Free Market Reforms Hit Iraq

At his teetering vegetable stand in Baghdad's Amil district, Haidar Gassem bashfully reminded Iraqi housewives that a kilogram of tomatoes no longer costs 350 dinars (23 cents). They grumbled and reached for the extra 150 dinars, feeling one more ripple effect from the recent threefold spike in gas prices that followed the government's decision to slash fuel subsidies.