BPS Survey: Consumer Spending Shifts Towards Experiences

Head of the Statistics Agency (BPS), Amalia Adininggar Widyasanti, said Indonesia’s consumption patterns have shifted towards experience-based spending, such as transport, restaurants, hotels, and tourism.

“This shows our consumption patterns are increasingly focused on experiences rather than buying clothes,” Amalia said in Jakarta on Tuesday, 27 May 2026, according to Antara.

She explained the change is evident in household consumption components for Q1 2026, where the highest growth no longer comes from clothing and footwear but from transport, restaurants, and hotels.

According to her, increased mobility during Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr 1447H contributed to this shift. BPS recorded a 13.14 per cent year-on-year increase in domestic tourist travel in Q1 2026.

Amalia detailed that domestic tourist data was calculated using mobile positioning data in collaboration with three telecom providers: Telkomsel, XL, and Indosat. The method tracks inter-regional movement while preserving individual privacy.

“We measure domestic tourists not through surveys but by mobility patterns recorded via mobile positioning data,” she said.

Beyond travel patterns, consumption changes are also evident in increasingly digital transactions. Electronic trade transactions grew 27.8 per cent year-on-year and 6.19 per cent quarter-on-quarter in Q1 2026, while QRIS transactions rose 111.94 per cent year-on-year.

Amalia attributed the shift in consumption and transaction patterns to Indonesia’s demographic structure increasingly dominated by younger generations. According to the BPS Intercensal Population Survey released on 5 May 2026, Millennials and Gen Z make up nearly 49 per cent of the population. Adding post-Gen Z under 12 years (19.65 per cent), 68 per cent of Indonesians are from these youth groups.

“This is why our consumption patterns have changed compared to the past,” Amalia said, adding the shift is crucial for businesses and policymakers as household consumption remains the main pillar of the domestic economy.