Thailand
Indonesia: Investors wait and see ahead of ‘year of politics’: VP
Vice President Jusuf Kalla has said investors were in a wait and see position ahead of the presidential and legislative elections in 2019 as they were concerned about the possible impact of the political events on the country’s economy.
He explained that investors were also still waiting for the result of the presidential election, which would likely be a rematch between President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and Prabowo Subianto.
“Investors are particularly concerned about the policy. Will there be any policy changes if President Joko Widodo wins? And what about if Prabowo wins?” he said in Jakarta on Thursday as reported by kontan.com.id, adding that the wait and see position affected the country’s economy.
However, he expressed optimism that the impact of “the year of politics” was not so significant.
He called on the media to help ensure that the “year of politics” did not cause worry and uncertainty among the people.
He also expressed hope that whoever won the election would have a positive impact on the country’s economy.
Kalla said it was not only the “year of politics” that had negatively affected the country’s economy, but also the trade war between the United States and China, because it had affected Indonesian exports to its traditional markets.
He said the Federal Reserve hinting at further increases in its reference rate had also affected performance in the financial sector in other countries, including Indonesia, with the rupiah still under pressure. (bbn)
Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2018/08/03/investors-wait-and-see-ahead-of-year-of-politics-vp.html