JAKARTA: Data released by Central Statistics Agency (BPS) on Thursday showed that Indonesia’s November trade surplus came in at US$0.84 billion, bigger than the consensus forecast of US$0.818 billion. Growth in surplus in November was backed by rising exports and imports.
Figures from the Central Statistics Agency revealed that Indonesia’s November exports increased by 21.34 percent year-on-year to $13.5 billion, mainly supported by higher exports of coal and crude palm oil to India and China. “The spectacular increase in exports occurred in both the non-oil and oil sectors. The highest jump was in non-oil exports of animal fat and vegetable oil products, which accounted for $366.1 million,” said BPS deputy head of distribution and statistics Sasmito Hadi Wibowo.
Meanwhile, imports grew by 9.88 percent to $12.66 billion in November compared to the same period last year. The increase was triggered by higher non-oil imports of machinery and electrical equipment, while the biggest drop was for ships. Economists had expected a 12.5 percent rise in exports and 0.1 percent expansion in imports.
