Kirkuk governor announces forming "Unified Arab Bloc" in Provincial Council, 31 DEC

 Kirkuk governor announces forming "Unified Arab Bloc" in Provincial Council

Shafaq News / The 'Unified Arab Bloc' was announced today, Sunday, in the Kirkuk Provincial Council, comprising the winners of the local elections from the constituent components.

The bloc was formed from three alliances: the 'Arab Alliance,' the 'Leadership Alliance,' and the 'Arabism Alliance.' This was declared by the acting governor of Kirkuk and the head of the 'Arab Alliance,' Rakan Saeed Al-Jubouri, in a statement followed by a video recording in the presence of the winning candidates from the constituency in the recently held Provincial Council elections.

Al-Jubouri stated, 'We announce the formation of the Arab bloc in the Kirkuk Provincial Council to preserve the rights of our voters and achieve peaceful coexistence among all components.'

The results of the local elections in Kirkuk led to the victory of 'Kirkuk, Our Strength, and Will' list, affiliated with the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, with 5 seats.

The Kurdistan Democratic Party won two seats, the Arab Alliance in Kirkuk secured 3 seats, the Unified Turkmen Front with two seats, the Leadership Alliance with two seats, and the Arabism Alliance with one seat. Additionally, the candidate (Emil Boutros Constantin Ibrahim Agha) won a Christian quota seat.

Kirkuk is one of the disputed territories between Erbil and Baghdad, covered by Article 140 of the constitution. It was previously under joint authority between the Kurdistan Region and the federal government before the referendum for independence conducted by the region in September 2017.

Article 140 aims to reverse the demographic policies implemented by Saddam Hussein's regime in the disputed areas favoring Arabs over Kurds. The article involves taking a census before the final step of holding a referendum, allowing the population to decide whether to join the Kurdistan Region or remain under Baghdad's administration.

The completion of Article 140's implementation was expected by the end of 2007, but security and political issues hindered its progress.

https://shafaq.com/en/Iraq-News/Kirkuk-governor-announces-forming-Unified-Arab-Bloc-in-Provincial-Council

"WE WAIT FOR ISX TO OPEN TUESDAY" BY SHEILA, 31 DEC

 Sheila 

 IMHO... We wait for ISX to open Tuesday... Then Tuesday evening Iraq said they will pay salaries out of budget? Hoping these are clues to going from program rate to international market rate.

Iraq's elections days are 18th and 19th.  Rumor has it they will release the new exchange rate post election...we shall see if that's true or not in the coming days.

https://dinarevaluation.blogspot.com/2023/12/rv-update-by-sandy-ingram-sheila-18-dec.html

Iraq's GDP vs. The Value of the Iraqi Dinar #iraqidinar BY SANDY INGRAM

TURKSTAT: Turkey's Exports to Iraq Surge, making it the third top importer in November, 31 DEC

TURKSTAT: Turkey's Exports to Iraq Surge, making it the third top importer in November

Shafaq News/ Turkish Statistical Institute (TURKSTAT) reported that Iraq secured the third position among countries importing the most from Turkey in November.

According to the report, exports climbed by 5.2% compared to the same month in 2022, totaling $22.999 billion, while imports decreased by 5.7% compared to 2022, reaching $28.916 billion.

The report said that Germany topped the list with 1.750 billion dollars, the UAE came up at $1.365 billion next after them (second place), the United States ranked fourth with $1.262, and Italy scored fifth with a total imports of $1.103 million.

 https://shafaq.com/en/Economy/TURKSTAT-Turkey-s-Exports-to-Iraq-Surge-making-it-the-third-top-importer-in-November

"RV UPDATE" BY GOLDILOCKS, 31 DEC

 "Iraq Stock Market Report · ISC approved the listing and trading of reconstruction bonds which was issued on 10/10/2023 by the Ministry of Finance, ..."

Reconstruction Bonds will raise Capital funds for the country of Iraq and insure liquidity for the banking system, merchants, and the people as they continue to build and grow their economy.

Reconstruction bonds are considered the Secondary Market where currency trades take place. These new listings on the Iraqi Stock Market will go to help improve the infrastructure of Iraq and strengthen its economy locally and abroad.

Iraq is rapidly becoming a self-sustaining economy capable of reaching out to the International Markets once again. Their new digitized shipping ports will bring in revenue as well as expand the use of their currency going forward.

© Goldilocks
MENA FN Link
American Legal Code Library Link

Iraq's International Success - Budget Spending 2023 - Value Added Chains...by MILITIAMAN

An economist criticizes the step to export Iranian goods to Iraq in riyals: It has question marks

 An economist criticizes the step to export Iranian goods to Iraq in riyals: It has question marks

On Saturday, December 30, 2023, economic expert Nabil criticized the decision to export Iranian goods to Iraq in Iranian riyals.

“He said, “This will raise a significant doubt about how Iraqi traders can purchase Iranian currency. It requires either the US dollar or the Iraqi dollar, which will be returned to Iraq for exchanging it with the dollar. However, since the Iraqi exports to Iran are very low, the volume of Iraqi dinar is quite limited”.”

The Governor of the Central Bank of Iran, Mohammad Reza Farzin, confirmed that Iran will now settle its exports abroad in the national currency, the riyal.

Muhammad Reza Farzin, on the sidelines of the Government and Private Sector Council meeting in Khorasan Razavi Province (northeast), stated that the Central Bank has been studying the possibility of settling Iranian exports through the riyal currency outside the country for several months. If implemented, this move will cater to the needs of exporters to Iraq and Afghanistan.

He said, “The export of goods to Afghanistan is one of the demands of Mashhad’s merchants. By implementing the ‘riyal offshore’ project, merchants will be able to benefit from it by using riyals outside the borders instead of foreign currency.”

According to him, the Central Bank has formulated regulations for the cross-border riyal project, two banks have already started the project and soon all the banks in the country will follow suit.