Rumors and speculation behind US dollar rates spike in Iraq, official
Shafaq News/ The recent rise in the US dollar’s exchangerate against the Iraqi dinar is temporary and fueled by speculation, Iraq’sfinancial and economic adviser to Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani saidon Thursday.
Advisor Mazhar Mohammed Saleh revealed to Shafaq News, “Theexchange rate gap in the market is fundamentally stable due to strict controlson cash dollar sales through legal outlets for travelers,” adding that travelerscan access other permitted amounts through various payment cards at an exchangerate of 1,320 dinars per dollar.
Saleh attributed the volatility to the recent shift from theprevious external transfer platform to new mechanisms for foreign currencyallocation, designed to meet banks’ foreign currency needs for trade financing.
Warning against the exploitation of false information aimedat profiteering, he explained that “this transition has led to a wave ofmisinformation and misunderstandings, exploited by the parallel market andspeculators for quick profit.”
The PM’s advisor further described the rise in the exchangerate as “temporary market bubbles, which will fade over time.”
On Wednesday, the economist Abdul Rahman Al-Mashhadaniattributed the dollar’s rise primarily to rumors that falsely suggested thatforeign transfers would stop.
“This rumor is incorrect as 97% of transfers conductedthrough the platform were routed to banks with correspondent relationships foraccount reinforcement,” Al-Mashhadani said. He also noted that the increaseddemand for dollars is partly due to Christmas holidays, as travel spikes duringthis period.
For his part, Parliamentary Finance Committee member MPJamal Kocher informed Shafaq News that the committee is actively monitoring thedollar exchange rate in the parallel market in coordination with the CentralBank.
"The Finance Committee may summon the governor of theIraqi Central Bank for questioning if the exchange rate does not stabilize,"he added.
