TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Govt moves to level playing field in RI logistics sector
The government has introduced a regulation that will prevent a race to the bottom among logistics providers and require them to expand their services outside profitable regions.
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
A staff of courier service provider PT Tiki Jalur Nugraha Ekakurir, more commonly known as JNE, checks on a package ready for shipment in this photo illustration. (Antara/Septianda Perdana)
T
he government has introduced a regulation that will prevent a race to the bottom among logistics providers and require them to expand their services outside profitable regions, a move that signals a step forward for the logistics industry, albeit some argue it does not go far enough.
Regulation No. 8/2025, signed on May 9, mandates that courier companies operate in at least 50 percent of Indonesia’s 38 provinces. The Communications and Digital Ministry expects compliance within the next 12 to 18 months or businesses could risk losing their licenses.
"We’re not pushing them to build [new facilities], just to ensure coverage," said Gunawan Hutagalung, director of postal services at the communications ministry, on Friday as quoted by CNBC Indonesia, citing the ministry’s push for partnerships with local players to meet the target.
Another key focus of the regulation is preventing predatory pricing with logistics providers now required to maintain sustainable operating costs and profit margins. To that end, the ministry reserves the right to set minimum and maximum tariff limits every six months.
Additionally, the number of days courier services can offer discounts below the basic cost of service is now capped at three days per month.
Edwin Hidayat Abdullah, the ministry’s director general for the digital ecosystem, said that without such regulation, aggressive discounting could lead to a race to the bottom with lower courier wages, unsustainable losses and declining service quality.
However, he clarified that this rule does not directly affect free shipping promos offered by e-commerce platforms.
