Indonesia posts $3.55 billion trade surplus in August, beating expectations
3▲0 ▼0Impact / 5
Indonesia's national statistics agency reported on October 1 that the country recorded a trade surplus of $3.55 billion in August, far above market expectations of a surplus of only about $630 million. August exports rose 6.72% year on year to $26.61 billion, compared with analysts' forecast of a 4.3% increase, driven by higher shipments of non-ferrous base metal products, nickel, aluminum, copper and basic chemical products. Meanwhile, August imports rose 19.09% year on year to $23.06 billion, below analysts' expectations of a 31.14% surge. Data from LSEG showed that the August trade surplus was the highest since September 2025, and the large surplus may help ease concerns about Indonesia's deteriorating current account position, after the country posted its largest deficit since 2018 in the April-to-June quarter.