• Tax in Indonesia: Indonesian Tax-to-GDP Ratio and Tax Compliance Still Low

    The structure of tax revenue in Indonesia has not changed in the past decade resulting in the country’s still low tax-to-GDP ratio of between 12 and 13 percent. Emerging countries such as Indonesia typically have a low tax-to-GDP ratio as the government’s financial management is inadequate (and plagued by corruption). However, it is important for Indonesia to raise this ratio in order to have more funds available to finance the budget deficit, infrastructure development, healthcare, education and other social programs to combat poverty.

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  • Despite Slowing GDP Growth and Trade Deficit, Indonesian Rupiah Appreciates

    Despite the release of slowing Q2-2014 GDP growth as well as the June 2014 trade deficit, the Indonesian rupiah exchange rate appreciated 0.53 percent to IDR 11,698 against the US dollar according to the Bloomberg Dollar Index on Tuesday (05/08). This performance of Indonesia’s currency is in line with the performance of other emerging Asian currencies on today’s trading day. The US dollar weakened against almost all these currencies as lower US yields made investors decide to search for higher returns in Asia.

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  • Number of Foreign Tourists in Indonesia Maintains Growth Momentum

    The number of foreign tourists visiting Indonesia increased 9.56 percent to 4.55 million in the first half of 2014 from 4.15 million foreign visitor arrivals in the same period last year. This result is considerably better than the government’s target of achieving an 8 percentage point growth in the first half of 2014. The Ministry for Tourism and Creative Economy is optimistic that this year’s target of welcoming 9.5 million foreign visitors in Indonesia will be realized. Last year, Indonesia was visited by 8.8 million foreign tourists.

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  • Foreign Banks in Indonesia Post Large Profit on Rupiah Depreciation

    According to data from the Financial Services Authority (OJK), foreign banks operating in Indonesia have posted great profit growth in the January to May 2014 period. Combined, these foreign banks have recorded a 94.36 percentage point growth (year-on-year) in profit to IDR 3.79 trillion (USD $323.9 million) in the first five months of this year. The reason behind this jump in profit is the sharply depreciated rupiah exchange rate. Over the course of 2013, the rupiah fell over 25 percent against the US dollar.

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