An employee counts Indonesian rupiah banknotes at a money changer's office in Jakarta. - AFP PHOTO / ADEK BERRY
JAKARTA: Indonesia's annual inflation rate was 1.03% in March, the statistics bureau said on Tuesday, missing market expectations and also staying below the central bank's target range for the third consecutive month.
A Reuters poll of analysts had expected an annual inflation rate of 1.17% in March. Bank Indonesia targets inflation within a range of 1.5% to 3.5%.
Inflation has been very low at the start of 2025, with Indonesia recording its first annual deflation reading in more than two decades in February, as the government offered hefty discounts on some electricity prices.
Even though electricity prices returned to normal in March, there was an ongoing impact for some customers that influenced the March reading, the statistics bureau said.
Authorities have said the low inflation figures were not an indication of weak purchasing power but a reflection of the government's policy, citing higher core inflation readings.
The annual core inflation rate was 2.48% in March, roughly in line with expectations and the same as February's reading.
Indonesia, the world's biggest Muslim-majority country, typically sees demand peak in the lead-up to the Eid al-Fitr festivals, which fell in late March this year. - Reuters
