Sudan Will Not Lift Wheat, Furnace Oil, Cooking Gas Subsidies this Year

Motorists queue up at a petrol station in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on January 21, 2014. (AFP)
Motorists queue up at a petrol station in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on January 21, 2014. (AFP)
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Sudan Will Not Lift Wheat, Furnace Oil, Cooking Gas Subsidies this Year

Motorists queue up at a petrol station in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on January 21, 2014. (AFP)
Motorists queue up at a petrol station in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on January 21, 2014. (AFP)

Sudan will not lift subsidies this year on wheat, cooking gas or furnace oil, which is used to produce electricity, finance minister Jibril Ibrahim said on Wednesday, a day after subsidies on gasoline and diesel were fully lifted.

Ibrahim said the government is committed to removing the so-called customs exchange rate, used to determine import duties on a range of goods, but is studying tariff levels to ensure that consumer prices are not affected.

Sudan is implementing a raft of IMF-monitored reforms, including a currency devaluation, in hopes of alleviating a protracted economic crisis and attracting foreign financing.

Ibrahim also said he was studying wide-ranging reforms for the banking system.

Sudan produced 400,000 tons of wheat in the past season which was disappointing, Jibril said. This accounted for a quarter of the country's needs of 1.6 million tons.



US Trade Delegation in Iraq to Boost Economic Ties

 Iraqis walk through the book market in the Mutanabi Street of Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP)
Iraqis walk through the book market in the Mutanabi Street of Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP)
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US Trade Delegation in Iraq to Boost Economic Ties

 Iraqis walk through the book market in the Mutanabi Street of Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP)
Iraqis walk through the book market in the Mutanabi Street of Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP)

A US trade delegation representing 60 companies was visiting Iraq to sign economic cooperation agreements with the private sector, Washington's embassy in Baghdad said Tuesday.

The three-day visit, which began on Monday, comes amid fears of an international recession after US President Donald Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on numerous countries, which included 39 percent duties on Iraqi imports.

The US delegation consists of 101 members from 60 companies in the energy, technology and health sectors, who are set to meet with senior Iraqi officials and sign agreements, said an embassy statement to AFP.

It is the largest US trade mission to Iraq in the more than 100-year history of the United States Chamber of Commerce, the embassy added.

In a post on X, the US mission said that a "pivotal memorandum of understanding to strengthen ties between the US and Iraqi private sectors" was signed on Monday between the US Chamber of Commerce and the Federation of Iraqi Chambers of Commerce.

"This partnership will foster long-term economic collaboration," it said.

According to the office of the US trade representative in Iraq, total goods trade with the oil-rich country reached $9.1 billion in 2024, with US exports amounting to $1.7 billion.

US goods imports from Iraq totaled $7.4 billion.

During the visit, Iraq is expected to sign a "landmark agreement" with General Electric to develop a high-efficiency power plant, according to Farhad Alaaldin, foreign policy adviser to the Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani.

Last year, during Sudani's visit to Washington, Iraq and the United States signed several memoranda of understanding in the energy sector, including one with General Electric to ensure the maintenance of the Iraqi electricity grid.

Iraq's power plants are currently highly dependent on gas imported from Iran, which provides about a third of its neighbor's energy needs.

But Tehran has often cut supplies, exacerbating regular power outages.

Baghdad has repeatedly stressed the need to diversify energy sources to reduce its dependence on Iran.

Iraq has been trying to move past decades of war and unrest, including a sectarian struggle after the US-led invasion 2003 toppled Saddam Hussein.