— The Jakarta Post
JAKARTA: Indonesia's economy grew 5.02% in the final quarter of 2024 from a year earlier driven by household spending and investment, official data showed on Wednesday, close to analysts' forecasts and little changed from the rate in the previous quarter.
Analysts polled by Reuters had expected annual growth of 4.98%, after the economy had grown 4.95% in the third quarter.
On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, gross domestic product (GDP) rose 0.53% in the October-December quarter from the previous three months, Statistics Indonesia data showed.
For all of 2024, the economy grew 5.03% from 2023.
Growth in Southeast Asia's largest economy has hovered around 5% since the COVID-19 pandemic, a solid pace but far behind new President Prabowo Subianto's 8% target.
The growth outlook this year is clouded by the prospect of U.S. tariffs disrupting trade and weakening global demand, the central bank said last month when it downgraded its 2025 growth forecast to a range of 4.7%-5.5% from 4.8%-5.6%.
Bank Indonesia has cut interest rates twice since September, by a total of 50 basis points, to try to stimulate the economy.
Prabowo's administration has also launched programmes the government believes would boost growth, including providing electricity tariff discounts to bolster purchasing power, free meals for school children, and building affordable housing.- Reuters
