Prices up in Jan. in Kurdistan

ARBIL / IraqiNews.com: Prices have risen by 110.99 percent in Iraq’s Kurdistan region in January 2009, compared to the previous month, the American Society for Kurds (ASK) said in a report. “The prices of many goods that are tied to the dollar have gone up due to the rise in the dollar’s exchange rate, especially in Duhuk province,” according to the organization’s report on inflation rates in the Kurdistan region. The report indicated that the increase in the prices of foodstuffs, housewares, transport costs, rents, medicines and medical services could offset the drop in the average prices of cloth, clothes, lightening, tobacco, beverages and other services. The American Society for Kurds (ASK) aims to “encourage, establish and nourish constructive relationships and cooperation between Americans and Kurds,” according to its official web site. ASK is a non-profit, non-partisan organization registered in the United States which has branches in Iraq’s Kurdistan region. SS (P) 1