The Government stated
pressures from imported food increased in 2014, because the global food
condition indicated recovery and was more competitive. The improved global
condition was seen in increased world’s GDP from 2.1% to 2.8%. The growth was
expected to happen in Indonesia’s trading counterparts among others the USA,
Uni Europe, China, and India. Besides the world’s food reserves was also
predicted to increase, around 1.4% for wheat and 10.1% for rice. The increase
of world’s food reserves made the world more secure.
If global production increased, most probably price of
food would go down. Meaning it was opportunity for importers to import food
massively. Depurty Minister of Trade Bayu Krisnamurthi stated on Thursday
[16/1] restriction of essential goods would still be Government’s homework this
year. Moreover it was in line with growth of demand at home which was today no
longer centered in big cities.
Bayu explained that the hardest task in trading for 2014
was to tame inflation. Such was because domestic economy was still the backbone
of national economic growth. “We predict domestic consumption would grow
between 7% - 19% with broad range including F&B, electronics, housing,
cosmetics, garment, footwear etc.” Bayu concluded.
Due to hard challenge of controlling inflation, Bayu
stated that various basic need had to be imported this year as domestic supply
was still below demand. Import pressures of food was a serious challenge
domestic agriculture. For that matter this year the Government planned to spur
on production output to keep up worth demand. Bayu admitted he just had to
adopt import policy to maintain price stability in the market. Such was his
respond to criticism addressed to the Ministry of Trade who tend to choose to
import food, which made the domestic market to be stormed by imported food.
He underscored that import was only exercised to
stabilize prices. For example, price of garlic would be beyond control if the
Government did not adopt importing policy. National garlic consumption in 2013
was 400,000 tons, yet national production was only 20,000 tons. The task of the
Ministry of Trade, Bayu said, was to jack up food productivity as many agro
products were low. According to Bayu, if the Government did not take to
importing garlic, price of garlic might soar up to Rp 50.000.- per kg while
inflation rate had broken through 8.3%.
Meanwhile the Indonesian Executive Director for Global
Justice reza Damanik said that supposedly the Government could reduce
dependency on importing of non oil-gas commodities especially food so trade
balance could be improved. He said that the main cause of deficit in trade
balance was import of oil gas products, but import of non oil-gas products was
not less determinant. Therefore the setback could begin from dependency on
import of non oil-gas products, especially food.
Data of the Ministry of Trade had it that since
2009-2012, Indonesia’s import of food posted increase up to 100.4% from USD
8.42 billion to USD 17.8 billion. The highest increase was posted mainly in
coffee, tea and chili which jumped up by 425.12% from USD 62.1 million in 2009
to USD 326.1 million. Cereal increased by 146.6% from USD 1.5 billion to USD
3.7 billion. Besides import of sugar and sugar testis also increased from USD
704.6 million to USD 1.8 billion; the same was with seeds and cereals which
increased from USD 826.9 million to become USD 1,491 million, flour became USD
645.7 against 2009 which was still around USD 353.9 million. (SS)
Business News - January 22, 2014
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