JAKARTA, June 16 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia's economy is projected to significantly decelerate 3.1 percent in the second quarter, compared to a 2.97-percent economic growth from January to March, a minister said on Tuesday.
The deceleration was due to the COVID-19 pandemic which has dashed economic activities, Indonesian Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said, adding that partial lockdowns along with social distancing have contributed to the downshift.
"The large-scale social restrictions must impact on the economic performance in the second quarter," she told an online press briefing.
"With this very weak growth, it will be very challenging," the minister added.
Still, the minister was sanguine that the economy would recover in the third quarter and the final quarter.
The pandemic has been ravaging Indonesia's exports and imports of capital goods and raw materials, making consumers halt consumption and slowing foreign direct investment.
The government has initially downgraded the economic growth to 2.3 percent this year from 5.02 percent last year. Indrawati said the figure may also change, and the scale of the growth in the third quarter would determine whether or not the change would happen.
Indonesia has reopened mall shopping centers and eased restrictions on air travel along with tight health protocols, and gradually reopened tourist destinations.
The moves are aimed at slowly picking up business activities, although the COVID-19 infection rate has stayed afloat again in recent days.
Indonesia has reported 2,198 COVID-19 deaths and a total of 39,294 infections, the Health Ministry said on Monday. Enditem
