Indonesia's Trade Deficit Balloons to Five-Year High

(Bloomberg) -- Indonesia posted its widest trade deficit in more than five years in November as exports fell, adding pressure on the currency.

The trade deficit was $2.1 billion, much bigger than the $735 million shortfall predicted by economists in a Bloomberg survey, and the worst result since July 2013.

Key Insights

• Imports jumped 11.7 percent from a year earlier, according to figures released by the statistics bureau on Monday. Interestingly, that is the weakest pace since March after the government adopted measures to reduce imports, including higher tariffs on some goods
• Exports fell 3.3 percent, its first decline since June 2017. The government will boost the competitiveness of Indonesian exports, including through incentives and keep reviewing the import policies, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati told reporters in Jakarta. Indonesia needs to be cautious about its export markets as China might have to go through adjustments following the trade war with the U.S., she said
• Indonesia has been swept in an emerging-market rout this year, with the currency losing more than 7 percent against the dollar. The current-account deficit has been among the key vulnerabilities cited by investors
• Indonesian stocks extended their decline, making the benchmark Jakarta Stock Exchange Composite Index among the worst performers in Asia on Monday

--With assistance from Viriya Singgih.

To contact the reporters on this story: Karlis Salna in Jakarta at ksalna@bloomberg.net;Harry Suhartono in Jakarta at hsuhartono@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Nasreen Seria at nseria@bloomberg.net, Karl Lester M. Yap, Thomas Kutty Abraham

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