Rising oil prices do not cover the deficit of the state, MP says

Shafaq News/ A member of the Parliamentary Committee for Finance said on Thursday that the rise of oil prices does not cover the mismatch of the state expenditures and incomes.

Committee Member, MP Jamal Kocher, said in a statement to Shafaq News Agency, "the state expenditures does match its incomes... So far, the price of oil barrel did not rise remarkably."

"Pricing the oil barrel at 45 dollars excludes the costs of extraction that amounts to 15 to 17 dollars a barrel that adds on the budgeted price."

"Iraq accumulated external and internal debts over the past years. It has obligations that require huge liquidity. The rise of oil prices does not cover the state's need despite compressing the budget to an emergency budget."

"If oil prices rise significantly, we will have several areas that we can benefit from. Either we go to a supplementary budget or adjust the bank reserve because it was 82 billion dollars, then it fell to 56 billion dollars. It started to rise to 65 billion dollars. Therefore, we are trying to restore it to what it is. We could repay the debts owed by the state from loans to Iranian companies, dues to contractors, and foreign loans."