🇮🇶💵 CBI UNDER PRESSURE: THE PARALLEL MARKET MATTERS
📰 NEWS SUMMARY
The Central Bank of Iraq says it has enough foreign reserves to meet legitimate dollar demand, despite the dinar weakening to around 160,000 IQD per $100.
The CBI attributes the pressure to speculation, market expectations, and regional tensions, while reaffirming that it will continue supplying dollars through official channels.
At the same time, foreign reserves have fallen nearly 17% in the first seven months of 2026, reaching about $80.6 billion.
🔎 MY ANALYSIS
What we are seeing here is a clear example of the pressure created by the parallel market.
The wider the gap between the official CBI rate and the parallel-market rate, the greater the pressure on the dinar and the more difficult it becomes for the CBI to maintain monetary stability.
This helps explain why the CBI has been working to strengthen official channels and bring the two rates closer together.
🇮🇶 MY OBSERVATION
In my view, the long-term objective could be to significantly reduce the gap between the official and parallel rates, eventually leaving much less room for the parallel market to operate.
The key question now is: Can the CBI close that gap and restore greater confidence in the official dinar rate? 👀📉
📌 TELEGRAM: https://t.me/DINAREVALUATION
📌 X (TWITTER): https://x.com/DinarWatchTeam
📌 BLUESKY: https://bsky.app/profile/dinaresgurus.bsky.social
#Iraq #IraqiDinar #IQD #CBI #Dinar #RV #Revaluation #IraqEconomy
------
CBI counters fears over dollar supply
Shafaq News- Baghdad
Iraq has enough foreign reserves to meet demand for dollars for imports, card payments and travelers at the official exchange rate, the country’s Central Bank (CBI) said on Saturday, as the Iraqi dinar weakened sharply against the US currency, hovering around 160,000 Iraqi dinars per $100.
In a statement, the CBI attributed the rise to market speculation and expectations, as well as attempts by some beneficiaries to exploit geopolitical tensions in the region and unsettle economic and financial conditions.
The bank did not identify those it accused of benefiting from the situation.
Urging the public to rely on its official data and statements and avoid information circulated through unreliable sources, the CBI pledged to continue financing foreign trade through approved channels and for authorized purposes.
Earlier today, the CBI said that foreign reserves fell by nearly 17% in the first seven months of 2026 to $80.633 billion, with reserves declining by more than $5.5 billion in July alone.
https://shafaq.com/en/Economy/CBI-counters-fears-over-dollar-supply