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Indonesia achieves highest exports since December 2022, maintains trade surplus
Non-oil and gas exports surged 8.14 percent year-on-year (yoy), while oil and gas exports decreased by 8.73 percent yoy.
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Containers are moved on Sept. 10, 2024, at the Jakarta International Container Terminal (JICT) in Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta. (Antara Foto/Muhammad Adimaja)
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ndonesia’s trade balance remained positive for a 52nd consecutive month as exports exceeded imports by US$2.89 billion in August.
The latest figure marks a significant increase from the $0.47 billion surplus recorded in the preceding month, which was the lowest since May last year.
The latest monthly trade report published by Statistics Indonesia (BPS) on Tuesday further details that Indonesian exports grew by 7.13 percent year-on-year yoy last month to $23.56 billion, the highest figure since December 2022. On a monthly basis, exports were up 5.97 percent. The increase was fueled by non-oil and gas exports, which surged 8.14 percent yoy, while oil and gas exports, on the contrary, decreased by 8.73 percent yoy.
“The annual increase in non-oil and gas export was driven by jewelry, mineral fuels [including coal] and electrical machinery,” BPS undersecretary for services and distribution statistics Pudji Ismartini said during a press briefing on Tuesday.
The latest trade results were a mixed bag for the country’s major export commodities. Coal shipments increased by 9.65 percent yoy to $2.47 billion in August, but exports of steel and crude palm oil (CPO) fell by 10.51 percent yoy and 26.39 percent yoy, respectively.
Bank Permata chief economist Josua Pardede attributed the monthly rise in exports to the upward trend in CPO prices, adding that the CPO price in US dollars surged by 4.08 percent month-to-month, bolstered by the appreciation of the Malaysian ringgit.
“Another significant contributor was copper, which benefitted from the extension of concentrate exports,” he said in a statement on Tuesday.
