Tishwash: Finance: Iraq maintains its credit rating and foreign exchange reserves level
The Ministry of Finance confirmed, on Sunday, that Iraq has maintained its credit rating and the level of foreign currency reserves.
The ministry said in a statement, seen by “Al-Eqtisad News”, that “in the latest report issued by Standard & Poor’s Credit Rating Agency (S&P), Iraq maintains its credit rating at B- / B with a stable outlook, indicating financial and economic stability in Iraq.”
It added, “The new rating reflects the ongoing economic and financial reform policy pursued by the Ministry of Finance, in addition to maintaining the level of foreign currency reserves that exceed the external public debt and fulfilling other external financial obligations as a result of the stability of crude oil prices.” It continued,
“The agency’s report indicated the possibility of improving Iraq’s credit rating in the event of an increase in the economic growth rate, diversification of the state’s oil and non-oil public financial revenues, an increase in the per capita income share of the national income, and the continuation of financial and economic policy reform measures.”
Tishwash: Prime Minister’s Advisor Announces Increase in Non-Oil Revenues Compared to Previous Years
The Prime Minister’s Advisor for Financial Affairs, Mazhar Mohammed Saleh, announced today, Sunday, that non-oil revenues have increased compared to previous years, while pointing to two factors that contributed to maximizing revenues.
Saleh told the Iraqi News Agency (INA): “There are tangible positive indicators in the growth of non-oil revenues for the year 2024 compared to previous years that reached record levels,” explaining that “the development of oil and non-oil revenues (at the semi-annual level) between 2023 and 2024 has shown a distinctive growth in revenues in general, and non-oil revenues in particular, as these available financial digital data indicated tangible levels of financial revenues.”
He pointed out that “oil revenues (semi-annual) for the year 2023 amounted to 53.88 trillion dinars, while non-oil revenues amounted to nearly 0.42 trillion dinars (during the six months of the same year 2023),” indicating that “oil revenues in the first half of the year 2024 amounted to 58.80 trillion dinars, while non-oil revenues (at the end of the first half of the year 2024) rose to reach 7.18 trillion dinars.”
He added: “This is a major development in the public financial capabilities during the current year to maximize its resources from non-oil sources,” adding that they are “clear trends that have taken their practical course, relying primarily on a new approach to tax reforms (in both direct and indirect forms).”
Saleh added, “The positive development in non-oil revenues is due to two important factors, the first: the broad applications of government policies in the field of public finance reform (organizationally and procedurally) through paths that are in line with the principle of maximizing non-oil revenues stipulated in the government’s program for financial reform, which stipulates raising the contribution of non-oil revenues to 20% of total annual revenues compared to the previous low rates.”
Saleh stated that “the Council of Ministers approved earlier this year 8 new packages to reform the country’s tax system, led by the principle of expanding tax bases, especially those that are hidden, evading or neglecting annual tax accounting. Two of these packages have been launched to date, and the rest of the packages will be launched sequentially and gradually within the government’s reform policy in the financial field and maximizing the state’s resources from sources of income and wealth outside the oil sector.”
He pointed out that “the second factor stems from the importance of implementing e-governance processes, especially the serious progress in implementing digital service systems in cooperation and technical and organizational assistance provided with financial and commercial bodies and institutions affiliated with the United Nations.”
He explained that “the adoption of digital applications at border crossings and customs sites, which have taken important aspects of auditing and estimation operations, in addition to the expansion of the scope of digital customs and tax collection related to electronic payment, has worked to maximize non-oil financial resources and control cash flows for the benefit of the treasury, which is a matter that has begun to serve the integration of procedures for implementing the unified treasury account and imposing financial discipline on cash flows in the federal public finance at the same time
