Indonesia further revises down 2020 growth forecast
Indonesia has continued revising its economic growth forecast for this year to a contraction of between 2.2 and 1.7 percent amid an increase of COVID-19 infections and tightened restrictions.
Hanoi (VNA) – Indonesiahas continued revising its economic growth forecast for this year to a contractionof between 2.2 and 1.7 percent amid an increase of COVID-19 infections and tightenedrestrictions.
The figures were lowered from the September estimate of between minus 1.7 percent and minus 0.6 percent,driven by shrunken household spending that makes up more than half of thecountry’s GDP.
Finance Minister Sri MulyaniIndrawati told an online press meeting on December 21 that householdconsumption is predicted to decline by 2.6 - 3.6 percent due to the mountingCOVID-19 cases in December, which has triggered tightened anti-pandemicmeasures.
With the newly imposedrestrictions, the largest Southeast Asian economy is projected to contract by 2.9- 0.9 percent in the fourth quarter compared to the same period last year,despite signs of recovery in November.
Indonesia’s GDP fell 5.3 percentand 3.5 percent in Q2 and Q3 year-on-year, respectively, officially pushingthis country to the first downturn since the 1998 Asian financial crisis.
Recently, the AsianDevelopment Bank and the World Bank also further downgraded their growthforecasts for Indonesia this year to a contraction of 2.2 percent, compared totheir respective previous estimates of minus 1 percent and minus 1.6 percent./.
The Indonesian Government has decided to ban crowds congregating to celebrate Christmas 2020 and New Year 2021 in public places to prevent a spike in the number of COVID-19 cases.
Indonesia has attracted an estimated 22.33 billion USD in investment in energy and mining in 2020, lower than 31.9 billion USD recorded last year and the target of 36 billion USD set for 2020, according to Ministry of Environment and Mineral Resources (EMR).
Indonesia has been identified as one of the 35 countries with the highest natural disaster risk, based on the number of fatalities in natural disasters between 2015 and 2020, said head of the country’s National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) Doni Monardo.
Indonesia, the world’s largest palm oil producer, will begin raising export tariffs on crude palm oil (CPO) in order to support its Government’s compulsory bio-fuel programme.
The Republic of Korea (RoK), China and Japan agreed on May 3 to reinforce the regional financial safety net, along with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), by launching a new financing facility programme meant to extend greater support in case of a financial crisis.
A technical issue combined with an extreme heatwave was blamed for a series of explosions at a military base that killed 20 soldiers and injured several others in Cambodia on April 27, the country’s Ministry of Defence said in a May 2 statement as reported by the Xinhua news agency.
The Customs Department of Thailand is scheduled to commence the collection of value-added tax (VAT) on imported goods sent via postal services, regardless of the goods value, starting in May.
A lecturer from Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Medicine has warned Thais to be more vigilant against COVID-19, saying infection rates appeare to be worsening with higher hospital admissions, deaths and severe cases.
Malaysia should harness the collective expertise and resources to drive sustainable growth and development of the halal industry, according to Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Zafrul Abdul Aziz.
Laos has officially restored the 10% value-added tax (VAT) rate starting May 1, in a bid to support the country’s budget revenue and socio-economic development.
The ASEAN Future Forum 2024 (AFF 2024) entered its second plenary session in Hanoi on the afternoon of April 23, discussing ways to ensure comprehensive security for the people-centred ASEAN Community.
The first session of the ASEAN Future Forum 2024 (AFF 2024) in Hanoi on April 23 focused on fast and sustainable growth for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
The Canada-ASEAN Business Council (CABC) and the ASEAN Alliance on Carbon Markets (AACM) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen collaboration and accelerate the implementation of carbon crediting programmes across Southeast Asia.
ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn reaffirmed ASEAN leaders' commitment to empowering the youth to unleash their full potential when he had a dialogue with ASEAN youth in Hanoi on April 22 on the sidelines of the ASEAN Future Forum (AF 2024).
The Thai Government is being urged to increase the proportion of renewable power generation to more than the target of 50% set in the power development plan (PDP).
The Centre for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG) of Indonesia on April 21 lifted its tsunami advisory issued previously following the eruption of Mount Ruang in Sitaro district of North Sulawesi province.
Thailand expects to export about 1 million tonnes of durian, valued at an estimated 130 billion THB (3.53 billion USD) this year, with most of the shipments to China, according to Minister of Agriculture Thammanat Prompao.
The 72nd meeting of the ASEAN Working Group on Intellectual Property Cooperation (AWGIPC) and related meetings are being held by the Ministry of Science and Technology’s Intellectual Property Office (IPO) of Vietnam in the central city of Da Nang on April 22-26.
Enhancing regional food security and tackling the pressing challenges of climate change will be key agendas defining Malaysia’s ASEAN Chairmanship in 2025, Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat (lower house) Johari Abdul told the press on April 19.
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