GDP grew by 3.66% in 2002: BPS<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post
\nJakarta<\/p>\n
The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) announced on Monday that the
\ncountry's economy in 2002 grew at a slower rate than that
\nprojected by the government.<\/p>\n
The BPS said gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 3.66 percent
\nlast year compared to the figure in 2001. But the figure was
\nlower than the government's forecast of 4 percent.<\/p>\n
The lower GDP figure was anticipated by many economists, who
\nhad said that negative developments both at home and overseas
\nwould curtail economic growth.<\/p>\n
As expected, growth last year continued to be driven by
\nhousehold and government consumption, which respectively expanded
\nby 4.72 percent and 12.79 percent over the 2001 levels.<\/p>\n
The BPS said that investment and exports declined by 0.19
\npercent and 1.24 percent respectively.<\/p>\n
The government has been under pressure to accelerate economic
\ngrowth so as to absorb the growing army of unemployed. Experts
\nhave said that in order to create enough jobs, the economy must
\ngrow by more than 6 percent.<\/p>\n
But unless the government was able to push exports and create
\na better investment climate at home, it would be impossible
\nachieve the higher growth target.<\/p>\n
The slower than expected growth in 2002 was partly due to the
\nworsening investment climate at home. The poor implementation of
\nregional autonomy, lingering labor unrest, security problems and
\nwidespread corruption have discouraged new investment from coming
\nin. In fact, some existing investors have even started to leave
\nthe country.<\/p>\n
The economic downturn in developed nations has also affected
\nthe country's exports, although some experts said that various
\ndomestic uncertainties had been causing foreign buyers to shift
\ntheir orders to other countries.<\/p>\n
The Oct. 12 bombings in Bali were seen as another factor
\nslowing down the economy as the terrorist attacks, which killed
\nnearly 200 people, mostly foreign tourists, had significantly
\ncurtailed the tourist industry.<\/p>\n
The government is targeting growth of 4 percent this year. It
\nhopes that in addition to consumption, exports will make a
\ngreater contribution to the economy.<\/p>\n
Analysts say that foreign investment will remain low this year
\nunless the government can move quickly to improve the investment
\nclimate.<\/p>\n
GDP Growth 1997-2001 (in percent)<\/p>\n
Year Growth<\/p>\n
1997 4.7
\n1998 -13.7
\n1999 0.23
\n2000 4.77
\n2001 3.5
\n2002 3.66<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/gdp-grew-by-366-in-2002-bps-1447893297",
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