"Our competitive advantage lies in raw materials. Thus, downstreaming is one of the solutions," he told the press in Jakarta on Wednesday.
According to the minister, behind the challenges of the trade war, there are business opportunities that can be leveraged.
He said that the trade war could strengthen Indonesia internally, therefore, the government is taking comprehensive steps to create added value to the abundant raw materials in the country.
He further informed that President Prabowo Subianto has called for paying attention to the domestic economic situation.
"We must stand on our own feet. Thus, the consequence is we must identify our competitive advantages," he added.
The impact of the US reciprocal tariff on Indonesia in the energy and mineral resources sectors would not be significant, director general of oil and coal at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Tri Winarno, said.
To anticipate the potential fallout, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources will support the government's efforts to narrow the trade gap between Indonesia and the US.
Efforts to reduce the gap will likely involve increasing imports of oil and LPG from the US.
"We will possibly increase LPG imports from the US. Previously, (imports) from the US accounted for 54 percent. The increase is currently being calculated," he said.
On April 2, 2025, US President Donald Trump announced "reciprocal" tariffs on several countries, with Indonesia hit with a 32-percent tariff. The Trump administration also imposed a 10 percent baseline tariff on imports from all countries.
Other Southeast Asian countries affected by the tariff include the Philippines, Singapore, Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, and Malaysia. The US has put tariffs of 17 percent, 10 percent, 49 percent, 46 percent, 36 percent, and 24 percent, respectively, on those countries.
Related news: Prabowo, Megawati discuss Trump's import tariff policy: Muzani
Related news: A silver lining in the US tariff policy for Indonesia's economy
Translator: Putu Indah, Raka Adji
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
Copyright © ANTARA 2025
