decades, the United States has done its work to support Iraq, enhance security and safety, and promote prosperity for all Iraqis.”

“This year, the United States and its partners have invested more than $2,000,000 to support vulnerable communities in Iraq facing the challenges of climate change in partnership with the World Food Programme and UNICEF,” she said, noting that “through these initiatives, we are trying to improve access to clean water, protect farmers’ lives, and build more climate-resilient communities.”

Romansky explained that “our programs and partnerships are producing positive outcomes, and collaboration with local Iraqi organizations and multilateral organizations is improving access to water for more than 100,000 people through investing more than 1,000,000 cubic meters of water.

Another initiative has helped more than 200,000 farmers produce thousands of tons of food and produce food using less electricity and more water,” noting that “we will continue to support Iraq’s development and Iraq’s sustainable goals for adapting to climate change.”

Romanski stated that “in cooperation with the Iraqi ministries, we participated with (UNDP), and worked together with the Iraqi government on this strategy to improve environmental protection. This includes coordination with various government agencies to effectively develop Iraq’s sustainable goals, and includes launching a strategy to help Iraq improve the balance and protect the environment, as well as an environmental protection and climate investment strategy.”

She pointed out that “one of our goals is to have a roadmap for a green economy that is confirmed by adequate access for women, youth, and vulnerable communities facing challenges and climate change. The national strategy for protecting and improving the environment will become a guide for the United States and other donors to support the Iraqi government, and will enhance the response and solutions to be effective, including investment in the green economy and support for modern agricultural methods, and contribute to having a more diversified economy with the support of this strategy.”

She expressed her thanks to “the Ministry of Environment, the Ministry of Environment team, the US Agency, and the United Security Development Team for their assistance in launching and activating this strategy,” stressing that “the role played by international supporters from donors and local experts in including this strategy with effective participation will enable Iraq to create a better economy and will be a model to be emulated.”

She explained that “the United States continues to strengthen bilateral relations and we will continue to support Iraq as we work together to enhance Iraqi sovereignty, security, safety and economic opportunities for all, and that this strategy will allow us to work together,” praising “the work and this strategy, and now the real work has begun as we implement this plan to have a positive impact on the entire country.”

The Dollar Stabilizes Against the Iraqi Dinar at 151 Thousand

Mawazine News publishes today, Wednesday, the exchange rates of the dollar against the Iraqi dinar in local markets.   The prices are as follows:

Selling 151,000 Iraqi dinars for every 100 dollars  —   Buying 149,000 Iraqi dinars for every 100 dollars.

Central Bank Sales Exceeded $255 Million

Economic Number of readings: 69 Baghdad / NINA / The Central Bank of Iraq announced, today, Wednesday, the total sales of foreign currency through the electronic window.

The window recorded the total amounts of transfers abroad (remittances, credits) of $ 246,939,107, while the total cash sales amounted to $ 8,750,000, and the total sales amounted to $ 255,689,107.

The selling price for transfers and cash was assigned at 1310 dinars per dollar, while the bond credits and international settlements for the electronic card were at 1305 dinars. / End 11