Jakarta. Indonesia is confident that its commodity export shake-up will iron out data discrepancies with top trading partners like China and the US.

The government wants to centralize commodity exports in a single company, Danantara Sumberdaya Indonesia (DSI), to prevent under-invoicing that has cost the country $908 billion over the past three decades. This body, formed under the sovereign wealth fund Danantara, will eventually take over the export processes, starting with key commodities: palm oil, coal, and ferroalloys. In the trial period, DSI will handle the filings to prevent exporters from underreporting their shipment volumes.

This new system is expected to boost transparency amid data mismatches, according to senior minister Airlangga Hartarto.

“Oftentimes, our export data does not match the import data of our partners. For instance, our data puts the US trade deficit somewhere around $16 billion to $17 billion. But Washington states its negative trade balance is $20 billion,” Airlangga said as he gathered industry associations in his office on Thursday.

“The same goes for China. Our official record states that total trade is between $110 and $115 billion. China says it should be within a range of $130 billion and $140 billion.”

The latest timeline shows the transition period will begin in June, and the program will be subject to evaluation after three months. DSI’s job will be strictly limited to export filings. Businesses also handle their deals with foreign buyers. The full enforcement shall take place no later than January 2027. DSI will take care of the entire export process, starting from the contract, payment, and shipments.

“This system will lift our bargaining power with foreign markets,” Airlangga said.

It remains unclear whether the centralized control could appease US President Donald Trump’s tariff wrath. The latter has been seeking to impose tariff duties on Indonesia and the rest of the world to rebalance Washington’s huge amounts of imports. 

The American Chamber of Commerce in Indonesia (AmCham Indonesia) was among the business groups invited to the briefing. Only the opening session of the talks was open for press coverage. AmCham Indonesia managing director Donna Priadi admitted that US businesses operating in the country "will try to comply with the policies".

“The devil is in the details. We need to take a closer look at this initiative. As for our inputs, I think this doesn’t only apply to American businesses, but companies want certainty and transparent governance,” Donna told the Jakarta Globe after the meeting.

In a comment on DSI’s establishment, the Foreign Ministry reaffirmed Indonesia’s commitment to an “open, fair, transparent, and rules-based international trade”.

“As we commit to these principles, we cannot leave our national interests of industrialization and moving up the value chain. It is something that we need to implement comprehensively,” the ministry’s spokesperson Vahd Nabyl A Mulachela said.

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