Gold prices hold below one million dinar in Baghdad, Erbil

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Gold prices remained stable in local markets in Baghdad and Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region, on Sunday. On Baghdad's Nehr Street wholesale gold market, 21-carat Gulf, Turkish and European gold was sold at 970,000 dinars per miskal, with a buying price of 966,000 dinars. Iraqi 21-carat gold sold for 940,000 dinars and was bought at 936,000 dinars the same day. At jewelry shops, 21-carat Gulf gold sold for between 970,000 and 980,000 dinars per miskal, while 21-carat Iraqi gold ranged from 940,000 to 950,000 dinars. In Erbil, 22-carat gold was priced at one million dinars, 21-carat gold at 955,000 dinars and 18-carat gold at 820,000 dinars. The relative stability coincided with an unchanged U.S. dollar exchange rate in morning trading. The U.S. currency was quoted at 154,000 dinars per 100 dollars at Baghdad's Kifach and Harisiya stock exchanges, the same level as on Saturday. The price of 21-carat gold per miskal first crossed the one-million-dinar threshold in Iraqi markets last January, a level tied to global per-ounce prices and prevailing foreign exchange rates.