TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
BI governor supports fuel-price hike plan
Bank Indonesia Governor Agus Martowardojo says that he supports the plan to increase fuel prices as the move will help reduce the countryâs trade deficit
Change Size
B
ank Indonesia Governor Agus Martowardojo says that he supports the plan to increase fuel prices as the move will help reduce the country's trade deficit.
'The sooner the plan is implemented, the better the results,' Agus told reporters in Jakarta on Thursday on the sidelines of a meeting at the Supreme Court secretariat, as quoted by kompas.com.
Based on recent Central Statistics Agency (BPS) data, Indonesia's trade balance suffered a US$ 318.1 million deficit in August.
Cumulatively, the country's trade deficit during the January-August period amounted to $1.40 billion.
Agus said that increasing subsidized fuel prices would help the domestic economy grow despite an increase in the inflation rate.
According to his calculations, Indonesia's inflation rate will stand at between 5.1 percent and 5.4 percent by the end of the year.
'However, this excludes additional calculations if the government decides to increase fuel prices,' he explained.
Earlier this year, the government set an inflation-rate target of 4.5 percent +/- 1 percent by the end of the year.
