Purbaya seeks to strengthen local marketplaces, curb dominance of other countries

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa is examining efforts to strengthen local marketplace platforms to prevent the dominance of global players amid the rapid growth of digital trade. Purbaya assesses that the current marketplace ecosystem is largely controlled by foreign companies. This situation, he says, poses a challenge to local business actors. “I’m thinking about whether there are domestic companies that can be revived to compete with China’s dominance,” Purbaya told reporters at the Directorate General of Taxes office, Ministry of Finance, Jakarta, on Saturday. To introduce domestic competitors, Purbaya is studying the existing marketplace ecosystem, including those collaborating with social media such as Tokopedia and TikTok. This step is one of Purbaya’s efforts to strengthen the national economy. Amid global geopolitical turmoil, the Finance Minister is implementing a strategy to bolster domestic demand to prevent dependence on external factors. In addition to marketplaces, the state treasurer is preparing plans to support the private sector, maintain public purchasing power, manage subsidised fuel oil (BBM) prices from the impact of global oil prices, and encourage government spending to be absorbed on time. “Even though the global situation is like that, demand (domestic) is still strong. It might slow down if (the conflict) continues to rise. But I will safeguard domestic demand,” he stated. Overall, he assesses that the national economy is relatively stable, as seen in various economic indicators and his field reviews during Ramadan. He is also optimistic that economic growth in the first quarter of 2026 can reach 5.7 percent. “The latest figure is that economic growth could be 5.6-5.7 percent,” he said.