State Budget in Good Shape, Purbaya Assures Indonesia Far from Crisis

Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa has reported on Indonesia’s economic developments and fiscal management up to May 2026. Purbaya noted that the State Budget deficit reached 0.70% of Gross Domestic Product, or Rp 180.4 trillion, as of May 2026. This was supported by successful efforts to boost tax revenue, which grew 22.1% year-on-year, alongside tax reforms and the reorganisation of tax officials. “This means that with the current deficit figures, our state budget remains very well maintained. The main success is that we have been able to significantly increase tax revenue. Compared to the first five months of last year, our tax revenue grew 22.1%. That is extremely significant growth,” he stated during CNBC Indonesia’s Economic Update on Wednesday (24/6/2026). In line with first-quarter 2026 economic growth of 5.61% year-on-year, Purbaya said the sources of national economic growth are performing well, including through flagship government programmes such as the Free Nutritious Meals initiative and the private sector, which has been successfully stimulated by the Prabowo administration. “The government’s spending contribution to the economy is only around 7.7%. The rest is the private sector,” Purbaya said. He added that without private sector movement, the economy would not have grown by 5.61% in the first quarter of 2026. “This shows that the President’s strategy to build the economy across both government and private sectors is working well. This is something many people often overlook,” he added. Purbaya also emphasised that consumer purchasing power is showing a positive trend, reflected in consumption data and automotive sales, indicating the economy is still expanding and far from heading towards a crisis like 1998. Furthermore, government stimulus such as the 13th-month salary for civil servants and pensioners has also helped sustain the national economy. “So it is far from the impression that we are heading towards a 1998 crisis again. We are still expanding economically, perhaps above 5.4% or more. We will see as the data is not yet out,” Purbaya stressed.