UAE-Jordan Cepa to come into effect on Thursday

The UAE's comprehensive economic partnership agreement is expected to boost trade between the nations to more than $8bn by 2032

Staff at the Jordan Chalk in Karak, south of Amman. The kingdom's economy has remained resilient amid regional security risks. AFP

The comprehensive economic partnership agreement between the UAE and Jordan will come into effect on Thursday, with the deal expected to boost bilateral trade between the nations to more than $8 billion by 2032.

The UAE's ninth Cepa, initially signed in October, will eliminate or reduce tariffs, remove trade barriers and boost market access, and marks a "new era of collaboration", said Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade, in a statement on Wednesday.

It is also expected to enhance regional and global supply chains, "creating a framework for shared growth and prosperity", he added.

Cepas the UAE has already signed with nations from Colombia to Australia have contributed Dh135 billion ($36.8 billion) to the country's non-oil trade, an increase of 42 per cent compared with the previous year, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, said previously.

The UAE's non-oil foreign trade hit a record Dh3 trillion last year − up 14.6 per cent year-on-year − as the country continues to diversify its economy and forges closer trade ties with countries around the world.

The Cepa programme is key for the UAE’s economic growth. The Arab world's second largest economy aims to boost its gross domestic product to $800 billion by 2030, with a target of more than $1.1 trillion in total non-oil trade by 2031.

The Cepa with Jordan follows the signing of agreements between the two countries for a $2.3 billion railway investment project to link the port of Aqaba with the mining regions of Al Shidiya and Ghor es-Safi.

The deals are part of an investment package worth about $5.5 billion that Jordan signed with the UAE during the 2023 state visit of King Abdullah II to Abu Dhabi.

Both the UAE and Jordan share expertise in sectors including energy, infrastructure, transport and finance, Dr Al Zeyoudi said. The Emirates also aims to benefit from Jordan’s robust industrial base, particularly in the phosphate, textiles and pharmaceutical sectors.

"Jordan has long been a valued partner for the UAE and, through this Cepa, we are poised to unlock numerous opportunities that will benefit both nations," the minister said.

Bilateral non-oil trade between the two countries jumped by about 138 per cent in the past decade. The UAE is Jordan’s fifth-largest trading partner globally and remains its largest foreign investor, with mutual investments pegged at about $22.5 billion, according to government data.

Jordan's economy has remained resilient amid regional security risks and a cut in assistance from the US Agency for International Development, resulting in a stable outlook for the aid-reliant economy, ratings agency S&P Global had said in March.

New York-based S&P forecasts Jordan's economic growth at 2.7 per cent in 2025, provided regional security situation stabilises, tourism recovers and trade with Syria and Iraq starts to rise gradually. Tourism alone contributes about 15 per cent to the kingdom's GDP, about three quarters of which comes from Arab visitors, the agency added.

Fitch Ratings, however, expects a lower 2.1 per cent expansion this year, down from 2.2 per cent last year, citing the kingdom's dependence on US exports among Middle East and North African countries, making it the region's most exposed nation to US tariffs.