Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto backed down on a plan to create a state commodities export agency that would control trades of nickel, coal and palm oil, saying it will only monitor transactions. The move came as the Jakarta stock index rose 1% after a 26% decline this year, with mining stocks such as Vale Indonesia, Alamtri Resources and Aneka Tambang gaining.

The proposed agency had promised to be “the sole processing point for Indonesian commodity exports” and was linked to concerns over alleged export fraud and under‑invoicing, which the president said would protect the nation from being cheated. He cited potential savings of $5bn from pricing discrepancies.

The policy U-turn follows market pressure and a falling rupiah, as investors feared state interventionism and costly welfare schemes like the free‑meal program, now trimmed to $12.8bn. Public satisfaction has slipped to 51%.

Prabowo reiterated commitments to growth targets of 6% and a crackdown on illegal mining, while pledging reforms to state‑owned enterprises, aiming to reduce them from 1,074 to 300.