Minister of Finance Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa affirmed that under his leadership, the Ministry of Finance will ensure that the state budget deficit (APBN) remains below the 3% of GDP threshold, both for this year and the next.

He conveyed this commitment during an Investor Meeting with government bondholders, consisting of representatives from banks and securities firms, held at the Directorate General of Taxes (DJP) on Monday, October 13, 2025.

“They wanted to know how I plan to manage the economy going forward, whether it will be chaotic or not,” Purbaya said.

He emphasized firmly that he would not act recklessly by allowing the deficit to exceed 3% of GDP.

“So I told them, I will not carelessly go beyond the 3% of GDP limit for the deficit,” he asserted.

Purbaya further confirmed that he has no intention of raising the deficit cap or the debt-to-GDP ratio, even though many countries in Europe and the United States have already breached their fiscal deficit limits.

“The European and American standards have already been violated — they’ve shifted. But I will still apply the strictest version of their rules,” he stated.

According to Purbaya, raising the deficit ceiling is not a short-term policy. He explained that such a policy could be reconsidered once Indonesia’s economic growth accelerates significantly.

“When our economy grows stronger, then we’ll review whether or not increasing the deficit limit is necessary,” he explained.

Purbaya also clarified that the use of excess budget balance (SAL) will not affect the state budget deficit (APBN).
He assured investors that the Ministry of Finance has not yet conducted any fiscal expansion.

“They see signs of fiscal expansion. I told them I haven’t expanded anything yet. The Rp200 trillion I placed at Bank Indonesia was merely transferred — not spent. The rest hasn’t been opened or expanded. This is purely cash management,” he elaborated.