The working visit to Qatar is also a follow up to President Joko Widodo's directives to increase exports by opening access to and making optimum use of potentials and opportunities in non-traditional export markets that we still can exploreJakarta (ANTARA) - Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan is leading the Indonesian trade mission to Qatar on October 9-10, 2022, to enhance trade cooperation between both nations.
"The working visit to Qatar is also a follow up to President Joko Widodo's directives to increase exports by opening access to and making optimum use of potentials and opportunities in non-traditional export markets that we still can explore," the minister noted in a written statement released on Monday.
The Trade Ministry is committed to facilitating the penetration to non-traditional markets for Indonesian exports and benefiting from trade agreements with partner countries to increase national exports, he stated.
In Qatar, Hasan is scheduled to attend a business forum and explore a trade agreement between business players in the two countries.
At least 11 business players are partaking in the Indonesian trade mission. They are engaged in the production of key commodities, including palm oil and derivatives, paper, automotive, battery, foods, beverages, house decor, handicraft goods, garments, and beauty products.
Qatar is a member of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Indonesia has proposed a joint feasibility study for the Indonesia-GCC Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).
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Director General of National Export Development at the Trade Ministry Didi Sumedi stated that Indonesia still recorded a deficit in its trade with Qatar.
During the January-July 2022 period, trade between the two countries rose by 29.02 percent to US$758.07 million as compared to the corresponding period last year, with Indonesia suffering a deficit of US$498.25 million.
In 2021, the trade between both nations reached US$892.95 million, with Indonesia recording a deficit of US$458.61 million. Indonesia's exports to Qatar grew 32.17 percent to US$217.1 million last year as compared to a year earlier.
Indonesia's exports to Qatar included floating/submersible drilling/production platforms, automotive and spare parts, steel, medical devices, paper, tableware, foods and beverages, and plywood.
Meanwhile, Indonesia's non-oil and non-gas imports from Qatar had reached US$138.3 million in 2021, comprising sulphur, unwrought aluminum, polymers of ethylene, acyclic alcohols, and sodium hydroxide.
"Judging by the trade balance between the two countries, the Indonesian trade mission to Qatar is part of the government's efforts to narrow the trade deficit. With the trade mission, Indonesia's exports to Qatar are expected to continue to increase," he remarked.
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Translator: Sella Panduarsa G, Suharto
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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