JAKARTA (AFP) – Indonesia’s economic growth kept pace in the first quarter of the year, official data showed yesterday, ahead of an expected slowdown that analysts said would be triggered by lagging exports and high interest rates.
Southeast Asia’s largest economy expanded 5.03 per cent on-year in the period running from January through March, slightly up from 5.01 in the previous three months, Statistics Indonesia said.
The continued growth was driven by household spending, metal and mineral exports, and returning tourists, Statistics Indonesia official Edy Mahmud told a press conference.
“The trend… is at the five per cent level, indicating that Indonesia’s economic growth is still stable,” he said.
Indonesia bounced back from the coronavirus pandemic last year, posting its highest level of growth since 2013 on the back of soaring export prices and the lifting of travel restrictions.
But the record-high commodity prices caused by the war in Ukraine have started to ease, and countries including Indonesia have kept tightening monetary policy.
“We think the economy is set to struggle over the coming quarters,” said senior Asia economist at Capital Economics Gareth Leather.
“Our forecast that global growth will struggle and that commodity prices will remain subdued suggest that exports will stay weak.”
Leather predicted Indonesia’s annual growth would fall from 5.3 per cent last year to 4.8 per cent this year.