Ammon News - Jihad Azour, the Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), confirmed that Jordan has already taken a number of measures to enhance its ability to respond to the economic challenges amid expectations that it will be affected by rising prices due to war tensions in the Middle East.

During a press conference at the IMF headquarters in Washington, Azour said that reaching to an agreement at the staff-level with the IMF on the fifth review under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) arrangement and the second review under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) arrangement "reflects an appreciation of the prudent measures taken by Jordan to protect its economy."

Azour pointed out that among the measures taken by Jordan to enhance its ability to respond to challenges in light of the war in the Middle East was increasing the level of maritime traffic and shipping through the port of Aqaba, in addition to enhancing the Kingdom’s readiness to deal with economic shocks.

These measures also include ensuring energy security, facilitating supply chains, ensuring liquidity in financial markets, and providing targeted support to the groups most vulnerable to disruptions, according to the Fund.

The IMF, in its two most recent staff-level reviews, confirmed that the Jordanian economy entered the Middle East conflict with strong momentum and continues to demonstrate resilience. However, the war's effects are weighing heavily on the short-term outlook, particularly in the energy markets and the tourism sector, and growth is expected to slow somewhat in 2026.

It also expects the Jordanian economy to grow by 2.7% this year, rising to 3.1% in 2027, while lowering its growth forecast for the economies of the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan to 1.4% this year.

The IMF report, released on Thursday, slightly lowered its forecast for the Jordanian economy by 0.2 percentage points for 2026 compared to October's estimates, while raising its forecast for 2027 by a limited 0.1 percentage point.