There are significant opportunities for Indonesia to expand exports of wood products, pulp and furniture to China, Japan and South Korea with the new ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), said Nus Nuzulia Ishak, Director General of the National Export Development Division, Ministry of Trade in Indonesia.
The AEC, which came into effect on January 1, will allow goods and services across ASEAN members — and eventually China, Japan and South Korea — to be traded duty-free.
Indonesia’s trade with ASEAN countries rose in recent years with non-oil trade balance between January and October 2015 more than double to US$1.6 billion.
With over 600 million people, ASEAN’s potential market is larger than the European Union or North America. It is one of the most open economic regions in the world, with total merchandise exports of over US$1.2 trillion – nearly 54% of total ASEAN GDP and 7% of global exports, according to the Asian Development Bank.
Source: ITTO/ Edited by Panels & Furniture Asia
