Indonesia looks to South Asian markets to boost exports

Indonesian Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan at the opening of the Indonesia Trade Expo, Jakarta, July 10, 2023. (Photo: antaranews.com)

Jakarta - Indonesia is targeting non-traditional markets in South Asia such as India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh to boost exports, whose growth is currently slowing, Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan has informed.

According to the minister, non-traditional markets are countries that have economic potential as market destinations for Indonesia. They include countries in Latin America, Central and Eastern Europe, Africa, South and Central Asia, and the Pacific.

Speaking after the opening of the Indonesia Trade Expo in Jakarta on July 10, Zulkifli said that the country’s traditional markets are slowing down, therefore, they are trying new breakthroughs, for example, in South Asia, which has been non-traditional market to Indonesia.

India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, the Middle East, Africa, and Egypt are potential markets for Indonesia's products and Indonesia will explore the types of products needed by these countries, he added.

Zulkifli emphasised that those countries have huge market potential. Africa has 1.4 billion people, South Asia has 2 billion, and the Middle East has 500 million people, the ministry will be working on this.

Meanwhile, Chairwoman of the Indonesian Employers' Association (Apindo) Shinta W. Kamdani said that exploring new non-traditional markets is important for Indonesia since the country has already inked several trade agreements, both bilateral and regional.

Shinta acknowledged that the agreements include Indonesia-European Union (IEU-CEPA), Indonesia-Europe (EFTA), and Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which could help open wider access.

She highlighted that the country already signed free trade agreements with Chile and Mozambique. There are also many opportunities with these trade agreements for the country to optimise.

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