Indonesians' love of gas-guzzlers may blunt Widodo fuel policy

[JAKARTA] At the Indonesia International Motor Show last week, car marketer Pankaj Jain didn't have much cause for worry that an impending fuel-price increase by incoming President Joko Widodo would harm sales.

People "buy bigger" in Indonesia, Mr Jain said, as thousands inspected the latest models at a show dominated by sturdy sport utility vehicles and boxy multi-purpose cars. "Here, the MPV market is close to 60 per cent . . . in India it's very small," said the marketing director at Tata Motors' local unit.

The preference for larger cars will probably keep demand for diesel and petrol elevated in the world's fourth-most populous nation, undermining Mr Widodo's pledge to raise subsidised fuel prices and curb the energy imports that have spurred a near-record current-account gap. Big families, bad roads and rising incomes mean the penchant for gas-guzzlers will be hard to break.