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Indonesia's economy surprises with growth of 5.18%
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People purchase sweet snacks at a traditional market during Ramadhan. Rising consumption during the fasting month pushed economic growth in the second quarter of this year to 5.18 percent year on year. JP/ Wienda Parwitasari (The Jakarta Post/Wienda Parwitasari)
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ndonesia's economy grew at a stronger-than-expected rate of 5.18 percent year-on-year (yoy) in the second quarter, marking an increase from 4.92 percent recorded in the first quarter.
According to Central Statistics Agency (BPS) head Suryamin, the country’s economic growth is on an accelerating trend. The economy grew by 4.66 percent in the second quarter of 2015 and by 4.96 percent in the same period of 2014.
In a quarter-to-quarter (qtq) comparison, the domestic economy expanded by 4.02 percent in the second quarter of this year, an improvement from the same period last year, when growth was 3.75 percent qtq, Suryamin said.
"As a consequence of El Nino at the end of 2015, the harvest period was pushed back to the second quarter. At the same time, Ramadhan […] also fell in the second quarter," he explained at the press conference on Friday.
The agriculture sector grew most significantly in the second quarter, while rising demand during Ramadhan and in the days approaching the Idul Fitri holiday also boosted the economy in that period.
The second-quarter figure is way above Bank Indonesia’s (BI) projection, which had expected to see the economy grow by 4.94 percent yoy.
The central bank predicts the country's economy will grow by 5.2 percent in the third quarter as government spending is expected to increase.
