A

s they hope for an improved economic outlook, investors and businesspeople have given a green light toward the presidential and vice presidential candidates, with positive sentiments seen in the domestic stock market amid global uncertainty.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo picked on Thursday a religious figure, Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) chairman Ma’ruf Amin, as his running mate for the 2019 election in an apparent attempt to win the hearts of Muslim voters and to preempt political attacks questioning his credentials as a Muslim leader.

Jokowi’s opponent, Gerindra Party leader Prabowo Subianto, also announced on Thursday his decision to partner with outgoing Jakarta deputy governor Sandiaga Uno, who is also a businessman.

A day after the announcements were made, the Jakarta Composite Index (JCI) — the main gauge of the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) — closed at 6,077.17, an increase of 0.2 percent from the previous trading day. It became the best performer in Asia as other markets were affected by escalated trade friction between the United States and China.

Capital market analysts viewed that both tickets could bring positive sentiment to the market.

“Around the region, the majority [of markets] weakened, including Nikkei, Hang Seng, Taiwan, while the JCI strengthened,” Alfred Nainggolan, Koneksi Kapital research head, told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

Alfred was of the opinion that Jokowi might provide better certainty to the market in comparison to his opponent, given his track record, saying that it would be “easier for investors to guess Jokowi’s policy directions; therefore, reducing uncertainty”.

Taye Shim, head of research at Mirae Asset Sekuritas Indonesia, suspected that Jokowi’s stance was to maintain his current economic policies and focus more on uniting Muslim votes in the upcoming election, whereas Prabowo was likely to be vocal about his business-friendly pledges.

Aside from promising higher economic growth of 5.2 to 5.6 percent in the proposed 2019 state budget, Jokowi has pledged to “safeguard national resources”, citing as evidence recent policy decisions to nationalize oil and gas assets and seize majority ownership in the huge Grasberg gold and copper mine from American mining company Freeport-McMoran.

“It is proof that we are sovereign,” Jokowi told his supporters , as quoted by Reuters on Friday.

Jokowi’s decision to choose Ma’ruf as his running mate was seen as a positive move by investors, said Panin Sekuritas analyst William Hartanto. Ma’ruf would listen to the aspirations of Muslims better and handle issues of tribal affiliations, religion, race and societal groups (SARA), he said.

Ma’ruf is a professor of sharia economics and heads the sharia supervisory board at Islamic lender Bank Muamalat.

From a business perspective, Shinta Kamdani, vice chairwoman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin), said Jokowi had compromised in choosing Ma’ruf as his ally, giving context to the 2017 Jakarta gubernatorial election, which became tarnished by religion-fueled conflict.

In the 2017 gubernatorial election, then-Jakarta governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama lost to his political rival, Anies Baswedan, as Muslims protested against the former, who was later found guilty of blasphemy.

“What is certain to us is that this event of democracy should not undermine the safety of doing business in Indonesia,” Shinta told the Post over the phone on Friday. “We hope that [economic] stability remains good and will no longer be [affected] by religious feuds used as a political tool.”

Harry Su, managing director and head of equity capital market at Samuel Sekuritas, said investor reaction and market sentiment would be shaped by popularity polls.

“In particular, we will need to watch how millennials and the female population vote. However, what’s most important for the market is that the race is amicable,” he said in a text message on Friday.

Coordinating Economic Minister Darmin Nasution urged investors on Friday to stop their wait-and-see stance and realize their investments.