Indonesia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have successfully initiated the first round of negotiations for the Indonesia-GCC Free Trade Agreement (I-GCC FTA). The negotiations, held from September 9 to 13, 2024, at the Ministry of Trade in Jakarta, aimed to enhance trade relations between Indonesia and the GCC member states, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, and Qatar. Led by Director of Bilateral Negotiations Johni Martha for Indonesia and General Coordinator for Free Trade Agreements Negotiations Raja Munahi Al-Marzoqi for the GCC, the delegations discussed various trade aspects, including goods trade, origin rules, customs procedures, trade facilitation, sanitary and phytosanitary measures (SPS), technical barriers to trade (TBT), trade recovery, services trade, investment, digital trade, financial services, telecommunications services, personal movement, and Islamic economy.
Both delegations agreed to promptly follow up on the outcomes of the first round and to hold the second round of negotiations from November 17 to 21, 2024, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. An intersessional virtual meeting is also scheduled for October 2024 to discuss additional issues. The total trade between Indonesia and the GCC in 2023 reached USD 15.7 billion, with Indonesian exports valued at USD 6.1 billion and imports from the GCC valued at USD 9.6 billion. Key Indonesian exports include automobiles, palm oil, jewelry, tugboats, paper, and cardboard not coated. Major non-oil imports from the GCC include semi-finished steel products, cyclic alcohols, sulfur, ethylene polymers, and unworked aluminum. The successful initiation of these negotiations is expected to enhance Indonesia's economic cooperation and trade penetration globally
