Exports Of Three-Month Contraction Batik Consecutively, Menyin: 2024 Heavy Years For Textile Industry

Minister of Industry Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita (Photo: Theresia Agatha/VOI)

JAKARTA - October 2 is celebrated as Batik Day. Even so, the Ministry of Industry noted that batik exports are still experiencing contraction.

Minister of Industry (Menperin) Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita said, 2024 was a tough year for the textile and national clothing industry. This is due to the weakening demand in the export market.

As a result, the export performance of the textile and clothing industry has contracted successively until the second quarter of 2024.

"So, the export performance of the textile and finished clothing industry until the second quarter of 2024 experienced a consecutive contraction of 5.56 percent and 4.12 percent (yoy) compared to the same period the previous year. This also happened to exports of the batik industry which experienced a contraction of 8.29 percent compared to the same period in 2023," Agus said when opening the National Batik Day exhibition with the 2024 Industrial Festival with the theme 'Batical Support' which was held at Kasablanka City Mall, South Jakarta, Wednesday, October 2.

He explained that the textile and clothing industry sub-sectors have an important role for the national economy. In the second quarter of 2024, the textile and clothing industry contributed 5.72 percent to the GDP of the non-oil and gas processing industry.

Meanwhile, the export performance of the textile industry and finished clothing in the second quarter of 2024 was still quite good at 1.77 billion US dollars and the batik industry also contributed to TPT exports with a value of 8.33 million US dollars in the same period.

"I remind you that 8.33 million US dollars is a number that in my view is not optimal, not optimal. There are still many opportunities, opportunities that we can take advantage of for MSMEs, fill export markets from national batik," he said.

On the other hand, Agus sees a trend in the use of batik in the daily life of the younger generation of Indonesia today. This provides optimism for the future of the batik industry, especially the domestic market.

His party did not remain silent. In this commemoration, the Ministry of Industry together with the National Batik Foundation and partners to carry out several programs. Starting from focus group discussions (FGD), facilitation programs for geographical indications, technical assistance in production to facilitation of machinery and equipment for batik.

In 2024, his party will focus on Batik Tulis Gedog Tuban, East Java. Because, it has great economic potential for the economy of the local community, including the people in Tuban.

"We raise the Complongan Indramayu Batik as the theme of the 2023 national batik title exhibition and thank God the impact is quite good, significant for the local community's economy and can increase awareness of consumers for the Complongan Indramayu batik. We hope, of course, the same impact can be felt by the Tuban community through batik, wrote Gedog Tuban this year," he added.