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Govt hopes to conclude trade deals with EU, UAE this year
The deals are expected to help Indonesia diversify export markets.
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Indonesian Trade Minister Muhammad Lutfi (right) shakes hands with UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi on the IUAE CEPA trade deal in Bogor, West Java, on Sept. 3, 2021.
(JP/Norman Harsono)
T
rade Minister Muhammad Lutfi said on Tuesday that at least three trade deals were slated for completion or near completion this year as part of government efforts to diversify export markets.
The three were the Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IEU-CEPA), Indonesia-United Arab Emirates CEPA and Indonesia-Bangladesh Preferential Trade Agreement (IB-PTA).
“In our pipeline, the one that is on the way to finalization is the one with the UAE. It could be done by the end of March this year. For the Bangladesh PTA, it is almost done,” Lutfi told reporters in a virtual press briefing.
“With the European Union, we have been on the 11th round [of discussions]. Our target is we will complete it by the end of this year".
Read also: Indonesian exports to EU might drop 20% without trade deal, union warns
Trade deals are part of Indonesia’s strategy to boost exports, particularly to nontraditional markets. President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has long urged his ministries to expand the horizon of the country’s export markets.
Lutfi said the ministry was trying to speed up discussions over trade agreements with Tunisia, Turkey and Iran.
