Al-Mada newspaper (10 November 2026) reported a widening gap between the official dollar rate and its rate on the parallel market in Iraq. The selling price in local markets reached IQD 169,500 per 100 dollars, against IQD 168,500 for buying, as the month of Ramadan approaches.
Economist Abdulrahman al-Mashhadani said trade with Iran, worth between 8 and 10 billion dollars a year, keeps demand for dollars constant. He said that because this trade is not settled in dinars or tomans, traders are pushed to buy dollars on the parallel market. He stressed that the gap will not narrow as long as its causes remain.
He explained that transfers through correspondent banks, including JPMorgan and Citibank, are delayed by 15 to 20 days and sometimes by more than a month, so some traders buy dollars on the parallel market to pay suppliers. He added that some banks ask small traders for fixed deposits of up to IQD 250 million or IQD 500 million to open an account.
On food, he said a 30-kilogram sack of Mahmoud rice rose from IQD 53,000 or 54,000 before the war to IQD 78,000 on the wholesale market recently, an increase of about 50 percent. According to unofficial reports, food prices rose about 10 percent in Basra and 6.5 percent in Baghdad and Erbil.
For his part, Ministry of Trade adviser Mohammed Hannoun said the ministry monitors wholesale and retail prices in the field. He said it examines the costs of imports, shipping and customs clearance to distinguish genuine increases from hoarding. He stressed that exchange rate fluctuations do not automatically justify raising the prices of local and stored goods, and that the ministry is coordinating with oversight bodies to take legal action against violators.
The impact on the market falls first on small traders, for whom a delayed transfer or a deposit requirement means buying from the parallel market at a higher price. Al-Mashhadani warned that traders who cut their imports for fear of a change in the exchange rate hold less stock, and that a shortage of supply is likely to push prices up as Ramadan approaches. The food price figures in circulation come from unofficial reports and are an example of a single commodity.
Finance & Fintech