Indonesia is hoping a free trade agreement can soon be finalized with the European Union that will give the country’s exports a better foothold in the European marketplace.
Indonesian officials will meet European counterparts in September for the third round of talks on a potential free trade agreement, according to Olvy Andrianita, commercial attaché at the Indonesian embassy in Brussels.
Andrianita said her office has been coordinating efforts over the past year to get the deal with Brussels, which could see Indonesian exports compete on a zero-tariff access currently enjoyed by other developing countries.
"We face tariff barriers that we really want to remove to increase our exports to China," she told SeafoodSource.
A record 20 companies from Indonesian will exhibit at Seafood Expo Global this year. Indonesia offers Europe sustainable, safe seafood “and the trade is compatible,” said Andrianita,
“E.U. production is northern whitefish, while Indonesian supply is tropical. Therefore we are not in competition,” Andrianita told Seafoodsource.
Other Asian seafood exporters fare better in exporting to the E.U. As one of 48 nations recognized by the EU as a Least Developed Country (LDC), Bangladesh gets duty-free access under the E.U.'s Generalized Scheme of Preferences (GSP).
