JAKARTA: Indonesia recorded a hefty trade surplus of US$4.3bil in May, fuelled by a surge in exports of vegetable oils and steel.
According to data from Statistics Indonesia (BPS), the figure marks a sharp rebound from the modest monthly surplus in April of around US$160mil – the smallest in five years.
“The trade surplus in May was supported by non-oil and gas commodities such as animal and vegetable oils, mineral fuels, as well as iron and steel,” Pudji Ismartini, distribution and services deputy at BPS, told a press conference.
The non-oil and gas segment recorded a surplus of US$5.83bil, while oil and gas ran a US$1.53bil deficit, driven mainly by an increase in imports of refined fuels and crude oil.
Overall exports in May grew 9.68% year-on-year (y-o-y) to US$24.61bil.
Shipments of animal and vegetable oils soared 63% y-o-y as crude palm oil (CPO), the country’s top commodity, raked in export earnings of US$1.85bil.
Exports of steel and electric machines jumped 27% and 45%, respectively, compared to the same period last year.
Imports grew 4.14% y-o-y to US$20.31bil led by increases in capital and consumer goods, with the former surging 24.85% y-o-y and the latter ticking up 5.28%.
In contrast, imports of intermediate goods fell 1.18%, in line with continuing weakness in domestic manufacturing activity.
The Indonesia manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) from S&P Global, released yesterday, dropped to a reading of 46.9 in June from 47.4 in May, indicating a further deterioration in the health of goods-producing industries.
The report showed a decline in materials purchases and inventory, with both raw materials and finished goods falling for a third straight month. Although input cost inflation eased to its slowest pace since October 2020, firms reported ongoing pressure from higher prices of raw materials.
The United States has been the largest contributor to Indonesia’s trade surplus over the first five months of the year with US$7.08bil, up 31% from US$5.37bil recorded in the January to May period last year, led by imports of electric machines, footwear and garments from Indonesia. — The Jakarta Post/ANN
