AMMAN — The Central Bank of Jordan’s (CBJ) Open Market Operations Committee has kept its key interest rate unchanged at 5.75 per cent following its third meeting of 2026, leaving all other monetary policy rates steady.

 

The decision reflects the bank’s primary objective of maintaining monetary and financial stability in the Kingdom, while aligning domestic interest rates with prevailing levels in regional and international markets, CBJ said in a statement, carried by the Jordan news agency, Petra.

 

The committee reaffirmed the bank’s commitment to closely monitoring global and regional economic developments and its readiness to take pre-emptive measures to bolster the resilience of the national economy.

 

Earlier this month, the bank introduced a JD760 million precautionary package in line with this approach, supported by “strong monetary and economic indicators.”

 

“Foreign currency reserves rose to $26.8 billion at the end of March 2026, up $1.3bn from the end of 2025.”

 

The reserves are sufficient to cover 9.4 months of imports, nearly three times the international adequacy benchmark, providing a robust buffer against external shocks, the statement said.

 

Meanwhile, the dollarisation rate declined to 18.1 per cent by the end of February 2026, compared with 18.8 per cent a year earlier, signalling increased confidence in the national currency and the effectiveness of monetary policy.

 

Inflation remained subdued at 1.4 per cent in the first quarter of 2026, supporting the competitiveness of the economy and allowing flexibility in responding to global price fluctuations.

 

The central bank also highlighted the strength of Jordan’s banking sector, noting that stress tests confirmed banks’ ability to operate efficiently while maintaining comfortable levels of liquidity, profitability and capital adequacy.

 

The tourism revenues reached around $1.65 billion in the first quarter of the year. Remittances from Jordanians abroad rose by 12.7 per cent in the first two months to $740 million while national exports increased by 3 per cent to $1.9 billion.

 

Foreign direct investment grew by 25.1 per cent in 2025 to approximately $2 billion.

 

Overall, economic growth continued to improve gradually, reaching 3 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2025, up from 2.6 per cent in the same period of 2024.

 

“This underscores the Jordanian economy’s ability to sustain stable growth despite ongoing regional and global challenges,” CBJ said.