Purbaya Confident Q1 Economic Growth Will Reach 5.7 Percent

The government has expressed optimism regarding the resilience of the national economy amid rising global pressures. Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa projects that Indonesia’s economic growth in the first quarter of 2026 could reach above 5%.

“If the latest figures are anything to go by, economic growth (Q1) could be 5.6%-5.7% in rough calculations. That’s pretty good amid the current global turbulence,” said Purbaya when met on Saturday (21/3).

Purbaya explained that although the global situation is full of uncertainty, domestic demand remains the main engine driving the economy.

According to him, the government has so far succeeded in implementing mitigation measures so that the impact of external turbulence has not yet been fully felt domestically.

“Clearly, the global impact here hasn’t been felt yet because it’s been absorbed by the government. So we’re keeping a close eye to ensure people can carry on with normal activities,” he continued.

As a strategic step forward, the government is committed to maintaining people’s purchasing power and strengthening the private sector. One of its main instruments is controlling energy prices.

“I will protect domestic demand, the private sector, and people’s purchasing power. In terms of isolating from world oil prices, I will continue to keep fuel prices at the current subsidised level,” the Finance Minister stressed.

In addition to maintaining consumption, the Ministry of Finance is also ensuring that state expenditure runs on time to support economic activity. However, in terms of budget management, Purbaya emphasised a selective principle towards new budget proposals to maintain fiscal balance.

“I will limit new budgets from being proposed again, more or less. Other ministers keep proposing budgets worth tens of trillions; we’ll restrict that,” he concluded.

He assured that monitoring of economic conditions is carried out daily to ensure national stability.