Minister of Trade Zulkifli Hasan targets the I-EU CEPA negotiations to be completed this August and to have a positive impact on the country. He said that the government will continue to do its best for Indonesia, as the two sides completed the 13th round of negotiations on the Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (I-EU CEPA). The 13th round of I-EU CEPA negotiations was held on 6-11 February 2023 in Badung, Bali.
The Ministry is optimistic that it can achieve the set targets without sacrificing the quality and potential benefits of the agreement for Indonesia. The 13th round of negotiations discussed 14 issues, including trade in goods, rules of origin, technical barriers to trade, trade in services, trade security, investment, government procurement, transparency and regulatory practices, dispute settlement, institutional provisions, intellectual property rights, state-owned enterprises, economic cooperation and capacity building, as well as small and medium-sized enterprises.
It's known that since its launch on July 18, 2016, the I-EU CEPA negotiations have taken place in 13 rounds, both in-person and virtually. The 14th round is planned for May 8-12 in Brussels, Belgium. The total trade between Indonesia and the EU in 2022 amounted to USD 33.2 billion. During that period, Indonesia's exports to the EU amounted to USD 21.5 billion, while Indonesia's imports from the EU amounted to USD 11.7 billion.
Indonesia's main export commodities to the EU in 2022 were palm oil and its fractions, industrial monocarboxylic fatty acids, coal, copper, and upper parts of footwear made of leather. Meanwhile, Indonesia's main imports from the EU in 2022 were iron and steel pipes, medicines, vaccines, paper pulp making machines, and recycled paper or cardboard.
