Iraq oil revenues plunge 53% through July
Shafaq News- Baghdad
Iraq’s oil revenues fell 53% year-on-year in the first seven months of 2026, contributing to a 45.7% decline in total federal revenue despite higher non-oil collections, Susan Abdullah Mohammed, head of Iraq’s General Authority for Monitoring Federal Revenue Allocations, told Shafaq News on Wednesday.
Citing Finance Ministry accounts, Mohammed said oil revenues dropped from 65 trillion dinars (about $42.76B) to 30.4 trillion dinars ($20B), while total revenue declined from 72 trillion dinars ($47.37B) to 39.1 trillion dinars ($25.72B). Separate Finance Ministry data showed government spending reached 65.424 trillion dinars ($43.04B) through July, leaving a budget deficit of 26.329 trillion dinars ($17.32B).
Non-oil revenues rose 23.5% to approximately 8.7 trillion dinars ($5.72B) from 7.1 trillion dinars ($4.67B), according to Mohammed. Oil’s share of total revenue fell from around 90% to 78%, although she said the increase in non-oil income remained insufficient to offset the losses from crude.
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Mohammed called for stronger revenue collection systems, greater transparency, and tighter oversight of federal resources, describing the expansion of non-oil income as a strategic necessity for fiscal sustainability and reducing dependence on oil.
Iraq’s finances have faced mounting pressure from wartime disruptions to oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz, the main route for its crude shipments. Although Iraqi oil production recovered to 4.4 million barrels per day in September, its highest level this year, renewed shipping attacks in October have threatened that recovery, according to the Financial Times.
In its October 13 World Economic Outlook, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) projected that Iraq’s economy would contract by 16% in 2026 before growing by 19% in 2027. The Fund also forecast a current account deficit of 10.8% of gross domestic product this year.
1 US dollar = 1520 Iraqi dinars
