Overview
- President Prabowo announced on Wednesday that the government will require state-selected state‑owned enterprises to act as sole exporters for key commodities, starting with palm oil, coal and ferroalloys.
- Senior ministers set a three‑month transition during which private exporters may trade as usual while transactions are monitored, with the new export agency to be supervised by the sovereign fund Danantara.
- A separate rule taking effect June 1 will force exporters of natural resources to keep 100% of their export proceeds in Indonesian state banks as part of efforts to stabilise the rupiah.
- Officials say existing export contracts will be honoured but will be reviewed for correct pricing, while markets have reacted negatively and industry groups warned of monopoly risk, contract disruption and governance concerns.
- The government frames the move as a revenue and foreign‑exchange recovery measure to curb decades of under‑invoicing, but analysts warn that centralised control could create discretionary allocation, cronyism and lasting investor uncertainty.