Indonesia recorded a lower external debt position in Q1/2022.  Indonesia's external debt at the end of Q1/2022 stood at USD411.5 billion, down from USD415.7 billion in the previous quarter.  Such developments were explained by lower external debt positions in the public sector (Government and Central Bank) and private sector.  Annually, therefore, the position of external debt experienced a deeper 1.1% (yoy) contraction in the first quarter of Q1/2022, after declining 0.3% (yoy) in the previous quarter.

The trend of declining Government's external debt continued in Q1/2022. The position of Government's external debt  falling to USD196.2 billion from USD200.2 billion in the previous period. Annually, growth of government external debt recorded a deeper 3.4% (yoy) contraction compared with negative 3.0% (yoy) in the previous quarter.  Declines were recorded across several series of maturing government securities (SBN), including domestic and foreign currency SBN, coupled with a net repayment on maturing loans for the period from January-March 2022, dominated by bilateral loans.  In addition, elevated global financial market volatility triggered a rebalancing from domestic SBN to other instruments, thus reducing the proportion of non-resident investor holdings of domestic SBN.  External debt disbursements in Q1/2022 were prioritised to support the Government's priority expenditures, particularly Covid-19 containment measures and the national economic recovery program.  The Government is still firmly committed to maintaining credibility by servicing principal and interest repayment obligations punctually, while managing external debt prudently, credibly and accountably. Among others, priority expenditures as of March 2022 included human health and social activities (24.6% of total government external debt), education (16.5%), public administration, defence and compulsory social security (15.1%), construction (14.2%) as well as insurance and financial services (11.7%).  The current position of Government's external debt is considered safe and manageable considering that 99.9% is dominated by long-term maturities.

Private external debt experienced a deeper contraction compared with conditions in the previous quarter. Private external debt in Q1/2022 decreased to USD206.4 billion from USD206.5 billion in Q4/2021. Annually, the decline of private external debt increased to 1.8% (yoy) from 0.6% (yoy) in the previous period. The latest developments were caused by payments on foreign loans and debt securities maturing in the Q1/2022, prompting respective external debt contractions among financial corporations and non-financial corporations of 5.1% (yoy) and 1.0% (yoy).  By sector, the main contributors to private external debt in the reporting period were insurance and financial services, electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply, the manufacturing industry as well as mining and drilling, dominating 76.6% of total private external debt. Furthermore, 76.0% of total private external debt was dominated by long-term tenors.

The structure of external debt in Indonesia remains sound, supported by prudential management.  External debt in Indonesia was still manageable in Q1/2022, as confirmed by a lower ratio of external debt to gross domestic product (GDP) at 33.7% compared with 35.0% in the previous quarter.  In addition, external debt in Indonesia remains dominated by long-term debt, accounting for 87.9% of the total.  Seeking to maintain a sound structure, Bank Indonesia and the Government continue to strengthen coordination in terms of monitoring external debt, supported by the application of prudential principles, while optimising the role of debt to support development financing and drive the national economic recovery as well as minimise the risks that could impact economic stability.

Further information and metadata are presented in the publication of Indonesia's External Debt Statistics (SULNI) May 2022 edition on the Bank Indonesia website. This publication can also be accessed through the Ministry of Finance website.

Jakarta, 19^th May 2022

Head of Communication Department

Erwin Haryono

Executive Director