Trade Expo Indonesia 2016 Records Transactions Valued at $975m
Jakarta. Trade Expo Indonesia 2016 closed with a satisfactory number of transactions valued at almost $975 million, a 7.2 percent rise from last year, the Ministry of Trade said in a statement on Sunday (16/10).
Of the total number of transactions recorded, $826.52 million involved the sale of goods and $48.23 million for services. Indonesian investment abroad accounted for the remaining $100 million worth of transactions.
The expo, which lasted from Wednesday to Sunday, attracted 15,567 visitors from 125 countries. A number of buyers came from various regions including international markets previously untapped for Indonesia, such as Africa and the Middle East.
Indonesian exporters, this time, were also more diversified ranging from small and medium-sized enterprises to private enterprises and state-owned enterprises.
"What made us quite optimistic was that diversification did not only happen in the market or [in terms of] the buyers' origin countries but also among the expo participants. This will enhance the capacity of national exports in the future," Ministery of Trade Enggartiasto Lukita said.
Local light wood products — which previously did not have much exposure in the international market — reportedly attracted the most buyers from European customers.
Other goods which garnered interest were furniture, electronics, processed foods, spices, essential oil and speciality coffee.
Additionally, at least 31 contracts between participants and foreign importers were signed, valued at around $200 million.
Among the contracts signed were furniture maker Scanteak Singapore and two other furniture companies from Central Java, Jawi Antik Indonesia and CV Roda Jati. On the first day of the expo, the furniture companies signed a memorandum of understanding collectively valued at $2.4 million. This was a significant improvement compared to last year's expo, which only managed to secure a contract valued at $150,000 on its first day.
The trade minister also added that some buyers continued to remain in contact with local companies after the expo. For example, buyers from Nigeria, Jordan and Namibia reportedly stayed in contact with state-owned arms manufacturer Pindad.
"The transaction value is expected to rise [despite the expo being] closed today. The transacting process will continue, as there are buyers who will conduct visits to local companies [afterwards]," Enggartiasto added.
The trade-off and future
Trade Expo Indonesia was the result of hard work of trade representatives in 24 countries and the Indonesia Trade Promotion Center in 19 cities abroad. This also involved courtesy calls being made between government representatives such as ministers, ambassadors and trade delegations.
In the future, the trade ministry plans to cooperate with Indonesian diaspora to further penetrate international markets.
"We express the highest appreciation for trade representatives and the support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In the future, I hope they don't only act as salesmen but also as capable customer service [representatives] who would increase business value as well as handle complaints. We will enhance collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and invite Indonesian diaspora currently consisting of 8 million people in 35 countries," Enggartiasto said.
The trade minister also recognized the importance of Indonesia's banking sector in expanding trade.
"I saw and appreciated banks' participation in this year's trade expo. For next year, banks, financial institutions and financial technology companies must participate more actively to respond to the global trend," Enggartiasto added.
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