Russian invasion of Ukraine has sharp impact on Iraq's economy
Russia's invasion of Ukraine has caused shortages of food in Iraq and forced the government to pay more in gasoline subsidies, but the high price of crude oil plus sanctions on Russia has opened new opportunities for Iraq.
Like many other countries, Iraq was affected by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine due to its dependence on the warring countries' agricultural products. Iraq participated in a four-way summit last week in Aqaba, Jordan, to discuss food security challenges and alternatives.
In the meantime, Iraq's oil market is booming after several oil-importing countries cut off Russian supplies.
Iraq received oil purchase requests from European countries on March 3 in the wake of the European and US sanctions on the Russian economy. This enables Iraq to enhance its presence in the European market, which it began losing to Russia years ago.
Iraq’s daily production amounts to 4.26 million barrels, most of which is exported to China, India and South Korea. About 1.1 million barrels per day are exported to Europe and purchased by Spain, Greece and Italy, among others.
