…sustainable growth and improvement of demand needs to be maintained in order to support economic growth and serve as a strong cushion in facing the risk of global economic turmoil.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - High domestic demand during Eid al-Fitr this year has boosted the Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) of national manufacturers, according to the Finance Ministry.

The national manufacturing sector recorded consistent expansion for 20 consecutive months all the way till April 2023 to record a level of 52.7, up from 51.9 in March.

"Stronger production activities were reflected in the purchases of input items to fulfill those demands. The increase in production was also marked by the expansion of job vacancies, which also increased," Head of Fiscal Policy at the Finance Ministry Febrio Kacaribu said in an official statement received here on Wednesday.

However, with the global economy witnessing some slowdown, export demand remained at a moderate pace, he informed.

Just like in Indonesia, the PMI of neighboring countries, such as Thailand (60.4) and Myanmar (57.4), also saw some increase in April. Meanwhile, Japan and Malaysia recorded a PMI level of 49.5 and 48.8, respectively.

A reading above 50 reflects business sector expansion, whereas a level below 50 indicates contraction.

In general, there has been strong hope and the outlook has remained optimistic in the manufacturing sector since November 2022, he observed.

Kacaribu said that producers see that the prospect of short-term growth is still relatively good for supporting their products in the future.

"With this optimism, sustainable growth and improvement of demand needs to be maintained in order to support economic growth and serve as a strong cushion in facing the risk of global economic turmoil," he elaborated.

Tim Moore, Economic Indices Director at S&P Global Market Intelligence, opined that the Indonesian manufacturing industry has repeatedly found the best momentums.

The business condition has shown stronger domestic demand, which has prompted the fastest increase in new demand and production volume in seven months.

Goods producers are harboring high hopes in terms of short-term growth prospects and have remained confident of the highest production expansion since November.

“Moreover, the job market continued (to grow) in April, and purchase stock accumulated at the most rapid pace in 16 months to anticipate the increase in production schedules," Moore explained.

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Translator: Agatha Olivia Victoria, Mecca Yumna
Editor: Sri Haryati
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