Iraqi Economists Network

Iraq warns over threat to public sector pay from oil price collapse

Iraq’s prime minister designate has warned that the oil price collapse means the government could be unable to pay half of its public sector salaries next month. Driven by the twin shocks of plummeting economic demand due to coronavirus and a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia, oil hit an 18-year low last week, trading at near $20 a barrel. This has severe repercussions for Iraq, which depends on crude sales for 90 per cent of government revenues.

Iraq’s PM-designate sends policy plans to parliament

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq's prime minister designate Adnan al-Zurfi announced that he has sent his list of cabinet candidates and agenda to parliament for approval on Saturday, according to state media, in a bid to tackle the country’s political stasis. "I am waiting for the parliament to appoint a day to vote on the agenda," Zurfi told Sky News Arabia, adding that his drafted cabinet consists of "competent" people. The policy agenda submitted includes items related to the government’s coronavirus response, improving relations with the Kurdistan Regional Government, and women’s empowerment. As per the Iraqi constitution, the PM designate has 48 hours to send the resumes of the selected candidates to parliament.

Coronavirus and oil price crash could plunge Iraq deeper into crisis

Coronavirus has already ground daily life in Iraq to a halt — but disarray in Baghdad threatens to worsen the economic forecast amidst a price war that continues pinching global oil markets. Oil prices globally plummeted by nearly half in the past week, with crude prices dipping as low as $35 a barrel as a result of a standoff between rivals Saudi Arabia and Russia. Dependent on oil coffers to fund its federal budget, analysts say that Iraq’s political deadlock stands in the way of Iraq getting through tough economic waters ahead.

Low oil prices drag Middle East economies to collapse

The low oil price environment in the global market is dragging the Middle Eastern oil-producing countries to collapse, whose economies are strongly dependent on crude oil production and exports. Due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) keeping global oil consumption weak, and the oil price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia, crude oil prices are fluctuating below $30 per barrel since March 6 when OPEC and non-OPEC nations failed to reach an output curb deal. Low crude prices are seriously threatening most oil-producing countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) who need higher oil prices to balance their budgets.

The Coronavirus outbreak is a sudden shock to the world that made and deepened economic crisis. However, an efficient government does not only increase its capacity to challenge the expected and unexpected events, it should rather be able to act fast. To discuss this, I will focus on water crisis in Iraq. In simple terms, economic shock refers to any imbalances bet

Over the past week or so, China has eased quarantine measures in Wuhan – the city in which the global coronavirus pandemic began – with the entire lockdown scheduled to end on 8 April. With China’s President Xi Jinpiang having visited the city just a few days ago, the industrial economy across China as a whole is back working and operating at levels even above the pre-coronavir

In the wake of new attacks on US troops in Iraq, the administration was reassessing its strategy in Iraq. Then came the coronavirus. The number of violent attacks on US, Iraqi, and international troops and civilians by Iran-directed paramilitary groups in Iraq has escalated in the past two weeks at an alarming rate. Whether this uptick is a sign of the Iranian regime’s death

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