Inflation in August below 2 percent: BPS

JAKARTA. The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) has confirmed that the inflation rate in August will be below 2 percent, lower than July’s inflation of 3.29 percent.

“This month’s inflation will be lower than July and below 2 percent,” said the agency’s director of statistics, distribution and services, Sasmito Hadi Wibowo.

He was speaking after a coordination meeting on the minimum wage for the province at the Office of the Coordinating Economic Minister in Jakarta on Thursday.

Sasmito said the lower inflation rate was due to higher gold prices.

He hoped that September’s inflation rate would be far lower than in August as the weakening rupiah was only temporary in nature.

“It is the weakening of rupiah, which is only temporary in nature, that has resulted in increases in import prices. So there should be a chance of deflation in September. Even if there is inflation, it will unlikely be that significant,” said Sasmito.

He said that although the rupiah had weakened, exports had continued to increase in volume but decline in value.