Iraq's government issued a 2017 budget forecast on Tuesday, which it said assumed the country will be exporting more crude and at a higher price than in recent months.
The OPEC nation expects to sell 3.75 million barrels per day of crude at a price of $42 a barrel, the government said in a statement, Reuters reported.
The 2017 budget forecast a drop in expenditures to $77.51 billion. The 2016 budget envisioned expenditures of $90 billion with a $19 billion shortfall, reflecting the sharp drop in oil prices and revenues since 2014.
The government's crude oil exports ran at a rate of 3.23 million barrels per day in August, selling at an average price of $39.25 per barrel, according to the oil ministry.
"Iraq reportedly carried out mediation between Iran and Saudi Arabia to bring about an agreement that would lift crude prices, at a meeting of crude-producing nations in Algiers," Iraqi Oil Minister Jabar Ali al-Luaibi said.
Iraqi Oil Ministry Spokesman Asim Jihad said Iraq is leading a mediation to bring the viewpoints of Saudi Arabia and Iran closer, in order to get out of the crisis and support oil prices.
