Industry and Business

The material and business possibilities of Mesopotamia have excited since the Armistice a large amount of discussion and controversy in both Europe and America. Before describing business conditions as they exist at the present time, it is perhaps necessary to indicate exactly what these possibilities are, and what use so far has been made of them. The great industry of the country, so far as can be foreseen, must be in the future, as it was in the past, that of agriculture. The principal business firms in the country are British, some of them of wide connections and reputation. The largest retail store in Baghdad is owned by a French firm, and Egyptians, Syrians, Canadians, Americans and Australians are all represented among the business houses in the country. The largest developments in business since the war have been in the motor and catering trades.