Indonesia's Q1 2026 Exports See Slight Increase: Nickel, Tin, and Aluminium Provide Support

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Trade states that Indonesia’s exports in the first quarter of 2026 were driven by the nickel, tin, and aluminium processing industries.

Trade Minister Budi Santoso stated that Indonesia’s total exports for the period January-March 2026 amounted to $66.85 billion, up 0.34% compared to January-March 2025 (cumulative to cumulative/CtC).

“Throughout the first three months of 2026, export growth was driven by the performance of the processing industry sector, which rose 3.96% (CtC) to $54.98 billion compared to $52.89 billion in the January-March 2025 period,” said Budi in his statement on Wednesday (6/5/2026).

Organic chemicals (HS 29) contributed 21.44%, and inorganic chemicals (HS 28) 14.46%.

Budi explained that exports of these processed industrial commodities increased due to surging demand from trading partners.

Meanwhile, for March 2026 specifically, the Ministry of Trade recorded Indonesia’s export performance at $22.53 billion, growing 1.62% compared to February 2026.

Several major non-oil and gas export commodities saw significant increases, including metal ores, slag, and ash (HS 26) which skyrocketed by 8,055.36%, aluminium (HS 76) by 112.99%, and precious metals and jewellery (HS 71) by 98.89%.

Non-oil and gas export growth, according to Budi, was triggered by demand from major trading partners such as Hong Kong, which rose 78.20%, Thailand 67.08%, and Taiwan 29.38% (month-to-month/MtM).

Although several sectors experienced increases, the Ministry of Trade noted that agricultural sector exports fell 32.18% and the mining and other sectors declined 11.17% throughout January-March (CtC).