Jordan’s trade deficit shrinks by 33.7% driven by 15.5%decrease in oil imports

AMMAN — Jordan's imports for crude oil, derivatives, and mineral oils saw a "remarkable" decline in January to JD256 million, compared with JD303 million for the same period last year, the Department of Statistics (DoS) said on Tuesday.

The figures revealed a decrease in the value of oil imports to the Kingdom by 15.5 per cent, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

This decrease in the oil bill has had a positive impact on Jordan's trade balance, with the overall value of imports declining by 19.7 per cent in January compared with the previous year. 

This reduction contributed to a 33.7 per cent decrease in the trade deficit of the Kingdom.

Fuel and mineral oils were the primary imports in the first month of the year with a total value of JD83 million. Crude oil followed closely behind at JD81 million. 

The Kingdom imported gasoline worth some JD39 million, and diesel with a value of around JD48 million, while the values of imported lubricants and gas stood at JD2 million and JD3 million, respectively.