Chairman of Kadin Meets Chinese Entrepreneurs, Ready to Answer Investor Complaints against Indonesian Policies

Chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) Anindya Novyan Bakrie at the Indonesian Embassy in Beijing. (Photo: ANTARA)

JAKARTA - Chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) Anindya Novyan Bakrie confirmed that he would answer the complaints of Chinese entrepreneurs who had surfaced in the country.

"We all also know about the letter from the China Chamber of Commerce to Indonesia. In my opinion, the best way to respond to it is to come directly and explain how we see the issue from the perspective of the private sector," said Anindya as quoted by ANTARA, Monday, June 22.

The man, who is familiarly called Anin, came to China to attend a number of events, namely the China International Supply Chain Expo and the APEC CEO Forum in Beijing, Summer Davos 2026 in Dalian, and meetings with other partners.

It is known that the China Chamber of Commerce in Indonesia in May 2026 had sent an official letter to Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto highlighting various government policies and a number of concerns that arose.

In the letter, Chinese investors assessed that there were many changes in policy in Indonesia so that Chinese companies faced serious problems, including overly strict regulations, excessive law enforcement, even corruption and extortion by the relevant authorities.

"We have been having dialogues from time to time, indeed their way of conveying complaints is a bit surprising but diplomacy, talks, conversations, are indeed important to be carried out, because that is why I am here because we must explain directly," said Anin.

He admitted that he wanted to answer directly, and at the same time ask if the letter also represented all Chinese entrepreneurs.

"Maybe there are complaints, but not from all entrepreneurs, so I don't deny it because in business, 'customer service' is important if the client is not happy we have to come and talk about the problem," added Anin.

China, said Anin, remains an important partner for Indonesia with large trade and investment values.

"I think China is very strategic, very important and has a mutually beneficial relationship with Indonesia, what I want to emphasize is not only trade but also investment, job creation and human resource development we can learn from China," said Anin.

Anin said China was especially superior in the fields of renewable energy, electric vehicles, technology, and agriculture.

"In the end, the private sector focuses on creating economic activities through trade and investment. We do not know the limits, and usually we are not too formal in talking, which sometimes helps to smooth things out," explained Anin.

The value of bilateral trade between Indonesia and China during 2025 reached 167.48 billion US dollars with an increase in Indonesian exports of 16.7 percent compared to the previous year.

Meanwhile, with Hong Kong, Indonesia's trade value is around 6 billion US dollars so that when combined between China and Hong Kong, the total becomes 173 billion US dollars.

Meanwhile, Chinese investment in Indonesia reached around 7.58 billion US dollars in the same period while investment from Hong Kong reached 10.1 billion US dollars so that when combined, the total investment from China and Hong Kong in Indonesia in 2025 reached around 18 billion US dollars, making it the largest source of foreign investment for Indonesia.

However, the Chinese Chamber of Commerce in Indonesia has filed a number of complaints to President Prabowo Subianto including the necessity of paying taxes and fees, including royalties for mineral resources that have been raised repeatedly, accompanied by increasingly intensive tax audits and even large fines of tens of millions of US dollars, creating panic among companies.

Another complaint targets the plan for the obligation to place foreign exchange from the export of natural resources in a state-owned bank in Indonesia for at least one year. The policy is considered to disrupt the company's liquidity.

In particular, Chinese investors have protested against a massive reduction in nickel ore mining quotas since the beginning of 2026 which has reached more than 70 percent or about 30 million tons in total.

Coupled with the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources which has just raised the Mineral Reference Price (HPM) of nickel ore and changed the calculation formula so that it makes the comprehensive cost of nickel ore jump up to 200 percent.