During the COVID-19 pandemic, we still receive good news that Indonesian isopropyl alcohol is exempt from safeguard duties in India. Surely, we must capitalize on it as appropriately as possible to increase national exports.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Trade Minister Muhammad Lutfi has welcomed India’s decision to not impose safeguard duty on Indonesia’s isopropyl alcohol.

"During the COVID-19 pandemic, we still receive good news that Indonesian isopropyl alcohol is exempt from safeguard duties in India. Surely, we must capitalize on it as appropriately as possible to increase national exports,” the minister noted in a written statement released on Tuesday.

The Indian Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) arrived at the decision to exempt Indonesian isopropyl alcohol from safeguard duty after concluding its final investigation on September 30, 2021. The result of the investigation was contained in a document.

According to the document, isopropyl alcohol imported from developing countries, including Indonesia, whose market share is below three percent, is exempt from safeguard duty.

Isopropyl alcohol, also known as isopropanol, or 2-propanol, is a colorless, inflammable chemical compound, with a sharp musty odor. Isopropyl alcohol is used for different purposes, both as an end product or intermediate product.

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It was reported earlier that the increase in India’s isopropyl alcohol imports had caused losses or threat of losses to the domestic industry.

The Directorate General of Trade Remedies arrived at the conclusion that quantitative restrictions were deemed necessary to protect the domestic industry from suffering losses.

“Indonesia did not contribute to the increase in India’s isopropyl alcohol imports that prompt the initiative to conduct a safeguard investigation, so Indonesian isopropyl alcohol can continue to compete in the Indian market,” acting Director General of Foreign Trade at the Trade Ministry Indrasari Wisnu Wardhana stated.

According to Statistics Indonesia (BPS), export markets for Indonesian isopropyl alcohol are Thailand, Vietnam, Hong Kong, India, and Singapore.

During the January-August 2021 period, Indonesia’s isopropyl alcohol exports plunged 98.08 percent from the corresponding period last year. In 2020, India imported 8,320 kilograms of isopropyl alcohol from Indonesia, an increase of 1,633 percent from the previous year.

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Translator: Sella Panduarsa G, Suharto
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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