In numbers… Iraq loses more than $13 billion of its reserves in two years

USD-Iraqi dinarEconomic data indicated a clear decline in Iraq’s foreign reserves over three consecutive years, an indicator that deserves careful consideration.
Reserves reached $111.7 billion in 2023, then declined to $100.2 billion in 2024, and continued to fall to $98.1 billion by September 2025.

This means that Iraq lost more than $13 billion of its reserves in just two years, or about 12% of its previous balance.

This decline, though seemingly gradual, carries worrying economic implications, most notably: increased pressure on the local currency, as foreign reserves constitute the first line of defense for the dinar’s exchange rate.

It also indicates the erosion of the financial surplus resulting from high oil prices, suggesting either excessive government spending or weak revenue management, in addition to the continuation of a rentier economy dependent on oil, where the size of reserves is directly linked to fluctuations in oil prices rather than to non-oil production or exports.

In other words, the figures mean that Iraq is consuming more of its savings than it is adding to them, a trajectory that cannot be sustained without genuine fiscal reform.

Alforatnews.iq