The Jordanian Economy Shrinks by 3% for the First Time in 30 Years

  • Amman, Jordan
  • 4 May 2020
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Jordanian Finance Minister Mohamad Al-Ississ predicted that the kingdom's economy, which suffers from financial pressures, will shrink by 3 percent this year due to the impact of the Corona virus.

The International Monetary Fund, which last March approved a $1.3 billion program with Jordan, expected the kingdom's economy to grow by 2.1 percent in 2020 and gradually increase in the next few years to 3.3 percent.

Minister Al-Ississ indicated that the impact of the strong economic strike that has ravaged the local economy is profound and is expected to continue. He pointed out that this is the first contraction of economic growth since 1990, expecting that the economic impact of this challenge will be worse for economies and companies that also suffer from difficult weaknesses.

The Jordanian government recently stepped up its steps to restore life to normal as it allowed most companies to return to work after strict general isolation measures for about two months as the economic impact worsened and fears increased that layoffs and bankruptcy would cause social unrest.

Al-Ississ explained that government revenues have declined, considering that the impact of the economic blow received by the Jordanian economy, government revenues and gross domestic product was and will be very deep, as local revenues decreased until the end of April of the current year by 610 million dinars (860 million dollars) compared with the same period last year 2019.

Source (Al-Arabiya.net website, Edited)

 

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