Jakarta. Indonesian stocks extended their gains on Tuesday, with the Jakarta Composite Index (JCI) opening 17 points, or 0.3%, higher at 5,933 as investors drew support from optimism over lower future spending on the government's Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program and another strong lead from Wall Street's technology rally.

The benchmark index traded in positive territory between 5,930 and 5,943 in early trade.

According to RTI data, 568.22 million shares had changed hands in the opening minutes, with turnover reaching Rp 347.4 billion ($19.3 million) across 51,860 transactions. Gainers outnumbered losers, with 267 stocks advancing, 121 declining, and 240 unchanged.

Phintraco Sekuritas noted that Monday's trading activity remained subdued, with total trading volume of more than 19.6 billion shares and transaction value exceeding Rp 9.4 trillion.

"Those figures were well below the daily average of more than 41 billion shares in trading volume and around Rp 24 trillion in transaction value," the brokerage said.

Phintraco attributed the softer trading activity to a market increasingly dominated by domestic investors, while many participants remain on the sidelines amid a lack of strong positive catalysts and a busy initial public offering (IPO) pipeline.

The brokerage also said the ongoing school holiday season and the 2026 FIFA World Cup are likely contributing to weaker trading volumes.

On the domestic front, Phintraco highlighted expectations that the House of Representatives' Budget Committee chairman projects the MBG program's budget requirement could fall to around Rp 174 trillion in 2027 from Rp 268 trillion. The estimate is based on revised requirements for MBG kitchens (SPPG) and the number of beneficiaries.

The number of required kitchen units is projected to be reduced to around 21,000 from an earlier estimate of 27,000, serving approximately 84 million student beneficiaries. "If the program's budget can be reduced, it would ease pressure on the state budget deficit and is likely to be viewed positively by the market," Phintraco said.

Meanwhile, Kiwoom Sekuritas Indonesia said Indonesia and Singapore have strengthened their strategic energy partnership by appointing BPI Danantara to lead a cross-border electricity trade project.

"Through its subsidiary, Danantara Investment Management (DIM), Danantara signed a memorandum of understanding with Keppel Electric and Sembcorp Utilities to explore purchases of low-carbon electricity from Indonesia. It also partnered with Singapore Energy Interconnections (SGEI) to develop cross-border power grid interconnections between the two countries," Kiwoom said.

Kiwoom noted that the cooperation is among 26 agreements reached during the Indonesia-Singapore Leaders' Retreat, reinforcing Indonesia's ambition to become a regional supplier of clean energy while supporting the ASEAN Power Grid initiative.

Global sentiment also remained supportive after US equities rallied overnight, led by a rebound in artificial intelligence-related stocks.

The S&P 500 gained 0.7%, ending within 1% of its record high, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.1%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 155 points, or 0.3%, to close at another record.

Across Asia on Tuesday morning, Japan's Nikkei fell 1.17%, South Korea's Kospi dropped 5.11%, China's Shanghai Composite slipped 0.69%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.77%.

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