Indonesia's July exports, imports plunge on yearly basis

[JAKARTA] Indonesia's exports and imports plunged on an annual basis in July, the statistics bureau said on Monday, confounding expectations for the first growth in 22 months.

Exports fell 17.02 per cent in July from a year earlier to US$9.51 billion, the bureau said, versus a Reuters poll forecast for a 0.97 per cent increase in shipments. July export value was the weakest for any month since June 2009.

Imports fell 11.56 per cent on an annual basis in July to US$8.92 billion, compared to a 6.18 per cent gain expected in the poll. July import value was the lowest since November 2009.

For July, Indonesia had a trade surplus of around US$590 million, below analysts' US$800 million surplus forecast.

The bureau said there were only 16 effective working days in July due to Eid al-Fitr celebrations after the Muslim fasting month, and this impacted trade.

REUTERS