Thread: Iraq/Dinar News up until March 18th Midnight ctz

Originally Posted by Pippyman

Not sure how good this translation is but I think this is important....


Strike : the decision to lift the value of the Iraqi dinar was the result of studies value


Translated version of http://foratnews.com/paper.asp?ID=2819



"He said the Finance Minister Baqir Jabr counterpart that the Iraqi dinar is Melhoudha improvement during the current period.
He added that the strike caused fluctuations in the local market due to some rumors that arise for blocking this improvement
He added that the Iraqi Central Bank's decision to raise the value of the Iraqi dinar against foreign currencies is the correct decision and is the result of studies aimed to raise the value of the purchasing value of the Iraqi citizen before everything else.
He pointed out that the ministry plans absorbed all future programs in the budget for this year in order to stimulate the Iraqi economy properly. "



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Excellent article pippy! They have the reason right, now, if they could just figure out how to put something into action we'd be able to get somewhere.

I got an email from one of the Financial Services in Baghdad. Here you go, enjoy! Do I hear a cha ching?



Dear ****,

In reference to earlier correspondence, I am pleased to inform you that that according to our latest news the ISX is about to sanction the trade of non Iraqis in the exchange.

In preparation of such a move we are now inviting potential investors who want to open accounts with us to start preparing the relevant steps to do so.

The policy regarding new accounts are as follows:

1) potential clients have to fill the appropriate forms available on on our website

2) email scanned copies of the appropriate forms together with a copy of your passport.

3) as an interim measure the same documents may be sent by mail to an associate of us based in London UK.

4) A client has to inform us of the size of his initial investment. Because of expected flood of requests we are giving priority to clients investing no less then the equivalent of US$10,000

5) there will be an initial account opening fee of $500

6) once an account is provisionally accepted we will advise you of bank details where the funds may be wired in Baghdad through the international banking system.

7) commission fees are 1% of transaction value.

I trust the above answers your questions adequately.

Regards

Originally Posted by Pippyman

Not sure how good this translation is but I think this is important....


Strike : the decision to lift the value of the Iraqi dinar was the result of studies value


Translated version of http://foratnews.com/paper.asp?ID=2819



"He said the Finance Minister Baqir Jabr counterpart that the Iraqi dinar is Melhoudha improvement during the current period.
He added that the strike caused fluctuations in the local market due to some rumors that arise for blocking this improvement
He added that the Iraqi Central Bank's decision to raise the value of the Iraqi dinar against foreign currencies is the correct decision and is the result of studies aimed to raise the value of the purchasing value of the Iraqi citizen before everything else.
He pointed out that the ministry plans absorbed all future programs in the budget for this year in order to stimulate the Iraqi economy properly. "



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This is great, 'before everything else' implies it must be the number 1 priority. But come on guys, enough talking about it and do it, NOW, not next week, next month, NOW. So we can have.

Originally Posted by Adster

This is great, 'before everything else' implies it must be the number 1 priority. But come on guys, enough talking about it and do it, NOW, not next week, next month, NOW. So we can have.

Yeah I agree Adster. They know what they NEED to do. It seems they are hesitant or waiting for something. Not sure what??? But I feel that we are getting VERY VERY CLOSE.

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WASHINGTON, 16 March 2007 (Associated Press)
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An Iraqi leader told President Bush on Thursday that the latest security crackdown in his country is working, but cautioned it will take more time. He thanked the American people for supporting Iraq.

"We are not finished, but we are doing better than expected," said Vice President Adel Abdul-Mahdi, a leading politician in the powerful Shiite Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq.

Bush met with Abdul-Mahdi in the Oval Office for just under an hour. The meeting happened as House Democrats advanced legislation setting a timetable for a U.S. troop withdrawal despite a veto threat from the White House.

"I appreciate the progress that you're making," Bush told the Iraqi leader. "I know it's hard work. It's hard work to overcome distrust that has built up over the years because your country was ruled by a tyrant."

The White House sees stability in the Iraqi capital as the centerpiece of a political, military and diplomatic plan to winning the war. But Bush's troop buildup in Iraq comes just as many lawmakers and the public have pushed for troops to come home.

Bush last met with Abdul-Mahdi in the White House last August. He met with Iraq's other vice president, Tariq al-Hashimi, a Sunni Arab, in December.

The application of the new Iraqi investment law has actually started after announcing the formation of the National Investment Institution which will be responsible for designing investment policies, drafting regulations and monitor their application.

A high-ranking source in the Iraqi Ministry of Finance said that the purpose of the Institution is to be responsible for all investment projects of federal nature exclusively, as there will be regional and provincial bodies, which will also be responsible for investment planning and the granting of invest licenses in their regions. The National Institution is run by a council consists of nine members with expertise and competence, and the chairman of the council is nominated by the Cabinet for a period of five years; The Parliament has the right to depose the chairman and his deputy directly at the request of the Prime Minister.

The source said that the law aims to achieve a number of objectives; the most important of which are: encourage investment and transfer modern technologies to contribute in developing the Iraqi economy, also encourage the Iraqi and foreign private sector to investment in Iraq through securing the necessary facilities for the establishment of enterprises and enhance competitiveness, as well as develop the human resources according to the market requirements and provide job opportunities for the unemployed. In addition to this, the law contained some articles concerning the protection of the rights and properties of investors and the expansion of exports, balance of payments and Iraqi trade balance.

As for what facilities Iraq will grant to foreign and Arab investors, he emphasized that the law grants all the projects presented by Arabs and foreigners concessions and guarantees that ensure their continuation and development, as well as exempting them from taxes and duties, while the Institution will be responsible for identifying the most important sectors and preparing a map for projects in the light of the information provided by the provincial and regional bodies, then organizing them in lists which the investor can obtain.

As for the possibility of the regions projects contradicting the laws of the federal Institution, he emphasized that the law dealt with this matter; regional bodies have rights, including the right to form departments within their districts and they should coordinate with the Federal Center regarding the investment plans and facilities, on condition that regional investment instructions, plans and policies do not contradict with the policies of the Center.

The law also tackled the limits of these projects’ capitals, and the Institution has been given the power to accept applications of licenses to projects with a capital not less than the minimum one determined by the Cabinet or the regional Council of Ministers. Also the approval of these bodies should be obtained when starting a project with a capital of more than $ 250 million and the project exempted from taxes and duties for a period of ten years from the date of starting the commercial operation.

The Cabinet has the right to propose bills to extend or grant exemptions in addition to the exemptions listed and also provide incentives and guarantees or other concessions to any project, sector or region and in accordance with the nature of the activity, its geographical location and the extent of its contribution to the operation of manpower requirements and considerations of national interest; the law also permitted increasing the years of exemption from taxes and duties of up to fifteen years.

As for the machinery and equipment imported for the investment project, the source explained that those equipments are exempted from taxes and duties on condition they are admitted within three years of granting the license; those same articles are exempted in case of expansion or increasing the designing power. The imported spare parts are also exempted from taxes on condition they do not exceed 20% of the purchase value of those equipments.

16 March 2007 (United Press International)
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The Iraq oil ministry has told leaders in Karbala Province it will build a 140,000 barrels per day oil refinery.

The Voices of Iraq news agency reports construction dates have not been set, but the head of the provincial council announced the refinery will be built.

"The oil minister informed the provincial council during his visit to Karbala two days ago that the ministry agreed to build a large refinery in the province," Abdul-Al al-Yasseri said.

Read the whole article:
New Iraq refinery in Karbala | Iraq Updates

Get in there Raddy, 3 in a row, keep em coming matey!

Originally Posted by Adster

Get in there Raddy, 3 in a row, keep em coming matey!

haha, yea i am hot today!!!

This one is for you

Reconstruction & Economy
If it were any other country, the reconstruction of Iraq would be a huge story. As of December 31, 2006, there are 658 projects underway at a cost of $2.67 billion, 3,026 projects have been completed at a cost of $7.11 billion, and 94 more projects are planned.

A $43 million upgrade to the Al Basrah oil terminal is expected to be completed by April. The upgrade includes an emergency shutdown system, control valves, metering system, and fire protection. The upgraded terminal will meet all international safety and metering standards.

Twenty hospitals throughout Iraq are currently undergoing $103 million in renovations.

A small water project was completed in Dahuk Province. The new water storage tank and pipeline serves more than 1,000 residents of Dahuk.

An $8.6 million renovation to the Samawah Railroad Maintenance Center has been completed. The Samawah site is one of two railway maintenance centers in Iraq, and employs more than 250 Iraqis.

Iraq’s power grid is now being monitored by a central control system, called SCADA:

“The main function of SCADA is to create and maintain a digital connection in order to check the provinces’ power loads and control them easily by connecting them to the central power distribution points,” Perry said.

The SCADA system includes input and output signal hardware, controller networks, and communications software.
There are 47 primary health-care centers under construction in northern Iraq. The first completed center recently opened in Salah Al Den Province:
More than 112,000 people in the Salah Al Den Province are receiving healthcare from the first completed Primary Healthcare Center (PHC) in the north.

Built by local construction companies with quality assurance managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, this $3.35 million dollar facility provides routine and initial emergency care to patients including X-ray, laboratories and dentistry. Medical supplies and laboratory equipment were included in the contract to make this facility complete and operational.

On January 15, three new schools were opened in Mushahidah: an elementary school for girls, a secondary school for girls, and an elementary school for boys:
“This is a great example for the projects in this area,” said Shiek Naif Moutlak, the chief of the city council. “We thank the coalition for all they have done and hope for other projects in the area to help the people.”

By Scott Stearns
White House
16 March 2006


The United States and Iran say they are willing to hold direct talks for the first time since relations were severed in 1980. Both countries say any dialogue would be strictly limited to Iraq, and would not include international efforts to convince Tehran to give up its nuclear program.

President Bush's national security adviser, Stephen Hadley, says the White House has a long list of concerns about Iran, including its nuclear program, the treatment of its own people and its involvement in Iraq.

"It is Iranian activity in Iraq, which is giving comfort and, in some cases, equipment to terrorists that are killing Iraqis and killing coalition forces," he said. "And that is what we have made very clear is unacceptable."

The secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, Ali Larijani, says Tehran is ready to open direct talks with Washington about Iraq.

Hadley says the U.S. ambassador in Baghdad, Zalmay Khalilzad, is authorized to speak with Iranian officials, but only about Iraq.

"In connection with Iraq, we are prepared to have a conversation with Iran, in which we would explain and make clear our concerns about Iraq, and Iranian activity in Iraq," he said.

Hadley says it is in the best interests of both Iran and Iraq to have good relations, and that is something they have to work out on their own.

"We should avoid anything that suggests that we are going behind the back of Iraqis to have some kind of arrangement with Iran about Iraq," he noted. "That would be inconsistent with our policy, and unfair to the Iraqi people."

If the United States and Iran agree to meet about Iraq, it would be the first direct talks since 1980, when diplomatic relations were cut, following Iran's Islamic revolution. Officials from the two countries last met with representatives from seven other nations five years ago to talk about Afghanistan.

Larijani and Hadley both say any such conversation would not include talk about international efforts to stop Iran from enriching uranium. Iran says it has the right to pursue a peaceful civilian nuclear program meant to generate electricity. President Bush says Iran is secretly developing a nuclear weapon.

In an updated national security strategy, President Bush said Iran may present the single greatest future challenge to America. Answering questions about that 49-page document, Hadley said there are indications that Iran is starting to listen to international concerns about its behavior.

"There is beginning to be a debate within the leadership, and I would hope a debate between the leadership and their people, about whether the course they are on is the right course for the good of their country," he explained. "That has only come about because they have heard a coordinated message from the international community."

Hadley says it is important to maintain international solidarity on Iran, as the issue of its nuclear program is now before the U.N. Security Council.

In his national security strategy, President Bush says that diplomatic effort with Iran must succeed, if confrontation is to be avoided. He did not specify the nature of that potential confrontation, but the warning comes in a section of the report justifying the president's use of pre-emptive military action to disrupt security threats.

The president says it was right to invade Iraq three years ago because of concerns that then-dictator Saddam Hussein was hiding weapons of mass destruction. None of those weapons were found.

Asked what lessons the administration has learned from the failure to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, Hadley said America needs better intelligence.