Jayanty Nada Shofa, Jakarta – Indonesian car exports reached approximately $2.78 billion in the first half of 2024 with fellow ASEAN member Philippines buying most of the vehicles, according to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS).
The Philippines became the destination for 27.64 percent of the cars that Indonesia sent overseas from January to June 2024.
"This means that 1 out of 4 cars that Indonesia exported [that period] went to the Philippines," Amalia A Widyasanti, the acting head for BPS, told reporters on Monday.
Indonesian-made cars are also popular in Vietnam as 16.17 percent of the exports went to Hanoi, followed by Saudi Arabia (15.52 percent), Mexico (10.53 percent), and the United Arab Emirates (5.46 percent). The car export data encompasses the goods under the HS 8702 and 8702 goods category which comprises passenger cars, as well as vehicles that carry at least 10 people.
"Cars represent 2.4 percent of the non-oil and gas goods that Indonesia exported in January-June 2024," Amalia said.
For reference, Indonesia's non-oil and gas exports in the first 6 months of 2024 amounted to $117.19 billion.
However, Indonesian car exports in the first half had declined year-on-year. Indonesia exported $2.97 billion worth of cars in the same six-month period of 2023.
BPS also reported that Indonesian car exports had been on an upward trend over the past years. For instance, Indonesia shipped out $3.39 billion worth of cars in 2021, and exports rose to $5.57 billion the following year. Indonesian car exports totaled $6.12 billion throughout 2023.
The overall exports stood at $20.84 billion in June, beating the $18.45 billion import and thus indicating a $2.39 billion surplus. This puts Indonesia on a 50-month trade surplus streak since May 2020.