The currency of Iraq is called a dinar, and it was introduced in 1932 to replace the Indian rupee, which was the currency used under the British rule. In the 1950s, one dinar is equivalent to 2.8 US dollars. Today, one Iraqi dinar is equivalent to 0.00084 US dollars. The repeated sanctions by the United States to Iraq is one of the main causes as to why the value of the dinar dropped. Another reason why the value of the Iraqi currency fell is because of the wars in Iraq in the early 2000s, and the deposition of its former leader, Saddam Hussein. The governing council of Iraq and the country’s Office for Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance also contributed to the dwindling value of the dinar, as they reprinted more money before a new currency could be introduced. They said that it was done to maintain the country’s money supply. By late 2003 and early 2004, a new currency was introduced.
Today, the Iraqi dinar is one of the least performing currencies on the planet, but it is slowly changing as the country’s economy is improving. Economists are saying that the dinar has a lot of potential and plans of currency revaluation would take it out of the currency basement. The dinar has been strongly performing until 1991 when the Gulf War broke out. This became the starting point of the currency’s demise, but economists are saying that the curse is about to end. The experts also added that currencies which are weak have stronger upside potential, compared to other currencies that have been dominating the market. According to economists and business insiders who are reviewing the Iraqi currency, certain events could spike up the currency’s value overnight.
The revaluation of the dinar is one of the most anticipated events in the Forex sector, and experts agree that people who will be investing in the Iraqi currency before the revaluation could earn a lot of profit because of the difference in value that it would experience. In 2017, the currency starts being traded in the forex market, albeit only for a few transactions. More than a decade after the United States-led invasion of Iraq, the currency is becoming more stable. An increase in value is expected in the years to come. The currency managed to get back on track years after the invasion. The oil and petroleum reserves of the country are expected to influence the way its currency fluctuates. The latest study concluded that Iraq has an estimated 143 billion barrels of fossil fuel that can be extracted from its territory, making it the world’s fifth largest oil and petroleum reserve.
The revaluation of the Iraqi currency is also seen as an advantage towards the country’s plan to dominate different industries in the Middle East region. The country is currently investing in tourism, and they have noted the spike in the number of tourists visiting other countries in the region like Morocco, Egypt, and the UAE. The country is also investing in a lot of businesses, and investors are concentrating their operations in the northern parts of the country that has not been destroyed during the wars in the early 2000s and the invasion of the ISIS forces in the mid-2010s.
Iraq is slowly rebuilding after a series of wars have torn the country apart. The government is investing in new infrastructures and old structures are being strengthened to cope with the global standards. Despite the fact that a lot of the country’s settlements are still in ruins because of the war, the government is extending all efforts to rebuild. They want to present the country as a new hub for investment and, according to the top Iraqi economists, it will be a long road for recovery, but they are sure that their currency will start to show signs of improvement. International policies greatly affect how the economy of Iraq performs. The government is asking the major powers to allow them to trade to a thriving global market, giving them a chance to grow economically.
For now, the Iraqis would have to work on the basic needs of their people, and through cooperation, they could work hard to attain the goals that will set them free from the chains of war and poverty that has destroyed the country since the 1990s.