Finance Minister Purbaya's Remarks on Relaxation of Import Duties for Plastic Raw Materials
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa stated that, to date, there have been no requests from the domestic plastics industry for exemption or relaxation of import duty tariffs on plastic raw materials.
“Request (import duty relief) from the Ministry of Industry, then to me. That (plastic price) rises because the raw materials also rise, but when it falls, it will fall too,” Purbaya said when met at the Presidential Palace Complex, Jakarta, on Wednesday.
This affirmation relates to the sharp rise in prices of various plastic products domestically, in line with disruptions to imports of raw materials due to the conflict between Iran and the United States (US). The increases have occurred since the second week of Ramadan and continue every week.
Therefore, Purbaya said, plastics industry players need to first discuss with the Ministry of Industry (Kemenperin) regarding requests for relief on import duties for raw materials such as naphtha and LPG.
Purbaya explained that the rise in plastic prices is temporary, influenced by global raw material prices.
Furthermore, he said that if the government were to introduce a new policy to protect the domestic plastics industry, it would be temporary in nature.
“If there is a policy, we will certainly consider it. But they haven’t come to me yet, so I don’t know,” he said.
He also stated that there has been no direct communication with Industry Minister (Menperin) Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita to discuss the plastics issue.
Previously, Industry Minister (Menperin) Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita emphasised that the government continues to strive for diversification of raw materials and to encourage the use of recycling to maintain national plastic availability amid global geopolitical pressures.
In response, the Ministry of Industry (Kemenperin), together with upstream petrochemical industry players, has taken several strategic steps to maintain domestic production continuity.
One of them is expanding sources of raw material supply.
In addition, optimisation of LPG use is also being carried out as a buffer raw material in the production process.
On the other hand, it is also promoting the increased use of high-quality recycled plastics as a substitute for raw materials.
ANTARA’s investigation data indicates that April 2026 is a challenging period for the domestic plastics industry because the price of plastic pellets in the domestic market has surged sharply by 30-70 percent, severely impacting MSMEs and the packaging industry.
Meanwhile, around 22 percent of the global petrochemical supply comes from the Middle East, passing through the Strait of Hormuz. Geopolitical tensions in the region are hindering the flow of raw material imports to Indonesia, making supplies scarce and expensive.
In general, although domestic capacity has increased, Indonesia still records a large value of plastic imports, reaching around Rp14.84 trillion as of February 2026, with main suppliers from China, Thailand, and South Korea.
In general, the import duty tariffs for main polymers (plastic pellets) according to the Indonesian Customs Tariff Book (BTKI) average 5-10 percent for both polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), and polyvinyl chloride (PVC).