Iraq and the WTO

[Blessed4ever]

Hello all,

I have been reading about Iraq joining the WTO on March 18th, thus needing a "tradeable currency" by then.

Their currency IS tradeable, obviously... so where are some getting the idea/info that the RV must occur before then? Thoughts??

Also... just curious, (as for being a newbie; trying to learn the ins and outs, and not "knowing" anyone here).... how long and how often do these so called pumpers give off false rates and dates? Has this been going on for years? Or is this a fairly new occurance?

Those of you whom are seasoned vets in this, do you feel that we have crossed over toward the end zone? Does the news and current events in Iraq at this time seem "different" than months/years prior? What is your sense on the time we are in, in contrast to the past months? I would like to hear from the "solid" and grounded people here who do not like to ride the crazy train.

I dont care about rumors and "intels" because clearly NOONE knows exactly what is going on. (So far, that is one thing I have learned!) LOL

No bashing or BS please.. (Remember, Im NEW!)

Thanks

[hurricanewayne]

Hello all,

I have been reading about Iraq joining the WTO on March 18th, thus needing a "tradeable currency" by then.

Their currency IS tradeable, obviously... so where are some getting the idea/info that the RV must occur before then? Thoughts??

Also... just curious, (as for being a newbie; trying to learn the ins and outs, and not "knowing" anyone here).... how long and how often do these so called pumpers give off false rates and dates? Has this been going on for years? Or is this a fairly new occurance?

Those of you whom are seasoned vets in this, do you feel that we have crossed over toward the end zone? Does the news and current events in Iraq at this time seem "different" than months/years prior? What is your sense on the time we are in, in contrast to the past months? I would like to hear from the "solid" and grounded people here who do not like to ride the crazy train.

I dont care about rumors and "intels" because clearly NOONE knows exactly what is going on. (So far, that is one thing I have learned!) LOL

No bashing or BS please.. (Remember, Im NEW!)

Thanks

You are right no one really knows when this will happen it is all speculation at this point do the research your self but you cant talk to others that have news just ask for links to read it yourself to see if you see the same thing they do.

[Maynard57]

Hello all,

I have been reading about Iraq joining the WTO on March 18th, thus needing a "tradeable currency" by then.

Their currency IS tradeable, obviously... so where are some getting the idea/info that the RV must occur before then? Thoughts??

Also... just curious, (as for being a newbie; trying to learn the ins and outs, and not "knowing" anyone here).... how long and how often do these so called pumpers give off false rates and dates? Has this been going on for years? Or is this a fairly new occurance?

Those of you whom are seasoned vets in this, do you feel that we have crossed over toward the end zone? Does the news and current events in Iraq at this time seem "different" than months/years prior? What is your sense on the time we are in, in contrast to the past months? I would like to hear from the "solid" and grounded people here who do not like to ride the crazy train.

I dont care about rumors and "intels" because clearly NOONE knows exactly what is going on. (So far, that is one thing I have learned!) LOL

No bashing or BS please.. (Remember, Im NEW!)

Thanks

These are really good questions, Blessed4ever. When the WTO considers a country such as Iraq for accession to the WTO, they definitely consider the currency sitch for that country. The following is an excerpt from the WTO on the nexus between accession and rate of exchagne. Sorry if its tedious.

Foreign exchange and payments

Applicants need to describe how their exchange rate is determined, whether their currency is convertible, whether foreign exchange is freely available for trade and payments purposes, whether any regulations exist relating to the retention of foreign currencies, or repatriation or surrender requirements. Applicants should also describe their balance of payments situation.

While foreign exchange questions are within the jurisdiction of the IMF and trade policy questions within the competence of the WTO,¹²⁸ foreign exchange questions and trade policy questions are interrelated. Of most direct relevance to the WTO is whether foreign exchange is freely available in payment for current account transactions, as exporters need to know how they will be paid. The WTO therefore recognizes this interrelationship. The GATT 1994 provides that Members must not, by exchange action, frustrate the intent of its provisions and that they must either be members of the Fund or enter into a special exchange agreement with the WTO.¹²⁹ GATS provides that Members must allow international transfers and payments for current transactions relating to specific commitments entered into under that agreement.¹³⁰

Working Parties have been careful to respect the competence of the IMF. While Members have demonstrated an interest in obtaining adequate information on all matters dealt with in this section, they have laid stress on issues of direct relevance to international trade. They have, for instance, focussed on knowing whether applicants are members of the IMF and whether they have accepted Article VIII of its Articles of Agreement which provides that “no member shall, without the approval of the Fund, impose restrictions on the making of payments and transfers for current international transactions”. They have been particularly concerned that foreign exchange controls may be used to regulate the level and composition of trade in goods and services.

All Working Party Reports but one have been able to note, that the acceding government concerned is a member of the IMF and has accepted its Article VIII obligations. The great majority of WTO Members do not pursue the matter further. In the case of the one applicant that was not a member of IMF, members noted that it would have to enter into “a Special Exchange Agreement as provided for in Article XV:6 of the GATT 1994 incorporating obligations consistent with Fund Article VIII”, which it duly did.¹³¹

In one case an acceder responded to concerns that elements of its foreign exchange system provided scope for practices that distorted trade flows by stating that in the context of accession to the WTO, it was prepared to comply with the provisions of Article XV of the GATT 1994 regarding its foreign exchange restrictions.¹³² Similar concerns were raised in two other cases. The two acceding countries accepted a Protocol commitment that, in accordance with these obligations, and unless otherwise provided for in the IMF’s Articles of Agreement, they would implement its obligations with respect to foreign exchange matters in accordance with the provisions of the WTO Agreement and related declarations and decisions of the WTO that concerned the IMF. They further committed that they would not resort to any laws, regulations or other measures, including any requirements with respect to contractual terms, that would restrict the availability to any individual or enterprise of foreign exchange for current international transactions within its customs territory to an amount related to the foreign exchange inflows attributable to that individual or enterprise.¹³³ One of these acceders stated, in addition, that it “would provide information on exchange measures as required under Article VIII, Section 5 of the IMF’s Articles of Agreement, and such other information on its exchange measures as was deemed necessary in the context of the transitional review mechanism.”¹³⁴ The other committed not only to implement its obligations with respect to foreign exchange matters in accordance with the provisions of the WTO Agreement and related declarations and decisions of the WTO that concerned the IMF but also with the relevant provisions of the IMF’s Articles of Agreement itself.¹³⁵

GATT 1994 permits the imposition of quantitative restrictions to deal with balance of payments difficulties, Article XII regulating its use by developed countries and Article XVIII:B its use by developing countries. WTO Members maintaining such measures must consult with the WTO. While not modifying these rights and obligations, the Uruguay Round Understanding on this subject confirmed Members’ commitment to give preference to price-based measures. Only one acceding country actually maintained balance of payments measures at the time of its accession, these taking the form of an import surcharge. Its Protocol commitment on the subject contained a timetable for its reduction and elimination and arrangements for consultations with the WTO.¹³⁶ In a limited number of other cases Working Parties have judged it necessary to obtain a commitment from applicants on balance of payments measures they might take in the future. Four accepted the commitments along the following lines: “If balance-of-payment measures were ever necessary in the future, [X] would impose them in a manner consistent with the relevant WTO provisions, including Article XII of the GATT 1994 and the Understanding on Balance-of-Payments Provisions of the GATT 1994”.¹³⁷ They were therefore treated as developed countries. One LDC accepted the same commitment, modified to refer to Article XVIII.¹³⁸ Curiously, the other LDC to have acceded accepted a commitment to impose any balance of payments measures in a manner consistent with both Article XII and Article XVIII.¹³⁹ In another case the relevant GATT 1994 provision was not cited but the new Member undertook a commitment to “give preference to those measures referred to in the Understanding on the Balance of Payments Provisions of GATT 1994 as price-based measures to address the situation and [to] maintain any measures only so long as necessary. In the circumstance that [it] must resort to measures that were not price-based, [it] would transform these measures into price-based measures within 6 months after implementing the initial measures. Moreover, any measures taken for balance-of-payment reasons would not be used to provide import protection for specific sectors, industries or products”.<a href="http://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/acc_e/cbt_course_e/c5s2p2_e.htm#fnt140" class="paracolourtext">¹⁴⁰

Maynard

[Riley]

Hello all,

I have been reading about Iraq joining the WTO on March 18th, thus needing a "tradeable currency" by then.

Their currency IS tradeable, obviously... so where are some getting the idea/info that the RV must occur before then? Thoughts??

Also... just curious, (as for being a newbie; trying to learn the ins and outs, and not "knowing" anyone here).... how long and how often do these so called pumpers give off false rates and dates? Has this been going on for years? Or is this a fairly new occurance?

Those of you whom are seasoned vets in this, do you feel that we have crossed over toward the end zone? Does the news and current events in Iraq at this time seem "different" than months/years prior? What is your sense on the time we are in, in contrast to the past months? I would like to hear from the "solid" and grounded people here who do not like to ride the crazy train.

I dont care about rumors and "intels" because clearly NOONE knows exactly what is going on. (So far, that is one thing I have learned!) LOL

No bashing or BS please.. (Remember, Im NEW!)

Thanks

Great questions from a newbie - I purchased my dinars three and half to four years ago...you will find some research in the forums that will as well as Adam's Book....unless you read the rumors for entertainment purposes only - you should be good. Remember the news that comes out will sometimes contradict each other since the news articles pertain to the different areas of Iraq....

I personnaly think we are closer than we have ever been, not just cause another day has gone by - but over the past few months the Iraqi's have actually accomplished more than they had in the past four years.

Ok now for the comment about hearing from the people who don't like the crazy train - guess I responded anyway....I have learned a lot during this train ride...

Again, check out Adam's book, Scooters Research and there are a few others that have shared news sites as well. Best of Luck and Welcome to DV...

[m&mvs3]

Just a real quick comment, you stated that the currency IS "Tradeable" . Where do you get that from?? That is the whole problem to begin with. The United Nations has not completely lifted the sanctions. It is not used as a global currency at least NOT YET! AS soon as the United Nations lifts the Chpt 7 fully then as we see the Dinar on the world market will the Dinar be Tradeable.

I have been in this since Last Feb and have complete faith that this is looking better and better. It may still take time but hang in there. This currency is too low for what this country holds in their land. Best wishes and enjoy the train ride!!! It is fun to learn about international currencies.

[wingsofhope]

Not required to have a tradeable currency to become a member of the WTO.....China, Cuba, .......this is a pumper requirement

[umbertino]

Quote

Their currency IS tradeable, obviously...

End Quote

It's not..... Obviously.

[Tom 777]

Hello all,

I have been reading about Iraq joining the WTO on March 18th, thus needing a "tradeable currency" by then.

Their currency IS tradeable, obviously... so where are some getting the idea/info that the RV must occur before then? Thoughts??

Also... just curious, (as for being a newbie; trying to learn the ins and outs, and not "knowing" anyone here).... how long and how often do these so called pumpers give off false rates and dates? Has this been going on for years? Or is this a fairly new occurance?

Those of you whom are seasoned vets in this, do you feel that we have crossed over toward the end zone? Does the news and current events in Iraq at this time seem "different" than months/years prior? What is your sense on the time we are in, in contrast to the past months? I would like to hear from the "solid" and grounded people here who do not like to ride the crazy train.

I dont care about rumors and "intels" because clearly NOONE knows exactly what is going on. (So far, that is one thing I have learned!) LOL

No bashing or BS please.. (Remember, Im NEW!)

Thanks

Nobody knows what a or when it will happen just need to have a little patience.

[gideonx]

What is tradeable currency? Is its value?

Indonesia became a member of WTO in Jan 1995.

and 1 Indonesian Rupiah = 0.000114 US dollars

We know that 1 Iraqi dinar is currently worth about 0.000855 US dollars.

So it's not tradeable value we are talking about.........

[yusofsabri]

I'm just a train passenger. I know nothing. But I think we are almost at the end.

[Heavyduty053]

Hello all,

I have been reading about Iraq joining the WTO on March 18th, thus needing a "tradeable currency" by then.

Their currency IS tradeable, obviously... so where are some getting the idea/info that the RV must occur before then? Thoughts??

Also... just curious, (as for being a newbie; trying to learn the ins and outs, and not "knowing" anyone here).... how long and how often do these so called pumpers give off false rates and dates? Has this been going on for years? Or is this a fairly new occurance?

Those of you whom are seasoned vets in this, do you feel that we have crossed over toward the end zone? Does the news and current events in Iraq at this time seem "different" than months/years prior? What is your sense on the time we are in, in contrast to the past months? I would like to hear from the "solid" and grounded people here who do not like to ride the crazy train.

I dont care about rumors and "intels" because clearly NOONE knows exactly what is going on. (So far, that is one thing I have learned!) LOL

No bashing or BS please.. (Remember, Im NEW!)

Thanks

We are knocking on the door just waiting for someone to answer.

[umbertino]

Tradable and/or convertible means that a currency acquired an Internationally recognized status and so every Bank dealing with foreign currency in most parts of the at least modern/civilized world can give you access to buying /exchanging a certain currency right away most of the time....

I live in a small town in Northern Italy myself and I have usually immediate access to USD, CHF,JPY,CAD,GBP and even AUD, all classic tradable currencies... .If it might occur they don't have that particular currency ( let's say JPY or AUD) at the moment, they simply order it from the Main Branch in another City and the currency gets at my Bank the very next day. That's what I personally call tradable/convertible right on the spot currency. We want the IQD to become that, if possible.

Edited March 9, 2011 by umbertino

[keepmwlknfny]

The problem is not that its not tradeable cause really it is.....its just not internationally accepted....that's the problem.....there aren't many requirements at all for them to join the WTO but they did state that with induction into the WTO that they want to close the gap beetween the USD and the dinar.....so its not like they absolutely have to RV before they get into the WTO.....we are much closer then ever before but it could still be far off....no one really knows but just keep in mind they move at a snails pace with EVERYTHING....hell it took them 9 months for elections and positions still aren't 100 percent completed hahahaha

[umbertino]

Well, I' ve been waiting for 7 years already. I discovered I am a patient Person. I didn't know that until I got into this Dinar thing.

[Blessed4ever]

Thank you for the replies.

I think the terms "Tradeable" and "Inernationally Accepted" are somewhat confused then.

I would think that to be part of the WTO, Iraq would want their currency to be "Internationally Accepted" before then.

Of course, there are many many more reasons why an RV would bring an advancement to their country and their citizens, but I was just wondering if joining the WTO might have anything to do with an RV.

Some others have mentioned that there are other countries belonging to the WTO who do not have recognizeable currencies, so....(??)

I also read that the joining date into the WTO was March 15th, but that could be a rumor too, of course.

[Niko]

I keep reading that Iraq is joining the WTO next week but I cant find anything on it. Here are some links. Nothing on Iraq joining next week

wto link

nov 09 rueters article says end of 2011 at earliest

link from 9/2010 text below

Iraq wants to join WTO

Posted on 13 September 2010. Tags: World Trade Organisation, WTO

We reported last month that Iraqi Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, Mahmoud al-Sheikh Radhi, had rejected the idea that Iraq should join the World Trade Organization (WTO); now a source in the outgoing Iraqi government said on Monday that Iraq is in negotiations to become a member.

An Iraqi task force was established in December 2004 to pave the way for the country’s membership in the organization, and it has officially submitted a request to the WTO expressing Iraq’s desire to join the organization.

“Iraq has taken big steps in its efforts to join the WTO especially after talks were held with the member states in the organization,” said Ibrahim Zenjili, a member of the task force, according to a report from AKnews.

He said the main duties of the task force are reducing the difference of value between the Iraqi Dinar and U.S. dollar and activating Iraq’s private sector.

Zenjili said the major condition set by the member states of the WTO for Iraq to join the organization is Iraq’s foreign debt – the country owes billions of dollars to various countries.

Established in 1995, the WTO deals with the rules of trade between nations. It currently has 153 members

interesting link - text below

Economics

Iraq plans to join World Trade Organization

Monday, February 14, 2011 14:47 GMT Iraq’s government affirmed that it is working to join the World Trade Organization and is planning to protect Iraqi funds outside the country.

The government stressed the necessity to build up Iraq’s economy by encouraging investments, organizing trade, setting the general budget and ratifying oil and gas law.

Edited March 11, 2011 by Niko

[truthful1]

Iraq doesnt have to rv to be in WTO. IMO its more plausible for them to be completely free of Ch.7 to become a member. Be internationaly recognized. Iraq has a traded, rated currency, but is currently not recognized. One things for sure, we wont have to wait to much longer to find out. Theres a chance it rv's first, which is what all us speculators want, but by no means does it have too.

Edited March 12, 2011 by truthful1

[aaanth]

it was my understanding that in order to join, the WTO wanted Iraq to "raise the value of the dinar to somewhere close to the dollar" in order to be within the guidelines of membership. is this not so?

[truthful1]

it was my understanding that in order to join, the WTO wanted Iraq to "raise the value of the dinar to somewhere close to the dollar" in order to be within the guidelines of membership. is this not so?

I read an article like that. But I interpret as Iraq has the capacity to eventually support the dinar close to the dollar. I didnt read it as a prerequesite.

[umbertino]

China became part of the WTO in 2001 and they never made the Yuan tradable until now.