VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The weakening of the rupiah against the US dollar which has penetrated the level of Rp 14,000 per US dollar raises concerns about rising inflation levels. However, Head of Center for Economics and Public Policy Studies Gadjah Mada University (UGM), Yogyakarta, Tony Prasetiantono said that there are other things that the government should focus on foreign debt and the ability of Indonesian imports, because until now, the level of inflation in Indonesia has still been under control or has not experienced a significant increase.

“Inflation still seems not too high. Therefore once again, if you count from mathematics from 13,500 to 14,000, it's still small. I just think that is not our concern, because beyond the factor of inflation, we must be concerned on payment of foreign debt, and then our ability to import becomes weak.” Tony Prasetiantono said in a discussion held by a private radio in Jakarta recently.

In response to the impact of rupiah weakening against the US dollar on the real sector, Tony Prasetiantono remarked that the sector is still running well and does not have a significant influence, because nowadays, the producers tend to spend their stock of goods by selling to consumers using the old price. In addition, the producers will not raise the price of goods in the near future to anticipate the fall in demand from consumers that will actually harm them. (VOI/Rezha/RHM)