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Established in 2006 as a Community of Reality

Welcome to the Neno's Place!

Neno's Place Established in 2006 as a Community of Reality


Neno

I can be reached by phone or text 8am-7pm cst 972-768-9772 or, once joining the board I can be reached by a (PM) Private Message.

Established in 2006 as a Community of Reality

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Established in 2006 as a Community of Reality

Many Topics Including The Oldest Dinar Community. Copyright © 2006-2020


    Report: Iraqi merchants resort to a 'new tactic' to access the dollar

    Rocky
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    Report: Iraqi merchants resort to a 'new tactic' to access the dollar Empty Report: Iraqi merchants resort to a 'new tactic' to access the dollar

    Post by Rocky Tue 09 May 2023, 5:20 am

    [size=30]Report: Iraqi merchants resort to a 'new tactic' to access the dollar
    [ltr]2023.05.09 - 08:54[/ltr]
    [/size]
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    Baghdad - Nas  
    [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] said  that local currency dealers in Iraq find it difficult to access the dollar, due to the attempts made by the United States to prevent the illegal flow of dollars to Iran, and then they resort to traveling to nearby countries with piles of bank cards; To withdraw hard currency there.  
      
    [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]  
      
      
    Over the past two months, more than 24 Iraqis carrying about 1,200 bank cards and in possession of more than $5 million were arrested at airports and border crossings while trying to leave the country, according to Alaeddin al-Qaisi, a spokesman for the Iraqi Border Crossings Authority.  
      
    On Friday, May 5, the authorities detained another Iraqi traveler trying to smuggle 300 bank cards inside packs of cigarettes at the international airport in the city of Najaf, central Iraq.  
      
    New tactic  
      
    "This use of [bank] credit cards to smuggle dollars is a new tactic that began when the government launched its campaign," al-Qaisi said.  
      
    In another similar case, a person was arrested at Baghdad airport after an employee handed him a bag containing 300 bank cards after he had passed the security check, according to al-Qaisi.  
      
    For years, Iraq was a cash-driven economy that relied heavily on US dollar transactions, making it a significant source of illicit dollar flows to Iran and other Middle Eastern countries subject to Western sanctions.  
      
    In November, the US Treasury and the Central Bank of Iraq imposed stricter controls on international dollar transactions carried out by Iraqi banks; In an effort to reduce money laundering and smuggling.  
      
    Due to US-led steps, the price of the dollar rose against the Iraqi dinar in the gray market, which led to an increase in demand for dollars. Where the dollar was sold for 1,750 Iraqi dinars at exchange offices during the month of February, an increase of 20% higher than the official announced price of 1,460 dinars at the time.  
      
    It is true that Iraqi citizens can hold dollars at exchange offices at the market rate, but Iraqi banks allowed depositors to issue cash cards covered by the equivalent of $10,000 at the official exchange rate, and they can be used outside the country to withdraw money in cash.  
      
    restrictions from the central bank  
      
    Currency traders and Iraqi officials say that in recent months, currency traders have submitted requests to extract dozens of bank cards and give them to travelers who travel to nearby countries to withdraw dollars.  
      
    At the beginning of this week, the authorities said that they had detained an Iraqi who was trying to take 128 bank cards out of the country through a land border crossing with Iran.  
      
    Traders said hard currency was being sold at a premium on the gray market. They explained that some of this money is used to buy goods from abroad.  
      
    It is true that the value of money smuggled through the bank card route is small compared to what flows through the overall economy, but it shows the size of the demand for the dollar in Iraq.  
      
    In response to the Iraqis resorting to this method, the Central Bank of Iraq imposed restrictions on withdrawals from bank cards, to become $ 250 per day for each card, which makes the process of withdrawing the total cash in one card taking a long time.  
      
    "Profitable Opportunities"!  
      
    In turn, Ali Mohsen Al-Alaq, governor of the Central Bank of Iraq, said: "The greater the difference between the official exchange rate and the exchange rate in the market, some parties find profitable arbitrage opportunities." He added that the move to impose a daily withdrawal limit would put an end to these opportunities.  
      
    While Dr. Abdul Rahman al-Mashhadani, a professor of international economic relations at the Iraqi University, said that the central bank's move succeeded in reducing the flow of dollars abroad through this route, but it did not succeed in preventing it completely. "Currency traders are still doing it," he said. "Money is still coming out of the country."  
      
    Al-Mashhadani explained that currency dealers, in one of the tricks used to bypass the restrictions, bought a large group of airline tickets to obtain dollars. Iraqis are allowed to convert dinars into dollars in private banks and money changers to cover travel expenses, as long as they have airline tickets showing that they plan to travel outside the country.  
      
    It is noteworthy that the Central Bank of Iraq raised the amount of money transferred to cover travel expenses, from $5,000 to $7,000 last February, but reduced the amount to only $2,000 in March. To curb the airline ticket buying spree.  
      
    The exchange rate in the gray market has declined to about 1,410 dinars per dollar in [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] weeks, compared to the official exchange rate of 1,320 dinars now. Wire transfers from Iraqi banks have also increased, indicating that Iraqis are adapting to the stricter rules.  
      
    In the Iraqi port of Umm Qasr, overlooking the Gulf, container unloading almost stopped last April, because many importers, accustomed to lax application of import rules, lacked the documents necessary to release their dollar-bought goods from customs, according to Hamid Abu Fatima, an agent. Customs clearance at the port.  
      
    "The merchants did not have the proper documents, [which] led to the accumulation of cargo containers in the port and the workers almost stopped," Abu Fatima said. He added that the subsidies were eased recently after importers adapted to the new rules, and officials eased 
    enforcement of the rules.
    [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]  

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