Ministry Of Trade: Indonesia's A4 Paper Products Return To Competitiveness In The Australian Market

JAKARTA - Director General of Foreign Trade of the Ministry of Trade Budi Santoso revealed that Indonesian A4 paper products are again competitive in the Australian market.

Along with the Australian Government's decision to exempt Anti-Dumping Import Duty (BMAD) from importing A4 paper from Indonesia.

The decision regarding the BMAD import of the A4 type from Indonesia came out on April 18, 2023.

This decision is the result of an achievement acquisition by the Australian anti-dumping Commission which was initiated on February 3, 2023.

"The decision taken by the Australian Government is very appropriate. Recommendations from the Australian Government indicate that the imposition of BMAD on A4 paper products is very irrelevant in Australia. The decision not to impose BMAD can certainly raise the competitiveness of Indonesian A4 paper products in Australia," he said in Jakarta, Friday, May 5.

Meanwhile, Director of Trade Security, Natan Kambuno, said Indonesia had succeeded in convincing the Australian Government that the imposition of BMAD on imported A4 paper products was irrelevant to continue.

"This is because it is not in accordance with the 1994 GATT and other WTO provisions, in this case, especially the agreement on anti-dumping (ADA)," explained Natan.

In 2022, A4 paper exports to Australia amounted to 8.20 million US dollars. This value decreased compared to 2017 which reached 19.72 million. Furthermore, this value decreased after the imposition of BMAD.

According to Natan, a quality A4 paper product market access is an important factor indicating that Australians need the availability of the product in the Australian market, wearing BMAD will make residents lose access to the much-needed A4 paper.

"Indonesia should be able to take advantage of this moment because Indonesian products have strong competitiveness in the Australian market. We also appreciate the active and productive collaboration between the Directorate of Trade Security (DPP) and other stakeholders such as business actors and other parties who are the key factors for Indonesia's success in thwarting the imposition of BMAD in question," concluded Natan.

Based on data from the Central Statistics Agency, Indonesia-Australia's total trade in the January-February 2023 period reached 1.71 billion US dollars. This value is an increase when compared to the same period in 2022 which amounted to 1.68 billion US dollars.

Meanwhile, the total trade between the two countries has increased in recent years, namely 2022 at 13.33 billion US dollars, in 2021 at 12.65 billion, and in 2020 at 7.15 billion US dollars.