VIVAnews - Export-import activities have slided in the first quarter in 2009. The directorate general of Customs and Excise recorded a 35 percent decreased in exports and 30 percent in imports.
The head of Tanjung Priok Customs and Excise Kushari Supriyanto said that the export-import cutback is vividly seen from the container's number in the port. In the recent months, there were many empty container fields at Tanjung Priok, Supriyanto said.
"The yard occupancy ratio [YOR] level is around 60-70 percent," he said at the Finance Department on Monday, April 13.
While in normal months, container could reach 100 percent or more. The decrease in imports mainly is seen in raw materials since there are many domestic companies which ran out of business, thus it weakens export-import activities.
The director general of Customs and Excise Anwar Suprijadi said that the decline on export-import showed the effect of global monetary slowdown in Indonesia. Despite the slow activity, the income target of the directorate general of Customs and Excise as on April 7 2009 has reached Rp 2.53 trillion.
"The income is less different to the previous [2008] income of customs and excise," Suprijadi said.
The Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati, said that the first quarter export is predicted to grow minus 38.8 percent while imports is predicted to grow minus 38.3 percent. "Non-oil and gas exports is predicted to grow minus 32.5 percent and imports to grow minus 29.9 percent," she said.
But, she stressed that despite the shard decrease in export values, the export volume did not decline in high number. It is predicted that the repairment in export will still be going. The prediction was based on the price of commodities in the last two months which has rebounded.
"Exports value change most likely happens because there's a commodity price stability which tends to rebound," she explained. The price was already positive in March than in February.
The repairment trend can be seen in copper, aluminium, coal, CPO, oil, and pepper. Negative price can still be seen in rubber, rubber product, textile, tin, coffee, and nickel.
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Translated by: Ariyantri E. Tarman
