Consumer confidence inches up, maintaining 20-month trend

A nationwide survey by Bank Indonesia (BI) has found that Indonesians remain relatively optimistic, particularly in their assessments about current economic conditions. 

Consumer confidence inches up, maintaining 20-month trend A nationwide survey by Bank Indonesia (BI) has found that Indonesians remain relatively optimistic, particularly in their assessments about current economic conditions.  

Bank Indonesia’s (BI) consumer confidence index (CCI) marginally increased in December last year to the level of optimism maintained since May 2022. At 123.8, the index reading was up from 123.6 registered in November, according to the latest results of the monthly nationwide survey.  

“Rising consumer confidence in December 2023 was pushed by a strengthened current economic conditions [subindex],” wrote BI spokesperson Erwin Haryono in a press statement released along with the survey results on Tuesday.  

Since May 2022, consumer confidence in Indonesia has consistently remained above 100, the figure that separates overall consumer optimism from pessimism, which in turn affects consumer spending.  

The current economic conditions subindex inched up to 113.6 in December from 113 the prior month, meaning survey respondents expressed more positive views about the present state of the economy.  

BI detailed that this was also reflected in answers by survey respondents that suggested consumers were more inclined to fork out on durable goods.  

Meanwhile, respondents were slightly less optimistic about job availability and their income. This decrease was particularly pronounced among postgraduates, according to details of the central bank survey.  

The subindex of consumer expectations, which assesses people’s perceptions of the economy for the next six months, remained at a “still strong” level of 133.9 in December despite dropping slightly from 134.2 in November, BI further noted.  

The central bank noted that this subindex was buoyed by more upbeat income expectations in December, while expectations about business prospects and job opportunities declined slightly.   

The survey showed that income expectations have been on the rise since September even while job availability expectations have been declining since October.  

Again, the mood soured most among postgraduates, who were much less positive about job availability in December than in November.  

The consumer expectations subindex is partly based on people’s assessments about inflation and economic activity.  

As revealed by Statistics Indonesia (BPS) last week, Indonesia closed 2023 with the headline inflation figure at 2.61 percent, beating market expectations of 2.7 to 3 percent. 

That marks the lowest inflation rate in 20 years when disregarding the low of 1.68 percent attributed to the exceptional circumstances of the coronavirus pandemic.  

However, relatively high inflation recorded at the end of 2022 partly explains the unusually low reading in December in what statisticians call a base effect.  

Indonesia hiked subsidized fuel prices in September 2022 amid a surge in international oil prices and a depreciating rupiah.  

This prompted inflation to peak at nearly 6 percent before gradually decreasing over the following year. 

Source: The Jakarta Post 

Indonesia, Vietnam discuss South China Sea security, EVs as Jokowi visits

The leaders of Indonesia and Vietnam highlighted security in the South China Sea and investments in Indonesia by electric vehicle maker VinFast in joint statements after a meeting on Friday as President Joko Widodo visited Hanoi. 

The two Southeast Asian countries are strengthening their ties with corporate investments, more trade and closer cooperation on boosting security in the contested South China Sea amid tensions with Beijing. 

Vietnam’s President Vo Van Thuong stressed the importance of maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea in a statement after he met with Widodo, widely known as Jokowi. 

The two countries signed a memorandum of understanding on fisheries cooperation. The text is not public, but it may address Vietnamese fishermen’s encroachments in other countries‘ waters, which is a regular source of tension in the region. 

Ahead of Jokowi’s trip, Indonesia’s Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said the country was ready to work with other Southeast Asian nations to finalise a long-delayed code of conduct for the South China Sea, a strategic waterway for trade and energy. 

A Vietnamese official confirmed the matter would be discussed in Hanoi during Jokowi’s visit. 

A Southeast Asian code of conduct would be seen as a blow to China. 

Beijing and Southeast Asian nations have been trying since 2002 to set up a framework to negotiate the code of conduct, but progress has been slow despite commitments by all parties to advance and expedite the process. 

Indonesia and Vietnam agreed in 2022 to recognise the boundaries of their Exclusive Economic Zones in the South China Sea, a move that was seen as a challenge to Beijing, which claims almost the entire strategic trade route. 

Indonesia had previously said it planned to export gas to Vietnam from gasfields in the South China Sea. 

"We agreed to cooperate on energy transition,“ Jokowi said in his statement alongside Thuong. 

VINFAST 

Jokowi who will visit VinFast’s EV factory in northern Vietnam on Saturday, praised the company’s plans to invest $1.2 billion in a plant and other operations over the longer term in Indonesia. 

Thuong encouraged Indonesian firms to invest more in Vietnam, including in the banking sector. 

The two nations also signed a memorandum of understanding on information technology and communication cooperation. 

Bilateral trade between the nations rose 23% to $14.1 billion last year and the goal is for that to soon reach $15 billion, the Vietnamese president said. 

Jokowi’s visit to Hanoi is part of a larger Southeast Asian trip that also included a prior stop in the Philippines and an expected visit to Brunei this weekend before Indonesian elections next month. 

He is expected to meet other Vietnamese leaders later on Friday, but contrary to normal practice, Jokowi is not scheduled to meet Communist Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, amid concerns about the elderly leader’s health. 

Since 2022, Vietnam has pursued a strategy of improving ties with global powers and partners, and Thuong said he was confident formal relations could be boosted with Indonesia as well. 

Source: Reuters 

RI to discuss railway, aviation cooperation with S Korea, China

Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi will make a working visit to South Korea and China from January 9–13, 2024, to discuss cooperation in the railways and aviation sectors. 

During the visit, he is scheduled to meet ministers and industry representatives in the two countries to discuss the cooperation. 

“Some things we will discuss are a plan to build a Light Rail Transit (LRT) in Bali, Autonomous Rail Transit (ART) in the Nusantara capital city (IKN), high-technology railway communication and signaling networks, and exploring the possibility of cooperation regarding commercial aircraft,” the minister informed in Jakarta on Tuesday. 

In South Korea, Minister Sumadi will meet with the South Korean Deputy Minister of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport, Sang-woo Park. 

The minister will also meet several other parties, including the leaders of Korea National Railway and Eximbank to discuss continued cooperation in the construction of LRT Bali, Phase 1, from Ngurah Rai Airport to Central Park. 

“The Bali LRT will be the first rail-based mass transportation in Bali, and is expected to be the solution for traffic jams. We hope that the feasibility study, which started in early January 2023 can finish in mid-2024,” the minister said. 

In China, Sumadi will meet China’s Minister of Transport, Li Xiaopeng, and several other parties, including the leader of the China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation (CRRC) to discuss continued cooperation in the construction of the ART mass transportation train in IKN. 

He will also meet the leader of Huawei to explore cooperation potential regarding an intelligent and high-tech railway system. Huawei is the company that built the communication network for the Whoosh High-Speed Train. 

Minister Sumadi will also meet the leader of the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) to explore investment potential in the aviation sector. COMAC is the current main aircraft supplier for the domestic airline TransNusa. 

During the work visit, the minister will be accompanied by the Ministry of Transportation’s director general of rail transportation, Risal Wasal, and director general of civil aviation, Maria Kristi Endah Murni. 

Source: Antara News