"This slowdown indicates that the global crisis has begun affecting the country`s export performance. Even other countries are affected similarly," he said at a press conference at the Trade Ministry here on Monday.
He pointed out that some of the other countries that experienced a slowdown in exports in January and February 2012 were China, South Korea, Japan, and Brazil.
The export growth of China plunged to 6.9 percent from 21.3 percent, South Korea to 5.6 percent from 30.5 percent, Japan to 0.03 percent from 15.5 percent and Brazil to 7 percent from 35.9 percent, he added.
Although Indonesia`s exports in February 2012 increased by 8.5 percent to US$15.6 billion from the same period in 2011, they slowed down compared to the same period in 2010 when they had grown by 29.1 percent.
The increase in Indonesia`s exports were fueled by oil and gas exports, which grew by 26.4 percent to US$3.3 billion and non-oil/non-gas exports that expanded by 4.6 percent to US$12.3 billion, Bayu said.
Cumulatively, Indonesia`s exports in January and February reached US$31.2 billion, a 7.6 percent increase compared to the same period in 2011, he added.
In February, Indonesia`s imports were US$15 billion, up by 27.3 percent from the same period in 2011. The imports consist of oil and gas imports, which increased by 24.5 percent to US$11.5 billion and non-oil/non-gas imports that rose 27.3 percent to US$3.5 billion, he said.
(SYS/KR-BSR/A014)
Editor: Suryanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2012
