RI-Turkey hope to triple trade volume

RI-Turkey hope to triple trade volume

Urip Hudiono, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Turkey and Indonesia are set to jack up bilateral trade volume
threefold to some US$2 billion next year, by strengthening the
existing trade in natural-resource products, while also seeking
other potentials in the services sector and manufactured goods.

For this, a delegation of 50 Turkish businesspeople from
various sectors are conducting a two-day visit to Indonesia
starting on Wednesday, to explore business and investment
opportunities with their counterparts here.

"The current position of bilateral commercial and economic
relations between Turkey and Indonesia does not coincide with the
real potential of our economies," Turkish Undersecretary for
Foreign Trade, Tuncer Kayalar, said in the opening of a one-on-
one business meeting between his country's trade mission and
local businesspeople here in Jakarta.

"We therefore attach great importance to this visit, and hope
that the meetings to be realized between Turkish and Indonesian
counterparts will contribute to efforts to diversify and enhance
Turkish exports to the brotherly country of Indonesia."

Two-way trade between Turkey and Indonesia has reached US$594
million during the period from January to September this year, an
increase of some 20 percent from the same period last year.

Bilateral trade between the two countries amounted to $677
million in 2004, up 36 percent from $497 million in 2003.

Of this year's standing trade volume, Indonesian exports to
Turkey amounted to $536 million, mostly comprising of crude palm
oil, rubber and intermediate textile goods.

Turkey, meanwhile, exported to Indonesia a total of $58
million worth of tobacco, wheat flour, chemicals, textiles,
cotton and building materials such as marble and feldspar.

Kayalar pointed out, however, that the figure represented only
0.1 percent of Indonesia's total imports.

"We indeed expect this meeting can pave the way to increase
commerce between Indonesia and Turkey, hopefully reaching $2
billion next year," Minister of Industry Andung Nitimihardja
said. Also present at the business meeting was Indonesian Chamber
of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) chairman M.S. Hidayat.

Andung, however, expected that Turkish businesses would not
just export their products to Indonesia, but also invest in the
processing and manufacturing of their goods here in the country.

"If possible, we would like it if they also build their
factories here," he said. "This way, while they export raw
materials here, they can also process them here, increasing the
economic benefits for both of us."

Kayalar also mentioned Turkey's interest in expanding its
services business in Indonesia, mentioning the country's well-
established contracting services that has undertaken $65 billion
worth of projects in more than 60 countries.

"Our companies are ready in every aspect to take part in the
infrastructure and housing projects our Indonesian brothers are
willing to offer," he said.