the filthy streets of Jamilah market, Iraqi Shi'ite Muslim merchants unload tons of imported goods in volumes not seen before.
"Business is phenomenal. We are hiring and paying higher wages," said Gaith al-Aibi, as workers emptied a container of Iranian Nanerazavi marshmallows into his warehouse in the Baghdad slum.
"The economy was bound to improve no matter what followed Saddam Hussein. Iraq is rich but the man deprived the people of its resources," he added.
Jamilah, Iraq's retail market for food and household goods, is the pulse of trading and an indicator of the economy. Saddam spared it his intervention and allowed the Shi'ite merchant class that dominates commerce to operate relatively freely
...
An average of 50 trailers of soft drinks drop their cargo at Jamilah daily compared to one or two before the war. The price of a can of Pepsi has fallen by more than half to 20 cents.
"The Iranians have sent me $50,000 worth of confectionery without asking for a bill. They are so keen on a distributor. They know Iraqis are starting to spend," Aibi said.
...
Along with increased spending in Baghdad, construction interrupted by the war is resuming and new businesses are opening, especially cellphone shops selling handsets and subscriptions to a network built by Egyptian operator Orascom.
"Demand has been beyond expectations," said Khalil Khalaf, a manager at the Itisalat distributorship on Sadoun Street, as workers placed concrete blocks in front of the company's headquarters to protect it from explosions.
"We had to shut our doors at one point because we could not cope with the crowd. We even ran out of the top-of-the-line device," said Khalaf.
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