Industry

The last few years have presented a challenging market for the retail sector, with Jordanians’ incomes squeezed by the increasing cost of living. Yet new malls continue opening, hypermarkets continue to grow, and more retailers are still entering the market. Economies of scale can offer attractive savings to consumers who have less disposable income...

Clothing manufacturers in the kingdom experienced strong growth in 2011. As the country’s most economically important export, they contributed JD708m ($994.9m) to the year’s total national exports, 14.8% of the total. The main driver behind this growth is the US market, which received 93% of Jordanian clothes exports in the first 11 months of 2011....

At a time of growing global demand for fertiliser, the potash industry in Jordan is becoming increasingly profitable. An ingredient in a number of fertilisers, potash is extracted from the Dead Sea. Most of the product is then exported to a growing Eastern market, including to India, South-east Asia and China. The industry comprises the Arab Potash...

Through its industrial estates, free zones and development zones, Jordan has continued to attract local and foreign investment. These make a vital contribution to national exports and to the economy in general, despite some concern that Jordanians have not benefitted from the jobs created. At the same time, the government is working to unify...

In the face of rising energy costs and limited access to financing for smaller businesses, many Jordanian manufacturers can nonetheless feel optimistic in 2012. Despite the political unrest which overtook much of the Middle East in 2011, Jordanian exports proved surprisingly resilient, both within the region and further afield, and are being...