Finance Minister Hopes Investment Would Grow Near Seven Percent Reporter: Antara 10 hours ago

Jakarta, MINA — Finance Minister Sri Mulyani expressed hope that investment would grow again to near the seven percent range, as in the first quarter of 2018, when it grew 7.95 percent.

“I still hope that investment will `recover` close to seven percent,”Antara News quoted Sri Mulyani as saying at a press conference at the Office of the Directorate General of Customs and Excise in Jakarta on Tuesday.

The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) noted that Indonesia`s economy in the second quarter of 2018 grew 5.27 percent annually (year on year/yoy), higher than the same period of the previous year of 5.01 percent.

In the second quarter, investment or Gross Fixed Capital Formation (PMTB) grew by 5.87 percent. In the structure of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), PMTB is the second largest contributor after household consumption (RT). PMTB contributed 31.15 percent, while RT consumption was 55.43 percent.

In terms of investment, Sri Mulyani noticed that all the supporting factors for the growth investment were already present. The first factor involved the growth of indicators such as imports of raw materials and capital goods, excluding military equipment.

The bank credit has also been above 10 percent, which was higher compared to the previous growth at the 7-8 percent range, supported by relatively low levels of non-performing loans.

“So, if we look at the commodity, the prices have also started to increase. Perhaps, the automotive and chemical sectors are weak because the import content is still high, but other industries, such as food, clothing, and textiles are quite high. This is what we expect to be more evenly distributed in the second semester,” he remarked.

Indonesia continues to improve incentives

He also touched on the matter of the Implementation of Electronic Integrated Business Licensing, known as the Online Single Submission (OSS), which was launched by the Coordinating Ministry of Economic Affairs, which is believed to help accelerate licensing arrangements for investors, both foreign and domestic.

“We will also continue to improve our incentives. Of course, we hope investors can see the “opportunity” for both the domestic market and especially for exports,” he explained.

The minister of finance also found that the economic growth in construction sector has been increasing, the trade sector has remained stable, and transportation services have also increased, amidst the high growth of the manufacturing industry due to a long holiday.

“So, `overall,` we are still optimistic that the momentum will be maintained, But, of course, we all have to increase our awareness as the environment also changes. We must respond to changes carefully,” Sri Mulyani noted. (T/RS5/RS1)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)