印尼总统普拉博沃首次公开回应MSCI降级警告：拒绝被恐吓，但未给出任何具体化解措施

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto had a message Wednesday for global index provider MSCI Inc.: Indonesia would not be cowed.

“I only want to say to MSCI that the Indonesian nation is not afraid of anyone and will not be intimidated,” he told cabinet members during a televised meeting in Jakarta.

The president didn’t elaborate on the MSCI remarks, which came at the end of an address marking two years in office. He alluded to broader pressures on Indonesia, saying “they want to frighten us,” and said the country could undertake further large-scale cost-saving measures and become “even more frugal” if needed, without providing details.

The comments came days after MSCI said it was considering moving Indonesia two rungs down from emerging-market to standalone status, citing governance and market-functioning concerns. The announcement sent Indonesian stocks tumbling and weighed on the rupiah.

MSCI Ignites Indonesia Market Reckoning After Months of Warnings

Officials have since announced new measures to avert a downgrade that could trigger billions of dollars in outflows. Regulators have imposed fines for alleged stock-market misconduct, while the Indonesia Stock Exchange announced plans to remove tightly held stocks from the country’s benchmark index. Such stocks account for about 18% of the index’s weighting.

Wednesday’s comments were Prabowo’s first public remarks about MSCI since the index provider’s announcement. MSCI is expected to make a final decision on the proposed reclassification by June 30, 2027.

Prabowo spoke for more than an hour to ministers, commending them on their work during the first two years of his five-year term.

Turning to widespread land fires that have sent hazardous haze across the region, Prabowo said “many” corporations bore responsibility and called on police and prosecutors to investigate. He described deliberate burning as “environmental terrorism” and a “crime against humanity,” and vowed to revoke permits of companies found to have violated the rules.

“As for certain countries that like to insult the Indonesian nation, when the time comes, we will expose their companies,” he said without identifying the countries or companies, or explaining their connection to the fires.

He also railed against the smuggling of tin and coal, as well as subsidized fuel and fertilizer, likening natural resources to “our blood” and describing such illicit trade as “an attempt to kill our economy.”