Election spurs consumer confidence

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

September's successful and peaceful election helped boost the consumer confidence index (CCI) during the month, offsetting the negative sentiment stemming from a bomb attack earlier in the month.

While a bomb blast outside the Australian Embassy on Sept. 9 killed 11 people and injured dozens of others, the smooth Sept. 20 election brought major relief for Indonesians, the latest survey from the Danareksa Research Institute showed on Thursday.

"Reflecting this relief, the CCI rose 1.6 percent in September to 99.6 points, jacked up by a whooping 7.7 percent surge in the level of the present situation index (PSI) to 81.9, a 25-month high," Danareksa said.

Most Indonesians also have confidence in the ability of the new government -- led by the relatively market friendly President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono -- to deal with the country's myriad of economic ills, the survey added.

"People are convinced that the new government can improve the economy, contain inflation, provide better public services, restore public order and security, and, above all, uphold the law."

The positive sentiment had given people a renewed appetite for purchasing durable goods, boosting the number of people who said they intended to buy consumer durables over the next month to a 14-month high of 26.2 percent in September, as against 23.3 percent in August.