JAKARTA, May 5 (Xinhua) -- A senior official at Indonesia's central bank expressed concerns about the slowing key sectors of manufacture and trade in the first quarter this year, which are below the economy growth in the period of 5.01 percent.
He said the slowing growths in the two sectors, which have significant contributions to the nation's economy, may hinder the nation's efforts in pursuing higher growths in the following quarters this year.
"Manufacture sector, which only grew 4.21 percent from January to March this year was way too low for the economy, given the facts that Indonesia has great potentialities as manufacture basis (for investors)," Bank Indonesia (BI) Deputy Governor Mirza Adityaswara said on Friday.
The figure was lower than 4.59 percent in the corresponding period last year.
Manufacture contributed 20.47 percent to the nation's economy growth in the first quarter.
Mirza said the government should intensify the implementation of reform drive in manufacture sector to further boost it, and simplify the procedures to start business both in the central government and in regional ones.
Besides the manufacture sector, Mirza was also concerned about slowdown in trade sector that stood at 4.77 percent. The sector accounts for 13.8 percent of the nation's economy in the period this year.
"Growth in the sector can actually grow up to 6 percent during vibrant season. The slowing growth in the first quarter showed that demands in family consumption have not entirely recovered," he said.
Commenting on the 5.01-percent growth attained by the nation's economy in the first quarter, Mirza said that it was above the central bank's initial estimate at below 5 percent.
The Indonesian central bank initially forecast that the nation may see 5 to 5.4 percent economic growth this year.
