Zaidi meets finance minister to review revenues and salary file amid oil squeeze

BAGHDAD — Prime Minister-designate Ali al-Zaidi met Finance Minister Taif Sami on Thursday to review Iraq’s financial situation and discuss key challenges facing the sector, as he continues consultations to form a new government.

The meeting addressed “the financial situation in Iraq, including revenues and the salaries file,” and both sides stressed “the importance of continuing efforts to maximize and diversify financial resources,” according to a statement from the prime minister’s media office.

The discussions come as Iraq’s economy has been battered by disruptions to oil exports following the regional conflict. Production collapsed from around 4.3 million barrels per day before the war to as low as 800,000 to 1.3 million bpd as the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz cut off Iraq’s main southern export route. Oil accounts for around 90% of government revenue, making the disruption an acute fiscal challenge for any incoming government.

Zaidi was nominated Monday by the Coordination Framework following the withdrawal of both Nouri al-Maliki and Mohammed Shia al-Sudani from the race. He has 30 days to form a cabinet, draft a government program and secure approval from an absolute majority of parliament’s 329 members.