Rupiah, forex reserves & trade surplus (2)

Feb 4, 2026 | Market

Indonesia reported trade surplus of US$41.05 billion last year, increased by US$9.72 billion from 2024, but why Indonesia’s forex reserves inched up only by 0.2% in the past 12 months? Why Indonesia’s forex reserves ratio to GDP is substantially smaller than Vietnam...

Rupiah, forex reserves & trade surplus (1)

Feb 4, 2026 | Market

Finance minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa indirectly blamed Bank Indonesia (the central bank) for the depreciation of rupiah against US dollars while regional peers mostly gained grounds. Purbaya said rupiah should have appreciated because of net capital inflow since...

When reform rhetoric masks a rent-seeking machine

Feb 3, 2026 | Law, Market

The corruption trial surrounding the procurement of Chromebook laptops at Indonesia’s Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology has stripped away the language of reform and exposed something far more familiar: a sprawling rent-seeking network operating...

Warnings from coal miners

Feb 3, 2026 | Market

Gold, silver, and copper regained grounds in Asian trading this morning, but thermal coal retreated 1.3% from its recent peak. Newcastle thermal coal has gained 10% since third week of December when Indonesian government announced its plan to significantly cut...

Blurred lines in Himbara accountability

Feb 3, 2026 | Market

If the boards of state-owned banks grouped under Himbara are indeed believed to have harmed the state, the first question should not be who must be replaced, but who is speaking and why. When the allegation is voiced not by the minister responsible for state-owned...

Manipulated stocks: Those yet to join correction

Feb 3, 2026 | Market

Composite index of IDX (IHSG) ended lower by 4.9% on Monday (Feb 2) due to continued correction of inflated/manipulated stocks, including constituents of both large and small cap indexes of MSCI Indonesia. An across the board correction would have led to deeper...

Brand-to-brand interactions

Feb 3, 2026 | Market

Recently, well-known brands such as Amanda Brownies and Toshiba have engaged in frequent interactions on the social media platform X. While these exchanges are easily recognized as marketing tactics, they continue to attract public participation and engagement. This...

If Tokopedia Were to Shut Down, E-Commerce Would Never Be the Same

Feb 3, 2026 | Market

If Tokopedia were to shut down, Indonesia’s e-commerce landscape would not collapse. It would reorganize. Yet the reorganization would not be neutral. It would mark a structural shift in how digital markets operate, who controls consumer access, and which small...

Garuda & Embraer

Feb 3, 2026 | Market

President Prabowo Subianto met Garuda Indonesia CEO Glenny Kairupan and Embraer Commercial Aviation CEO Arjan Meijer at the State Palace on Monday (Feb 2). Pindad CEO Sigit Puji Santoso was also in the meeting. Glenny told the press after the meeting that they have’t...

The need for deeper correction of manipulated stocks 

Feb 2, 2026 | Market

Shares of MD Entertainment (FILM), constituent of MSCI Indonesia Small Cap Index, dropped 15% to Rp12,325 this morning. The stock needs to fall further by more than 90% to make it ‘investable’. At the last quoted price, FILM was valued Rp158 trillion, around 50 times...