Indonesia’s Dec trade surplus shrinks more than expected

INDONESIA’S trade surplus narrowed more than expected to US$3.89 billion in December as export growth weakened while imports slumped, data from the statistics bureau showed on Monday.

A Reuters poll had expected a surplus of US$4.01 billion in December. The surplus in November was worth US$5.16 billion.

Exports from the resource-rich country rose 6.58 per cent on a yearly basis to US$23.83 billion, roughly in line with the poll’s forecast of a 6.65 per cent increase.

Imports declined 6.61 per cent on a yearly basis, the biggest drop in two years, to US$19.94 billion, compared with the poll’s prediction for a 7.58 per cent drop.

South-east Asia’s largest economy saw an export boom for most of 2022 fueled by high global commodity prices. But export growth slowed later in the year as prices moderated.

For all of 2022, exports were worth US$291.98 billion, a historic high for annual shipments and 26.07 per cent higher than in 2021.

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Imports last year were worth US$237.52 billion, up 21.07 per cent from the year before. REUTERS