RI Wants Lower Trade Tariffs Than Other ASEAN Countries

Spokesperson for the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs Haryo Limanseto. (Photo: ANTARA)

The Indonesian government ensures that the trade negotiation process with the United States is still ongoing and has not yet reached the final stage regarding the details of the type of goods and the amount of tariffs to be imposed.

Spokesperson for the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs Haryo Limanseto explained, related to the current situation, all possibilities are still open, because the United States Government is still providing space for negotiations.

However, he said that from existing communications, the US hopes that Indonesia will not impose a tariff that is too high.

"Well, so it means that for us it is an opportunity for negotiations, so we hope that we can be lower than 32 percent and this tariff is on average, so there can be someone who can go up and down later, this is kind of like they also count the average, right," he said in a media briefing, Wednesday, July 9th.

Haryo added that the government would certainly carry out calculations based on their respective sectors, taking into account input from stakeholders.

According to him, this is a fairly complex process, but in essence, both parties hope to achieve mutually beneficial results.

He added that the Indonesian government wants trade rates imposed by the United States on Indonesia to be at least equivalent or even lower than countries in the ASEAN region.

According to him, this is important because in the context of international trade, relevant comparisons must consider the same area.

"So we ask that what we think is the same or can be lower than the one in ASEAN. Because this trade certainly looks at the area, it cannot be compared to for example in Kazakhstan or where the tariff is lower, the frequency is just different and so on, there are many elements. So we want this ASEAN area, in particular maybe also Asia, that we can get a low or lower rate," he said.

He also emphasized that trade negotiations are basically a continuous process.

Therefore, he said that if a transaction provides an advantage, both through cooperation between the government and Indonesia's private business, then it is appropriate for the cooperation to continue.

"This means that these negotiations will continue and we see they are also still waiting for our response," he said.

Haryo stated that Indonesia is a strategic country and this should be an important consideration for the US in determining tariff policies.

He added that the government continues to open space for dialogue with business actors in formulating a negotiation strategy.

"So those deals other than the government are of course business and we will consider them. On the other hand, this is there if the business is definitely profitable. So I think the Indonesian and American or American businesses with Indonesia must have their own agreement which can still provide benefits to both parties," he said.

According to Haryo, the government will not go too deep into the pure business realm between Indonesian companies and business partners in the United States.

"The government only encourages the agreement-agrement MOU to be carried out before the announcement, as a speed turner, so this is back to the business. Both parties are profitable, so the government will not enter until that far," he concluded.