Joniansyah, Tangerang – The increase in the price of fuel in late May has resulted in the collapse of thousands of small- and medium-scale enterprises (SME) in Tangerang regency. Around 50 percent out of 17,353 SMEs in the region have closed down due to bankruptcy.

“The fuel price increase in concert with a rise in the cost of raw materials has cause many SMEs to close down”, said Nuriman, the head of the SME Section of the Tangerang Regency Cooperatives Office on Thursday June 5.

According to Nuriman, the small-scale enterprises that have fallen into bankruptcy include petty traders, handicraft industries and cottage industries. “The majority are now struggling to survive”, he said.

Examples of the types of enterprises that are suffering from destitution include the doormat handicraft industry, food stall traders, small-scale kerupuk (chips made of flour flavoured with fish or shrimp), tempeh and tofu producers.

The fuel price hikes have resulted in an increase in the price of raw materials, public transport fares and production costs and are impacting upon the production process of a number of home industries.

[Translated by James Balowski.]