(MENAFN- Khaleej Times)Weak oil prices that have cut the current account deficit to about nine per cent have put the kingdom on track for about 3.8 per cent growth in gross domestic product.
Jordan’s economy is robust despite spillover violence along its borders from wars in Syria and Iraq the central bank governor said on Friday and will meet its IMF-approved target this year.
Weak oil prices that have cut the current account deficit to about nine per cent have put the kingdom on track for about 3.8 per cent growth in gross domestic product (GDP) against 3.1 per cent in 2014 Zaid Fariz said. Jordan imports all its oil.
“The economy is resilient despite the turmoil around us” Fariz said on the sidelines of a World Economic Forum meeting. “Our imports from energy have dropped substantially by about 30 per cent.”
Growth has accelerated from 2.3 per cent in 2013 despite an influx of more than 600000 Syrian refugees which has added to the strain on an aid-dependent economy already burdened with over 20 billion dinars ($30 billion) in public debt.
Jordan’s budget deficit is expected to drop to 1.8 per cent of GDP this year. Inflation was expected to decline to about 1.8 per cent this year with less than one per cent inflation so far Fariz said.
The International Monetary Fund said that the Jordanian economy had withstood well the disruption of trade routes due to wars in Iraq and Syria although the business community says investment sentiment has been hit. Tourism has also been affected.
Fariz said the kingdom had to continue its IMF-guided fiscal adjustment and structural reforms to ensure hard-earned macro-economic stability is preserved.
Foreign reserves continued to show resilience and now stand at a record high of about $14 billion or the equivalent of almost seven months imports. — Reuters
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