Indonesia encourages purchase of domestic products

Special Report:Global Financial Crisis

JAKARTA, Feb. 27 (Chinese media) -- The Indonesian government has asked citizens

to buy their own country's products as an effort to boost domestic market and

provide jobs, Vice President Jusuf Kallasaid here Friday.

The largest economy in Southeast Asia has shifted sales of its products

from overseas to huge domestic market with over 230 million population after the

global financial routs slumped demandand prices of the country's commodities.

"All the countries now want to step up their domestic market. And we must

use our domestic products," Kalla told a press conference here.

The vice president said that the government spending would be prioritized

on the domestic products.

Kalla said that high sales of domestic product could boost the local

industries activities and create more workers.

The weakening of domestic industries activities has triggered massive

layoff in the country. Besides the slowing of the global industries has also led

them to cut million labors, including those from Indonesia. All of those facing

layoff are predicted to top 1 million this year, experts said.

The government has adopted a series of measures to boost purchasing power,

including providing 71.3 trillion rupiah (some 6.2 billion U.S. dollars)

stimulus package to finance massive infrastructure projects.

The central bank has also cut rates by a half percentage point to 8.25

percent earlier this month to boost real sector and defend rupiah. The

government has also cut subsidized-oil prices in January.

The government predicts Indonesia's economy to accelerate at the slower

pace of between 4 to 5 percent this year.