Lower oil revenues have cut Iraq’s foreign currency reserves to about $60 billion, the central bank governor said on Tuesday, enough to cover about 18 months worth of imports for OPEC’s second-largest oil producer. The plunge in oil prices since last year and Iraq’s fight against Islamic State militants have put severe pressure on its finances. The government has projected a fiscal deficit of about $25 billion this year, in a budget of roughly $100 billion. Those factors have also chipped away at international reserves, which fell to $66 billion at the end of 2014 from $78 billion at the end of 2013, according to the International Monetary Fund. But Ali al-Alak told Reuters that a drop in dollar-denominated expenditures has also […]
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