UPDATE 1-Iraq Jan oil exports highest since 2003

* Iraqi oil exports highest level since 2003

* 409,000 bpd exported from northern fields

(Adds with more detail on exports, background)

By Aseel Kami

ISTANBUL, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Iraq exported an average 2.163 million barrels of oil per day in January, up from 1.951 million bpd in December, reaching its highest export levels since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, a top oil official said on Wednesday.

Falah Alamri, head of the State Oil Marketing Organisation (SOMO), told Reuters on the sidelines of an energy conference in Istanbul that he expected oil exports to continue to increase in the coming months.

The previous highest monthly exports since the invasion that ousted Sunni dictator Saddam Hussein were achieved in July 2009 when shipments reached 2.037 million bpd, according to SOMO figures.

Iraq desperately needs tens of billions of dollars to rebuild its shattered infrastructure after decades of war, sanctions and underinvestment. It has ambitious plans to quadruple its oil production capacity as it emerges from the worst of the sectarian carnage triggered after the invasion.