Indonesia’s trade surplus beats forecast in August

[JAKARTA] Indonesia recorded a US$2.9 billion trade surplus last month, bolstered by stronger exports, based on data from the Statistics Bureau on Tuesday (Sep 17).

The surplus exceeded July’s US$470 million and surpassed market expectations of US$2 billion, as projected in a Reuters poll.

Exports from South-east Asia’s largest economy rose 7.1 per cent year on year to US$23.6 billion last month, driven by increased shipments of non-oil and gas commodities such as gold and jewellery, fossil fuels, and electrical machinery, equipment, and their components.