Indonesia's nickel smelter boom, long promoted as the centerpiece of its downstream industrialization agenda, is entering a new phase. Through Government Regulation No. 28/2025, the government has moved to restrict new smelter permits, prompting questions over whether this signals a response to overcapacity, a recalibration of its downstream strategy or the start of a more measured and deliberate industrial policy.

Indonesia and Australia are moving toward clinching a new, stronger defense treaty that could potentially affect the Indo-Pacific security landscape, particularly in the South China Sea, where tension has been building in recent years due to overlapping territorial claims between China and several Southeast Asian countries. 

The contribution of natural resource export receipt (DHE) to Indonesia's foreign reserves remains limited, intensifying calls to revise Government Regulation (PP) No. 8/2025 on DHE. While the policy temporarily keeps export proceeds onshore, much of the forex (forex) ultimately flows back overseas to service external debt. As a result, the regulation has fallen short of its stated goal of strengthening reserves, an issue that has become more urgent as the rupiah faces renewed depreciation pressures.

After nationwide protests swept the country in late August, the demand for institutional police reform rose to the top of the national agenda following an incident where an armored police vehicle struck and killed a civilian during the demonstrations. Just two months later, President Prabowo Subianto responded by establishing the National Police Reform Acceleration Commission.

The Indonesian government has issued a new regulation to accelerate the construction of facilities under the Red and White Cooperatives (KMP) program, one of President Prabowo Subianto's flagship initiatives. Progress has lagged expectations, with only a fraction of the buildings required to reach the target of 80,000 cooperatives (co-ops) completed so far. State-owned enterprise (SOE) PT Agrinas Pangan Nusantara, formerly the engineering consultancy Yodya Karya, has been appointed to lead the construction. However, the funding mechanism has sparked controversy, as the village fund is being allocated for loan repayments channeled through the Association of State-Owned Banks (Himbara). This reduces the budget available for other essential village functions, such as stunting prevention.

The House of Representatives has enacted the Criminal Law Procedures Code (KUHAP) bill in a significant move by the government to overhaul the colonial-era framework on Indonesia's criminal procedures, despite widespread objections.

The Indonesian government and Bank Indonesia (BI) have once again floated the possibility of redenominating the rupiah. The proposal aims to enhance economic efficiency, stabilize the currency's exchange rate, strengthen public confidence in the rupiah and maintain purchasing power. Critics, however, argue that the initiative risks diverting government resources from more substantive economic priorities. Still, Indonesia's current macroeconomic stability may provide a window for the policy as a corrective measure to past episodes of hyperinflation.

Former president Joko "Jokowi" Widodo is struggling to maintain his political clout in Indonesia. The prolonged controversy surrounding his academic certificate has eroded his credibility, while his clan, once expected to carry on his political legacy, has sought every path to establish meaningful influence. Instead, many of Jokowi's close allies have become entangled in legal troubles, and his sway within President Prabowo Subianto's administration is steadily fading.

Indonesia's economy expanded by a modest 5.04 percent in the third quarter of 2025, adding 1.9 million new jobs over the past year. The government quickly celebrated the achievement, hailing it as proof that economic growth is reaching the people. Yet behind the upbeat headlines lies a deeper question: is this growth truly generating quality employment, or merely fueling the quiet expansion of the informal economy?

Despite the rise in graft scandals over the past year, a recent sting operation by the Corruption Eradication Committee (KPK) in Riau signals that systemic corruption in the country is showing no sign of slowing down.

President Prabowo Subianto has announced that the government will assume responsibility for repaying the Rp 1.2 trillion (US$71.81 million) cost overrun debt incurred by Indonesia's first high-speed railway, Whoosh. Prabowo justified the government's intervention by framing the railway as a public service obligation (PSO), arguing that its benefits extend beyond profit. He further stated that the government intends to fund the repayment using assets recovered from corruption cases, though the feasibility of this approach remains uncertain.

The Rp 200 billion (US$12 million) civil lawsuit against Tempo magazine now being heard at the South Jakarta District Court has all the hallmarks of a concerted government campaign to silence critical media. The suit, filed by Agriculture Minister Amran Sulaiman, is so weak that the court should have dismissed it with prejudice.

Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa credited the result to effective fiscal management, pointing to a 5.49 percent increase in government consumption and a 3.02 percent rise in investment, backed by national strategic projects and social initiatives like the free nutritious meal program and public housing programs. But some analysts say these state-led injections may be propping up growth temporarily rather than signaling a private sector revival.

President Prabowo Subianto's flagship free nutritious meal program has hit a critical juncture. Launched with the ambition of feeding millions and cementing his populist image, the program is now marred by reports of food poisoning, poor governance and slow budget absorption. In response, Prabowo has formed a high-level coordinating team to rescue the initiative before it collapses under its own weight.

Tech giant PT GoTo Gojek Tokopedia has remained under intense public scrutiny throughout 2025. Entering the second quarter amid mounting investor pessimism and slowing revenue growth, GoTo's share price plunged by 24 percent in May — from Rp 85 per share at the end of April to Rp 64 at the end of May. The company's troubles deepened further in July when it became indirectly implicated in the corruption investigation involving former Education Minister Nadiem Makarim and the alleged misuse of Merdeka Belajar digital-procurement funds. Then, the law enforcement conducted a search of of GoTo's office that led them to discover yet another controversy involving GoTo.

President Prabowo Subianto, who often arrives at the presidential office in a locally produced Maung vehicle, has renewed his promise to create Indonesia's first official national car within the next three years. Whether he can succeed where his predecessors failed remains uncertain, as both Soeharto and Joko "Jokowi" Widodo saw their own national car dreams fade due to political and economic missteps.

State-owned telecommunications giant PT Telkom Indonesia (Telkom) has faced tough competition in the government's bidding for broadband wireless access (BWA) rights on the 1.4 gigahertz (GHz) frequency spectrum. The government intends to use this frequency to deliver fast and affordable household internet—targeting 20 million homes with minimum speeds of 100 Mbps and monthly fees of around Rp100,000. As it turns out, Telkom lost bids in all three regions across Indonesia, with the winners being companies affiliated with President Prabowo Subianto's brother, Hashim Djojohadikusumo, and the Sinar Mas Group conglomerate.

The latest Constitutional Court (MK) ruling ordering the House of Representatives to ensure a minimum of 30 percent women representation in all its internal bodies sounds progressive, but implementing it could be a challenge when women make up only 22 percent of all 580 House members.

Economic Economic experts are increasingly pessimistic about Indonesia's economic outlook during President Prabowo Subianto's first year in office, according to a recent survey of 64 economists from diverse institutional backgrounds. Although sentiment improved in the second semester compared to the first, expectations for economic growth remain subdued, while inflationary pressures and labor-market challenges persist.

Indonesia has successfully completed the issuance of its first-ever government bonds (SBN) denominated in Chinese renminbi, executed through offshore dim sum bonds. The issuance forms part of the government's strategy to diversify funding sources for the state budget. It follows earlier foreign-currency SBN issuances in 2025, including those denominated in Japanese yen (samurai bonds) and Australian dollars (kangaroo bonds). The debut of dim sum bonds coincided with a downward revision of the government's SBN issuance target for the fourth quarter of 2025.

Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa is turning his attention to Indonesia's booming illegal thrift trade, an enduring challenge that persists despite years of government crackdowns. Thrifting is deeply rooted in Indonesian culture, not only as a fashion statement but also as a way for many to make ends meet. Yet, Purbaya's latest move signals a renewed determination to protect the domestic textile and garment industry, which continues to struggle against a flood of cheap, second-hand clothing imports.

Barring any last-minute political twists, President Prabowo Subianto's administration appears poised to crown Indonesia's second president and Prabowo's former father-in-law Soeharto as a national hero. The move would mark a dramatic turn in the country's reckoning with its authoritarian past, as no previous president had dared to officially honor the man whose 32-year rule was synonymous with repression, corruption, and nepotism.

President Prabowo Subianto appears to have found in Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa a trusted figure capable of managing Indonesia's state finances with both discipline and political loyalty. In just a few months on the job, Purbaya has shown a willingness to take on elite power brokers, both within the government and from circles close to former president Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, without losing sight of President Prabowo's populist agenda.

Timor-Leste formally joined the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) during the group's summit in Kuala Lumpur, after a long wait, thanks in no small measure to the tireless support of Indonesia, which once brutally occupied the tiny territory. 

The proposal to establish a family office, a private investment entity, from National Economic Council (DEN) head Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan has recently returned to the public spotlight after Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa rejected the use of the state budget (APBN) to fund the venture. Purbaya said the family office project must be developed entirely through DEN's own resources, emphasizing that the Finance Ministry had no role in designing or planning the project. Luhut responded by pointing to a misperception regarding the proposal, clarifying that the planned project had nothing to do with the state budget. Details of the initiative remain vague, however, so it is uncertain how the new entity will be structured and financed.

The House of Representatives' recess budget has nearly doubled this year, despite mass protests over what the public views as lawmakers' excessive housing allowance amid economic hardships and ongoing calls for budget efficiency. Such budgetary controversies will likely persist, given Indonesia's long-standing tradition of poor accountability in public spending.

The appointment of Gen. (ret) Glenny H. Kairupan as President Director and CEO of Indonesia's flag carrier Garuda Indonesia has stirred public debate about whether friendship can lift a troubled airline. Glenny, who took part in combat missions with President Prabowo Subianto, replaces another of Prabowo's close associates, Wamildan Tsani.

Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin has confirmed that Chinese J-10 fighter jets are set to soar across Indonesia's airspace, ending months of speculation. While this procurement follows Indonesia's recent acquisitions of Rafale jets from France and fighter aircraft from Turkey, the Beijing deal has drawn particular attention for its speed and opaque timing.

Several private companies, including Garibaldi "Boy" Thohir's Adaro Energy, have been dragged into the spotlight after prosecutors charged PT Pertamina and its subsidiary, PT Pertamina Patra Niaga (PPN), with corruption that allegedly cost the state trillions of rupiah. The case centers on the underpricing of unsubsidized Solar and Biosolar, Pertamina's diesel and biodiesel fuel brands, sold to numerous private sector buyers. The indictment, which could result in state losses of up to hundreds of trillions of rupiah, has sparked a heated debate among experts and civil society. Some caution against the potential criminalization of private sector buyers, while others insist on pursuing all possible corporate links to the corruption scheme.

President Prabowo Subianto spent much of the first year since his October 2024 inauguration trying to fulfill his campaign promises, but he has also been quietly consolidating power over his political detractors, with a little help from his Army friends.