INDONESIA, S. KOREA MOVE CLOSER TO DEAL
Partnership may boost bilateral trade to over US$30b by 2022
INDONESIAN and South Korea took a key step yesterday towards a bilateral agreement that is expected to help boost bilateral trade by about 50 per cent by 2022.
Indonesian Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita and his South Korean counterpart Yoo Myung-Hee signed a document marking the conclusion of talks towards the economic partnership, here.
The countries would move forward with “legal scrubbing” and translation before the official signing of the Indonesia-Korea Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, Lukita told a joint news conference, without specifying a timeline.
Jakarta has been aiming to seal the deal by next month when South Korea will host a summit with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Indonesian officials have said.
“The global economy has been facing rising uncertainty from the rising tide of protectionism in the last few years,” said Yoo after the meeting on the sidelines of a trade expo.
“South Korea, as one of the largest beneficiaries of free trade, and Indonesia, as leader of Asean, are signalling to the world our true support for free, open and rules-based trade in this very challenging time.”
She said the partnership could boost twoway trade to more than US$30 billion (RM125.7 billion) by 2022 with the removal of “many tariff barriers” and both South Korean and Indonesian companies would welcome improved market access.
Jakarta exported US$9.5 billion worth of goods to South Korea last year and imported US$9.1 billion, according to Indonesian government data. Its main exports included coal, copper, rubber, plywood and tin, while it buys synthetic rubber, flat steel products, electronic circuits and yarn, among other goods, from South Korea.
Talks on the bilateral trade and investment deal restarted after stalling in 2014 when Indonesian President Joko Widodo met South Korean President Moon Jae-in in Seoul in September last year.
The revived talks “only took three rounds of negotiations, e-mails, video conferences and the help of the ambassadors to reach the finish line”, said Lukita.
Before yesterday’s announcement, outstanding issues included calls from both sides for a further reduction of tariffs and Jakarta’s demand that Seoul put an investment commitment into the automotive and smartphone sectors in the Southeast Asian country, according to Indonesia’s trade ministry website.
Over the past year, Indonesia has signed free trade deals with Australia, Chile and the European Free Trade Association.