Dion Bisara & Muhamad Al Azhari – Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati is expecting the country's annual growth to rebound in the third quarter, supported by global economic recovery.
"Our [annual] growth is likely to be in a range of 4.1 percent to 4.3 percent in the third quarter [of 2009]," Sri Mulyani said, as compared to 4 percent in the previous quarter.
The finance minister is expecting accelerated spending in the fourth quarter. "Government spending was not too great in the third quarter. It's usually like this. But in the fourth quarter, it should pick up. In the fourth quarter, I think growth will come in at 4.5 percent," she said.
Budget deficit realization up to the end of September stood at only Rp 33.23 trillion ($3.52 billion), compared with the targeted Rp 129 trillion, reflecting sluggish government spending on projects intended to stimulate the economy.
Third-quarter GDP data is scheduled to be released by the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) on Nov. 10.