Turkey-Indonesia Trade Increases
Friday, 05 May, 2006 | 07:48 WIB

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: The Turkey government is optimistic that the trade volume with Indonesia will multiply double in the near future. This is because about five years ago, trade relations of the two countries began to grow.

Last year, total trade between Indonesia and Turkey reached US$825 million. This amount rose sharply compared to 2000 which was only US$262 million.

“That is why we’re sure the amount can increase two times in a short while,” said the Turkish Ambassador, Aydin Evirgen in Jakarta, yesterday.

The Turkish Prime Minister and Indonesian government officials have agreed to increase the trade volume to US$2 billion. According to Evirgen, the increase will be realized in the form of direct investments in Indonesia.

Evergen said Turkey targets seven sectors: food, food production machinery, textile, electronics and electricity, automotive, mining, and defense.

In 2005, a total of Turkey's exports to Indonesia was US$80.8 million. This grew 49.3 percent from the previous year's amount of US$54.1 million. As for Turkey's imports from Indonesia, the total was US$745 million. This rose 19.6 percent from the amount in 2004 of US$623.4 million.

According to Turkey's Trade Attaché, Mustafa Gulec, Turkey's exports to Indonesia is targeted to be more than US$100 million. The export products are wheat flour and wheat grinder machinery. “These are our top products,” he said.

Turkey is the world's biggest wheat flour exporter, with a volume of two million and forty thousand tons. Its wheat flour production reaches 12.1 million tons.

Mustafa said fourteen wheat flour companies interested in investing in Indonesia have been listed at the Trade Department to obtain Indonesian National Standards. Two of them have obtained the SNI Certificate, ERISLER UN and EREN UN. “These two companies will soon participate in the wheat flour import market in Indonesia,” he said.

According to the Deputy Head of the Association of Food Industry Businesses, Djoekino, Turkey's wheat flour quality is not in doubt. “It is cheap and efficient,” he said.

RR ARIYANI