Combined profits at Indonesian state-owned companies, which include Garuda Indonesia and Bank Rakyat Indonesia, jumped last year. (Photo: Reuters) Jakarta (VNA) – According to Indonesian StateEnterprise Minister Erick Thohir, the total profit of 41 state-ownedenterprises (SOEs) jumped 143% in 2022 to 303.7 trillion IDR (20 billion USD),led by banks making more money on their loan portfolios.
He said the total figure includes a"noncash" profit of 55 trillion IDR by flag carrier Garuda Indonesiaas a result of the debt-ridden company's restructuring moves.
But even without Garuda, SOEs overall posted 248trillion IDR in net income in 2022, nearly double from 125 trillion IDR the yearbefore. Thohir added that financial services made the largest contributions, withfour top state lenders alone making up nearly half of the total consolidatedincome minus Garuda's.
Indonesia's largest SOEs, oil and gas companyPertamina and utility Perusahaan Listrik Negara, have so far only publishedolder results on their websites.
The SOEs' overall performance last year reflects therecovery from the coronavirus pandemic, as Indonesia's economy grew 5.31%, anine-year high. But 2023 offers a bleaker picture, with recessions in otherparts of the world and falling commodity prices expected to slow the country'sexports. The International Monetary Fund projects 4.8% economic growth forIndonesia this year.
Slowing exports are expected to directly affect stateminers. That is in addition to the government's plan to ban exports of rawmaterials including copper, bauxite and tin starting this year in a push todevelop domestic processing industries, which could hurt the miners in theshort term.
State construction companies, meanwhile, still facedebt problems. They have accumulated massive obligations since President JokoWidodo took office in 2014, as they have been tasked with building roads,railways, ports and airports to support the president's ambitiousinfrastructure push.
Garuda, on the other hand, isfacing another legal challenge against its debt restructuring plan byIreland-based lessors Greylag Goose Leasing 1410 and 1446, which filed theapplications in a Jakarta court last week./.
