Indonesia's trade deficit with France drops

PARIS (JP): Indonesia's trade deficit with France significantly dropped last year despite the fall in Indonesia's exports to that country.

Indonesia's ambassador to France, Satrio Budihardjo Joedono, said yesterday said trade still favored France because it exported high technology products, like aircraft, to Indonesia.

"A lot of Indonesian shoes are sold in France. But how many shoes must Indonesia sell for an Airbus jet?" he said after witnessing a loan signing agreement between Indonesia's telecommunications operator PT Satelindo and French private financial facilitator Paribas.

Airbus is a France-based European aircraft maker which has supplied dozens of jets to several Indonesian airlines.

France also exports other high technology products like telecommunications equipments, chemicals, electrical power machinery to Indonesia.

Indonesia's trade deficit with France dropped 98 percent to US$2 million for the January-November period last despite the fall in the Indonesian trade deficit with that country.

Indonesia's exports to France dropped 2.7 percent to $921.7 million during the same period.

Trade between the two countries reached $1.84 billion in the January-November period last year, up 3.37 percent from $1.78 billion in the same period in 1995.

Indonesia's exports to France in 1996 were worth $921.7 million, while its imports were worth $923.7 million.

In 1995, France's imports from Indonesia were worth $836.62 million, while Indonesia's imports were worth $949.75 million.

Although Indonesian exports to France fell, exports of rubber, textiles, pulps, yarns, machinery, wooden products, electronics, tin products, children toys, coffee and photographic equipment rose.

France exported more products from Indonesia during the last quarter of last year because of increased French demand for agricultural products, energy and housing fields which rose 1 percent, 3.5 percent and 1.1 percent.

Embassy data shows that last year France imported more rubber from Indonesia at the expense of Malaysia, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Nigeria and Vietnam.

French also imported more coffee from Indonesia and less from Brazil, Columbia, Ivory Coast, Uganda, Costa Rica, Guatemala and Vietnam.

But Joedono, a former minister of trade, said French investment in Indonesia was still small.

"France is one of the largest foreign direct investors in the world, but the country's total investment in Indonesia is still low. I think we have to always encourage and invite France to invest more in Indonesia," he said.

Last year the Indonesian government approved 11 French projects worth $70.7 million.

In 1996, French investment in Indonesia was worth $1.73 billion, just 1 percent of total foreign investment in Indonesia.

France is ranked 15th among the 53 foreign nations investing in Indonesia. (icn)