‘Reports of finance minister resignation a hoax’

THE country has denied reports that Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati, a veteran whose departure could deepen turmoil that has stocks on course for their biggest fall in more than a decade, is resigning.

“The information circulating about Sri Mulyani Indrawati’s resignation as Minister of Finance is a hoax,” Presidential Commu­nications Office spokesperson Hariqo Wibawa Satria said in a video address posted on Instagram yesterday.

“Sri Mulyani continues her duties and responsibilities as the Indonesian Minister of Finance,” he added.

Speculation has been mounting across social media platforms in recent days amid local news reports that President Prabowo Subianto is planning a Cabinet shake-up that could include Sri Mulyani, who has helmed Indonesia’s finance ministry for 14 of the last 20 years.

Resignation rumours of the long-serving minister have helped spur turmoil in the stock market yesterday, with the benchmark index slumping by the most since 2011.

Sri Mulyani has been credited with steering South-East Asia’s largest economy through the turmoil spurred by the Covid-19 pandemic, embarking on an unprecedented debt monetisation with the central bank to fund stimulus spending.

Her commitment to fiscal prudence was made evident when the government managed to return the budget deficit below the legal limit of 3% of gross domestic product by end-2022, a year earlier than promised.

She also pushed for tax and budget reforms that helped the country during her watch. — Bloomberg