Purbaya Confident Oil Prices Will Not Reach US$200 per Barrel

Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa stated that the global oil price fluctuations caused by the war between the United States (US) and Israel against Iran will not lead to an economic recession, particularly in Indonesia. Purbaya also believes that oil prices will not reach US$200 per barrel as currently feared by the public. According to Purbaya, US President Donald Trump is already struggling to respond to the current oil prices. He assessed that Trump plans to take steps to stabilise oil prices again. “Just look, even now America is already in a bind, right? At 100 dollars alone, fuel prices there rise by nearly 100%, the people are starting to get angry. That’s why Trump’s steps are a bit different, right? Could it reach US$150? Trump would fall. It’s not us who fall, but over there. Meanwhile, we are still protected here,” Purbaya said, quoted from detikFinance, Wednesday (25/3/2026). Purbaya also responded to statements from economists who often claim that Indonesia’s economy will experience a recession due to rising oil prices and the weakening rupiah. He viewed those statements not as criticism of the government, but merely as creating negative sentiment or fear among the public. “I’m not anti-criticism, it’s fine, but don’t say things like ‘in two months, Indonesia’s economy will collapse, there will be a recession because oil prices will reach US$200 per barrel, the rupiah will be tens of thousands’. Well, if oil prices reach US$200 per barrel, the whole world will have a recession. Stay calm, no need to worry,” said Purbaya. He also criticised those economists’ statements because there is no proper economic calculation behind their arguments. “If it’s a proper economist, they would put numbers based on clear estimates. They can use historical data, they can use this, they can use that,” he added.