Thread: Iraqi/Dinar news until March 1st, 2007

I found this on a Reuters headline but there was no story or link to go with it, but it does sound interesting:

IRAQ PLANS TO HOLD MINISTERIAL MEETING OF NEIGHBORS, G8 POSSIBLY
Tue 27 Feb 2007 1:13 PM ET
IRAQ PLANS TO HOLD MINISTERIAL MEETING OF NEIGHBORS, G8 POSSIBLY IN APRIL - RICE

Zibari-Denmark

Voices of Iraq / Baghdad
Posted by nakr2004 on Feb 27, 2007 - 10:32 PM
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Zibari-Denmark
Zibari inaugurates Iraqi embassy in Denmark
Baghdad, Feb 27, (VOI) - Iraq's Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zibari inaugurated on Tuesday the Iraqi embassy in the Danish capital Copenhagen.


Zibari-Denmark
Zibari inaugurates Iraqi embassy in Denmark
Baghdad, Feb 27, (VOI) - Iraq's Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zibari inaugurated on Tuesday the Iraqi embassy in the Danish capital Copenhagen.
"The inauguration of the new embassy shows Iraq's gratitude to the Danish role in supporting Iraq and protecting Iraqi community in Denmark", Iraqi foreign ministry said in a statement received by the independent news agency Voices of Iraq (VOI).
The statement added "a senior official in the Danish foreign ministry expressed his country's pleasure for the inauguration of the Iraqi embassy stressing the Danish desire to develop and boost relations with Iraq in different domains."
Denmark has 515 troops stationed in the southern Iraqi city of Basra.
The European country announced last week that it would start to pull out Danish troops by August 2007.
SH

Investment still a risk with Iraq oil law
Posted on : 2007-02-27 | Author : Energy News Editor
News Category : Energy


WASHINGTON, Feb. 27 (UPI) Iraq oil investment requires proof of contract legitimacy, a business risk analyst says, and large projects could give companies very favorable terms.

Iraq's Cabinet Monday approved a draft of a hydrocarbons law that will govern all oil and gas development in the country. The move came after nearly a year of tense negotiations between the Kurdish Regional Government and the central Iraqi government over the authority to sign oil deals and revenue sharing. A compromise was reached over the weekend.

Iraq has 115 billion barrels of proven reserves but is only producing about 1.7 million barrels a day due to ongoing violence and the more than $20 billion of investment needed.

It bears remembering that the security situation is not the sole factor preventing additional development of Iraq's reserves from moving forward, Greg Priddy, global energy analyst for the Washington-based Eurasia Group, wrote Tuesday in the business risk firm ' s Energy Trendwatch. The law, as well as other accompanying legislation which has yet to make it to the Cabinet, must be approved by the Parliament. The law allows for contracts referred to as production sharing agreements, or PSAs, commonly issued in areas where oil is hard to reach or expensive to pump, unlike Iraq's. (The wording of the current draft was changed to Exploration and Risk Contracts, which are very similar to PSAs.)

Many groups, including the powerful oil workers unions, oppose PSAs and, Priddy noted, public perception in Iraq is that they will rob Iraq of its rightful revenues.

The perceived lack of legitimacy of PSAs entered into under the Hydrocarbons Law will remain a significant risk in the long term, Priddy wrote, adding the first projects will likely be small to develop a track record of contract compliance.Conversely, if the largest projects are included in the first round of bidding under the new law, the proposals received are likely to be disappointing to the Iraqi side, Priddy wrote. And in a country where violence is the norm and the political landscape is nowhere near set, the risk of completing, let alone signing contracts for such projects would be large.


Copyright 2007 by United Press International

I meant to post these in here

http://www.rolclub.com/170528-post491.html

http://www.rolclub.com/170534-post492.html

The Iraqi debt burden has become little
27 February 2007 (Iraq Directory)
The efforts of creative Financial minds, the fine Iraqi diplomacy and the support of friends had a great role in reaching the Paris Club agreement to drop 80% of Iraq's debts to the (19) States of the Club, in addition to (56) States outside the Club.
The problem of Iraq's foreign debts, was one of the most serious dilemmas faced by Iraqi economy after security at the present stage; it was not expected that the day may come when economic analysts and experts in the world would predict that Iraq, whose economy was one of the largest economies in the Arab world and after it was one of the most important petroleum exporting countries, would borrow money, request others’ help and be tied by foreign debt of more than $125 billion in addition to the compensations which were adopted after 1991 and amounted to $ 35 billion of which Iraq paid more than $ 17 billion.
The mechanism of debt reduction is 30% directly at the beginning of 2005, and this reduction program was based on emergency aid, just like the post-conflict with the IMF which is a reduced international program in terms of conditions.
There are 30% we obtained after the (Stand by) agreement was signed with the International Monetary Fund, and at the second half of 2005 we will get the remaining (20%).
In fact, when we reach the year (2008) the debts will be reduced to (80%); this means that we will pay back only (20%) of the debt, and the payment will be over (23) years beginning of the year (2011); this means we have (6) years of permit from (2005 till 2011); however, we may be able to get rid of the remaining (20%) or change them into bonds and investments by agreement with some of the creditor States, which means that we may be able to restructure the debt before (2011), especially that there are some countries which cancelled their debt on Iraq by 100% like the United States, Australia and Malta.
It can be said now that the burden of the debt has become little upon the coming years’ budget.
There are a number of options that could ease the burden of the remaining debt depending on our negotiation strength, through convincing the debtors to change their debt into contracts and investments; we could also buy the debt from the market if Iraq's financial capabilities are developed in future. Debts are bought and sold; they are sometimes sold at 10 or 20% of their nominal value or according to the buyer’s capacity to pay.
There is also another method, we have managed to follow but achieved an unsteady success, when the government converted its debts into bonds; these are all good economic issues that Iraq has not entered before; however we achieved some steps ahead in ending the subject of commercial creditors, big and small.
Because of these bold steps, Iraq occupied a status among the nations entering the international market after it has settled its commercial debt; a solution which guarantees Iraq good relations with the world and with the international economic community, as well as create a proper investment environment.

To modernize the Iraqi Central Bank
27 February 2007 (Iraq Directory)
An expert in the Iraqi Central Bank expected that positive effects, in the long perspective, will result from the monetary policy of the Bank in fighting inflation through raising the exchange rate of the Iraqi dinar. The Director-General of the Statistics and Research Center in the Iraqi Central Bank, Madhar Muhammad Salih, said that the Bank seeks within its reforms to establish a modern and developed infrastructure for the central banking in Iraq through strengthening the payment systems that link the Central Bank to the banks working with automatic systems. He pointed out that this mechanism will enable the Central Bank to lend banks daily, when they are exposed to some of problems in the availability of liquidity, as well as reducing the risk of manipulation and fraud since this mechanism contains a high level of secrecy and confidentiality.
Salih revealed that there are procedures related to the development of bonds’ auction and remittances of the Central Bank, as well as encouraging open market operations; stressing its deep impact on liquidity ratios and growth of cash blocs. He explained that the sales rates in an auction increased from 200 billion dinars, after being 100 billion dinars each auction previously.
Salih called on following a coordinated financial policy with the Central Bank monetary policy to reach an economic stability based on the promotion of investment expenditure and reduce consumer spending in a way that helps in operating unemployed energies in economy, whether materialistic or human, as well as fighting against poverty and achieve the welfare of the poor within the social protection systems, stressing the need to focus the consumer expenditure upon these sectors, which requires reconsidering the support activities that must be given to the production sector as a priority, but not at the expense of the health, service and educational sectors.

Iraqi spokesman says Al-Sadr statement on security "misinterpreted"
27 February 2007 (BBC Monitoring)
Text of report by Dubai-based Iraqi private Al-Sharqiyah TV on 27 February
An aide to Iraqi clergyman Al-Sayyid Muqtada al-Sadr has stressed that Al-Sadr has not withdrawn his support for the security plan implemented by the Iraqi Government and the US forces in Baghdad. Al-Ajili accused the media of misinterpreting the statement because Al-Sadr trend continues to strongly support the plan.
[The above announcer-read report is followed by a video report citing Salih Al-Ajili, spokesman for Al-Sadr's political movement, as saying: "The statement Al-Sadr made on Sunday was intended to encourage the Iraqi forces to act independently from the US Army in Baghdad, adding that the media misinterpreted the statement since Al-Sadr trend continues to strongly support the plan. He added that what was mentioned in the statement was an advice to the Iraqi security forces which are capable of achieving better results without US assistance."]
Source: Al-Sharqiyah TV, Dubai

المساهمةRetreat activity banks and joint stock companies Baghdad-file Press

من .It is noted that the nature of the conditions experienced by Alaghtassa d Iraqi and security conditions, which have not yet features b counting the application of the security plan, or what some officials the plan to impose law, and in the absence of the introduction of Investment Law No. (1 3) for 2006. it reflected the fact that banks and companies Almusa the diligence with which the activity is slow, not even a fall of a certain limit, For example, and not limited to the Board of Directors of the Bank pain the integration of profits in 2005, 2006 and capitalized, any non-distribution of any portion of the profits to shareholders, as well as the request to increase the bank's capital to 25 billion debt Err, also called national company to the furniture industry in domestic manipulation Ahmiha to receive new certificate after increasing Wallace they instead of the distribution of profits.

و لم تحقق .And not achieved only companies of the circulation of weak on the Stock Exchange Iraqi, as the company Baghdad for carbonated beverages is a j Zeid to 66 million shares in circulation, With the Sadeer Hotel, the value of circulation not exceeding 459 ml Lyon dinars. and the Iraqi Investment Bank has achieved the highest figure in the the number of transactions executed about 23 deal, and these figures reflect the reality of the low activity of banks and companies contributing to the current stage.

ا لكاتب:A clerk :
الملف برسFile Press
تأريخ أضافة ألخبرIn addition date news

المصدر:Source :
الملف برسFile Press
27 - 02 - 0727-02-07


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Iraqi bourse is still relatively stable


بغداد – الملف برسBaghdad-file Press

رغم مة .Although security conditions have begun to improve certain limit, Iraq, the market for securities remains in a protracted t, if not a decline in the indicators, This is due to the state of suspense on the part of investors and center purchase of the potential developments in the field of adoption laws Alast the fruits or moved, including the resurrection of the National encourage Alastthm left with a view to developing the Investment Law No. 13 of 2006 was application. as well as the pending transfer of the oil investment law j the House of Representatives after the end of the month recess since standing Cam l, For example, is not limited to the number of transactions performing e during the sixth meeting for the month of February, which was held on a two of the last 178 package the size of the circulation reached 906 million dinars and the number of shares in circulation amounted to 298 million shares, Bel G. index at 26,105 0, 86% rise in the rate of 0, 330% occupied and the banking sector ranked first, followed by a the industrial sector came in second, the number holding T. shares traded companies and 23 non-traded shares a 41 companies and have meetings of public bodies of 18 companies , and 11 companies remained dependent on the trading decision of the body only financial and refined Iraqi , which reflects the setback and the decline in market activity usage à-vis.

.It is noteworthy that the number of listed companies in seven sectors, 93 evil Keh nominal capital of 774 billion dinars.
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كردستانForum dialogue in the American Iraqi Kurdistan

اربيل- الملف برسArbil-file Press



اختتمت في مدينة . concluded in the city of Irbil activities Dialog Forum Ar American Christians which lasted over two days, , in which a large number of officials and businessmen Business and investors Iraqis and Americans. , were used to study a number of working papers that included many of the ideas on the future of relations Alaghtassa friendly and trade and investment between Iraq and Alolai AT Nations, , including the establishment of joint ventures and exchange of expertise among our Fe to invest in the different regions of Iraq.

و كان وزير التجارة . and the Minister of Trade, Dr. Abdel Hassan farmer Suda road Nee had opened the activities of the Forum stressing the government's desire Iraqi increase in the volume of trade exchange with Alolai Nations come and take advantage of the experience accumulated Lalla Bolivia and the potential contribution of the American companies Prince MK and Iraqi businessmen to invest in the m spokesman country safe, which is stable and clear He pointed out that the Iraqi government has provided the environment Anoneh appropriate after the issuance of the Investment Law ef hands, which opens the door wide for companies pw marvel and world to start a new page and to take advantage of opportunities available investment He added that the experience of Kurdistan in the area of investment was a successful and achieved its objectives and is in the beginning and we hope a to benefit from this experience and transfer to the provinces Ar Requests the other.

و من . For his part, Frank Levin, undersecretary of the Ministry of Trade but Merci that the United States values initiatives Group Yen in the economic field after the Iraqi policy ef Dedeh for openness on market mechanisms, and in addition to Levin that dialogue trade provides an opportunity to men the Iraqis and Americans to share experiences and agreed to serve their joint formula and give them Murr high color within the new verification mechanisms benefits Almetba Dela serve the economy and the two countries.

و من جانبهاى. and for its part, explained Minister of Construction and Housing statement Des e Ivanov nature of the work undertaken by the Ministry to build G7 Mat housing to cover the need for Iraq up to m for yunin-and-a-half units, in addition to strengthening the infrastructure and rebuild what pw bruises them for destruction by the military operations and Altdae come post-war 2003, adding that the ministry has prepared programs and projects designed the reconstruction of areas of the country by building schools and Almsch mortality and government departments in addition to other projects.

و اكد . and the Minister of Industry Francois Fawzi Hariri that he hopes the an initiative to establish dialogue to achieve commercial Makas b and achievements at the level of deepening economic relations and trade and benefit from shared experiences of Raja for the Iraqis and Americans in the area Alastthm Err, He added that his ministry has more than 240 lab and falling factory M. managed more than 60 industrial sectors of building and textiles and heavy engineering, medicine and Development and planning, She was concerned at the current stage of the rehabilitation of this installations and raise the level of productivity in the context of the means and SSALI b innovative line with the reality of the Iraqi economy and nature the transition to a market economy

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