Jordan's foreign trade rises 3.8% to JD23b in 2014

AMMAN — Jordan's foreign trade index, covering exports and imports, rose 3.8 per cent last year reaching JD23 billion, compared to JD21.3 billion in 2013, according to a report issued by Amman Chamber of Commerce (ACC).

The report showed that Jordanian exports in 2014 increased by 7.5 per cent to JD5.2 billion compared to JD4.8 billion the year before.

National exports accounted for 33.3 per cent of the overall foreign trade in 2014, compared to 22.5 per cent in 2013, according to the report, which noted that re-exports declined last year by 2.8 per cent to JD790 million from JD813 million in 2013.

According to the report, re-exports constituted 3.5 per cent of the 2014 total foreign trade volume, compared to 3.8 per cent the year before.

The value of Jordan's imports last year amounted JD16.1 billion, 3.1 per cent higher than the figure in 2013 when the value totaled JD15.7 billion.

The ACC calculated the imports share of total foreign trade at 73 per cent in 2014, slightly lower than the 73.6 per cent in the previous year. 

The Grand Arab Free Trade Zone topped the list of commercial and economic bloc partners to the Kingdom in 2014 with 35.1 per cent share of the overall foreign trade volume, standing at JD7.8 billion. 

Regarding Arab countries receiving Jordanian exports, Iraq topped the list with JD829 million, while Saudi Arabia topped the list of exporters to Jordan with JD3.2 billion, the report added.