Enviro News Asia, Jakarta — Indonesia’s Minister of Trade, Budi Santoso, held a bilateral meeting with France’s Minister for Foreign Trade and French Citizens Abroad, Laurent Saint-Martin, at the Ministry of Trade office in Jakarta on Wednesday, April 9, 2025.
The meeting also addressed efforts to finalize the Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (Indonesia-EU CEPA), which has reached a critical phase. Minister Budi Santoso emphasized the importance of France’s support, as an EU member state, in accelerating the conclusion of the negotiations.
“Indonesia hopes that France can provide its support in pushing for the conclusion of the Indonesia-EU CEPA negotiations,” Minister Budi said in an official statement.
In addition to pushing forward the CEPA, the Indonesian Trade Minister also highlighted the importance of opening European market access for several of Indonesia’s leading export products. “Indonesia also expects market access for its key export products such as palm oil, footwear, textiles, and fishery products,” Budi stressed.
During the meeting, the Minister expressed appreciation to the European Union for postponing the implementation of the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR). However, Indonesia continues to urge the EU to reconsider any regulations that unnecessarily hinder trade, are discriminatory in nature, and inconsistent with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and principles.
“Therefore, both parties need to work more closely to create a more conducive business climate, and do so promptly, to safeguard our economic well-being. The best path to achieve this is by concluding the CEPA negotiations,” he added.
Another topic discussed was the strengthening of trade and investment cooperation, particularly in strategic sectors such as energy, transportation, agro-industry, and mining. Both parties agreed to promote business collaboration through cooperative projects that could generate new business opportunities.
In 2024, Indonesia recorded a trade deficit with France of USD 532.40 million, an improvement of 14.80 percent compared to the 2023 deficit of USD 738.60 million.
Meanwhile, in trade with the European Union overall, Indonesia achieved a trade surplus of USD 4.49 billion in 2024, a significant 77.18 percent increase from the 2023 surplus of USD 2.53 billion.
Indonesia’s main exports to the EU include vegetable and animal oils and fats, footwear, electrical machinery and equipment, metal ores and concentrates, as well as iron and steel. On the import side, Indonesia mostly imports nuclear reactors and mechanical machinery, electrical equipment, non-rail vehicles, optical instruments and precision tools, and pharmaceutical products.
