Iraq Economic Statistics

Silvia Andreoletti

Silvia is an intern at Trade Finance Global. She is currently finishing her BA in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at New College, Oxford, with a focus on financial markets, game theory, and international relations.

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Importing from Iraq

Iraq is one of the most oil-dependent countries in the world, holding the world’s 5th largest crude oil reserves which account for 8% of global supply. Crude oil is effectively its only export, with India and China as the main destinations, as well as the US and Western Europe; it also exports small quantities of precious and base metals. Oil is by far the most important product in its economy, making up almost half of the country’s GDP and an overwhelming proportion of the state’s budget. This makes it vulnerable to fluctuations in oil prices, meaning even small changes significantly influence GDP and unemployment rates. 

Iraq is virtually landlocked, with only one deepwater port next to Kuwait which it uses to export oil abroad. However, its strategic position on the Persian Gulf and between important OPEC countries Saudi Arabia and Iran makes it an important player in regional politics and land-based trade. 

Iraq is a democratic country with one of the highest government approval ratings in the region. After political turmoil in 2022 and a year without a prime minister, the current government is pursuing an agenda of privatisation and infrastructure projects to promote growth and attract foreign direct investment. Although vast improvements have been made, islamist extremist terrorism is still a significant issue in Iraq, with ISIL still largely present in many areas. Turkey’s war against Kurdish rebels leads to occasional bombings near the Iraqi-Turkish border, making the country still somewhat fragile from a security perspective despite its strong government and relative lack of civil unrest. 

Importing from Iraq: What is trade finance?

The imports in Iraq declined from US $50,446 million to only US $45,200 million. As reported by the Central Bank of Iraq, the country’s imports averaged US $22,700 million from 1988 to 2014. On the other hand it reached its highest peak amounting to US $50,500 million in 2013 and its lowest point occurred in 1994 at around US $ 2,700 million.

Iraq’s major import commodities are Cars ($1.6 B), Raw Iron Bars (around $1 B), Insulated Wire ($900M), Rice ($850 M) and Delivery Trucks ($800 M). In addition to these items, about 40% percent of Iraq’s main imports are machinery and transport equipment, manufactured articles at about 27%, 10% for mineral fuels and another 7% for chemicals and related products.

These commodities are imported primarily from Turkey ($12 B), China ($6.9 B), South Korea ($2 B), Italy ($1.7 B) and Germany ($1.7 B).

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