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Govt expects 4% growth in manufacturing sector this year after 2020 slump
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Workers assemble Isuzu Traga trucks at the Isuzu factory in East Karawang of West Java in this undated photo. (JP/Seto Wardhana)
T
he government has forecast growth of nearly 4 percent for the manufacturing sector this year, which would mark a turnaround from the slump last year, as the country gears up for a coronavirus vaccination program.
Industry Minister Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita said Tuesday that the positive outlook was based on the increase in investment in the sector and promising export figures despite the pandemic severely impacting the industry last year.
“For 2021, the manufacturing sector’s growth is forecast to return to positive territory. All manufacturing subsectors will grow, assuming we have brought the pandemic under control and economic activities have recovered,” Agus said in a virtual event.
In the January–September period of last year, realized investment in the manufacturing sector totaled Rp 201.9 trillion (US$14.2 billion), marking an increase of around 37 percent year-on-year (yoy) over the same period of 2019, according to the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM).
Exports from the manufacturing sector also showed an increase of 14.47 percent yoy to around $12.1 billion in non-oil and gas exports in November 2020, Statistics Indonesia (BPS) data shows.
Last year, the COVID-19 outbreak significantly impacted the manufacturing activity due to the implementation of strict movement restrictions to curb the virus spread and disruptions in supply chain and production activities.
