"THE DOLLAR IS BETWEEN HIGH & LOW", 15 AUGUST

American attempts and Iraqi solutions… The dollar is between high and low, and government measures

8-13-2023

American attempts and Iraqi solutions... The dollar is between high and low and government measuresInformation / Baghdad…

It became clear to everyone the impact of US banking policies towards Iraq, especially the banking sector, in an attempt to cause confusion in the movement of the commercial market and push the government into direct confrontation with the people, after the rise in most prices, although the government was able to take a decision to reduce the exchange rate after it crossed the barrier of 175 thousand dinars for every 100 dollars.

In turn, the Sudanese government drew up a new financial policy, setting the official exchange rate at 130,000 dinars for every $100.

Despite this, however, the US measures were behind the continued rise in the exchange rate in terms of restricting Iraqi banks’ access to hard currency under the pretext of smuggling, speculation and the black market.

The representative of the Sadiqoun bloc, Muhammad al-Baldawi, told Al-Maalouma that “America is taking retaliatory measures against Iraq after its move towards resolving the electricity crisis, bartering oil with Iranian gas, and getting out of the dollar’s impasse.”

He added, “Washington seeks to impose its opinion and be dominant over decisions in Iraq, as it took retaliatory measures that caused a rise in the exchange rate of the dollar in the local markets, thus increasing the prices of goods, commodities, foodstuffs, and causing harm to the citizen.”

Al-Baldawi pointed out that “the American side seeks, through its measures, to be in control of Iraq and take whatever decisions it wants, and unlike it, it resorts to using some pressure tricks to achieve its interests and harm Iraq and its people.”

On the other hand, a member of the Al-Fateh Alliance, Ali Al-Zubaidi told Al-Maalouma, that “Washington lacks a lot of credibility in the treaties and covenants that are agreed upon, as there is no fairness in continuing to deposit the country’s money in the US Federal Bank.”

He explained, “Iraq will end the dollar crisis if it gets rid of the hegemony imposed by the United States of America on the money for selling oil, especially since Washington imposes Chapter VII restrictions on Iraq verbally in order to achieve its own interests.”

On the other hand, the economist, Safwan Qusai, confirmed to Al-Maalouma, that “the money changers in Iraq receive an appropriate commission when buying and selling dollars, which requires them to adhere to their commission, at a time when there must be a financial policy that is complementary to the central bank in its policy related to selling dollar in the parallel market.

He added, “There is an urgent need to control border crossings, as well as reduce the volume of imports without the presence of external money transfers, in addition to pushing banks towards a flexible banking system and relying on documentary credits, so that all merchants are allowed to deal with reliable suppliers.”

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Parliamentary finance indicates the reluctance of traders to enter the “platform” for selling the dollar, and gives reasons for its rise

A member of the Parliamentary Finance Committee, Moein Al-Kadhimi, stated that merchants are hesitant to use the electronic platform for buying and selling dollars. As a result, they resort to the black market, which drives up the dollar prices in the local markets.

Al-Kadhimi told Shafaq News that the US Federal Bank complicates the central bank’s daily sales of foreign remittances, which range from $150-200 million.

Merchants avoid buying dollars on the electronic platform, resorting to the black market instead. This increases demand and raises prices, with the exchange rate reaching over 150,000 dinars for $100.

Al-Kazemi stated that the central bank has enough dollars, but the issue lies in its procedures and restrictions on transferring funds to US-prohibited countries. This forces merchants to turn to the black market to purchase goods and foodstuffs from abroad.

Since the beginning of the year, the Central Bank of Iraq has implemented an electronic platform and the international financial transfer system, “SWIFT.” However, despite government and central bank efforts to stabilize the exchange rate in the parallel (black) markets, the dollar exchange rates have not improved in Iraq.

 The official exchange rate in the Iraqi budget is 1320 dinars to the dollar, but in the markets of Baghdad and Erbil, the parallel price has continued to rise, reaching 154,000 dinars for every $100 on Monday.