Enviro News Asia, Jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto has dispatched Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto and Foreign Minister Sugiono to the United States to negotiate over the 32 percent import tariff signed by U.S. President Donald Trump. The Indonesian government also plans to deliver an official letter regarding the U.S. trade policy.
“We will be heading to the United States,” said Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto at the Jakarta Presidential Palace Complex on Monday (April 7, 2025).
It is known that President Trump, on Wednesday (April 2, 2025), announced an increase in trade tariffs on countries that have long enjoyed a trade surplus with the United States.
According to data from the White House, Indonesia ranks eighth on the list of countries affected by the new U.S. tariffs, with an increase of 32 percent.
Around 60 countries are expected to be subject to reciprocal tariffs amounting to half the rate they impose on U.S. goods. Indonesia is not the only Southeast Asian nation targeted by this U.S. trade measure.
Other affected countries in the region include Malaysia (24 percent), Cambodia (49 percent), Vietnam (46 percent), and Thailand (36 percent).
The universal tariffs under Trump’s administration took effect on Saturday (April 5, 2025), while the reciprocal tariffs targeting about 60 U.S. trade partners will be enforced starting Wednesday (April 9, 2025). It was explained that the revenue generated from these new tariffs will be used to reduce taxes for U.S. citizens and to help pay off U.S. debt.
