Many S. African buyers switch into RI market<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Local firms can capitalize from the many South
\nAfrican importers switching their focus here in the wake of the
\nrupiah's dramatic depreciation, the country's envoy said on
\nThursday.<\/p>\n
The South African ambassador B.S. Kubheka said the plummeting
\nvalue of the rupiah against the greenback rendered Indonesian
\nproducts much cheaper for his country's importers.<\/p>\n
He said his country's Indonesian imports, which rose 20
\npercent in 1997, were expected to increase by about 50 percent to
\nUS$195.02 million this year, partly due to the fall of the
\nrupiah.<\/p>\n
South African imports are projected to increase by between 45
\npercent and 50 percent next year to $292.5 million, Kubheka said,
\ndespite the slight improvement recorded in the rupiah recently.<\/p>\n
The rupiah, which was about 2,500 to the dollar before the
\ncrisis hit the country in July last year, plunged to a low of
\n17,000 against the greenback in January. The currency has
\ngradually recovered to a range between 7,000 and 8,000 in the
\npast several months.<\/p>\n
\"I believe that the fall in the value of the rupiah provides
\nIndonesian businessmen with an opportunity to export more to
\nSouth Africa so that the gap will be closed, or even be turned to
\nIndonesia's advantage,\" he said in a seminar on export and import
\nmarket opportunities in South Africa sponsored by courier
\nservices company DHL.<\/p>\n
South Africa's trade with Indonesia has soared since direct
\ntrade began with the former in 1994 with the end of apartheid.<\/p>\n
Total trade volume between South Africa and Indonesia
\nincreased by almost 70 percent for the first nine months of 1997
\ncompared to 1996, Kubheka said.<\/p>\n
South Africa mostly exports steel products, paper, pulp and
\nchemical products to Indonesia, and primarily imports textile
\nproducts and farm products such as coffee and rubber. (29)<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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