Indonesia to reopen trade center in Osaka

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia will reopen its trade promotion center in the Japanese city of Osaka next month to bolster exports of non-oil commodities, Antara news agency reported on Monday.

The head of the National Agency for Export Development, Gusmardi Bustani, said the Ministry of Finance had approved the Rp 1.8 billion (US$225,000) budget required by the Ministry of Industry and Trade to open the center.

The government closed down all 13 of its overseas trade promotion centers in 1998 as a result of the economic crisis.

It was decided to reopen the trade center in Osaka first because Japan is Indonesia's top export market, accounting for 21.36 percent of non-oil and gas export revenue.

Indonesia earned $10.4 billion from non-oil and gas exports to Japan in 1999, up from $9.12 billion in 1998, according to the Central Bureau of Statistics.

Antara also reported the government planned to open Indonesian Trade Promotion Centers in the United States, Germany, the United Arab Emirates and South Africa.

The 13 trade centers closed in 1998 were located in Dallas, Los Angeles and New York, all in the United States; Mexico City; Hamburg, Germany; London; Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Budapest, Hungary; Baghdad, Iraq; Dubai, the United Arab Emirates; Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; Osaka; and Sydney, Australia.

The chairman of the Association of Indonesian Exporters and Handicraft Producers, Rudy Lengkong, said the government should only be the facilitator for the building and leave the management of the trade promotion centers to private sector.

"The private sector knows the market condition in each country," he said.

Rudy is concerned the government will shut down the centers again if faced with financial difficulties, saying this would affect promotion efforts abroad. (10)