No. 24/132/DKom 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, 19th May 2022
Head of Communication Department
Erwin Haryono
Executive Director
