CBI auctions +$255 million in forex on Sunday

Shafaq News / The Iraqi Central Bank’s (CBI) sales of the US dollar at the currency auction soared, on Sunday, reaching over $255 million.

Our correspondent reported that CBI sold a total of $255,453,230 in its auction for buying and selling the US dollar today.

The bank covered it at an exchange rate of 1,305 IQD per dollar for documentary credits and international settlements for electronic cards, and at a rate of 1,310 IQD per dollar for external transfers and in cash.

Most of the bank’s dollar sales were directed towards bolstering balances abroad in the form of transfers and credits, amounting to $232,733,230, marking a 96% increase from cash sales, which amounted to $6,710,000.

Furthermore, five banks purchased cash dollars, while 15 banks fulfilled requests to enhance balances abroad. 

The total number of participating exchange and intermediary companies in the auction was 174.

Notably, CBI’s total sales of hard currency in US dollars amounted to over $1 billion during the past week.

CBI conducts regular currency auctions to manage the country’s monetary policy and stabilize the local currency exchange rate.

These auctions enable banks and financial organizations to buy and sell foreign currency, usually the US dollar, to meet the needs of importers, travelers, and other entities that require foreign exchange.

The auctions are an important instrument for the CBI in controlling inflation, managing liquidity in the banking system, and maintaining confidence in the national currency.

In addition, it helps to control Iraq’s balance of payments by managing the movement of foreign cash in and out of the country.

Monitoring the results and trends of these auctions offers information about Iraq’s general economic health and financial stability.