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Lawyer: Soldier pleads not guilty to smuggling Associated Press - March 3, 2010 5:15 PM ET MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - The lawyer for a U.S. Army officer said that he has pleaded not guilty to a federal charge of smuggling more than $100,000 out of Iraq during a deployment. Michael Stengel, an attorney for Maj. Charles E. Sublett, said he entered the plea during an arraignment hearing on Wednesday in federal court in Memphis. Sublett, of Huntsville, Ala., was indicted in January on charges of bulk cash smuggling and making a false statement. The indictment says that during 2004 and 2005 in Iraq, Sublett was in charge of paying military contractors. The indictment says customs agents in Memphis seized a package he sent to the U.S. in 2005 that contained almost $108,000 in $100 bills, and Iraqi dinar equivalent to about $11,000 in U.S. currency.

March 3, 2010 In its regular review of Iraq's economy, the IMF said Iraq's economic growth in 2010 will probably be significantly stronger than it was last year, but the country will still need additional financing to plug a 2010-2011 budget gap estimated at $5 billion. "Against this background, the authorities have designed an economic program for 2010-11 that aims to maintain macroeconomic stability during the period of political transition and deepen structural reforms, particularly in the areas of public financial management, the financial system, and oil sector transparency" the IMF said. Iraq is to hold parliamentary elections on March 7. Last week, the IMF approved a $3.6 billion loan to help Iraq manage its budget hole. The IMF estimated growth in 2010 real gross domestic product at 7.3 percent, which would be up sharply from an estimated 4.2 percent in 2009 but still off the 2008 level of 9.5 percent, achieved when oil prices were at record highs.

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Iraq looks to local and foreign investment to build its economy Trading floors are known for being volatile. Those who think they're tough should try navigating the Iraq Stock Exchange. On Jan. 12, the Tuesday trading session was cancelled. Intelligence reports pointed to a planned suicide attack somewhere in the capital. As a precaution, authorities ordered a strict curfew on Baghdad. "The stock exchange has called off its session on Tuesday because of the inability of its employees to reach their workplace," a source told the Aswat al-Iraq news agency in a bit of an understatement. And New York City investors thought midtown traffic was inconvenient. This isn't the first time Shwan Taha, CEO of Rabee Securities, one of Baghdad's oldest and largest brokerage firms, has seen trading suspended. Of course, it's nothing compared to 2006 when it lasted for months during what the United Nations called a "civil warlike situation." Today, Taha sees that relatively more security in the streets means the same for his investments. "On the exchange, the largest sector is by far the banks," he explains while e-mailing stock reports over a problematic Internet connection. On this day, the Bank of Baghdad closed at 1.98 Iraqi Dinars -less than a penny US. "Then there is the tourism sector," he says. "But, that's really more real estate when you get into it." Taha knows the intricacies of this market. After all, he has traded shares in Baghdad since its first exchange opened in 1992. Back then it was the Baghdad Stock Exchange. Under the rule of Saddam Hussein, it provided a prosperous living. "It operated well until the invasion at which point it was closed. Then squatters moved in for a year," says Taha. "The U.S. tried to reopen it. But, reopening was a fanciful thing. They couldn't manage it. They were incompetent." Without a formal system of trading, brokerages set about creating their own private exchange. In June 2004, the Iraq Stock Exchange opened with 15 listings. Today it has about 90 companies and recently moved to electronic trading. "It's the same system that the NASDAQ uses," says Taha. Although, he acknowledges it can't rely on the country's battered power grid that leaves Baghdad in the dark unexpectedly and for long periods of time. "You have to factor in that the computer system and servers can't go off. So, the exchange runs on generators. Trading only happens for two hours a day." As a backup, the old system remains in place -white-boards and dry-erase markers. Throughout the exchange building, a former restaurant in the heart of Baghdad, hanging boards represent each company listed. Traders, mobile phones pressed to their ears, crowd these boards, writing and erasing notes to buy and sell. It's a definite skill that requires a fast hand and a shrewd eye. Now though, investors can verify their trades on the spot rather than waiting two weeks for certificates. That's something Taha hopes will bring in new investors. "We definitely cater towards foreign investment. We've seen an uptick, especially frontier funds," he says. "But, the global custodians of the economy have not been to Iraq yet." Iraq is still tiny compared to established markets in London and New York. By the end of 2008, the ISX had traded only $270 million compared to the NYSE's $16.7 trillion. But, in spite of the non-market volatility, many hope local and foreign investment will boost the nation's economy. On the last day of January, despite the delay earlier in the month, the index was up 1.16 per cent. As Taha predicted, the banks dominated the trading. But, Tourist Village of Mosul (HTVM) represented one of the biggest gains, up 10 per cent on the day. For people like Taha, this only proves there's money to be made at the ISX. Of course, the investment may be a little more high-risk than usual. Craig and Marc Kielburger co-founded Free the Children. The goal of the organization is to free children from poverty and exploitation through education.

Iraq looks to local and foreign investment to build its economy Trading floors are known for being volatile. Those who think they're tough should try navigating the Iraq Stock Exchange. On Jan. 12, the Tuesday trading session was cancelled. Intelligence reports pointed to a planned suicide attack somewhere in the capital. As a precaution, authorities ordered a strict curfew on Baghdad. "The stock exchange has called off its session on Tuesday because of the inability of its employees to reach their workplace," a source told the Aswat al-Iraq news agency in a bit of an understatement. And New York City investors thought midtown traffic was inconvenient. This isn't the first time Shwan Taha, CEO of Rabee Securities, one of Baghdad's oldest and largest brokerage firms, has seen trading suspended. Of course, it's nothing compared to 2006 when it lasted for months during what the United Nations called a "civil warlike situation." Today, Taha sees that relatively more security in the streets means the same for his investments. "On the exchange, the largest sector is by far the banks," he explains while e-mailing stock reports over a problematic Internet connection. On this day, the Bank of Baghdad closed at 1.98 Iraqi Dinars -less than a penny US. "Then there is the tourism sector," he says. "But, that's really more real estate when you get into it." Taha knows the intricacies of this market. After all, he has traded shares in Baghdad since its first exchange opened in 1992. Back then it was the Baghdad Stock Exchange. Under the rule of Saddam Hussein, it provided a prosperous living. "It operated well until the invasion at which point it was closed. Then squatters moved in for a year," says Taha. "The U.S. tried to reopen it. But, reopening was a fanciful thing. They couldn't manage it. They were incompetent." Without a formal system of trading, brokerages set about creating their own private exchange. In June 2004, the Iraq Stock Exchange opened with 15 listings. Today it has about 90 companies and recently moved to electronic trading. "It's the same system that the NASDAQ uses," says Taha. Although, he acknowledges it can't rely on the country's battered power grid that leaves Baghdad in the dark unexpectedly and for long periods of time. "You have to factor in that the computer system and servers can't go off. So, the exchange runs on generators. Trading only happens for two hours a day." As a backup, the old system remains in place -white-boards and dry-erase markers. Throughout the exchange building, a former restaurant in the heart of Baghdad, hanging boards represent each company listed. Traders, mobile phones pressed to their ears, crowd these boards, writing and erasing notes to buy and sell. It's a definite skill that requires a fast hand and a shrewd eye. Now though, investors can verify their trades on the spot rather than waiting two weeks for certificates. That's something Taha hopes will bring in new investors. "We definitely cater towards foreign investment. We've seen an uptick, especially frontier funds," he says. "But, the global custodians of the economy have not been to Iraq yet." Iraq is still tiny compared to established markets in London and New York. By the end of 2008, the ISX had traded only $270 million compared to the NYSE's $16.7 trillion. But, in spite of the non-market volatility, many hope local and foreign investment will boost the nation's economy. On the last day of January, despite the delay earlier in the month, the index was up 1.16 per cent. As Taha predicted, the banks dominated the trading. But, Tourist Village of Mosul (HTVM) represented one of the biggest gains, up 10 per cent on the day. For people like Taha, this only proves there's money to be made at the ISX. Of course, the investment may be a little more high-risk than usual. Craig and Marc Kielburger co-founded Free the Children. The goal of the organization is to free children from poverty and exploitation through education.

Iraq looks to local and foreign investment to build its economy Trading floors are known for being volatile. Those who think they're tough should try navigating the Iraq Stock Exchange. On Jan. 12, the Tuesday trading session was cancelled. Intelligence reports pointed to a planned suicide attack somewhere in the capital. As a precaution, authorities ordered a strict curfew on Baghdad. "The stock exchange has called off its session on Tuesday because of the inability of its employees to reach their workplace," a source told the Aswat al-Iraq news agency in a bit of an understatement. And New York City investors thought midtown traffic was inconvenient. This isn't the first time Shwan Taha, CEO of Rabee Securities, one of Baghdad's oldest and largest brokerage firms, has seen trading suspended. Of course, it's nothing compared to 2006 when it lasted for months during what the United Nations called a "civil warlike situation." Today, Taha sees that relatively more security in the streets means the same for his investments. "On the exchange, the largest sector is by far the banks," he explains while e-mailing stock reports over a problematic Internet connection. On this day, the Bank of Baghdad closed at 1.98 Iraqi Dinars -less than a penny US. "Then there is the tourism sector," he says. "But, that's really more real estate when you get into it." Taha knows the intricacies of this market. After all, he has traded shares in Baghdad since its first exchange opened in 1992. Back then it was the Baghdad Stock Exchange. Under the rule of Saddam Hussein, it provided a prosperous living. "It operated well until the invasion at which point it was closed. Then squatters moved in for a year," says Taha. "The U.S. tried to reopen it. But, reopening was a fanciful thing. They couldn't manage it. They were incompetent." Without a formal system of trading, brokerages set about creating their own private exchange. In June 2004, the Iraq Stock Exchange opened with 15 listings. Today it has about 90 companies and recently moved to electronic trading. "It's the same system that the NASDAQ uses," says Taha. Although, he acknowledges it can't rely on the country's battered power grid that leaves Baghdad in the dark unexpectedly and for long periods of time. "You have to factor in that the computer system and servers can't go off. So, the exchange runs on generators. Trading only happens for two hours a day." As a backup, the old system remains in place -white-boards and dry-erase markers. Throughout the exchange building, a former restaurant in the heart of Baghdad, hanging boards represent each company listed. Traders, mobile phones pressed to their ears, crowd these boards, writing and erasing notes to buy and sell. It's a definite skill that requires a fast hand and a shrewd eye. Now though, investors can verify their trades on the spot rather than waiting two weeks for certificates. That's something Taha hopes will bring in new investors. "We definitely cater towards foreign investment. We've seen an uptick, especially frontier funds," he says. "But, the global custodians of the economy have not been to Iraq yet." Iraq is still tiny compared to established markets in London and New York. By the end of 2008, the ISX had traded only $270 million compared to the NYSE's $16.7 trillion. But, in spite of the non-market volatility, many hope local and foreign investment will boost the nation's economy. On the last day of January, despite the delay earlier in the month, the index was up 1.16 per cent. As Taha predicted, the banks dominated the trading. But, Tourist Village of Mosul (HTVM) represented one of the biggest gains, up 10 per cent on the day. For people like Taha, this only proves there's money to be made at the ISX. Of course, the investment may be a little more high-risk than usual. Craig and Marc Kielburger co-founded Free the Children. The goal of the organization is to free children from poverty and exploitation through education.

PM: Iraqi dinar re-evaluation has to do with economic conditions. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said on Sunday that the process to re-evaluate the Iraqi dinar has to do with economic conditions that have to be strengthened. "The Iraqi dinar has all the reasons to grow stronger thanks to an increase in revenues and development of the economy," Maliki said in response to some questions through the National Information Center. "The government would not rush matters but would rather work on finding all the guarantees to render this measure a success. The Central Bank of Iraq (CBI)Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) is currently entrusted with drawing up a study on the whole issue and would give its decision soon," said the Iraqi premier. The Iraqi dinar's exchange rate is suffering from low value against foreign currencies as a result of decades of wars and economic embargo that brought the local currency's exchange rate to the rock bottom from three dinars per dollar in the late 1970s and 1980s to 3,000 dinars per dollar after the 1990 invasion of Kuwait, followed by a 13-year crippling sanctions regime. The exchange rate fell even more after 2003 to reach 1170 dinars per dollar due to the CBICBI's policy of daily auction, in effect for more than five years now. The policy was lambasted by several economists on the grounds that these auctions do not give the real value of the country's local currency.