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Faced with the twin shocks of dwindling oil revenue and the coronavirus-induced economic slowdown, Iraq devalued its currency by about 23 per cent against the US dollar on December 20, the first time the peg was adjusted since 2015. The Central Bank of Iraq set the exchange rate at 1,450 dinars per dollar, from a peg of 1,182 dinars, for sales to the finance ministry. The dinar will be sold to the public at 1,470 and to other banks at 1,460. According to Moody’s, Iraq government revenue dropped more than 40 per cent during the first 10 months of 2020 compared with the same period in 2019, while the fiscal deficit widened to $12.5 billion. Sharply lower oil prices also weakened Iraq’s current account balance and led to a significant decline in central bank foreign currency reserves to $50.1bn in November 2020 from $63.5bn in April 2020. ....