Purbaya Denies Indonesian Economy in Recession, Says It Is in Expansionary Phase

Jakarta — Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa has criticised assessments by various parties that the Indonesian economy is weakening and heading towards recession.

According to him, such assessments are not entirely accurate because they do not use the latest economic data.

Purbaya stated that based on data held by the government, Indonesia’s current economic condition remains quite strong and is in an expansion phase.

“Lately some people have been saying our economy is weakening, they say purchasing power is declining. I checked the data, I also saw it directly on the ground, like when I went to Tanah Abang Market the other day, it looked quite good,” Purbaya said at the Ministry of Finance in Jakarta on Tuesday (10/3/2026).

The state treasurer explained that the Indonesian economy is still showing solid growth.

He cited economic growth that reached 5.39 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2025.

“So you can be proud of the Ministry of Finance, we have been able to manage the economy quite well until now, and our economy is in an expansion phase with a faster rate of growth,” he said.

He believed that if the government had not taken appropriate fiscal policy measures when the economy faced pressure previously, economic conditions could have worsened.

Purbaya also alluded to parties claiming that Indonesia is in a state of crisis.

However, according to him, such views emerge because they use old information that is no longer relevant to current conditions.

“If not corrected with certain fiscal policies, we will fall and might now truly be in crisis, say amateur economists, amateurs out there who are talking. They say we are in recession, we are in crisis,” he explained.

“If you only talk about fiscal policy, that is only 10 per cent of the economy. But if we talk about the sector and government, that is 90 per cent of the economy. And some of the rules are in the Ministry of Finance. Whoever, like excise costs, imports, tariffs, ports, and so on,” he said.

He also urged the public not to worry about the condition of the national economy because the government still has policy space to maintain stability.