Thailand
Indonesia’s GDP grew 5.31% in 2022, back to pre-COVID level
JAKARTA — Indonesia’s economy returned to pre-pandemic growth in 2022, as the government eased COVID restrictions and businesses got back into gear.
Southeast Asia’s largest economy grew 5.31% in 2022 from a year earlier, government data showed on Monday, up from a 3.69% expansion in 2021. Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo had previously forecast growth of 5.2% to 5.3% for 2022.
Monday’s figure is above the range of 5.0% to 5.2%, the annual growth rates recorded in the four years through 2019.
The country’s fourth-quarter gross domestic product, also released on Monday, showed a year-on-year growth rate of 5.01%, slowing from 5.72% in the third quarter. This is higher than the median forecast of 4.84% year-on-year by 21 economists polled by Reuters.
Bank Indonesia, the country’s central bank, had forecast growth of 4.5% to 5.3% for 2023. The International Monetary Fund in its World Economic Outlook update in January also projected that Indonesia’s economy will grow 4.8% in 2023.
However, some economists expect a bleaker outlook amid a global slowdown and inflationary pressure.
“Consumption will grow slower as interest rate hikes could affect consumer behavior. Investment is also expected to grow moderately slower, particularly non-building investments [those outside of the construction industry], due to the high base a year earlier, coupled with a global economic slowdown,” Josua Pardede, an economist at Bank Permata told Nikkei Asia before the Monday’s announcement.
He also noted that foreign direct investments are likely to slow down in the quarter ahead of the presidential election set for February 2024.
Source: https://asia.nikkei.com/Economy/Indonesia-s-GDP-grew-5.31-in-2022-back-to-pre-COVID-level