JAKARTA, June 2 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia recorded a trade surplus of 160 million U.S. dollars in April, a sharp decline compared to 2.72 billion U.S. dollars in the same month last year, Statistics Indonesia (BPS) announced on Monday.
"This marks 60 consecutive months of trade surpluses since May 2020," said Pudji Ismartini, BPS Deputy for Distribution and Services Statistics, at a press conference.
Exports were valued at 20.74 billion U.S. dollars in April, up 5.76 percent year-on-year, while imports stood at 20.59 billion U.S. dollars, rising 21.84 percent annually.
From January to April 2025, Indonesia's trade balance surplus reached 11.07 billion U.S. dollars, supported by total exports of 87.36 billion U.S. dollars, an increase of 6.65 percent year-on-year-and total imports of 76.29 billion U.S. dollars, up 6.27 percent year-on-year.
Bhima Yudhistira, director of the Center for Economic and Law Studies (CELIOS), said the weakening trade surplus was due to importers frontloading raw materials and capital goods in response to the tariff postponement by the United States.
On the other hand, coal exports dropped by 6 percent and crude palm oil (CPO) plunged by 39 percent due to weakening global demand, Bhima added, while emphasizing the importance of business diversification beyond the coal sector. ■
