We can benefit from this opportunity. We are being competitive and have a huge opportunity
Washington DC (ANTARA) - Trade Minister Agus Suparmanto has targeted to tap opportunities to enter the US market after the coronavirus outbreak hit the Chinese economy.

An opportunity presents itself to Indonesia since the movement of raw materials from China to the US was projected to be hindered by the coronavirus epidemic.

"We can benefit from this opportunity. We are being competitive and have a huge opportunity," the trade minister stated in Washington D.C. on Thursday.

However, Suparmanto believes that the opportunity can be tapped throughbroader market access, and it could not be immediately worked upon.

The Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), or relief of import duties, could open market access.

GSP was a US-government program to encourage economic development in developing countries. GSP exempted the import duty of thousands of products from these countries, including Indonesia, into the US market.

Through obtaining the GSP facility, Indonesia is still considered to have a huge opportunity if the country competes with Vietnam.

"We could also enter a big market in the US with GSP, so that the competition with Vietnam could be handled," he stated.

Hence, Suparmanto will also encourage the completion of GSP negotiations through a meeting with the US Trade Representative (USTR) during his visit to Washington D.C.

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Translator: Ade Irma, Azis Kurmala
Editor: Sri Haryati
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