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Middle EastJuly 5 2010

Iraq on the road to recovery

Hussein Al Uzri, chairman of the Trade Bank of IraqThe chairman of the Trade Bank of Iraq, Hussein Al Uzri, reveals how things are looking up in Iraq, with banks seeing progress with letters of credit and discussions in place to help finance the projects earmarked for the country. Writer Courtney Fingar
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Iraq on the road to recovery

Q: One inadequacy of the current financial services framework in Iraq is that Iraqi companies have trouble getting letters of credit to sell their goods internationally. What's on offer currently? And do you see any development in that area?

A: The letters of credit are one of the most important issues for Iraq to deal with. In 2009, [the Trade Bank of Iraq, or TBI] issued more than $10bn in letters of credit. Other banks are doing the same. Most of the letters of credit are for imports other than oil and certain other products, whereas there is very little export outside of oil.

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