Indonesia Fortunate to Have Solid Economy, Consumer Spending Proves Saviour

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - Bank Indonesia Senior Deputy Governor Destry Damayanti has revealed that Indonesia is fortunate to possess a solid economy, supported by strong domestic consumption amidst global turbulence.

As Indonesia’s economy grew by 5.61% in the first quarter of 2026, it was primarily supported by consumer spending, which grew by 5.52% and accounted for 54.36% of GDP. According to Destry, this serves as Indonesia’s strong capital in facing global economic instability.

“We are fortunate to have a relatively solid domestic economy compared to other nations. This is proven by our economic growth; our GDP in the last first quarter grew impressively at 5.6%, even while other countries are still struggling,” she told CNBC Indonesia, as quoted on Wednesday (23/06/202cap).

“We are lucky that domestic consumption, which is the pillar of our GDP, remains resilient under these conditions,” Destry added.

She also noted that this resilience in household consumption gives Indonesia immense potential to continue attracting investors to deploy capital within the country, despite high economic uncertainty caused by conflicts in various regions.

For instance, high uncertainty has been caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global oil distribution route, following the war in the Middle East between Iran and the United States. Such disruptions have ultimately caused global crude oil prices to surge past US$100 per barrel, with global inflation expected to rise.

In response, Destry stated that Bank Indonesia is continuously striving to maintain Indonesia’s external resilience to protect the domestic growth engine. One such effort to maintain external stability includes monetary policy measures, such as increasing the BI Rate.

If external shocks are not anticipated, the impact could reduce the population’s consumption capacity, particularly due to declining export growth and significant pressure on the Rupiah exchange rate against the US Dollar.

“Therefore, this certainly requires our vigilance because it will inevitably be reflected in rising inflation. That is why we recently raised interest rates as a stabilisation measure for the Rupiah, and also as a forward-looking step to ensure we can manage inflation,” Destry emphasised.