Linda Yulisman, Jakarta – Indonesia's exports were down in January – partly driven by declining shipments to key buyers, including China, Singapore and the US – despite moderate annualized growth, the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) announced on Thursday.
The nation's monthly exports were US$15.49 billion in January, down 9.28 percent from $17.08 billion in December, as exports of non-oil and gas exports dropped 7.9 percent to $12.52 billion and oil and gas exports decreased 14.66 percent to $2.97 billion, the BPS said.
Nevertheless, exports surged 6.07 percent in January, compared to the same period a year earlier, partly attributed to 4.4 percent year-on-year growth of non-oil and gas exports.
"The biggest contributor to non-oil and gas exports was still mineral fuel, with a value of $2.17 billion, followed by fat and animal/vegetable oil totaling $2.14 billion," newly appointed BPS chief Suryamin said during the announcement in Jakarta.
Deputy Trade Minister Bayu Krisnamurthi attributed the declines to the global economic downturn, which first started to affect the nation's exports in October.
"In the beginning of the year, exports still increased, although their growth slowed as the impact of the global crisis hurt the nation's exports," Bayu said in a written statement released on the same day.
Bayu said that Indonesia's non-oil and gas exports to China, for example, declined 17 percent in January, versus a 151 percent increase in the same period last year, while exports to South Korea were down 17 percent in January, versus a 208 percent increase in January 2010.
Japan, China and the United States remained the nation's top three export destinations for non-oil and gas goods, valued at $1.61 billion (12.84 percent share of total non-oil and gas exports), $1.36 billion (10.86 percent) and $1.2 billion (9.56 percent) respectively.
Suryamin said that year-on-year imports surged by 16.02 percent, despite an 11.57 percent decline in imports in January to $14.47 billion from last December, most of which was due to slowing non-oil and gas imports, which were down by 9.72 percent.
On the other side of the equation, China remained the biggest source of imports for Indonesia, with the nation's overall imports from China reaching $2.53 billion, accounting for 21.88 percent of all imports, followed by Japan at $1.74 billion (15.06 percent) and Singapore at $846.8 million (7.31 percent).
Suryamin said that Indonesia's overall trade surplus was $923.4 million in January, down 54.96 percent from $2.05 billion in the same month last year, which he attributed to increased imports of Chinese goods.
According to the BPS, Indonesia's trade deficit with China widened by 78.65 percent to $1.17 billion compared to $654.9 billion a year earlier.
Indonesia's non-oil imports comprise $10.5 billion in raw materials and intermediary goods with (71.94 percent), $3 billion in capital goods (20.38 percent) and consumption goods at $1.1 billion (7.68 percent), Suryamin said.