To the Ministerial Council for the Economy, 18 MARCH

 To the Ministerial Council for the Economy

Samir Al-Nusairi

 Finally, forecasts indicate that the Russian-Ukrainian war is nearing a halt with US intervention. We recall that when the war broke out three years ago, oil prices soared to over $110 a barrel, resulting in a surge in oil revenues for both rentier and oil-producing countries. This included Iraq, given its rentier economy.

Unfortunately, the achieved abundance was not utilized to activate the real economy. Rather, operational allocations in the general budgets increased, and the deficit exceeded 60 trillion dinars. Now, with the inevitable expectation that the war will soon end, oil prices will fall, and it is expected that its average price will reach less than 60 dollars per barrel. 

And we are still without other significant sources of national income. The Iraqi economy, God forbid, will enter a new economic and financial crisis. We expect the deficit to rise, the inflation rate to rise, and the government will be forced to borrow domestically and abroad.

Borrowing from the central bank will be required, foreign exchange reserves will decline, and external and domestic debts will rise. Since these expectations could soon be realized, they require swift action.

Here, we propose that the Ministerial Council for the Economy hold extraordinary sessions to discuss the expected new crisis and prepare for confrontation in a manner that preserves the path of economic, financial and banking reform and finds solutions and remedies to protect our national economy  link

AJ: The CBI hasn’t explained or given guidance on what happens to paper currency outside Iraq when they go digital. , 18 MARCH

 AJ

Good morning, everyone! My inbox has been flooded with questions about the latest CBDC article y’all are fired up! We’ve known the CBI was gearing up to go digital, but here’s the twist that might give you chills: this could be the last thing you want for this investment. No cash, replaced with a CBDC—digital wallets tied straight to the CBI, no banks needed, and they’re planning to phase out cash—meaning no more lower denomination notes. Reading this gave me a pit in my stomach, like a total nightmare scenario for us holding physical dinars! Let’s start with the good news. You know I’ve been hammering this point for months—heck, all of last year—to my followers: Iraq has to end that parallel market (1,500 IQD/USD vs. the official 1,320) and unify the rate before any revaluation (RV) can happen. And guess what? Mustafa Mohammed, financial and banking affairs adviser to the prime minister, backs me up, saying the official exchange rate will be the only game in town as the digital rate—official rate 1,320 IQD/USD. That’s a huge step toward RV. The digital dinar will be an electronic currency issued by the CBI as an official part of the country's monetary system CBDC. 

It will hold the same value as traditional currency but will be traded electronically through CBDC digital wallets or authorised financial applications and would see the country move away from US control of the Central Bank of Iraq, which it has held a controlling stake in since the US invasion of 2003 But here’s the gut punch: the CBI hasn’t explained or given guidance on what happens to paper currency outside Iraq when they go digital.

That’s a massive question mark for us dinar holders abroad. The lack of clarity on legal residency for CBDC wallets is a big deal—global trends suggest you will need a local ID (like Nigeria’s BVN), but China’s Olympic exception shows flexibility is possible. During the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, China let foreigners use e-CNY CBDC wallet without residency or a local bank account—it was temporary. 

Iraq could do the same for a post-RV window, but without confirmation, we’re in the dark. With 11 countries already using CBDC, let’s look at five playbooks. Interestingly, they all still use paper currency alongside their CBDC digital versions. Here are the top five: The Bahamas (Sand Dollar) Launch: October 2020 Timeline: Over 4 years (since 2020), with 50%+ adult adoption by 2023. Pilots started in 2019. Notes: Focused on financial inclusion for remote islands, but cash (BSD) remains legal—only 30–40% of transactions are digital. Slow adoption reflects tech and trust challenges. Jamaica (Jam-Dex) Launch: March 2022 Timeline: About 3 years (pilots from 2019, full rollout 2022), with 100,000 users (2.5% of 4 million) by 2023. Notes: Cash (JMD) still dominates—digital’s a supplement, not a replacement, suggesting a gradual shift rather than a cash kill. Nigeria (eNaira) Launch: October 2021 Timeline: Over 3.5 years (pilots from late 2020), but adoption’s under 1%. Notes: Naira cash is 80%+ of transactions—eNaira struggles due to tech issues and low trust, hinting at overoptimistic rollout claims. Requires a local BVN ID for wallets. China (e-CNY) Launch: Pilot in 2019, no full nationwide launch yet (as of 2025). Timeline: 6+ years in development, with 261 million users (18% of 1.4 billion) by 2023, 7 trillion yuan ($986 billion) in transactions by June 2024. Notes: Yuan cash persists—e-CNY’s a layer, not a cash killer, due to rural gaps and privacy pushback. Olympics trial showed flexibility for foreigners, but domestic use needs a local ID. Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECDU - DCash) Launch: March 2021 (8 islands: Antigua, Grenada, etc.) Timeline: Over 4 years (pilots from 2019), with limited adoption—offline issues hit in 2022. Notes: Cash (XCD) still widely used—DCash’s 2-month outage in 2022 shows tech fragility, questioning reliability. Thank God Trump stopped the CBDC in the U.S.! They are 100% globalist control over humanity. If you’re doing the happy dance over this, you are dumb as fu@k. FOOTNOTE; This is not a crypto wallet -- Economic expert Ziyad Al-Hashimi pointed out significant differences between digital currencies and cryptocurrencies:

'The former are issued and regulated by central banks like the digital dollar and digital dirham, while cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin are not subject to any official authority and their value depends on supply and demand, making them highly volatile.' 

BTW: the CBI banned all crypto's in 2017 in Irraq.

Nader From The Mid East: I tell you about three things. Trade, private sector @DINARREVALUATION

 

Iraq negotiates first gas deal with Algeria, 18 MARCH

  Iraq negotiates first gas deal with Algeria

Sources reported on Tuesday that Iraq is currently engaged in advanced negotiations to conclude a liquefied natural gas deal with Algeria, in an attempt to complete the deal before next summer.

The TAQA platform quoted these sources as saying that the deal is expected to be announced within two months at most, with exports set to begin as soon as Iraq completes the import infrastructure.

The sources explained that the contract will be medium-term, and that the quantities will be approximately one million tons annually. However, negotiations have not yet finalized the quantity.

According to the platform, an Algerian liquefied natural gas deal with Iraq could support Baghdad's electricity sector during the summer of 2025, or perhaps at the beginning of winter.

Iraq is currently preparing the infrastructure at Khor al-Zubair port in Basra Governorate to import liquefied natural gas, which could take the next three to five months.

It is planned to contract for a floating platform for unloading and storage, and connect it to a 40-kilometer pipeline that will transport the gas by connecting it to the national pipeline near the Shatt al-Basra. 

In late February, the Iraqi Oil Ministry's Undersecretary for Gas Affairs, Izzat Sabir, stated that the federal government was studying the possibility of importing gas from Qatar and Algeria after the US president revoked the exemption granted to Iraq to import this material from Iran. Sabir emphasized that the ministry was determined to stop flaring associated gas by 2030.  link

REINALDO JC : IRAQ UPDATE, 18 MARCH

 REINALDO JC

IRAQ Dear Iraqi Federal Government/CBI/U.S. Treasury, Per our conversation 20+ years ago… Please don’t DISAPPOINT with delaying the 2025 Budget Tables/Schedules that’s suppose to be presented/showcased to everyone by the end of this month March to bring out the REAL Dinar exchange rate figures to FINALLY provide your Iraqi citizens with PURCHASING POWER along with your international investors also awaiting a significant INCREASE on their investment of your currency. Respectfully, ~All Iraqi Citizens/Int’l Investors

SANDY INGRAM: Zimbabwe has pulled a fast one on the global stage @DINARREVALUATION #iraqidinar

 

Erbil hands Baghdad 48 billion dinars in non-oil revenues , 18 MARCH

 Erbil hands Baghdad 48 billion dinars in non-oil revenues 

3/17/2025

The Ministry of Finance and Economy in the Kurdistan Regional Government announced on Monday that the federal treasury's share of non-oil revenues for February had been transferred to Baghdad.

According to a statement from the ministry, received by Shafaq News Agency, the transferred amount amounted to 48 billion and 722 million Iraqi dinars, which were deposited in the Erbil branch of the Central Bank of Iraq.

Last month, the Kurdistan Regional Government's Ministry of Finance and Economy announced the transfer of approximately 52 billion dinars in non-oil revenues to the federal treasury in Baghdad.  LINK