Exclusive: Dollar fluctuations in Iraq not a market shift, Expert explains
Shafaq News/ The exchange rate of the US dollar against theIraqi dinar has not decreased, and speculators are behind the currentfluctuations, a financial expert confirmed on Wednesday.
Financial expert and former director of the Central Bank ofIraq (CBI), Mahmoud Dagher, told Shafaq News that when the rate hits 152,000dinars per 100 dollars and then returns to 151,000 dinars, this is notconsidered a decrease.
He explained that "the dollar is already high in localmarkets by about 180 points, or roughly 19,000 dinars per 100 dollars."
Dagher attributed the slight decline to “speculators lookingto make some gains,” adding that it does not represent a real drop.
“The dollar did not rise significantly after the closure ofthe platform because remittances continued, and the flow of imports into Iraqremained intact,” he continued.
This week, the dollar’s exchange rate in the Iraqi localmarkets dropped from 152,000 dinars to 150,800 dinars before rising graduallyagain.
Last month, following a spike in exchange rates in theparallel market, Iraq’s financial and economic adviser to the Prime Minister,Mazhar Mohammed Saleh, told Shafaq News that the increase in the exchange ratewas merely a "temporary market bubble" that would eventually subside.
Speaking to Shafaq News Economic and financial expert AbdulRahman al-Mashhadani announced that “the promotion of rumors about thesuspension of the currency exchange platform has been a primary factor behindthe dollar’s surge,” adding that these false claims suggested that externalremittances would be halted.
“The situation is expected to stabilize, and the dollar willreturn to its normal levels after the holiday season,” he noted.
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 CBI.
"The Finance Committee may summon the governor of theIraqi Central Bank for questioning if the exchange rate does notstabilize," he added.
