Indonesia economic growth slows in 2023

JAKARTA

Indonesia's economic growth slowed last year owing to weak exports driven by lower commodity prices, official data showed yesterday.

Southeast Asia's largest economy expanded 5.05 percent, slightly above government projections but down from 5.3 percent in 2022, Statistics Indonesia said.

Fourth-quarter growth came in at 5.04 percent, marginally better than the same period in 2022.

Domestic consumption was the key driver for the economy, offsetting lagging exports, said acting Statistics Indonesia head Amalia Adininggar Widyasanti.

"The main contributor to the GDP (growth)... included household consumption, which grew 4.82 percent," Widyasanti told reporters, adding that investment also grew.

Exports were up just 1.32 percent on-year, while imports contracted 1.65 percent, the data showed.

And economists warned of a further slowdown in growth in the coming months as Jakarta tightens monetary policy and commodity demand continues to weaken.

"Our forecast that growth in advanced economies will struggle and that commodity prices will remain subdued suggests that exports will stay weak," said Ankita Amajuri at Capital Economics.

"We think the economy is set to struggle over the coming quarters."