Indonesia’s Trade Balance Continues to Show Positive Results

Jakarta, 1 August – Indonesia’s trade balance continued to post a positive performance. According to Statistics Indonesia (BPS), the country’s goods trade balance recorded a surplus of USD 19.48 billion in the January–June 2025 period, an increase of USD 3.90 billion compared to the same period last year. Indonesia has maintained a trade surplus for 62 consecutive months since May 2020.

In detail, Indonesia’s exports in the January–June 2025 period reached USD 135.41 billion, exceeding imports, which amounted to USD 115.94 billion.

“The surplus in the January–June 2025 period was driven by a USD 23.81 billion surplus in non-oil and gas commodities, while oil and gas commodities still recorded a deficit of USD 8.83 billion,” said Pudji Ismartini, Deputy Chief Statistician for Distribution and Services Statistics at BPS, during a press conference in Jakarta.

Export value in the January–June 2025 period increased by 7.70% compared to the same period last year. Pudji explained that this growth was primarily driven by the manufacturing sector, which recorded an export value of USD 107.60 billion, up 16.57%.

The strong performance of several key commodities continued throughout the January–June 2025 period. Exports of iron and steel reached USD 13.79 billion, up 9.79% compared to the same period last year. Meanwhile, exports of crude palm oil (CPO) and its derivatives rose 24.81% to USD 11.43 billion. However, not all leading commodities posted positive results, with coal exports declining 21.09% to USD 11.97 billion. “Together, these three commodities accounted for around 28.97% of Indonesia’s total non-oil and gas exports in January–June 2025,” Pudji explained.

Pudji continued, “Indonesia’s top three non-oil and gas export destinations are China, the United States, and India, accounting for approximately 41.34% of total non-oil and gas exports in January–June 2025.” China remains the largest market for Indonesia’s non-oil and gas commodities, with exports valued at USD 29.31 billion (22.83%), followed by the United States at USD 14.79 billion (11.52%) and India at USD 8.97 billion (6.99%). Exports to China were dominated by iron and steel, mineral fuels, and nickel products, while exports to the United States were led by machinery and electrical equipment, footwear, also apparel and accessories.

On the import side, Indonesia’s import value in January–June 2025 reached USD 115.94 billion, an increase of 5.25% compared to the same period last year. The main contributors remained in the non-oil and gas sector, with imports valued at USD 100.07 billion, up 8.60%. Meanwhile, imports in the oil and gas sector declined by 11.91% to USD 15.86 billion. In terms of usage, import growth was driven by raw materials or intermediate goods, as well as capital goods. “Imports of capital goods, the primary contributor to overall import growth, reached USD 23.00 billion, up 20.90% compared to the same period last year,” Pudji detailed.

During the January–June 2025 period, China was Indonesia’s largest source of non-oil and gas imports, with a value of USD 40.00 billion (39.97%), followed by Japan at USD 7.47 billion (7.47%) and the United States at USD 4.87 billion (4.86%). Imports from China were dominated by machinery and mechanical equipment, electrical machinery and equipment, as well as vehicles and parts thereof.

The non-oil and gas trade surplus in the first six months of this year was largely supported by five key commodities: animal or vegetable fats and oils (USD 15.74 billion), mineral fuels (USD 13.28 billion), iron and steel (USD 9.04 billion), nickel products (USD 3.99 billion), and footwear (USD 3.18 billion).

From the perspective of country partners, in the January–June 2025 period, Indonesia recorded its largest non-oil and gas trade surpluses with the United States (USD 9.92 billion), India (USD 6.64 billion), and the Philippines (USD 4.36 billion). The main contributors to the surplus with the United States were machinery and electrical equipment and parts thereof, footwear, as well as apparel and accessories.

On the other hand, in the January–June 2025 period, the deepest non-oil and gas trade deficits were recorded with China (USD 10.69 billion), Australia (USD 2.39 billion), and Brazil (USD 0.83 billion). The largest deficit with China was driven by imports of machinery and mechanical equipment and parts thereof, electrical machinery and equipment and parts thereof, as well as vehicles and parts thereof.

For June only, the export value reached USD 23,44 billion, an increase of 11.29% compared to June 2024, while import value stood at USD 19.33 billion, up 4.28 percent from June 2024.

July 2025 Inflation

Statistics Indonesia (BPS) reported that an inflation rate of 0.30% (m-to-m) in July 2025. “The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose from 108.27 in June 2025 to 108.60 in July 2025,” explained Pudji. This contrasts with July 2024, when a deflation of 0.18% was recorded. On a year-on-year basis, inflation stood at 2.37%, while calendar-year inflation reached 1.69%.

The expenditure group contributing the most to monthly inflation was food, beverages, and tobacco, which recorded an inflation rate of 0.74% with a contribution of 0.22% points. The education group experienced an inflation rate of 0.82%, contributing 0.05% points. The housing, water, electricity, and household fuels group posted an inflation rate of 0.11% in July 2025, contributing 0.02% points. The food and beverage/restaurant services group recorded an inflation rate of 0.07%, contributing 0.01% points.

“By component, July 2025 inflation was primarily driven by volatile food prices, contributing 0.20% points to overall inflation,” Pudji explained. The main commodities contributing to inflation in this category were rice, tomatoes, shallots, and bird’s eye chili. The core component contributed 0.08% points, with the largest contributors being primary school fees, junior high school fees, senior high school fees, tutoring fees, and kindergarten fees. Meanwhile, administered prices contributed 0.02% points, mainly driven by gasoline, household fuels, and machine-made clove cigarettes (SKM).

By region, on a month-to-month basis, 37 provinces recorded inflation while one province experienced deflation. “The highest inflation was recorded in the Papua Pegunungan region, at 1.65%, while the deepest deflation occurred in Papua, at 0.34%,” Pudji added.

Farmer’s Terms of Trade (NTP) Rise

BPS also recorded the National NTP in July 2025 at 121.64, an increase of 0.76% compared to June 2025. “The increase in NTP was driven by a 1.18% rise in the farmers’ selling price index (It), while the farmers’ purchasing price index (Ib) rose by 0.42%,” Pudji said. In addition, BPS reported an increase in the average price of rice at the milling, wholesale, and retail levels, by 2.71%, 1.59%, and 1.35% (m-to-m), respectively.

Foreign Tourist Arrivals Increase

The number of international tourist (foreign visitor) arrivals to Indonesia in June 2025 reached 1.42 million, an increase of 18.20% compared to June 2024, which recorded 1.20 million arrivals. “Cumulatively, from January to June 2025, total international tourist arrivals reached 7.05 million, an increase of 9.44% compared to the same period in 2024,” Pudji explained. Furthermore, Pudji detailed that in June 2025, the highest number of foreign visitors came from Malaysia (16.70%), Singapore (13.0%), and Australia (10.9%). The average expenditure per visit in the second quarter was USD 1,199.71, with the largest share spent on accommodation (37.48%) and food and beverages (19.53%).

The next tourism indicator released by BPS is the number of domestic tourist trips, which in June 2025 reached 105.12 million trips, an increase of 25.93% compared to June 2024. “Cumulatively, from January to June 2025, the number of domestic tourist trips reached 613.78 million, an increase of 17.70% compared to the same period last year,” Pudji explained.

Meanwhile, in June 2025, the number of Indonesians traveling abroad, or outbound tourists, reached 727.6 thousand trips, a decline of 15.02% compared to June 2024. Cumulatively, up to June 2025, outbound trips totaled 4.57 million, an increase of 3.25% compared to the same period last year.

Passenger Volume Across Transport Modes

BPS reported that in June 2025, the number of international air transport passengers reached 1.66 million, an increase of 5.46% compared to the same period last year. Passenger departures also increased for rail transport, domestic sea transport, and river, lake, and ferry transport (ASDP). The number of departing rail passengers reached 45.61 million, up 8.79% from June 2024. Domestic sea transport passengers totaled 2.75 million, an increase of 18.68% compared to last year, while ASDP passengers reached 4.84 million, up 4.92%.

Meanwhile, the total of domestic passenger reached 5 million, a decrease of 7.98% compared to June 2024.