Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa met with key officials from\nglobal financial institutions and investors during his visit to the\nUnited States.<\/p>\n
Purbaya recounted his meetings with major investment institutions, or\n\u2018elephants\u2019, such as BlackRock and Fidelity, during a press briefing at\nthe Juanda I Building in Jakarta today (21\/4\/2025).<\/p>\n
These institutions, Purbaya said, wanted to assess whether\nIndonesia\u2019s fiscal policies were reasonable. However, he emphasised that\nthe most important aspect was conveying the prospects of the Indonesian\neconomy.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe key thing is they wanted to see the messenger, whether the way\nof conveying it makes sense, or the people delivering it. It turns out\nthey\u2019re straightforward, and I\u2019m smart too. So after that, doubts about\nfiscal matters disappeared, no more questions about deficits and such,\u201d\nPurbaya stated.<\/p>\n
Following that, he met again with investors in New York who closely\nexamined Indonesia\u2019s economic conditions.<\/p>\n
He then travelled to Washington DC, where he met 17 individuals and\nengaged in lively debates.<\/p>\n
One topic discussed was the Indonesian government\u2019s steps to maintain\na 3% deficit amid rising subsidies due to surging global crude oil\nprices.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, we\u2019ve explained it so far, we explained it here. We\u2019re\ngradually saving here and there, plus additional income from natural\nresources and minerals. We also said not to worry. If anything happens,\nwe\u2019re still safe because we have a buffer of Rp20 trillion. That\u2019s the\nmain point,\u201d Purbaya said.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, Purbaya revealed that the IMF and World Bank offered\nloans to Indonesia. According to Purbaya, the two institutions could\noffer between US$20 billion and US$30 billion to countries in need. To\nthe World Bank\u2019s offer, Purbaya said he remained silent. However, to the\nIMF, he rejected the offer.<\/p>\n
\u201cI stayed quiet to the WB. Last time they offered again, telling me\nto borrow from them. The IMF was the same. I said thank you for the\noffer, I don\u2019t need it yet, I already have US$25 billion myself for\nthat. So our financial condition is still safe,\u201d he asserted.<\/p>\n
In addition, Finance Minister Purbaya held a meeting with the\nmanagement of a major global debt rating agency, Standard & Poor\u2019s\n(S&P).<\/p>\n
In that meeting, Purbaya said S&P wanted to visit him in Jakarta\nin June 2026 to discuss fiscal management and Indonesia\u2019s economic\nstability.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I also told S&P at that time, they\u2019re coming here in June,\nit\u2019s not to change our outlook, just to discuss whether your steps are\nright or not,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Moreover, S&P provided assurance during the meeting that\nIndonesia\u2019s debt or credit rating would remain stable for the next two\nyears, until 2028.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey said our rating is safe for the next two years, I didn\u2019t quite\nunderstand that but they said so. They asked me, do you understand what\nI just said? No, I don\u2019t, please explain. It means we won\u2019t change the\nrating for the next two years,\u201d Purbaya explained.<\/p>\n
Purbaya said the reason S&P is confident not to change\nIndonesia\u2019s BBB rating is due to the safe economic fundamentals.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe economic foundation is still good amid these turbulences and can\nbe managed,\u201d Purbaya stated.<\/p>\n
As is known, the global rating agency S&P Global has released a\nreport on the impact of surging energy prices on the fiscal and external\nconditions of Southeast Asian countries.<\/p>\n
In the report, S&P highlighted four major countries in the\nregion, namely Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam, which are\nseen to face similar pressures if the global energy turmoil due to the\nMiddle East conflict persists longer.<\/p>\n
S&P explained that the fiscal and external resilience of these\ncountries could erode if the global energy market does not normalise\nsoon in the coming months. In their base scenario, the war\u2019s intensity\nis expected to peak and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz to\nbegin easing in April.<\/p>\n
However, disruptions are assessed to potentially last for months,\nespecially if damage to energy infrastructure in the Middle East delays\nthe recovery of oil and gas production.<\/p>\n
Indonesia was one of the main focuses. S&P affirmed that\nIndonesia\u2019s current debt rating is at BBB\/Stable\/A-2.<\/p>\n
However, the agency also assessed that Indonesia\u2019s rating is one of\nthe most vulnerable to pressure if the conflict prolongs and energy\nmarket disruptions continue.<\/p>\n
As a note, global rating agencies are indeed paying close attention\nto Indonesia\u2019s condition. For instance, Moody\u2019s Ratings on 5 February\n2026 changed Indonesia\u2019s sovereign outlook to negative from stable,\nwhile maintaining the rating at Baa2.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/here-are-the-results-of-purbayas-visit-to-the-us-meeting-elephants-to-debating-imf-wb-1776815795", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }