Price rises won't halt Idul Fitri exodus

Price rises won't halt Idul Fitri exodus

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Not even the higher prices of goods and transportation fares, resulting from the recent fuel price increases, can keep the holidaymakers from visiting relatives in their hometowns this Idul Fitri holiday.

Minister of Transportation Hatta Rajasa said on Tuesday that the number of holiday travelers this year would likely increase by around 6 percent to 7 percent, from 15.8 million people nationwide last year to 16.9 million.

As for the preferred mode of transportation, there would be around 35 percent increase in the number of airline passengers from around 1,356,000 people across the country last year to 1,834,000 this year.

"Trains will carry around 2.2 million people, while ships will transport around 900,000 holidaymakers. As for the transportation on rivers, lakes and the sea, there would be an increase from 2.3 million people to 2.5 million people," Hatta announced during a joint press conference with other ministers and government officials at his office.

Idul Fitri, which marks the end of the Muslim month of fasting, will fall on Nov. 3 and Nov. 4.

Hatta said there would be an approximately 50 percent hike in the number of motorcycles leaving the capital this year, or up to around 450,000 from 200,000 last year.

To help ease the burden on people from the low-income bracket, the government decided not to increase economy class train fare.

Bus operators and airline companies, however, have been given government permission to raise their fares.

"But the increase should not exceed the price ceiling set by the government. The fare increases for intercity transportation should not exceed 23 percent," Hatta said.

Minister of Trade Mari Elka Pangestu said that the prices of goods would go up by around 15 to 20 percent, but most likely would come down again after the holiday.

"It's a normal trend ahead of the holiday due to high demand. But the price increase is higher this year because of the fuel price hike," she said.

Mari said basic food prices would rise by an average of around 2 percent to 10 percent. As examples, she said the price of rice would go up by 6.5 percent, sugar by 2 percent, cooking oil 3.6 percent and most meats by an average of 10 percent.

She admitted that the lack of supply had contributed to the increases.

The government, however, has secured the national stock of staple foods until middle of 2006, according to Mari, who visited one local market on Monday.

Also during the conference, Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Purnomo Yusgiantoro said fuel consumption during the holiday would increase from 60 million kiloliters per day to up to 65 million kiloliters as more vehicles would be traveling across the country.

"As many factories are shutting down because their employees are taking a vacation, I guess we can suspend the operations of some power plants so that we can save on fuel consumption," he said.