Research on World Agricultural Economy

Agricultural Sector Companies in Indonesia: Is Their Profitability Affected by COVID-19?

Reschiwati

Department of Accounting, Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Persada Indonesia Y.A.I., Jalan Diponegoro No. 74, Jakarta 10430, Indonesia

Fran Sayekti

Accounting Department, Faculty of Business and Humaniora, Universitas Teknologi Yogyakarta, Jalan Pajajaran, North Ringroad, Sleman, Yogyakarta 55284, Indonesia

Nirdukita Ratnawati

Department of Economics, Faculty of Economic and Business, Universitas Trisakti, Kyai Tapa No 1, Jakarta 11440, Indonesia

DOI: https://doi.org/10.36956/rwae.v6i4.2406

Received: 30 June 2025 | Revised: 22 July 2025 | Accepted: 18 August 2025 | Published Online: 12 December 2025

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Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic is the largest exogenous shock of the 21st century, simultaneously impacting both micro and macroeconomic structures. The pandemic created an anomaly in Indonesia's agricultural landscape: while many sectors contracted, the agricultural sector demonstrated resilience. This study examines this phenomenon using Spearman Correlation, Kruskal-Wallis, and Theil Regression approaches to understand how COVID-19 impacted four key profitability indicators: Gross Profit Margin (GPM), Net Profit Margin (NPM), Return on Assets (ROA), and Return on Equity (ROE). The study sampled eleven companies through purposive sampling. Data were collected quarterly from Q1 2019 to Q3 2022, covering 165 observations. The results indicate that GPM, NPM, ROA, and ROE are influenced by COVID-19-related variables. This suggests a structural difference between operational performance and equity-based financial performance in companies' responses to the crisis. The results of this study suggest that companies need to enhance asset management, non-operational cost efficiency, and digital-based marketing innovation to increase competitiveness in global value chains. Long-term government policy formulation is necessary, including incentives for local food production, ensuring agricultural input supply security, and strengthening downstream industries and logistics distribution.

Keywords: Agricultural Sector Companies; COVID‑19; GPM; NPM; ROA; ROE

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