Indonesia’s trade balance returns to surplus, exports book record high

Indonesia’s trade balance in August 2022 was contributed by the non-oil and non-gas trade surplus of 7.74 billion dollars and the oil and gas trade deficit of 1.98 billion dollars.

 

Jakarta (Indonesia Window) – Indonesia’s Minister of Trade Zulkifli Hasan has said that Indonesia again scored a trade surplus in August 2022 of 5.76 billion U.S. dollars.

The August 2022 surplus was contributed by the non-oil and non-gas trade surplus of 7.74 billion dollars and the oil and gas trade deficit of 1.98 billion dollars, the Ministry of Trade said in an official statement received here on Saturday.

“The trade surplus in August 2022 continues the trend of consecutive surpluses since May 2020. Indonesia has still managed to maintain a record trade surplus for 28 consecutive months,” Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan noted.

The Minister of Trade explained that Indonesia’s non-oil and non-gas trade surplus in August 2022 was still driven by trade with several major trading partner countries.

India became a trading partner country that contributed to the largest surplus with a value of 1.81 billion dollars, followed by the United States with 1.65 billion dollars, the minister said.

The third country that gave the largest contribution to the surplus was the Philippines with a value of 1.09 billion dollars, he said, adding that cumulatively, the trade balance for the January-August 2022 period experienced a surplus of 34.92 billion dollars.

This figure far exceeds the achievement of the trade surplus for the same period in 2021 which only reached 20.71 billion dollars. The trade surplus for the January-August 2022 period was supported by a non-oil and non-gas surplus of 51.67 billion dollars and an oil and gas deficit of 16.76 billion dollars.

“With the high trade surplus in the January-August 2022 period, Indonesia is expected to create a record trade surplus, exceeding that in 2021,” the minister hoped.

August 2022 exports return to record highs in history

According to Minister Zulkifli, exports in August 2022 recorded the highest record in history with a value reaching 27.91 billion dollars.

This value broke the previous record reached in April 2022 (27.32 billion dollars). The export performance in August was supported by Indonesia’s non-oil and non-gas exports worth 26.19 billion dollars and oil and gas exports of 1.72 billion dollars.

Compared to July 2022, the export performance in August 2022 increased by 9.17 percent (month-on-month/mom). This month, non-oil and non-gas exports increased by 8.24 percent (mom) while oil and gas exports increased by 25.59 percent (mom).

Meanwhile, when compared to August 2021, total exports in August 2022 increased by 30.15 percent (year-on-year/yoy).

This high export growth was driven by a significant increase in oil and gas exports by 64.46 percent and non-oil and non-gas exports which increased by 28.39 percent.

In terms of the structure, exports from the industrial sector dominated in August 2022 with a contribution reaching 70.91 percent of Indonesia’s total exports and an increase of 13.49 percent (mom).

“The high contribution and increase in exports of the industrial sector is a manifestation of the quality of Indonesia’s exports which have added value and are competitive,” the minister added.

For this reason, the Ministry of Trade will continue to maintain the momentum of the export growth in the industrial sector in encouraging the national export performance in 2022,” he continued.

In August 2022, several main non-oil and non-gas export products that experienced the highest increase compared to July 2022 (mom), were fats and vegetable oils that rose 25.40 percent, iron and steel (14.38 percent), machinery and electrical equipment and its parts (21.16 percent), and vehicles and spare parts (11.54 percent).

“In the midst of falling prices for iron and steel commodities and fats and vegetable oils, the demand for the exports of these two commodities has increased and has become a driver of Indonesia’s non-oil and non-gas exports in August 2022,” Zulkifli added.

The trade minister pointed out that China, the United States and India will still be the main markets for Indonesia’s non-oil and non-gas exports during August 2022.

The value of non-oil and non-gas exports from the main market reached 11.22 billion dollars with a contribution of 58.65 percent to national non-oil and non-gas exports.

The main markets for Indonesia’s non-oil and non-gas exports that experienced the highest growth in August 2022 (mom) were China that rose 22.61 percent, India (9.10 percent), and Malaysia (8.06 percent).

Meanwhile, total exports during the January-August 2022 period reached 194.60 billion dollars, an increase of 35.42 percent over the same period of the previous year (yoy).

The increase in exports was driven by the strengthening of exports from the non-oil and non-gas sector which rose 35.24 percent (yoy) to 183.73 billion dollars and exports from the oil and gas sector which increased 38.58 percent (yoy) to 10.87 billion dollars.

Reporting by Indonesia Window