Rupiah Plummets; Industry Mulls Revising Car Sales Target
11 March 2015 14:26 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – The Indonesian Automotive Industry Association's (Gaikindo) target to sell 1.2 million units of cars this year is likely to be revised at the end of the first quarter. The revision will take into account the development in the national economic growth and the rupiah rate, Gaikindo chairman Sudirman M. Rusdi said in Jakarta yesterday.
The industry is still waiting for the extent to which the rupiah will be stable. With the rupiah continues to be corrected, employers are still having a hard time determining their next business steps.
According to Gaikindo's records, Indonesia's car-making capacity reaches 1.8 million units per year. This year, the domestic car market is estimated at only 1.1 million to 1.2 million units, while exports volume is projected at some 200,000 units.
University of Indonesia economist Faisal Basri had said the government could get around the rupiah depreciation by simply reducing the imports of products with major contributions to the trade balance. "One of them is the automotive sector," he said.
AMIRULLAH | ROBBY IRFANY