Latest Economy News

Prime minister designate says government could be unable to pay half of the salaries of 3m-strong workforce next month Chloe Cornish in Beirut, Asmaa al-Omar in Erbil   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 plu

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

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. Depen

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 bar

In a bid to stop the spread of the virus, Iraqi authorities have imposed a countrywide lockdown, ordering schools and most shops shut AFP/File Baghdad (AFP) On an abandoned sidewalk in Baghdad, under strict government curfew to contain the novel coronavirus, a handful of volunteers with masks and gloves make food packages for needy families. "What we're doing is a huma