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Indonesia's joining TPP would have helped textiles
27 Dec '11
2 min read
Indonesian textile and garment industries would have potentially benefited if the country had joined the nine-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) framework that is to come into effect next year, according to an expert.
The TPP deal was negotiated by nine Pacific Rim countries – Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Peru and the US – during the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit held in Honolulu in November 2011.
The treaty is being dubbed variously as “the 21st-century's trade accord” and “beyond ordinary free-trade deals”, as it covers an area that is normally excluded from all trade agreements. The TPP includes procurement by Government as well as adoption of environmental, labour and intellectual standards, which all generally form a part of a country's domestic policy.
However, Indonesia has expressed its reluctance to join the TPP framework to secure its own national interests.
Commenting on the development, Ade Sudrajat, Chairman of Indonesian Textile Association (API), said the TPP was potentially beneficial for Indonesian textile and garment exporters as it would have provided them with an expanded market access at lower tariffs.
The partnership would also have been beneficial, as unlike the China-ASEAN free trade agreement, it would have linked Indonesia with its export destinations.
The coming into effect of the China-ASEAN free trade agreement in January 2010 has resulted in the Indonesian goods directly competing with Chinese products, he explained.
In comparison, the TPP agreement would have proved very much complementary for Indonesian manufacturing, the API Chief said.
The TPP deal was negotiated by nine Pacific Rim countries – Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Peru and the US – during the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit held in Honolulu in November 2011.
The treaty is being dubbed variously as “the 21st-century's trade accord” and “beyond ordinary free-trade deals”, as it covers an area that is normally excluded from all trade agreements. The TPP includes procurement by Government as well as adoption of environmental, labour and intellectual standards, which all generally form a part of a country's domestic policy.
However, Indonesia has expressed its reluctance to join the TPP framework to secure its own national interests.
Commenting on the development, Ade Sudrajat, Chairman of Indonesian Textile Association (API), said the TPP was potentially beneficial for Indonesian textile and garment exporters as it would have provided them with an expanded market access at lower tariffs.
The partnership would also have been beneficial, as unlike the China-ASEAN free trade agreement, it would have linked Indonesia with its export destinations.
The coming into effect of the China-ASEAN free trade agreement in January 2010 has resulted in the Indonesian goods directly competing with Chinese products, he explained.
In comparison, the TPP agreement would have proved very much complementary for Indonesian manufacturing, the API Chief said.
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