W

ith millions of dollars worth of deals secured during the 29th Trade Expo Indonesia, the government is upbeat that the country'€™s non-oil and gas exports will surge this year and in the future.

The Trade Ministry'€™s director general for export development, Nus Nuzulia Ishak, said on Friday that the ministry expected the transaction value during the exhibition, which ended on Sunday, would boost the country'€™s non-oil and gas exports by 5 to 6.5 percent to between US$158 billion and $160 billion this year.

Nus said the trade expo not only invited short-term buyers but also attracted long-term commitments from a number of foreign enterprises.

On Friday alone, a number Indonesian companies and business associations reached deals with their foreign counterparts.

The Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) to boost business partnership between the two countries.

Chairman of Kadin'€™s international trade permanent committee, Fachry Thaib, said Indonesian enterprises had ample room to grow within the Afghan market, especially for palm oil, rubber and food products.

ACCI CEO Atiqullah Nusrat said the MoU between his association and Kadin would help increase trade volume between the two countries, particularly for Indonesian food products.

'€œWe are sure that we will see 30 to 40 percent increase in the trade volume between the two countries,'€ he said, adding that the annual trade volume between the two was still less than $150 million.

Indonesia'€™s furniture enterprise PT Integra Indocabinet and American Furniture Manufacturing Inc. (AFM) also signed a $10-million deal, where AFM will import furniture products from Integra Indocabinet.

Meanwhile, children'€™s wear firm PT Angelina Kartika Timur and rubber producer PT Kalibaru closed business deals with US-based Jewel & Jem (J&J) and Canada-based Axia Distribution Corp. with total values of $300,000 and $1 million, respectively.

Deputy Trade Minister Bayu Krisnamurthi said the business deals among the enterprises were a sign that foreign buyers trusted Indonesian products.

'€œThis is also a positive signal that our non-oil and gas exports still have a big opportunity to grow in the future,'€ he said, adding that products being showcased in the expo were non-oil and gas commodities.

In addition, Nus said the exports of furniture products saw a slight decrease to $1.06 billion in the first seven months of this year from $1.08 billion during the same period last year.

AMF president Harry Chou said that Indonesian furniture products had now become a favorite in the US market, compared to those of China and Vietnam, particularly due to better quality and design.

Indonesia'€™s furniture exports are forecast to grow significantly from $2.4 million next year to $10.5 million in 2024, according to the Indonesian Rattan Furniture and Craft Association (AMKRI).