Gov’t cannot use monetary reserves at CBI – expert

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: The Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) Law prevents lending the government from the monetary reserves, a director general from the CBI said on Tuesday. “Article 24 of the CBI’s law prevents lending the government and its institutions inside and outside Iraq any amount of the CBI’s monetary reserves,” Waleed Edan told IraqiNews.com news agency. “The CBI is an independent bank, and any authority cannot intervene in its policies or monetary reserves,” he added. The Iraqi oil minister, Hussein al-Shahrestani, has recently announced that the cabinet might use its reserves of foreign currencies to support the budget if oil prices did not increase. MH (P) / SS 1