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Iraq may change crude oil pricing index – source
Iraq may change its crude oil pricing index from West Texas Intermediate (WTI) to Argus Sour Crude Index (ASCI) within the coming few months, the official spokesperson of the Iraqi Oil Ministry said on Sunday.
“We are currently monitoring a similar transition in Saudi Arabia,” Assim Jihad told Aswat al-Iraq news agency.
He said that Iraq’s decision will rely on the Saudi’s success in this regard.
“The process aims at avoiding instability in oil prices internationally,” Jihad said.
He said that the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) does not always give accurate estimations of oil prices.
“The Iraqi Oil Ministry is looking for the best deals to achieve stability and revenues,” Jihad said.
http://en.aswataliraq.info/?p=124973
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Oil Minister highlights transparency in contacts
Iraqi Oil Minister Hussein al-Shahrestani on Sunday said that his ministry has been keen to ensure transparency in all oil contracts.
This came during the Strategic Industries Initiative Conference, which opened earlier today in the capital Baghdad with the participation of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
“Oil contracts will place Iraq on the world economic map as one of the energy exporters in the world. We are working to increase Iraq’s production to 11 million barrels…,” the minister indicated.
The secretary general of the Iraqi cabinet, Ali al-Allaq, and Oil Minister Hussein al-Shahrestani were also present at the conference.
http://en.aswataliraq.info/?p=124953
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Kuwait's Burgen Bank increases stake in Iraqi lender
Kuwait's Burgan Bank said it became a majority shareholder in an Iraqi lender as part of its plan to become a regional player.
Burgan, the commercial banking arm of investment firm Kuwait Project Co (KIPCO), now owns a 50.6 percent stake in the Bank of Baghdad after it bought an additional 5.3 percent stake for $10.7m, it said on Sunday in a statement on the Kuwaiti bourse website.
The acquisition is part of a push by Burgan to move outside of its home market for the first time.
Several Kuwaiti lenders such as National Bank of Kuwait and Commercial Bank of Kuwait have been expanding abroad to offset rising competition at home where foreign players have entered the fray.
In 2008, Burgan agreed to purchase the foreign assets of Bahrain's United Gulf Bank, another unit of KIPCO, for 194 million dinars ($675.5m).
This gave Burgan stakes in the Bank of Baghdad, Algeria Gulf Bank, Jordan Kuwait Bank and Tunis International Bank.
Burgan, which was founded in 1977 and is mainly active in Kuwait, said last year it would relaunch plans to increase capital by 200 million dinars as a way to fund the purchase.
The bank said in December it received central bank approval to raise its capital by 36 million dinars.
Burgan's shares were down 1.45 percent by 0734 GMT.
http://www.arabianbusiness.com/57831...n-iraqi-lender
I thought foreigners companies were not allowed to hold more than a 49% stake of an iraqi company. I guess that must have changed in the recent amendments to the Investment Law.
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Hashim al-Tai: It is unlikely to vote on the budget during the next few days
MP Hashem al-Tai ruled out on the mass of consensus "to be voting in the House of Representatives on the state budget during the next few days because of differences between the political blocs."
Some of the congressmen and their statements during the press had asked the House of Representatives need to expedite the approval of the general budget of the State.
He said al-Tai told the independent press (Iba), "The delay is due to the demand by some political blocs Bagherarotheiqp voting behavior in conjunction with the approval of the budget."
And calls upon some of the articles of voting behavior, which was submitted by the Presidency of the Republic, to exercise the functions of the current government as a government caretaker.
He said on-Tai "The presence of dialogues between political parties and the desire of the majority of the political blocs to merge the laws and vote on them together, pointing out that this matter has not been decided yet."
The majority of government ministries has dropped blamed on the House of Representatives not to pass the budget affecting the implementation of investment projects and services.
http://translate.googleusercontent.c...4dn3eJ5NzYa4Mw
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MP calls for international action to recover Iraqi assets outside the country
MP Abdullah Iskandar need to move and adopt all measures to restore Iraq's money inside and outside the country by individuals or states through the adoption of political and diplomatic means and legal.
The Iskander said in his statement for the site neighbors the importance of recourse to the United Nations or other international bodies to recover the lost rights of the country, stressing that the lack of support for these demands will give a negative signal to the others it is more beneficial to assign this movement to restore the rights of the nation that can not be squandered.
He stressed that in the event that the Foreign Ministry to demand the restoration of the rights of the country must be employed with other international bodies in order to ensure open this file and obtaining the full rights.
http://radionawa.com/ar/NewsDetailN....1603&LinkID=99
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A contract for cable landing GBI International contacts with an international company
The Ministry of Communications in the State of Qatar with Gulf Bridge International, the first company in the Middle East for the operation of a submarine cable landing his first international cable communications serving in Iraq regional investments.
A source at the ministry told the independent press (Iba) said Monday that the cable will link Iraq with the Arab Gulf region and the rest of the world, through a network of high reliability fiber optic cables to reach the area of modern Abralmsarae in Europe (Italy), Asia Abralmsaralcherqi (India).
The source quoted the words of Minister of Culture Farouk Abdel Kader Abdel-Rahman as saying that the signing of this contract is part of the Ministry of Communications sought to build a strong infrastructure to support development in all sectors of the State through the establishment of communications networks to link and contribute to reducing the digital divide between the sectors of the State as well as forging closer ties with Iraq economic, and information with all countries of the Arabian Gulf region and the world.
He said it is a great and positive will help to secure and facilitate the crossing of international telecom traffic sent and received by the state, contribute to the improvement of services offered by telecommunications and postal services for the Iraqi people.
For his part, E.xecutive Director of the Gulf Bridge International, Ahmed Mekki said GBI cable landing with the International Maritime large capacities and speed in the Republic of Iraq is an important step in the context of the company's vision to provide the latest technology with international submarine cable to all countries of the Arabian Gulf.
http://www.ipairaq.com/index.php?nam...onomy&id=19771
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The new year & hope elimination of administrative corruption & pursue economic reform
no different on the two that 2009 was a year apart from previous years, a move regulators to enforce legislation on the elimination of administrative and financial corruption in Iraq, and the case was former minister of trade and the dissemination of the names of counterfeiters, staff and students to study documents The arrested red-handed abuse of bribery and other important things compared to previous years that have not seen anything concrete in terms of fighting the phenomenon.
In the view of watchers that the cause of the phenomenon is invited to comply with laws and regulations established by the state and exceeded the powers conferred on the employee in addition to relying on administrative systems vulnerable, creating an effective regulatory mechanisms which have not been able to control those responsible as a whole. Has left the critical situation in which Iraq has passed through Allbulad among the most corrupt countries, as reported by Transparency International in one of their reports and made Iraq Ikhosrbesbbh grant from the World Bank 83 million Dolarqubl two years.
There is no doubt that the magnitude of the financial resources that flowed to the budgets of ministries and government departments compared to what was spent in the ascendance of the former regime have contributed to corruption, so we find that the economic developments which the State seeks to remain a dead letter with the growing challenges of the open market, or so-called "free market", forcing to wonder how can we foresee a bright future and the money drain to the achievement of tangible things on the ground, who has not seen the implementation of any citizen of the promises that achieve social well-being? ..
With the advent of the new year, it is important that the government is benefiting from past experiences and overcome the problems which weakened the confidence of citizens, and made him feel that the control points of his wealth-General and carries out his promises, if Maalmna that these actions will be the legitimacy of the democratic system is gradually being eroded, and the concentration of wealth in the hands of a few to use the opportunity for personal interests, far from the community.
La Paz to be studied and discussed the difficulties facing those responsible and diagnosis of the manifestations and causes of corruption and successful methods in the fight for sustainable development, and support systems are established to adjust the control of corruption within government institutions and coordination with the High Council of State ..
That there are steps the government is serious in this regard, but has been slow for various reasons, which requires the combined commissioning support to play the supporting role of the observer, especially since the national development strategy focused on improving the means of combating financial crime in the state's departments .. and corruption cases are concentrated in the exploitation of official positions to benefit from projects and Alacodacialp and take the wrong person to the right place in positions of responsibility.
Iraqi citizens are hoping the new year with the Government's implementation of its commitments to control Asttnzaf public money because of this phenomenon, since corruption is contrary to the interests of citizens, and Iraq.
http://www.ipairaq.com/index.php?nam...onomy&id=19744
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Iraqi firm wins $5m oil contract
Iraq’s Ibn Majid State Company is currently manufacturing a furnace for crude oil refining for the Diwaniya Refinery and giant reservoirs for the South Refineries Company (SRC) at a total cost of 5.838 billion Iraqi dinars (roughly $5 million), according to an industry & minerals ministry release on Sunday.
“The furnace would be set up for m.obile units with a capacity of 10,000 barrels per day (bpd),” read the release as received by Aswat al-Iraq news agency.
“Technicians of Ibn Majid have finalized the furnace structure works while the State Company for Thermals Industry will embark on the furnace coating works,” it added, noting this project’s costs are up to 2.6 billion Iraqi dinars ($2.2 million).
http://en.aswataliraq.info/?p=124992
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Dollar sales higher in CBI’s Monday auction
The Central Bank of Iraq’s (CBI) dollar sales jumped to $200,510 million in its daily auction on Monday, compared to $159.045 million during the previous session.
“The demand hit $19.030 million in cash, covered at an exchange rate of 1,170 Iraqi dinars per dollar, and $181.480 million in foreign transfers outside the country, covered at an exchange rate of 1,173 Iraqi dinars per dollar,” according to a CBI news bulletin received by Aswat al-Iraq news agency.
None of the 15 banks that participated in today’s session offered to sell dollars.
http://en.aswataliraq.info/?p=125010
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Arab Monetary Fund regulates training to Iraqi officials in Abu Dhabi
Opened yesterday morning at the headquarters of the Arab Monetary Fund in Abu Dhabi, the cycle of financial and macroeconomic policies, for Iraqi officials, organized by the Economic Policy Institute and the Institute of the Fund International Monetary Fund in the framework of the Joint Regional Training Program for 2010.
The course has been attended by 35 participants from Iraq, to deepen understanding of participants to design and implement financial policies and faculty in light of the experience of the International Monetary Fund to monitor economic performance and the design of financial programs.
And HE Dr. Saud Brekan, director of the Institute of economic policies on behalf of Dr. Jassim Al Mannai, Director General, Head of the Governing Council addressed the opening session in which he said that this year is the sixth for Iraqi cadres, and it aims to inform them of the stabilization policies and structural reform in practice within the framework of developing a financial program integrated analysis of the effects of these policies selected from internal and external balances and growth objectives, operation and stability.
He noted that the session will be based on a number of main themes, which include the basic features of the various accounts used in macroeconomic analysis - the national income and balance of payments and fiscal account and cash account - and the interrelationship between these accounts and forecasting methods for each sector and diagnosis of macroeconomic performance.
http://translate.googleusercontent.c...FtmWp5Y2BRSqKw
