Amman ranked most expensive Arab City

AMMAN: Amman has been ranked as the most expensive city in the Arab world and the 28th worldwide, Xinhua news agency reported, citing a report by Intelligence Unit of The Economist.

Jordan’s capital city is more expensive than some gulf, European and North American cities such as Dubai, London, Rome and Washington.

The report titled ‘Worldwide Cost of Living Survey,’ which compared prices of over 150 items in 133 cities worldwide ranked Madrid and Barcelona at 34, compared with Amman, which was ranked at 28.

The Economist attributed the rise in living cost in Amman to increasing taxes and low salaries.

“Salaries in Amman are much lower than that in Dubai.

For example, the price of some items in Amman are higher.

Government measures to raise sales tax on several items played a role in increasing the cost of living cost in Amman, thus leading to higher prices of commodities,’’ said economist Wajdi Makhamreh.

Meanwhile, economist Hosam Ayesh said the government has been raising the price of fuel although the price of oil has dropped at global level.

“The rise in the cost of fuel increased the cost or production on factories and all commercial stories, which in turn resorted to increasing prices of items.

“One of the key challenges is the low economic growth. The country’s economy grows by about 2 per cent annually, which is insufficient to create jobs and provide income to families.

“A big chunk of the pay goes for public transportation.

‘’ If there is a good public transportation system, the people will not be forced to spend a large amount of their pay on taxis,” Ayesh said. — Bernama