Indonesia will revise its rules on natural-resource export proceeds, Finance Minister Suahasil Nazara said on Tuesday, with the aim of getting exporters of coal, palm oil and metals to convert a larger share of their dollar earnings into rupiah. The current regime, which caps conversion at 50% of a company's resource export earnings, has been in force only since June 1.

For investors in Asia, the change matters on two fronts. It touches the cash flows of the miners and plantation groups that dominate Indonesia's export base, and it is another lever Jakarta is pulling to support a currency that has come under heavy pressure this autumn, with the 10-year bond yield at a six-year high and the rupiah testing 18,200 per dollar late last month.

Suahasil announced the plan at a news conference of the Financial System Stability Committee, known as KSSK, in Jakarta, according to Antara. He described it as part of a wider effort to deepen domestic financial markets and said the government wants more export proceeds turned into rupiah to strengthen the financial sector, the state news agency reported. No draft text or timetable was released.

What the export proceeds rules require now

The rules in place were set by Government Regulation 21 of 2026, which took effect on June 1. Under that regime, natural-resource exporters must park their foreign-currency earnings in special accounts at state-owned banks, Antara reported. Exporters outside oil and gas must keep 100% of their proceeds in those accounts for 12 months. Oil and gas exporters must hold at least 30% for at least three months.

The same rules limit how much of those dollar earnings a company can swap into rupiah: no more than 50% of its total natural-resource export proceeds. Suahasil's comments point toward a higher conversion rate, but he did not say whether the 50% ceiling would be raised, removed or replaced with a different mechanism.

Trade Minister Budi Santoso confirmed that the government was discussing changes and said proposals from exporters would be reviewed before anything was finalized, according to Antara. He said the revision had "nothing to do with DSI," a reference to PT Danantara Sumberdaya Indonesia, the unit of the Danantara sovereign fund that is taking over the handling of strategic commodity exports.

Danantara Sumberdaya Indonesia single gate due by Jan. 1

The distinction matters because the export proceeds rules sit next to a second, larger overhaul. Since June 1, Indonesia has run a transition period in which exports of coal, crude palm oil and ferroalloys are channeled through DSI under Government Regulation 24 of 2026, Antara reported. Full implementation of that single-gate system is due no later than Jan. 1, 2027.

The government says the system is meant to tighten oversight of strategic commodity exports and the earnings they generate, help stabilize the exchange rate and give Indonesia more bargaining power with foreign buyers. Citing the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs, Antara said DSI has so far analyzed about 6,500 export declarations worth more than $14 billion, covering more than 90 million tons shipped to more than 100 countries, and has flagged data inconsistencies for review.

Bahlil Lahadalia, the coordinating minister for downstreaming and energy transition, who is also energy minister, said on Monday that all natural-resource exports would go through DSI as a single gate from 2027. Speaking at a mining conference in Jakarta, he said shipments would then go straight to destination countries without transiting elsewhere.

At the same event, Bahlil ordered officials to stop natural-resource and energy exports, including liquefied natural gas, from being routed through third countries, Antara reported. He said part of the LNG delivered to Singapore is re-exported rather than used there. The Jakarta Globe reported that he urged an end to commodity transit through "that one country" in favor of direct shipments to avoid losing tax revenue.

Trade figures behind the push

The policy changes come as Indonesia's trade surplus narrows. Statistics Indonesia (BPS) said on Monday that the country ran a $10.61 billion surplus from January to September, according to Antara. Exports rose 5.58% from a year earlier to $221.23 billion, but imports climbed 19.67% to $210.63 billion. China remained the largest buyer of Indonesia's non-oil goods, at $54.17 billion, followed by the United States at $25.39 billion and India at $15 billion.

Singapore has become a larger drag on the overall balance. BPS deputy Ateng Hartono said the city-state was the second-largest contributor to Indonesia's trade deficit, at $7.03 billion over the first nine months, the Jakarta Globe reported. That was double the $3.51 billion shortfall a year earlier and trailed only China, at $21.20 billion. Oil and gas imports from Singapore rose just under 38% to $9.58 billion, according to Trade Ministry data cited by the newspaper.

The KSSK also cut its 2026 growth projection to 5.4% to 5.5%, from 5.6% to 6% in August, Antara reported. Suahasil said non-oil and gas exports remained positive on higher commodity prices and demand.

For exporters, the practical questions are the size of any new conversion requirement and whether it lands before or after the DSI system becomes mandatory. Third-quarter GDP data from BPS is due this week.