No. 26/121/DKom
Indonesia's external debt declined in April 2024. The position of Indonesia's external debt in April 2024 was recorded at USD398.3 billion, down from USD404.8 billion in March 2024. Annually, Indonesia's external debt posted a 1.5% (yoy) contraction in the reporting period after expanding 0.2% (yoy) in March 2024. The lower external debt position stemmed from both the public and private sectors.
Government external debt continued tracking a downward trend. The position of government external debt in April 2024 stood at USD189.1 billion, retreating from USD192.2 billion in March 2024. Annually, government external debt experienced a deeper 2.6% (yoy) contraction in the reporting period after declining 0.9% (yoy) in the previous month. The decline was primarily influenced by a rebalancing of non-resident investor asset placement from domestic government securities (SBN) to other instruments in response to increasing global financial market uncertainty. Meanwhile, the Government remains firmly committed to preserving credibility in servicing principal and interest payments promptly, as well as managing external debt with flexibility and strategic opportunism concerning the timing, tenor, currency and instruments to secure the most efficient and optimal financing. External debt, as a component of State Revenue and Expenditure Budget (APBN) financing instruments, is consistently geared towards supporting government efforts to finance priority sectors, including human health and social activities (20.9% of total government external debt); public administration, defence and compulsory social security (18.6%); education (16.8%); construction (13.6%); as well as insurance and financial services (9.6%), among others. The current state of government external debt is considered safe and manageable, with nearly all, or 99.98% of total government external debt, dominated by long-term maturities.
Private external debt also declined. The position of private external debt in April 2024 was recorded at USD195.2 billion, lower than USD198.0 billion in March 2024. Annually, the position of private external debt experienced a deeper 2.9% (yoy) contraction in April 2024 compared with a 1.3% (yoy) contraction the month earlier. The decline was observed in both financial corporations and non-financial corporations, which contracted 5.7% (yoy) and 2.2% (yoy), respectively. By sector, the main contributors to private external debt in the reporting period were the manufacturing industry; electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply; insurance and financial services; as well as mining and quarrying, collectively accounting for 78.3% of total private external debt. Furthermore, 76.5% of total private external debt was dominated by long-term tenors.
The structure of external debt in Indonesia remains sound, supported by prudential management. Such developments were reflected in a lower ratio of external debt to gross domestic product (GDP) from 29.3% in March 2024 to 29.1% in April 2024, with long-term debt dominating 87.1% of total external debt. To maintain a healthy structure, Bank Indonesia and the Government will continue strengthening inter-agency coordination to monitor external debt developments. The function of external debt will also be optimised to support development financing and nurture sustainable economic growth nationally by minimising the risks that could disrupt economic stability.
The latest external debt data and metadata are presented in the publication of Indonesia's External Debt Statistics (SULNI) June 2024 edition on the Bank Indonesia website. This publication can also be accessed via the Ministry of Finance website.
Jakarta 14th June 2024
Communication Department
Erwin Haryono
Assistant Governor
