Indonesia expands product markets to China amid rupiah exchange-rate weakness

Beijing, Shanghai - Deputy Minister of Trade Dyah Roro Esti Widya Putri said the government is continuing to expand Indonesian product markets, including to China, even as the rupiah weakens. ‘Clearly, in the Ministry of Trade we strive to continuously broaden potential markets. We see China as one of our largest trade partners, with trade with Indonesia around 160 million US dollars, and we see this as a very wide market,’ she told ANTARA in Beijing on Tuesday.

Wamendag Roro was in Shanghai to attend the Salon International de l’Alimentation (SIAL) or the International Food Exhibition, one of the world’s three largest food fairs, held in Shanghai from 18-20 May 2026. Also, she attended the Indonesia-China Business Forum attended by about 30 Indonesian and Chinese entrepreneurs.

The rupiah exchange rate closed Tuesday (19/5) with a depreciation of 38 points or 0.22 percent to Rp17,706 per US dollar from Rp17,668; Bank Indonesia’s Jakarta Interbank Spot Dollar Rate (JISDOR) also weakened to Rp17,719 from Rp17,666.

‘The President’s directive is one of our tasks to maintain good bilateral relations with other countries, including China. We hope through involvement in SIAL Shanghai, and at the business forum, there will be ’B2B’ cooperation,’ Roro added.

She stated the government remains optimistic despite difficulties, including the rupiah’s weakness. ‘Here we are also working with the Ministry of Agriculture, focusing on value-added agricultural products for our farmers in Indonesia,’ she said.

In the business forum, Aditya Pradewo, Secretary-General of the Indonesian Durian Plantation Association (Apdurin), also presented promotion of Indonesian durian in the Chinese market.

‘We focus on farmers, plantations, propagation of seedlings, plantation management through proper packaging, and helping eight companies to export frozen durian to China,’ Aditya said.

Aditya revealed that Indonesia and China’s General Administration of Customs (GACC) signed a protocol for exporting Frozen Durian on 25 May 2025, allowing eight companies to pass verification to export frozen durian to China.

‘The frozen durian protocol to reach the Chinese market, and we hope the government can support live durian to be allowed into China,’ Aditya added.

Aditya noted that according to data from Statistics Indonesia (BPS), national durian production in 2024 reached 1.96 million tonnes, the highest in five years. Indonesia has 114 durian varieties; the value of durian imports into China is $6.9 billion, still dominated by Malaysia and Vietnam, so the Chinese market for durian remains very large.

‘From January to April 2026, 4 tonnes of frozen durian have been sent to China, while overall there have been 250 containers of durian exported to various countries worth Rp750 billion, with 80 percent of the total benefiting farmers, so we hope this will prosper our farmers,’ Aditya concluded.