Currency crisis hurts PC sales

JAKARTA (JP): The plunge in the rupiah's value has hurt the personal computer business in Indonesia, with sales dropping by 25 percent to 50 percent in the last two weeks.

Vitriani, business manager of PT Arsitama Citra, a dealer of GTC computer products, said most computer spare parts were purchased in U.S. dollars, so the weak rupiah increased assembling costs.

"We have had to increase our prices by at least 10 percent," Vitriani said.

Paradise Computer, an IBM dealer, and Masterdata, a Toshiba and Compaq dealer, said they had increased their prices by 20 percent.

Some dealers, however, are selling their existing computer stocks at old prices.

"We will sell our current stocks at old prices. Afterwards, prices will depend on the rupiah's exchange rate," said Hermawi F. Taslim, exhibition manager of Dragon Computer which sells Acer and IBM computers.

The rupiah has declined by over 20 percent against the U.S. dollar since early January, reaching its lowest level in the last few weeks due to speculative trading.

Before the currency crisis, computer prices had been declining, making the product affordable to more people, he said.

The increase, he said, would discourage people to buy.

Most computer dealers said they would charge the new higher prices at the upcoming Indocomtech 97 which opens Thursday at the Jakarta Convention Center.

They fear they will not reach their sales target.

They recalled that at two recent exhibitions, including the Mega Bazaar Computer 97 at the Jakarta Convention Center, sales were brisk because dealers were slashing their prices.

Dealers said they hoped the currency crisis would end soon. (08)