Arab News, Wed, Jan 22, 2025 | Rajab 22, 1446
Amman Stock Exchange eyes market boost with bond trading, tax reforms, and state firm listings
Saudi Arabia:
Jordan’s financial market is set for
transformation, with key changes, including introducing government bond trading
on the Amman Stock Exchange, revisiting taxes, and listing state-owned
companies.
CEO of ASE Mazen Wathaifi outlined the key reforms
to strengthen market confidence and stimulate trading activity during a panel
discussion hosted by the Jordanian Businessmen Association, according to the
state-owned news agency.
The reforms are part of a broader effort to align
with Jordan’s Economic Modernization Vision, which aims to enhance the
investment landscape.
Enabling government bond trading aligns
with regional efforts to deepen debt markets, enhance market liquidity and
attract global investment, as seen by Saudi Arabia’s recent reforms to debt
instrument listings aim to boost investor participation and market efficiency.
Wathaifi said the steps being taken in
Jordan would strengthen market confidence and stimulate trading activity,
stressing the role of government policies in fostering investment and trading,
adding: “We place significant reliance on government measures and decisions to
enhance investment and activity in the ASE.”
The stock exchange has already implemented several
initiatives to modernize its operations, including advanced electronic systems,
a redesigned website, and a market development plan in partnership with the
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
The Jordan News Agency reported that new tools
such as the Total Return Index and electronic disclosure systems have been
introduced alongside smartphone apps for real-time market monitoring.
Performance indicators for the ASE in 2024
revealed significant improvement, with the market’s General Index up 2.4 percent
compared to 2023, while the Total Return Index surged 10.3 percent.
The market capitalization of listed companies
increased by 4.2 percent, reaching its highest level since 2015, excluding 2022.
Non-Jordanian investors held 47.1 percent of the total market capitalization,
reflecting robust foreign interest.
Despite these gains, Wathaifi called for
additional measures to reduce trading costs, foster investment funds, and
encourage participation from banks and the Social Security Investment Fund.
He highlighted opportunities arising from
expectations of declining global interest rates, easing tensions in Gaza, and
improved conditions in Syria.
Mohammad Balbisi, vice president of the Jordanian
Businessmen Association, echoed these sentiments, advocating for reduced taxes
on public shareholding companies and the elimination of taxes on capital gains
from stock and fund trading.
He also underscored the importance of
public-private partnerships to drive large-scale development projects through
the ASE.
Participants at the discussion highlighted the
increasing regional competition to attract financial market investments, urging
the government to introduce incentives, reduce fees, and restrict government
bond trading to the ASE to draw global funds to Jordan.