The measures include using excess budget in the balance (SAL), withdrawing stand-by loans, and issuing state securities.
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The government has prepared three anticipatory measures to be implemented in case budget deficit surpasses the target set at 2.4 percent of the GDP in the 2014 revised budget, Finance Minister Chatib Basri said.

"Control measures will be implemented so that in the remaining six months no disrupting fiscal issue will emerge and market will remain calm during the transition period to the new government," he reported here on Thursday.

The current government will end its term later in October this year, and the country will be led by a new government following a presidential election on July 9.

The minister said the anticipatory measures were included in Article 20A of the law on budget that authorizes the government to take every effort to control the budget deficit.

The measures include using excess budget in the balance (SAL), withdrawing stand-by loans, and issuing state securities.

The obligation that arises from the use of the SAL funds, standby loans, and state securities issuance will be included in the state budget, and other provisions on the issue will be regulated through a finance ministers regulation.

"We will take anticipatory measures provided in Article 20A so that the government can act without having to conduct budget revision again, and thus, there will be no reason for a fiscal program being unable to be financed in the new government," he said.

Chatib said the anticipatory measures were created to curb fear over fiscal risks that might occur when the new government effectively operates from October 2014.

"The government must be assured that in October nothing will occur or deficit will rise or funding is not adequate. Worries about fiscal risks must be anticipated," he said.

The government has set basic macroeconomic assumptions in the 2014 revised budget, including economic growth at 5.5 percent, inflation at 5.3 percent, rupiah exchange rate at Rp11,600 per US dollar, and the three-month interest of state bonds at 6.0 percent.

Meanwhile, the Indonesia Crude Price has been set at US$105 per barrel, oil lifting at 818,000 barrels per day, and gas lifting at 1,224,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.

Based on the agreed basic assumptions, state revenues in the revised budget are set at Rp1,635.4 trillion and state expenditures at Rp1,876.9 trillion. Thus, the deficit will reach Rp241.5 trillion or 2.4 percent of the GDP.(*)

Editor: Heru Purwanto
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