Indonesia to depute trade mission to China

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia will send a mission to China next month to promote trade and investment ties between the two countries.

Susila Budi Moeffreni, president of PT Indo Asean Persada, the organizer of the mission, told reporters over the weekend that executives of 23 companies will take part in the mission, which will include a five-day exhibition in Beijing called Indonesian Opportunities '96.

The participating companies will include the state-owned aircraft manufacturer PT Industri Pesawat Terbang Nusantara (IPTN), the Sahid Group, which is controlled by businessman Sukamdani S. Gitosardjono, and the Citra Lamtoro Group, a conglomerate controlled by President Soeharto's eldest daughter Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana.

The exhibition, which is supported by the coordinating minister for production and distribution's office, is scheduled to start on Sept. 26 and feature such Indonesian export products as textiles, cosmetics and furniture, as well as services such as tourism, construction and aviation industries.

The first secretary of the Chinese embassy in Jakarta, Tan Weiwen, said that the mission is expected to help boost the two countries bilateral trade, the value of which is still far below its potencies.

He acknowledged that the two-way trade between Indonesia and China, which normalized diplomatic ties in 1990 after a 23-year freeze, steadily increased from US$890 million in 1989 to $3.5 billion in 1995.

Such a value of trade between two of the most populous countries of the world is too small, he said.

China, with a population of 1.2 billion people, is the world's most populous nation, while Indonesia is the fourth most populous with a population of almost 200 million.

According to Tan, Indonesia enjoyed a surplus of about $500 million from its trade with China last year.

Susila said that during the first four months of this year, Indonesia's exports to China reached $550 million, while its imports from that country were recorded at $512 million, giving a trade surplus of $38 million to Indonesia.

Quoting Coordinating Minister for Production and Distribution Hartarto, Susila said that instead of focusing its international trade only on traditional export markets like the United State and European countries, Indonesia should also promote its exports to other potential markets, including China.

China, according to the International Monetary Fund, has a per capita income of between US$700 and $1,200 in remote provinces and between $4,100 and $5,000 in Beijing and Shanghai, he said.

Susila said that Indonesian products which can be exported to China include furniture, household appliances, textiles, garments, cosmetics, traditional medicines, handicraft, foodstuff and electronics.

Construction materials, such as timber, metal and plastic pipes, ceramic tiles and granite, also have opportunities for exports to China, he said. (jsk)