Stamp Investment Tip: Indonesia 1988 Butterfly Souvenir Sheet (Scott #1373)

In 1988, Indonesia issued a set and souvenir sheet picturing butterflies (Scott #1371-72, 1373). Only 22,000 of the souvenir sheet were issued, and Scott '12 prices it at $12.00 for unused. Butterflies are among the most popular Animal topicals, so demand for this issue should continue to increase, regardless of what happens to the stamp market in Indonesia.

A recent Price, Waterhouse, Coopers report projects that Indonesia will be one of the world's fastest growing economies over the next forty years. Should this prove accurate, and should a burgeoning Indonesian middle class provide a base for a developing stamp market, then it is likely that the values of the country's better modern souvenir sheets will increase many-fold.

Indonesia is a rapidly developing, though still poor, country of 230 million people, with an annual GDP growth rate hovering around 5%-6%. It is the largest economy in Southeast Asia. While the manufacturing and service sectors are growing rapidly, agriculture still employs more of the working population than either. The country has extensive natural resources, including crude oil, natural gas, tin, copper, and gold. Its major export commodities include oil and gas, electrical appliances, plywood, rubber, and textiles. Like most emerging market nations, Indonesia faces challenges which will have to be addressed, including corruption and major inequities in the distribution of income.