The Indonesian manufacturing industry is still capable of contributing its best amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Industry Minister Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita has said.

This can be seen from its contribution to Indonesia’s economic growth in the second quarter of 2021, in which the manufacturing industry recorded a growth of 6.91 percent, Kartasasmita said in a written statement here, Friday.

The manufacturing industry is also the biggest contributor to the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP) in the second quarter of 2021, which is 17.34 percent.

Meanwhile, the export performance of the manufacturing industry from January to June 2021 has been recorded at US$81.06 billion and dominated about 78.80 percent of the total national exports that have reached US$102.87 billion.

“This shows that the manufacturing industry has an important role in the national economic growth,” the minister asserted.

One of the factors that contributed to the manufacturing industry’s growth is the policy to extend the government-borne value-added tax to the property sector, Kartasasmita mentioned.

Due to this policy, property sales rose by 15 to 20 percent which boosted demand for the manufacturing industry products that supported the property sector, especially non-metallic mineral goods, such as cement, ceramic, and construction materials that have reached 8.05 percent, he continued. Several industrial sub-sectors have high growth in the second quarter of 2021, which includes transport equipment at 45.70 percent, basic metal at 18.03 percent, machinery at 16.35 percent, rubber, rubber goods and plastic at 11.72 percent, and chemical, pharmacy, as well as traditional medicine at 9.15 percent, the minister added.

Source: Antara News