Jakarta. Indonesia reported on Wednesday that it had recorded a trade surplus for 49 months in a row since May 2020, as the country booked a $2.93 billion surplus last month.

The country’s exports reached $22.33 billion in May, up by 13.82 percent month-to-month or 2.86 percent year-on-year (yoy). Indonesia’s oil and gas exports reached $1.42 billion, while exports outside those sectors reached $20.91 billion, according to senior minister Airlangga Hartarto.

"Indonesia's trade balance in May 2024 had a surplus of $2.93 billion, continuing the surplus trend of 49 consecutive months. The surplus was thanks to the $4.26 billion non-oil and gas sector surplus, which then got subtracted by the $1.33 billion deficit in the oil and gas sector,” Airlangga, who chairs the national export task force steering committee, said.

Indonesia’s exports to China, the US, and Japan had risen. The same goes for other export destinations like ASEAN and the European Union. As manufacturing activities in the country’s trading partners increase, so does the absorption of Indonesian goods -- as seen in China, the US, ASEAN, and the EU, according to Airlangga. 

Exports of almost all commodities grew significantly, with electrical machinery and equipment amounting to $263.6 million in May, up by 26.66 percent. Animal/vegetable fat exports dropped 14.32 percent to $268 million. The processing industry saw a 16.4 percent month-to-month increase in export performance. Mining also witnessed a 6.26 percent increase. Agriculture, forestry, and fishery sectors also recorded a 32.45 percent month-to-month increase, while oil and gas exports rose by 5.12 percent.

“We imported $19.4 billion worth of goods in May 2024, up by 14.82 percent compared to the previous month but dropped 8.83 percent y-o-y. Our non-oil and gas imports totaled $16.65 billion, rising 19.7 percent month-to-month and declining 8.23 percent y-o-y,” Airlangga said.

Indonesia imported $2.75 billion worth of oil and gas, marking a 7.91 percent decline. It also dropped by 12.34 percent y-o-y. 

Indonesia’s imports amounted to $91.19 billion throughout the first five months of 2024, down 0.42 percent. Indonesia mainly imported raw materials -- followed by capital goods and consumer goods. Its largest importers include China, the US, and Thailand. The number of Indonesia’s non-oil and gas imports from the Netherlands saw the largest drop compared to other countries.