Small Chili Peppers! Indonesia's Debt To Singapore Is The Largest, Beating The Position Of The US And China

Illustration (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA – Bank Indonesia (BI) released information that the largest amount of Indonesia's external debt (ULN) came from Singapore with a value of 60.9 billion US dollars in March 2022. This number decreased when compared to February 2022 which amounted to 62.1 billion. US dollars.

To note, the figure of Indonesia's foreign loans with neighboring ASEAN countries far exceeds the debt book with the United States (US) in second position with a total of 31.8 billion US dollars.

This was followed by Japan at Rp. 25.7 billion US dollars, China at 22 billion US dollars, Hong Kong at 16.8 billion US dollars, and other Asian countries with 10.4 billion US dollars.

Cumulatively, Indonesia's foreign debt at the end of the first quarter of 2022 amounted to US$411.5 billion. This value is sloping when compared to the closing of December 2021 which amounted to US$415.7 billion.

BI itself said that the decline in this position was contributed by the reduced debt of the public sector (government and central bank) and the private sector.

"Indonesia's foreign debt structure remains healthy, supported by the application of prudential principles in its management," said Bank Indonesia in a report quoted on Thursday, May 26.

The monetary authority claims that foreign debt remains under control as reflected in the ratio to gross domestic product (GDP) being maintained at around 33.7 percent, or a decrease compared to the ratio in the previous quarter of 35 percent.

In addition, the structure of Indonesia's external debt remains healthy as indicated by the long-term dominance of 87.9 percent of the total.

"In order to maintain a healthy external debt structure, Bank Indonesia and the government will continue to strengthen coordination in monitoring these developments, supported by the application of prudential principles in their management," said BI.

"The role of foreign debt will also continue to be optimized in supporting development financing and encouraging national economic recovery, by minimizing risks that can affect economic stability," concluded the minutes of Bank Indonesia.