Author: Thee Kian Wie, LIPI

Indonesia’s economic growth remained strong in 2011 despite continued turmoil in the international financial markets, due to the euro crisis, and weakened global growth.

Significantly, this slow down also affected China, which has become one of Indonesia’s major export markets, but Jakarta was able to see off this risk. Read more…

Author: Thee Kian Wie, LIPI, Jakarta

The Indonesian economy continued to grow strongly at 5.8 per cent (yoy) during the third quarter of 2010, which was slightly lower than during the second quarter of  the year when growth reached 6.2 per cent.

The slightly lower growth during the third quarter of 2010 was due to the unusual weather conditions caused by continuous rains. Read more…

Author: Thee Kian Wie, LIPI

The Indonesian economy has managed to achieve very solid growth after successfully weathering the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) in 2008. The economy grew at 4.5 per cent in 2009, is likely to grow at 6.0 per cent in 2010 and is projected to grow at 6.2 per cent in 2011.  This kind of performance is making many Indonesians wonder whether Indonesia could soon join the BRIC group of high-performing emerging economies.

The term ‘BRIC’ was coined in 2001, by Dominic Wilson of Goldman Sachs, to refer to Brazil, Russia, India and China, which were experiencing rapid economic growth, and were expected to overtake the U.S. by 2018. Read more…

Author: Thee Kian Wie, Indonesian Institute of Sciences

The Indonesian economy continues to surprise with its very healthy growth rate through the period of global financial crisis. The growth rate, driven by consumer spending, investment, and exports, has surpassed most predictions at 6.2 per cent during the second quarter of 2010. Domestic consumption is robust, investment figures are encouraging and exports are expanding at least as fast as global growth. While monetary policy and financial regulatory concerns remain, Indonesia is well-positioned for broad-based economic growth.

Perception indicators increasingly support the view that Indonesia’s economy is on an upswing. The Japan Credit Rating Agency has upgraded Indonesia’s investment grade from BB+ to BBB; the first in 13 years. Read more…