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Taiwan wants to boost exports to RI
Taiwan is eyeing a 10 percent increase in exports to Indonesia this year as it aims to form a more âbalancedâ trade relation with Southeast Asiaâs biggest economy
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aiwan is eyeing a 10 percent increase in exports to Indonesia this year as it aims to form a more 'balanced' trade relation with Southeast Asia's biggest economy.
YC Tsai, the director of the economic division at the Taipei Economic and Trade Office in Indonesia (TETO), said that Indonesia had enjoyed a trade surplus of around US$3.5 billion last year, a 75 percent surge from a $2 billion surplus in 2013 and the biggest in a decade. Meanwhile, Taiwan's exports to Indonesia plunged around 25 percent last year to $3.83 billion.
'A trade deficit is sometimes unavoidable. But it's getting bigger and bigger and we want to somehow make it a little bit more balanced,' he said during a press briefing recently.
Taiwan will focus on its automotive products, machinery, medical equipment and household products to boost trade values this year, Tsai said.
Indonesia's exports over the years to Taiwan are still dominated by oil and gas commodities, especially coal and gas. Meanwhile, Indonesia mainly imports textile products and machinery equipment from Taiwan.
To build cooperation between businesspeople from both countries, the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) will hold a trade meeting on Aug. 31 in Jakarta, facilitating 80 Taiwanese companies to meet potential trading partners from Indonesia. The product range of the companies spans from beauty products, food and beverages, IT communications and motorcycle parts to medical and health products.
Indonesia's overall value of trade with Taiwan in 2014 stood at $11.2 billion, a 8.67 percent drop from 2013, but Tsai is looking to boost the number to between $13 and $14 billion.
Indonesia and Taiwan also officiated in April the Indonesia Taiwan Business Council (ITBC) ' chaired by publicly listed developer PT Jababeka president director Setyono Djuandi Darmono ' to tighten links between businesspeople from the two nations.
Within the five-year period ending last year, Taiwan had been the 12th largest foreign investor in Indonesia.
Taiwan's largest steel producer, China Steel Corporation, will build a steel mill here, while Taiwanese firm Arima Communications Corp. has teamed up with PT Tiphone Mobile Indonesia to build a smartphone assembly plant. Tsai said that other projects are currently being discussed, including projects related to shipbuilding, fisheries and infrastructure. (fsu)
