Jakarta (ANTARA) – State-owned mining holding company MIND ID expressed support for strengthening Bank Indonesia’s (BI) foreign exchange reserves by optimizing domestic gold production and formalizing the mining sector.Speaking at the MINDialogue conference in Jakarta on Wednesday, MIND ID President Director Maroef Sjamsoeddin highlighted gold’s potential to strengthen national economic sovereignty amid global market fluctuations.“Gold is a domestically produced commodity with the potential to become a strategic asset that can help strengthen the country’s foreign exchange reserves,” Maroef said.To maximize domestic gold production, he outlined plans to formalize artisanal mining through People’s Mining Permits (IPR), supported by regulatory harmonization and technical guidance.The move aims to channel locally mined gold into formal supply chains and refineries certified by the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA). In the midstream sector, Maroef called for legally registered aggregator institutions to ensure supply chain traceability.The initiative comes as Bank Indonesia reported that its foreign exchange reserves stood at US$145.3 billion at the end of July 2026, slightly down from US$145.6 billion in June.Executive Director of BI’s Communications Department Ramdan Denny Prakoso said the US$300 million decline in reserves was driven by government foreign debt repayments and measures to stabilize the rupiah, partly offset by tax revenues and global bond issuances.BI confirmed that the July reserve level remained adequate to cover 5.5 months of imports, well above the international benchmark of three months.