Iran is one of Iraq's most important trading partners after China, and the recent period has witnessed a remarkable rise in Iraqi exports to Iran, which has contributed to adjusting the trade balance between the two countries, which is usually in favor of Tehran.

A member of the Board of Directors of the Iranian-Iraqi Joint Chamber of Commerce, Hamid Hosseini (Iranian), revealed last week that Tehran imported Iraqi commodities such as wheat, soy and other basic commodities from Iraq with a value of 920 million dollars, which were paid from Iran's frozen assets in Iraq.

Thus, Iraq has reached sixth place out of 26 in the ranking of countries exporting to Iran.

The volume of Iranian frozen assets in Iraq is between 5 and 7 billion dollars, which is the value of Iranian gas that Iraq imports to generate electric power, as Baghdad is not allowed to pay dues as a result of the sanctions imposed on Tehran.

Hosseini stated that the volume of Iranian imports from Iraq amounted to about one billion dollars (communication sites)

Impotence treatment

A source in the Iraqi government confirms that the country's high exports contribute to solving the problem of the fiscal deficit and a greater influx of foreign currencies.

He told Al Jazeera Net that the rise in Iraqi exports is a major driver of the growth rate of the national economy, and contributes to increasing the percentage of work in the country's factories, adding that the initial indicators of Iraq's exports to Iran and other countries have a positive impact on economic growth and the balance of trade balance of payments.

Al-Ramahi believes that Iraq's export of basic commodities to Iran enhances confidence in the local factory (Al-Jazeera Net)

a gesture of hope

In turn, the Executive Director of the Iraqi Institute for Economic Reform, Dr. Intisar Al-Ramahi, considered increasing the clear trade between Iraq and Iran a good step for the two countries and their peoples.

Al-Ramahi told Al-Jazeera Net that the volume of Iraqi exports to Iran is a sign of hope that restores balance and confidence to Iraq for the local factory to compete with foreign industries.

The Executive Director pointed out that the economies of countries were affected by the Corona pandemic, and the commercial closure led to great losses, so countries were forced to open their borders and work to restore life to get rid of restrictions and to compensate for financial losses as a result of the pandemic.

Iraqi exports

For his part, the researcher in industrial affairs, Adel Al-Daoud stressed that importing goods is a healthy and commercial phenomenon in all countries of the world, but it should not take place at the expense of the local industry, especially since Iraq owns many factories with various products that qualify it for export.

The total number of factories affiliated with public sector companies in Iraq is about 227, and the number of workers is only 140, according to data from the Iraqi Ministry of Industry and Minerals.

According to the data obtained by Al Jazeera Net, about 18,167 industrial projects are suspended for various reasons.

The industrial sector constituted about 23% of the volume of the gross domestic product of Iraq before 2003.

Government data indicate that the country was industrially prosperous in the seventies, sixties and fifties, and even the forties of the last century, and the volume of production of the industrial sector met the needs of the local market, as well as exports abroad.

Al-Daoud confirmed to Al Jazeera Net that Iraq has all the ingredients to become an industrial country, but it is necessary to start developing development plans on a sound scientific basis to advance the industrial sector and rehabilitate government laboratories in order to increase their exports abroad, in addition to establishing new laboratories commensurate with the country's size and capabilities, as well as supporting The private sector and dealing with it as a partner and facilitating its work.

Returning to the member of the Board of Directors of the Joint Iranian-Iraqi Chamber of Commerce, Hamid Hosseini, he mentioned that Iranian exports to Iraq amounted to 7.280 billion dollars during the first ten months of the Iranian year (for the period from March 21, 2021 until January 20, 2022).

In light of this, Al-Ramahi believes that it is necessary to seek to create a balance in Iraq's exports in exchange for what it imports from Iran, in order to reach a level of trade exchange that serves both countries.

Al-Ghazi identifies advantages of Iranian goods with their low financial cost and ease of access to Iraq (Al-Jazeera Net)

Regarding the advantages of Iranian goods imported by Iraq, the economic researcher Naji Al-Ghazi stated that they are characterized by low cost, suitability for the Iraqi market and ease of access due to the short distance and the availability of transportation routes.