more than half have been forced to shut down
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Indonesian Entrepreneur Association (APINDO) chairman Sofjan Wanandi has stated that businesses in Jakarta lost at least Rp 1 trillion due to delayed delivery of raw materials in the wake of floods that have inundated the capital since January 15.

"The minimum loss is a total of Rp1 trillion, incurred by various industries, especially upstream industries, because the raw materials cannot be delivered to the downstream industries," he said here on Tuesday.

Sofjan noted that the estimated loss did not include the losses that were yet to be reported by several other industries, such as the insurance industry, since the flood had claimed many lives and destroyed a number of vehicles.

"There are many industries that have not yet reported their material losses, but it seems the retail industry has been hit the hardest," he said.

Sofyan stated that the flooding hampered many businesses in the Jakarta Industrial Estate Pulogadung (JIEP).

"I have received a report that out of a total of 375 factories in JIEP, more than half have been forced to shut down because the workers are unable to get inside," he said.

The floods disrupted the transportation of raw materials from the capital city to the industrial areas. Besides, electricity supply was also cut to many areas, such as Pulogadung, Tangerang and Banten.

Sofyan said the upstream industry resumed normal activities on Monday, but transportation expenses had increased as a result of the floods.

"Therefore, businesses are facing problems due to the increased selling price of their products," he explained.

"Our expenditure has gone up, but if we raise the price of our goods, no one wants to buy them. We are yet to find a solution to this problem," Sofyan said.

He expressed hope that the flooding problem would be resolved soon "so that our businesses don't suffer more".

"We hope the central government and local governments in Jakarta, Banten and Tangerang, would take steps to save the city from future floods," Sofyan added.
(S038/INE)

Editor: Ella Syafputri
Copyright © ANTARA 2013