Indonesia resumes penalising exporters that break repatriation rules

INDONESIA’S central bank has reinstated rules to sanction natural resources exporters that do not receive their earnings through domestic banks, deputy governor Juda Agung said on Thursday (Sep 22).

Indonesia in 2019 issued rules requiring natural resource exporters to place their earnings in the domestic banking system, with the aim of increasing onshore US dollar supply and strengthening the rupiah currency. But penalties for rule-breakers were waived during the pandemic.

“There has been a number of exporters that were sanctioned,” Juda said. Some were sanctioned because they have not opened special bank accounts for their export earnings, while others because the earnings have not been deposited onshore, he added, without sharing the number of exporters affected.

Bank Indonesia governor Perry Warjiyo on Thursday said the rupiah should strengthen due to strong exports performance.

The resource-rich country is on track to record its highest level of annual exports in history this year, as shipments got a boost from the upward cycle in commodity prices. Indonesia booked its highest monthly exports on record in August. REUTERS