Currency Market: The dollar continues to decline against the Iraqi dinar.
The US dollar exchange rate continued its decline against the Iraqi dinar on Thursday morning in local markets in the capital, Baghdad, and Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region. The two main stock exchanges in Baghdad, Al-Kifah and Al-Harithiya, recorded a decline in the dollar exchange rate, reaching 142,000 dinars per $100.
Compared to 143,400 dinars recorded yesterday morning, Wednesday.
Exchange rates also declined at money exchange shops across Baghdad’s local markets, with the selling price reaching 143,000 dinars per $100 and the buying price reaching 141,000 dinars per $100.
In Erbil, the dollar also declined, with the selling price reaching 141,800 dinars per $100, while the buying price reached 141,650 dinars per $100.
The dinar is recovering. The dollar’s value in Iraq has fallen due to local measures.
Over the past few days, Iraqi markets have witnessed a significant decline in the dollar exchange rate against the dinar, following months of fluctuations and price increases that sparked public concerns and market turmoil.
Exchange offices and the local stock exchange in most Iraqi governorates recorded a decline in the dollar exchange rate against the Iraqi dinar on Tuesday, part of a slight and gradual decline that has been ongoing for days. In the final hours of the closing hours, the exchange rate for $100 reached 143,000 dinars, a difference of 11,000 dinars from the official exchange rate adopted by the Central Bank of Iraq, which is 1,320 dinars to the dollar.
The sudden decline has raised questions about its true causes and whether it represents the beginning of monetary stability or merely a temporary decline. Experts believe the reasons are primarily local, not the result of regional or global developments.
In this context, economic expert Abdul Rahman Al-Mashhadani told Al-Maalouma, “Geopolitical conditions, such as tensions between India and Pakistan, typically increase demand for the dollar, but what happened in Iraq clearly indicates that internal factors are the primary driver of the price decline.”
Al-Mashhadani explained that one of the most prominent of these factors was the Central Bank’s previous decision to regulate the sale and purchase of real estate, which reduced the use of the dollar in real estate transactions, thus easing pressure on foreign currency.
He also pointed out that the expansion of banks authorized to process foreign transfers and the adoption of a balance-enhancing mechanism led to significant dollar sales exceeding $300 million per day in previous periods. However, much of this money was not used to import goods, but rather remained in external accounts, known as “return,” which does not reflect real demand within the market.
Al-Mashhadani pointed out that the new Central Bank administration has adopted a more open policy to regulate the market and tightened controls on transfers and currency smuggling, which has contributed to strengthening confidence and raising the level of foreign exchange reserves.
Despite this improvement, observers caution against considering the dollar’s decline as an indicator of permanent stability, especially given the ongoing political and economic challenges and the market’s reliance on imports. Any decline in oil revenues or foreign currency inflows is a source of concern.
Experts emphasize that sustaining the dollar’s decline requires continuing economic and monetary reforms, strengthening the role of the banking sector, regulating the parallel market, and supporting local production to reduce reliance on the dollar.
Finance Minister Announces Increase in Customs Revenues Following Implementation of “ASYCUDA” System
Finance Minister Taif Sami announced on Friday a significant increase in customs revenues following the implementation of the ASYCUDA customs automation system, with a recorded rise of over 59 billion IQD.
In a statement to the Iraqi News Agency (INA), Sami said, “Customs revenues prior to the implementation of the ASYCUDA system totaled 375,675,732,360 IQD. After its implementation, revenues increased to 435,421,672,805 IQD — an increase of 59,745,940,445 IQD.”
She noted that the General Customs Authority has rolled out the ASYCUDA system at 15 customs centers, including: Air Cargo Customs, Dry Port, Baghdad International Airport Terminal, Grand Welcome Yard, Trebil, Safwan, Arar, North and South Umm Qasr, Kirkuk Airport, Zurbatiya, Al-Munthiriya, Mendili, Al-Sheeb, and Al-Shalamcheh.
Sami added that the authority has now commenced the second phase of the system’s implementation, which will span two years and include eight additional customs centers. This phase also involves integrating 12 electronic applications with the system — such as land transport clearance, valuation system, smart selectivity, exemptions, licenses, and certifications — to ensure full integration with all government ministries.
PM’s Advisor: 35% GDP Increase Following Rise in Investment Spending Index
The Prime Minister’s Financial Advisor, Mazhar Mohammed Salih, confirmed on Thursday that the current investment spending index, which amounts to 88 trillion dinars in projects across various sectors, is a positive indicator and a model of growing business activity in the economy and various infrastructure projects.
Salih told the Iraqi News Agency (INA): “The current investment spending index on projects across various sectors reaching approximately 88 trillion dinars is a positive indicator that has contributed to achieving a 35% increase in the country’s annual GDP.”
He added that “40% of the total investment spending index was recorded for the private sector through independent projects or in partnership with the government sector.”
He pointed out that “significant and tangible progress has accompanied the recent years of stability in the country in reactivating investment in the country’s two largest raw material reserves globally, namely sulfur and phosphate. Investment in these two raw material reserves is being negotiated with major international companies specialized in exporting them at the highest value-added levels.” He explained that “investing in sulfur and phosphate reserves aims to shift the economy away from oil asset cycles and a single source of rent. It also represents the beginning of a process of economic diversification, stabilizing state resources, and achieving diverse sources of income.” He added that “government resources and expenditures are the primary and strategic driver of investment in economic and human development throughout the country, in parallel with oil resources.”
Regarding the recovery of embezzled and smuggled funds, he stated that “the Iraqi Asset Recovery Fund Law No. (9) of 2012, with the first amendment issued pursuant to Law No. (7) of 2019, has provided an opportunity for the Iraqi government to negotiate when concluding economic cooperation agreements with other countries around the world, whether within the texts of the agreements themselves, in the memoranda of understanding concluded, or through friendly consultations.”
He continued, “This law aims to recover all financial rights of the Republic of Iraq that others (Iraqis and foreigners) have obtained illegally and that have been leaked or smuggled out of the country at various times, and to link joint international cooperation to the recovery of these funds.”
He explained that “economic agreements are an important tool in the matter of recovering smuggled funds, deposits, and investments in foreign jurisdictions, in order to withdraw them for the benefit of the public treasury and strengthen the country’s financial resources.”
In the same context, economic expert Akram Hantoush confirmed to the Iraqi News Agency (INA) that “the volume of investments in Iraq before 2017 was approximately $45 billion, most of which were investments in the oil and banking sectors, and has increased today to approximately $88 to $90 billion.”
He added that “the volume of these investments will increase if they include the industrial, agricultural, transportation, and tourism sectors,” explaining that “investments in the private sector are expected to reach more than $500 billion if amendments are made to investment laws, monetary policy, and lending policies to create infrastructure for the private sector, such as the establishment of industrial cities, investment roads, investments in the electricity sector, and wholesale markets. The government is working to support their operation by having government institutions purchase the goods offered by these investments.”
Iraq Signs €130 Million Financing Agreements with French Development Agency to Boost Sanitation Infrastructure
Iraq’s Ministry of Finance signed two financing agreements today with the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) totaling approximately €130 million, as part of Iraq’s broader strategy to strengthen infrastructure through targeted investment in essential services.
The agreements, signed by Finance Minister Taif Sami, fall under Iraq’s external credit facilities framework and will fund two key sanitation infrastructure projects aimed at improving public health and service delivery in underserved areas.
According to an official statement by the ministry obtained by the Iraqi News Agency INA, the first agreement involves a €30 million supplementary loan for the Khalidiya sewer project in Anbar Province, bringing the total financing for that project to €110 million. The second agreement allocates €100 million for the Hamza sewer project in Diwaniya Province.
Minister Sami emphasized during the signing ceremony that the initiative aims to transfer advanced French technologies and expertise in wastewater treatment to Iraq, supporting service improvement and environmental sustainability in targeted cities.
The agreements are part of a broader funding package offered by the French government to support Iraq’s infrastructure development agenda. They align with provisions in the 2023–2025 federal budget law, and reflect the government’s commitment to direct borrowing toward economically viable investment projects, in line with the cabinet’s reform-oriented policy framework.
