Jakarta. Indonesia maintained its positive trade balance for the 51st consecutive month in July since May 2020, although the surplus recorded last month has narrowed, according to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) on Thursday.

Indonesia saw a $470 million overall surplus in July, down from the $2.39 billion recorded the previous month. This marked a decline compared to the $1.29 billion surplus booked in July 2023, BPS data showed. The Southeast Asian country collected a non-oil and gas surplus worth $2.61 billion.

Indonesia enjoyed the biggest surplus with the US, amounting to $1.27 billion in July’s non-oil and gas trade, followed by India ($1.23 billion) and the Philippines ($742.9 million). 

“Electrical machinery and equipment were the biggest driver of Indonesia’s surplus with the US,” Amalia A Widyasanti, the acting head at BPS, told a press conference in Jakarta.  The particular goods contributed $287.5 million to the positive trade balance.

However, Indonesia suffered a $1.7 billion deficit with China that month. This is more than twofold the $682 million deficit Jakarta recorded with Beijing the month before. Australia was the second-largest contributor to the deficit in July, reaching $602.8 million. Indonesia had a negative trade balance worth $402.5 million with close neighbor Singapore.

Indonesia’s monthly exports in July hit $22.21 billion, up by 6.55 percent month-to-month. July export numbers also went up 6.46 percent year-on-year. BPS attributed the higher monthly exports to the mining sector, while the processing industry had mainly spurred the yearly increase. Imports jumped 17.82 percent month-to-month to $21.74 billion in July.  Indonesia also imported 11.07 percent more on a YoY basis.