Trading Tripatra wins $316 million contrak

Trading Tripatra wins $316 million contrak

JAKARTA (JP): A senior trade official advised state-owned
trading companies yesterday to cooperate with international
partners to help strengthen Indonesia's export marketing network.

"All the trading companies overseen by the Ministry of
Industry and Trade lack an international marketing network
because they are too dependent on the domestic market," the
ministry's secretary general, Aidil Juzar, said after installing
new directors at state-owned surveying firm PT Superintending
Company of Indonesia (Sucofindo).

Aidil swore in Sutrisno as president of Sucofindo and Didie B.
Tedjosumirat and Zafar Dinesh Idham as directors.

"Cooperation with experienced trading companies is important
to help state firms penetrate international markets," Aidil said.

He said the government had protected its trading firms against
imports so they had concentrated on the domestic market,
particularly on the domestic distribution of imports.

Protectionism also caused an ignorance of the potential of
imports, he said.

"Exports contribute about only 5 percent of their total
revenue," he said.

Aidil said the state trading companies' capital structures
were mostly weak because they had borrowed too much money.

"These high loans force the companies to pay large amounts to
service debt," he said.

He said their inefficient operations had encouraged domestic
industrial companies to export their own products, instead of
using state trading firms.

This situation was contradictory to the situation in Japan
where industrial firms preferred to use trading houses to sell
their products, he said.

Aidil said his ministry had suggested to the Ministry of
Finace that the government merge its trading companies to
strengthen their financial structures and improve their
efficiency.

He said several private investors had expressed interest in
joining state-owned trading companies.

Aidil said increasing exports was important if Indonesia was
to reduce its current account deficit.

Indonesia's current account deficit in forecast to rise to
US$8.82 billion -- about 4 percent of gross domestic product in
1996/1997. It was $6.99 billion in 1995/1996. (10)