Guarding against inflation

With inflation suppressed to 0.49 percent for May and 0.16 percent for June, it would seem that it will not be too difficult to keep inflation to one digit for the entire year 1995. In the second semester of this year, however, we will be facing two possibilities: inflationary pressures due to the dry and rainy seasons.

We should be on guard against those possibilities because, in the past few years, it has been impossible to determine with reasonable certainty when the dry season ends and the rainy season begins. What is certain is the fact that both the dry and the rainy seasons have their implications on our food reserves, for example, which exert a great influence on the rate of inflation.

We would, therefore, like to underscore the President's instruction to the government agencies concerned to keep a watch on inflation. Furthermore, this should not be limited to food prices and prices of other essential commodities.

Of no less importance is it for us to watch for inflation that is spurred by increases in the prices of services and goods, which, according to past experience, can also cause inflation. One example would be toll road tariffs, which are said to be due to be raised.

-- Suara Karya, Jakarta