Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Indonesian Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs clarified that not all products from the United States will be exempt from import duties despite the recently agreed tariff-centered bilateral trade deal.​​​​​​​

Susiwijono Moegiarso, the ministry’s secretary, explained that the import duty exemption would apply to 11,474 out of 11,552 product types classified under the harmonized system (HS) code, meaning about 99 percent of US products will face no tariff barriers.

“Indonesia will grant a zero-percent tariff on nearly all products, except for several items we are still negotiating, including pork. The US has agreed that we retain the right to impose duties on alcoholic drinks we import from them,” he remarked in Jakarta on Friday.

Moegiarso stressed that the exemption is not entirely new, pointing out that the US has long benefited from zero-percent tariffs on many of its exports to Indonesia, even before the new deal reached between President Prabowo Subianto and President Donald Trump.

“In essence, our average tariff rate for US products is already low. If I am not mistaken, over 40 percent of the 1,482 types of products we import from the US already enjoy a zero-percent tariff,” he remarked.

He noted that this policy aligns with the current global trade environment, which is relatively shaped by numerous free trade agreements (FTAs) that generally support import duty exemptions.

In this context, he stated that Indonesia is already part of such trade agreements, including the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA), which allows 99 percent of products from other Southeast Asian countries to enter Indonesia duty-free.

He also referenced the Indonesia-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement, which has similar provisions.

Regarding the 19 percent tariff rate announced by the US on Indonesian products entering its market, Moegiarso noted that the figure remains more favorable than the tariffs applied to most ASEAN countries.

He made these remarks in response to President Trump’s statement that “exports to Indonesia are to be tariff and non-tariff barrier free.”

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