Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto, and Deputy Minister of Trade, Jerry Sambuaga, met with South Korea's Minister of Trade, Industry, and Energy, Ahn Duk-Geun, in Seoul on 22 May 2024. The bilateral meeting focused on the flow of imported goods, particularly raw materials and capital goods, including those from South Korea, and the implementation of Ministerial Regulation No. 8 of 2024. "Indonesia is committed to facilitating the flow of goods needed for trade cooperation through Ministerial Regulation No. 8 of 2024, which provides relaxation for importing raw materials and capital goods," Jerry stated on 23 May 2024. The regulation removes technical considerations from the Ministry of Industry for several commodities, including electronics, traditional medicines, health supplements, cosmetics, household supplies, footwear, ready-made garments and accessories, bags, and valves. This step is part of Ministerial Regulation No. 36 of 2023 and its amendments No. 3 and No. 7 of 2024 concerning import licensing policies and regulations. "Ministerial Regulation No. 8 of 2024 aims to create a conducive business climate through an accelerated licensing process for raw materials and capital goods," Jerry added.
Ahn Duk-Geun responded positively, seeing the regulation as a swift solution to facilitate the flow of imported materials. "We hope this policy will smooth the flow of raw materials for Korean companies in Indonesia and expand market access for products produced by both countries," Ahn stated. He appreciated the implementation of the Indonesia-Korea Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IK-CEPA) and the establishment of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Support Unit. "We believe this unit will provide significant benefits to all member countries," he noted. Total trade between Indonesia and South Korea from January to March 2024 reached USD 5.14 billion, with Indonesia's exports to South Korea amounting to USD 2.7 billion and imports from South Korea totaling USD 2.44 billion.
