The leakage and lies keeping Indonesia’s rupiah weak
Indonesia's rupiah remains weak despite impressive trade surpluses from rising global commodity prices. This is largely due to capital flight driven by export under-invoicing and aggressive transfer pricing by corporate oligarchies. The Indonesian government is now implementing reforms to regain control over its natural wealth and curb these financial leakages.
- ▪Indonesia has experienced cumulative losses of approximately $908 billion from under-invoicing between 1991 and 2024.
- ▪In 2016, the country potentially lost $6.5 billion in state revenue due to trade manipulation.
- ▪The government has launched reforms including tighter rules on export proceeds and the establishment of a state-controlled commodity export agency.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
Indonesia embodies one of the strangest paradoxes in emerging-market economics. Every time global commodity prices, from coal to crude palm oil (CPO), surge, the country posts impressive trade surpluses. Yet the glow of those export windfalls rarely translates into a stronger rupiah, which remains chronically vulnerable to depreciation pressures. Behind the headline export figures lies a quieter but far more damaging reality, a persistent stream of capital flight systematically draining the nation’s financial wealth. This is not merely a technical flaw in market mechanisms. It is a form of organized economic predation sustained through transaction manipulation by entrenched corporate oligarchies.
…
Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at Asia Times.
Discussion
0 commentsMore from Asia Times
