The Iraqi government revealed that foreign currency reserves have risen to more than 70 billion dollars, as Iraq achieved last March 11 billion dollars in revenues from the sale of oil, whose prices are recording the highest increases in 14 years.
The financial advisor to the Iraqi Prime Minister, Muhammad Mazhar Salih, noted that "The Central Bank has restored its foreign currency reserves." He considered that "The value of the reserves, which is the cover of the national currency, recorded more than 70 billion dollars, a balance more than three times the value of the government's external debts payable during the years 2022-2028."
He pointed out that "Between 2020 and 2021, Iraq faced a financial deficit as a result of the price war in global energy markets, the reduction of oil production quantities under the influence of (OPEC +) agreements, and the deterioration of global demand for crude."
Last December, the Central Bank of Iraq announced that its foreign currency reserves had reached $64 billion. Iraq is the second largest oil producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC); It depends 97 percent on oil revenues to finance the country's annual budget.
Source (Al-Araby Al-Jadeed Newspaper, Edited)
