Oil price recovery stymies Iraq's reform hopes
The short-term boost to government coffers from crude’s rally will likely postpone any significant changes
“There is a need for reform, but, as long as oil prices are high, I cannot see that happening.” So says Ahmed Tabaqchali, chief investment officer of the Iraq fund at fund management firm Asia Frontier Capital (AFC), speaking on a June podcast organised by political risk consultancy Menas Associates. In the teeth of what the World Bank warned in September last year was the risk of an “economic meltdown” in Iraq due to the pandemic-led collapse in oil prices, Iraqi finance minister Ali Allawi and other reformist elements drafted two white papers, “one laying out the diagnosis of why Iraq was in such a profound pickle, and the second laying out both micro and macro plans for economic reform”,
Also in this section
24 October 2024
Producers in the region see significant gains to be made by boosting output using the infrastructure already in place
23 October 2024
Markets have seen no material disruption from the war so far, but as the fighting goes on it is a matter of when, not if
23 October 2024
Majors in the region are pushing boundaries and could see significant upside, but longer-term risks remain
22 October 2024
Angola is unlikely to meet the official timeline for an IPO of state-owned oil giant Sonangol in 2026