JAKARTA - The Minister of Trade (Mendag) Muhammad Lutfi said that the value of bilateral trade between Indonesia and Britain is still relatively low. In fact, both countries are included in the group of 20 major world economies or the G20.
As the only member of the G20 from ASEAN, Indonesia is considered to have a greater opportunity as the UK's main trading partner in Southeast Asia. However, this seems to have yet to materialize considering that Indonesia is still in the fifth position of the UK's strategic partner in the region.
“As a member of the G20, the trade value between the UK and Indonesia is still relatively low when compared to other countries in ASEAN. In the ASEAN region alone, Indonesia is only ranked fifth as the UK's trading partner, after Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, and Malaysia," he said at the virtual seminar of the UK SME's Business Summit 2021, Thursday, July 29.
For this reason, Indonesia is said to be carrying out a series of efforts to strengthen bilateral relations with Queen Elizabeth's home country in order to increase opportunities for economic cooperation in the future.
One of the important parts is the signing of a contract of understanding to establish the Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCo).
“In April, Indonesia took concrete action by signing JETCo with the UK government. I am sure that the trade value between the UK and Indonesia can be increased even more in the future,” he said.
According to the Trade Minister, this strategy marks a new chapter in the bilateral relations between the two countries, and is expected to boost economic relations and investment trade in the future.
"Policies made by the government can open market access for Indonesian goods and services to the United Kingdom as well as encourage British investment in Indonesia," he said.
It is important to note that diplomatic relations between Indonesia and the United Kingdom have existed for decades, since 1949 to be exact. The country is also one of Indonesia's important partners, including trading partners that open routes to the European region.
In 2020, the total trade value between the two countries reached US$2.2 billion. Of that amount, Indonesia still enjoys a trade surplus with the UK of US$327 million.
"Hopefully, the agreement that has been made can open up opportunities for more comprehensive cooperation between the two countries in the future," concluded the Minister of Trade M. Lutfi.
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
