Uproar Over Cattle Tax

DODY Gunawan was astonished to see the rise in beef prices at traditional markets in West Java two weeks ago. Prices had soared to more than Rp140,000 per kilogram, far exceeding the range of Rp105,000-110,000. As the head of statistics at the West Java branch of the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS), he said the jump in meat prices threatened to trigger inflation.

Rising inflation in the first quarter of the year, Dody said, was not altogether surprising. However, inflation due to rising meat prices did not normally occur so soon into the new year. "This is the first time," Dody told Tempo last Monday. Beef prices usually increase during the fasting month of Ramadan and the following end of fasting month Eid al-Fitr holidays.

February 2, 2016