Iraq's central bank had accumulated $5 billion in foreign reserves by early 2005, all of it placed with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, a senior US Treasury official announced on 8 February 2005.
John Taylor, Under Secretary of the Treasury for International Affairs, disclosed the figure at a Baghdad press conference after meetings with Iraqi financial officials. The reserves had built up from currency transactions tied to the introduction of the new Iraqi dinar and were expected to generate roughly $100 million annually in interest for the government.
Taylor outlined structural issues he had raised with his Iraqi counterparts: shifting the country away from its heavy reliance on cash through electronic payments, broadening access to private-sector credit, and establishing a residential mortgage framework.
He expressed optimism about the economy, citing visible commercial activity in Baghdad's streets, and said the political and economic conditions emerging after the January 30 elections were laying the ground for longer-term stability.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this AFP wire report, first published in February 2005, in its own words.