Downstreaming exports to create new economic sources for Indonesia

The Head of Research at the NEXT Indonesia Center, Ade Holis, has stated that strengthening downstream processing and export diversification is a crucial strategy to enhance Indonesia’s trade competitiveness while creating new sources of economic growth amidst global trade dynamics. According to Ade, a strategic step that needs to be accelerated is the development of downstream industries in key sectors, such as palm oil, minerals, and manufacturing, so that Indonesian exports are increasingly dominated by high-value-added products. “What is more important is building a more diverse, high-value-added export structure that is resilient to global economic turmoil. With such a foundation, net exports will become a pillar of Indonesia’s long-term economic growth,” Ade said in a statement received in Jakarta on Sunday. He stated that this strategy not only increases export value but also opens new markets, creates jobs, strengthens domestic industries, and improves Indonesia’s position in the global supply chain. “Through these measures, Indonesia not only has the opportunity to restore its trade surplus but also to build an export structure that is more productive, more resilient to global shocks, and capable of making a greater contribution to national economic growth,” Ade said. He added that Indonesia’s trade data shows the national export foundation remains quite strong. A NEXT study based on data from Statistics Indonesia (BPS) recorded that Indonesia’s trade balance still posted a surplus of 4 billion US dollars throughout January-May 2026. During the January-May 2026 period, the export value reached 115.4 billion US dollars, growing by 3.02 percent compared to the same period the previous year. In May 2026, Indonesia recorded a trade deficit of 1.6 billion US dollars, which Ade believes should be viewed as momentum to accelerate the transformation of the export structure, rather than merely chasing a monthly trade surplus. According to him, the weakening of several main commodities serves as a reminder that dependence on raw commodity exports needs to be reduced by accelerating downstream processing and export product diversification. In this way, Indonesia will have a stronger and more sustainable trade structure in facing changes in global economic conditions.