Indonesia sees US$1.2 billion surplus in September trade

The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) has revealed that the country’s trade balance reached a US$1.22 billion surplus in September 2016, the highest figure for the past 13 months.

Exports retreated by 1.84 percent month-on-month in September to $12.51 billion as oil and gas exports slumped by 6.78 percent, while non-oil and gas shipments saw a 1.35 percent decline.

“Jewelry and gems recorded the largest decline among non-oil exports in September compared to August this year by $137 million or 25.49 percent,” BPS head Suhariyanto said during a press conference in Jakarta on Monday.

On the import side, the country saw an 8.78 percent drop in September to $11.3 billion. The drop was triggered by low imports of machinery and mechanical equipment that stood at $98.9 million or 5.17 percent. The total imports throughout nine months of the year stood at $98.69 billion and dipped by 8.61 percent compared to the previous year. It was still lower than the total export, which during the same period experienced a 9.41 percent drop at $104.36 billion.

“Thus, the cumulative trade balance from January to September recorded a surplus of $5.67 billion. Despite the surplus, in comparison of January to September 2015, our trade was still negative because of the weak global demand and low commodity prices worldwide,” he said.