AMMAN: Economic growth in Jordan slowed slightly to 2.9 percent year-on-year in the second quarter but was supported by a sharp rise in tourism, official data showed on Tuesday.

The pace of growth eased marginally after a first-quarter expansion of 3 percent year-on-year.

Jordanian authorities expect the economy to expand by around 2.7 percent in 2012. The International Monetary Fund (IMF)recently forecast growth could reach 3 percent with signs of a recovery in remittances and a rebound in tourism receipts.

The turmoil of the Arab Spring in neighbours such as Syria and Egypt has cast a shadow over private sector investment while extra social spending to quell unrest has further strained public finances.

Growth in the second quarter was fuelled by a 10 percent expansion in tourism followed by 6.7 percent growth in the communications and transport sector. The financial sector saw a 5.7 percent rise, according to the data released by the central statistics office.

Officials say it will take time to get back to previous growth rates, which averaged 7 percent annually before the global downturn in 2008.