Recovering The Economy During Pandemic, Government Focuses On Providing Basic Food At Stable Prices

Illustration. (Photo: Unsplash)

JAKARTA - The Director-General of Domestic Trade of the Ministry of Trade, Oke Nurwan, said that Indonesia's economic conditions have improved. Oke stated that one of the main keys to recovery and economic resilience in Indonesia lies in the success of the government in controlling the COVID-19 case and implementing vaccinations.

"And in terms of overall economic recovery, the Ministry of Trade is focusing its efforts on providing staple food at stable prices and assisting MSMEs to increase their capacity," said Oke Nurwan in the discussion on 'Optimistic Consumer Confidence' held by FMB9ID_IKP, quoted on Thursday, May 20.

Oke mentions that domestic purchases have indeed increased. Previously published Markplus studies, he said, showed several categories of digital products, fashion, beauty, food and beverages, and household appliances had increased a lot.

Looking at economic indicators, various financial institutions such as the IMF predict that Indonesia's economic growth will range from 4.5 to 5 percent this year. Supporting factors apart from controlling COVID-19 and vaccination that are driving the Indonesian economy towards positivity are consumption, industrial productivity, and export-import.

"The improvement in industrial activity can be seen from the manufacturing PMI index which shows a 55.25 percent increase from the fourth quarter of 2020. The increase is also evenly distributed across almost all components that make up the manufacturing PMI index," said Oke Nurwan.

Apart from the government, IPSOS Indonesia has also conducted a survey in six ASEAN countries, namely Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam.

"Interestingly, two surveys show that Indonesian consumers are the most optimistic about economic recovery in the next six months," said IPSOS Managing Director, Soeprapto Tan.

In the first IPSOS survey in the September 2020 period, the optimism of Indonesian consumers showed a figure of 75 percent and the second survey in February 2021 showed an optimism number of up to 76 percent.

Soeprapto believes that consumer optimism in Indonesia is growing because the government provides the right economic stimulus during the pandemic.

"I think the stimulus programs and cash assistance carried out by the government plus the vaccination program are very influential in the optimism of Indonesian consumers,"

Still, in the IPSOS survey, there are three categories that are classified as stable in supporting the Indonesian economy. First is food and beverages, second is personal care and cleaning products.

In addition, consumer product categories include the clothing sector, restaurants and cafes, and travel.

"This is indeed in line with the Kemenparekraf initiative to encourage the hotel, restaurant, and cafe industry to move during this pandemic," explained Soeprapto.