Rising oil prices in May failed to offer economic reprieve to the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) as its debt repayments to oil purchasers nearly quadrupled.

MEES calculates that the value of Kurdish oil sold rose by around $60mn last month, taking it above the $500mn barrier for the first time since December. But its actual receipts for crude oil sales rose just $14mn to $391mn, implying an underpayment of around $140mn. (CONTINUED - 678 WORDS)