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Insight: 2018 National Budget: Boosting confidence, promoting inclusive growth
According to the OECD-Gallup world poll, 80 percent of Indonesians have confidence in the national government — the highest among all countries surveyed.
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Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati (Antara/Wahyu Putro)
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s we transition to a new fiscal year, this Republic is presented with a credible 2018 national budget that aims to further strengthen economic resilience and promote inclusive growth. The global economic outlook is showing signs of an upswing.
Indonesia’s economy stands to further benefit from increased trade and improved commodity prices. Growth in global trade volume is expected to almost double compared with 2016. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projects that global growth will accelerate to 3.6 percent in 2017, and to 3.7 percent in 2018.
The coast is not fully clear yet. Downside risks remain with China’s economic rebalancing, security and geopolitical volatility and threats of protectionism. The world also awaits to see how the United States, Eurozone, Japan and China will steer their monetary policies. And the socio-economic impact of climate change, natural disasters and technological automation should not be underestimated in the long run.
In 2017, thanks to the government’s sound and prudent economic policy, Indonesia has consistently been posting healthy gross domestic product (GDP) growth of above 5 percent — better than most emerging economies. The budget deficit was kept to 2.67 percent of GDP — well below the constituted limit. Furthermore, Indonesia’s broader macroeconomic indicators are sound.
