REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Vice President Jusuf Kalla is optimistic about Indonesia's economy in future, emphasizing that the country will experience growth amid continued improvement in the global economic conditions.
"Firstly, the global economy is better than before," Kalla said in his keynote address on the World Economy Prospects for 2018 during a breakfast forum with the Indonesian Journalist Association in Jakarta, Thursday.
Kalla further stated that by the end of 2017 and the start of 2018, the global economy will improve, and it is indicated by the rise in the prices of some commodities that had dropped earlier.
One of the examples is the price of coal, which is now close to US$100 per ton as well as that of palm oil, which is currently at some $600 per ton, while it had earlier dropped to $450 per ton. The price of natural crude oil has also increased to $55 per barrel.
To this end, the vice president expressed belief that the country's earnings from the commodity sector will increase as the same will apply for income tax to be paid next year.
"With this form of optimism, we then see that we can no longer view that the economy is not growing due to the prices of commodities. Prices in the sector have now gone back up," he remarked.
He further revealed that efforts undertaken by the government have also begun showing results, as is reflected in the Ease of Doing Business index compiled by the World Bank that placed Indonesia in the 72nd position, thereby indicating a significant increase as compared to the country's earlier ranking of 91 out of the 190 listed countries.
As was earlier reported, in the 2018 Ease of Doing Business report, Indonesia is recorded to have surpassed China, which is ranked 78th.
The World Bank admitted that Indonesia has made some serious improvements in at least seven indicators, including registration simplification, improvement in access to electricity, and efficiency in property business permit processes.
Moreover, the vice president believed that a synergy had existed with the earlier government's program, so projects planned earlier are now being implemented.
"This means projects initiated during the 2005-2006 period will be implemented in the coming years, which means there is a synergy between the two governments," he remarked.
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