The subsidy for electricity estimated at $1.25bn together with other transfer social payments has raised Jordan’s total debt by $2bn, Finance Minister Umayya Tuqan has told parliament. He estimated total internal and external debt has risen to 60% of GDP over the past two years. This has increased the cost of servicing debt to around $1.1bn from $635mn annually.
The country’s ballooning debt burden is little surprise given that Jordan has been running a fiscal deficit of around 9% of GDP for the last two years (see graph). (CONTINUED - 228 WORDS)
