US Dollar Strengthening Drives Up Garlic Prices, Says Trade Ministry
The Ministry of Trade has recorded an increase in the national average price of honan garlic in July. “One indication of this increase is the strengthening of the US dollar against the rupiah, or the weakening of the rupiah against the dollar,” said Nawandaru Dwi Putra, Director of Domestic Market Development at the Ministry of Trade, during an online regional inflation control coordination meeting on Monday, 13 July 2026.
According to Nawandaru, the stronger US dollar has triggered price increases in producer countries, including China. Additionally, the price rise has been influenced by dynamics in the Strait of Hormuz, the Persian Gulf waterway that serves as an international trade route.
Nawandaru stated that, based on information from the China Containerized Freight Index, countries are competing to use Chinese-flagged vessels following the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz. “This has triggered an increase in logistics and distribution costs from the producer country, China, to our country,” he said.
In an effort to curb the price increases, Nawandaru said the Directorate of Domestic Market Development is coordinating with the Directorate General of Foreign Trade at the Ministry of Trade to encourage importers to direct their vessels to dock at main ports in the eastern region. The aim, he said, is to cut the logistics costs that have caused garlic prices to rise in Papua and Maluku. “Although this is a business-to-business matter, we hope our encouragement or appeal will be heeded by the importing businesses currently bringing garlic commodities into the country,” he said.
According to Ministry of Trade records, the national average price of garlic is Rp 38,096 per kilogram. This means, Nawandaru continued, the price has risen by 0.25 percent month-on-month and has exceeded the set reference price of Rp 38,000 per kilogram. In Maluku and Papua, the price of this commodity has surged by up to 62 percent to Rp 64,867 per kilogram. “The value has jumped significantly compared to the reference price of Rp 40,000 per kilogram,” he said.
Price increases have also occurred for kating garlic. The average price of kating garlic as of 10 July rose by 4.56 percent to Rp 41,270 per kilogram, surpassing the reference price of Rp 38,000 per kilogram. In Maluku and Papua, the price increase for this product reached 58.38 percent to around Rp 63,353 per kilogram as of 10 July. The reference price for kating garlic in Maluku and Papua is set at Rp 40,000 per kilogram.