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'Dr. Doom' predicts RI growth to exceed China, India
A man who correctly predicted the 2008 financial crisis says that Indonesia could become the worldâs fastest growing economy as it has stronger fundamentals compared to China and India
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man who correctly predicted the 2008 financial crisis says that Indonesia could become the world's fastest growing economy as it has stronger fundamentals compared to China and India.
US economist Nouriel Roubini ' nicknamed 'Dr. Doom' due to his consistently bearish but accurate forecast on global economy ' says that he remains upbeat on Indonesia's long-term potential, although the country has bumped into problems that worry foreign investors such as a growth slowdown, surging inflation and a widening current account deficit.
'If you look at Indonesia, yes there is a current account deficit, but compared to other emerging markets, it is still relatively small,' he said on Saturday in his remarks delivered duringthe Asia Pacific
Economic Cooperation's (APEC) pre-CEO Summit.
While Indonesia's current account deficit recently widened to a historic high level of US$9.8 billion, or 4.4 percent of the gross domestic product, Roubini noted that it was driven by booming investment that should allow the country to achieve high and sustainable growth in years to come.
Indonesia's economy grew 5.8 percent in the second quarter, second to China inthe G20 group of large economies.
In comparison with China and India, Indonesia is better than the two countries as it has a more balanced growth model, more stable democracy and more responsive policymaking, according to Roubini.
'With the right economic reforms, Indonesia's growth in the second half of this decade could even be higher than in China and India,' he predicted.
Roubini, who earned his PhD in economics from Harvard University, made a name for himself in the mid-2000safter he warned the US over a possible crash in its financial system that could spark economic recession, with the event eventually unfolding during the 2008 financial crisis.
The Istanbul-born economist also predicted that the Philippines would see an upgrade in its credit rating to investment grade this year. The archipelagic country was granted the prestigious rating status by Moody's Investors Service only this week.
