Indonesia's Economy Grows 5.6%, Said Abdullah Says This Exceeds Expectations
Chairman of the DPR RI Budget Committee Said Abdullah emphasised that Indonesia’s economy grew by 5.6% in the first quarter of 2026. This achievement exceeds expectations from various parties.
Said made the statement in response to circulating issues regarding the thinning state budget balance, a deficit projected to exceed three percent by the end of 2026, and the potential collapse of the 2026 state budget.
These issues have gained more attention alongside a macroeconomic situation described as less than favourable, as well as the depreciation of the rupiah against the US dollar.
According to Said, such criticisms should be appreciated and responded to wisely, and wherever possible, inputs from observers and academics should be used as alarms for vigilance.
Said noted that the growth of the national economy in the first quarter of 2026 was influenced, among other things, by seasonal factors, namely Ramadan and Eid, which boosted household demand levels.
These seasonal factors were able to drive industry, trade, transportation, hotels, and restaurants as supports for growth.
In addition, government spending in the first quarter of 2026 also grew by 21.81% year-on-year, contributing 1.26% to economic growth.
Several economic indicators also show fairly good resilience, including a maintained positive trade balance for 71 months with a surplus of US$5.5 billion, and positive banking credit growth.
In line with the economic growth that recorded a positive trend, the state budget performance in the first quarter of 2026 also showed solid performance.
Said explained that state revenues reached Rp 574.9 trillion, growing 10.5% year-on-year. This was supported by tax receipts of Rp 394.8 trillion or growing 20.7% year-on-year.
“There are indeed underpayments and overpayments. In fact, from that difference, the government obtained a surplus underpayment of Rp 13.38 trillion. Thus, the government still has additional tax savings,” Said clarified.
However, Said is optimistic that the situation will reverse in the second quarter of 2026 because oil prices have risen and upstream oil and gas operations are starting to recover. Meanwhile, non-oil and gas state revenues grew positively overall.