Government to maintain trade restrictions
Government to maintain trade restrictions
JAKARTA (JP): The government will continue to regulate the
trade in a number of commodities to ensure continued marketing
and price stability for the benefit of farmers, producers,
traders and consumers, Minister of Trade Satrio B. Joedono said
yesterday.
He told a meeting with the House of Representatives'
Commission VII -- which is responsible for finance, trade,
cooperatives and logistics -- that the trade regulation is aimed
at balancing supply and demand.
"The commodities whose trading is still regulated include
cloves, fertilizer and cement," said Joedono, adding that the
regulations are not contradictory to the principles of the World
Trade Organization.
He said the regulation of clove trading is aimed at improving
farmers' welfare. At the same time, the government is encouraging
clove farmers to diversify into other crops because clove prices
are on the decline, he added.
"If, through clove farming diversification, clove supply and
demand have not reached equilibrium by the year 2000, the trade
regulation will be extended further," Joedono said.
He said that the regulation of fertilizer trading will also be
extended until after the year 2000 because the supply of food,
particularly rice, is essential for the stability of the
country's economy.
The minister said that, even though cement prices are
vulnerable to increases when demand rises drastically in the dry
season, the government will also continue to regulate its trading
domestically.
With approval from the government, the Indonesian cement
producers' association determines the areas of distribution among
its members, while the government sets local reference prices for
cement.
"The current instability of cement prices will be able to be
controlled in 1998, when the construction of new and expansionary
projects has been completed," Joedono said.
By 1998, Indonesia's cement production plants, with a total
production capacity of about 50 million tons per annum, will
produce 43 million tons per annum, while the country's demand is
projected to be 36.7 million tons per annum, he said.
He said that PT Semen Padang's annual production capacity will
increase from 3.5 million tons at present to 5.8 million tons by
1998, PT Semen Baturaja's will rise from 500,000 tons to 1.2
million tons, PT Semen Cibinong's will rise from three million
tons to 5.5 million tons, PT Indocement Tunggal Prakarsa's will
rise from 9.5 million tons to 12.7 million tons, PT Semen
Nusantara's will rise from 1.5 million tons to 4.1 million tons,
PT Semen Gresik's will rise from 4.1 million tons to 8.7 million
tons, PT Semen Tonasa's will rise from 1.18 million tons to 3.48
million tons and PT Semen Kupang's production capacity will rise
from 530,000 tons to 650,000 tons.
Joedono also announced yesterday the establishment of several
new cement producers: namely, PT Semen Gombong, with an annual
production capacity of 1.5 million tons; PT Eraska Semen, with
600,000 tons; PT Indocodeco Cement, with 2.4 million tons; PT
Balikpapan Daya, with 308,000 tons; PT Prodiso Semen Indonesia,
with 1.5 million tons; and PT Maluku Dinamika Semen, with three
million tons. (kod)