he government stated that negotiations on the so-called “reciprocal” tariff imposed by the United States are set to resume after being postponed because of the recent government shutdown in the US.
Coordinating Economy Minister Airlangga Hartarto, who leads the Indonesian delegation in the talks, told reporters on Wednesday that Jakarta plans to resume negotiations in November.
“Most of the [points] have been resolved, but we are still working on the legal drafting together with [the US],” Airlangga said at the State Palace.
He revealed that the talks would likely resume after the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit in South Korea, which both US President Donald Trump and President Prabowo Subianto are expected to attend.
One of the key issues being discussed is the list of commodities to be exempted from the tariffs. Airlangga said Indonesia was likely to receive terms similar to those obtained by Malaysia in its recently signed agreement with the US.
“So, we’ve discussed products that America cannot produce [domestically], such as palm oil, cocoa and rubber, all of which will be given a zero tariff. We’ve also requested exemptions for certain commodities that form part of supply chains, such as those in the medical industry,” Airlangga said.
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Jakarta and Washington had already outlined the framework of the tariff agreement to be signed, which includes a 19 percent duty on Indonesian goods exported to the US, a 99 percent tariff elimination for US products entering Indonesia and several other concessions.