IRAQ NEWS ANALYSIS BY MNT GOAT, 7 AUGUST

BANKS OF “POWERFUL POLITICIANS” AFFECT EXCHANGE RATES, IRAQ FACES “INTERNATIONAL PRESSURE”

(Mnt Goat: If you care to remember I told you that one of the factors in moving ahead with success of the currency reform as part of the banking reforms, was that the CBI and the GOI must work together and promised to work together. But this article is telling us three reasons why this is not now happening. 

This situation MUST change. The US Treasury in now parked in the CBI building and is not going anywhere until the dollar sales is controlled and the parallel rate matches (or is very close to) the dinar rate. I certainly hope they can fight this corruption. 

We should expect blow-back from the corrupt as they have had it way too good in stealing money all these years. Remember where the money is going and so expect the Iranian backed militias to act up and get crazy in the process. Yes, they will be bombings in retaliation. This is why these militia must be dealt with too. Iran cannot forcefully set policy for Iraq under gun point. But they are now and have been! ☹ This must change.)

Professor of International Economics, Nawar Al-Saadi, revealed today, Monday (August 5, 2024), that there are  political motives behind the Central Bank’s ignoring of some decisions of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani.

He explained that  “the Central Bank of Iraq faces a set of obstacles that directly affect its ability to implement the Prime Minister’s directives.

1.The first is the great international pressure coming from the US Federal Reserve, which imposes sanctions on some Iraqi banks and places strict restrictions on the movement of the dollar. These pressures make it difficult for the Central Bank to take effective steps to manage the exchange rate independently.

2.The second is that the bank suffers from internal structural problems such as corruption and mismanagement, especially with regard to selling the dollar. These challenges make it difficult for the government to achieve its economic goals regarding the stability of the exchange rate, and increase the complexity of the Iraqi economic scene in general.”

Al-Saadi stressed that “these problems make it difficult to implement monetary policies effectively , as financial resources are used for illegal purposes or are wasted due to corruption.

3.Third, the influence of some banks owned by parties with great political and security influence plays a role in complicating matters, and these banks may be resistant to the changes imposed by the Central Bank, which limits the bank’s ability to impose the measures required to achieve financial and monetary stability.”

The professor of international economics continued, “There are political motives behind the Central Bank’s disregard for some of Al-Sudani’s decisions, and given the overlap between politics and economics in Iraq, this situation has become a syndrome in the Iraqi regime from after 2003 until now, as there is an influence from political interests that play a role in determining economic policies.”

(So now you hear once again why the US Treasury has set up shop inside the CBI and thus also these same reasons are why the currency reform is held up, at least for now. But remember this move by the US Treasury was to that they could move to the next step of the currency reform. So it is a very positive thing for us investors. Get it? The glass is half full… lol..lol..lol.. 😊)