Packs of US dollars and Iraqi dinars. Photo: Pukmedia
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The exchange rate of the U.S. dollar against the Iraqi dinar edged down across exchange shops in Baghdad, Basra, and Erbil on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, slightly paring back gains recorded earlier in the week.
In Baghdad, foreign exchange counters registered a dip of 500 dinars per $100 compared to Monday’s trading, setting the retail selling rate at 169,000 dinars against buying bids of 168,000 dinars.
In Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region, trading displayed a similar softening, with selling desks quoting 168,200 dinars per $100 and buying transactions settling at 168,000 dinars.
In the southern commercial port hub of Basra, rates slipped by 250 dinars per $100 compared to yesterday’s levels. Exchange bureaus posted retail selling rates at 168,500 dinars against purchase bids of 168,000 dinars per $100.
Parallel market activity continues to reflect a sustained premium above the Central Bank of Iraq’s official statutory peg of 152,000 dinars per $100, driven by commercial merchant demand for physical liquidity outside the central electronic clearance platform.