mid concerns that Indonesia’s exports to the United States will be negatively affected following Donald Trump’s election victory, Darmin Nasution, the Coordinating Economic Minister, said Thursday that it was too soon to draw any conclusions.
Darmin said Trump’s promises to implement aggressive protectionist measures - which could make it harder for Indonesian goods to enter the US - should not be directly translated into certainty about the future.
“The campaign was intended to win people’s hearts. He said conflicting statements in his campaign. For example, he said he was a [trade] protectionist, but at the same time [he] also wants to restore the US as the most respected country in the world,” he said after a seminar on Indonesia’s Economic Outlook 2017.
He said the government needed to wait and see how Trump’s policies materialized to be able to analyze their implications for Indonesian exports to the US.
On Tuesday, Vice President Jusuf Kalla shared his personal opinion about the US election, saying that he preferred Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump because of the latter’s protectionist stance.
"If Trump is elected, it may be harder for us, because he is a protectionist," Kalla said at the ASEAN G2B Infrastructure Investment Forum in Jakarta. (win/jun)
Share your experiences, suggestions, and any issues you've encountered on The Jakarta Post. We're here to listen.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts. We appreciate your feedback.
Quickly share this news with your network—keep everyone informed with just a single click!
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
Get the best experience—faster access, exclusive features, and a seamless way to stay updated.