Antara News·Indonesia·Thursday, October 29, 2026 at 05:30 AM UTC

Indonesia invites US businesses to strengthen trade partnerships

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Maria Cicilia, Raka Adji

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia's Trade Minister Budi Santoso has invited the United States (US) business community to continue strengthening trade and investment cooperation with Indonesia.

Santoso welcomed the efforts of the United States-ASEAN Business Council (US-ABC) to bridge communication between the business sectors of both countries.

In a statement here on Thursday, Santoso emphasized that enhancing collaboration with the US is crucial, particularly as the country remains one of Indonesia's key trading partners.

"Indonesia welcomes various efforts to boost trade between the business communities of both countries. We invite the US to continue strengthening cooperation with Indonesia," he said.

During a meeting with the US-ABC President and CEO Ambassador Brian D. McFeeters in Jakarta on Wednesday (Oct 28), Santoso said the gathering provided an opportunity for Indonesia to bolster cooperation with the US, which serves as a major contributor to Indonesia's trade surplus.

On that occasion, the US-ABC brought representatives from various US sectors, including information and communications technology, business consulting, as well as aviation and aerospace industries.

The US representatives raised questions and provided input regarding bilateral trade, while also discussing opportunities for further collaboration.

Also discussed were developments regarding the Agreement on Reciprocal Trade (ART) and enhanced cooperation to support Indonesian micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

Ambassador McFeeters expressed the US-ABC's support for Indonesia and underscored its readiness to work together to help the country achieve its economic targets.

He added the council stands ready to offer recommendations to boost Indonesia's economic performance. The US remains the largest contributor to Indonesia's trade surplus. From January to August 2026, total bilateral trade reached US$32.34 billion.

Indonesia's exports to the US stood at US$22.40 billion against US$9.94 billion in imports, yielding a US$12.47 billion surplus for Indonesia.

In 2025, bilateral trade totaled US$43.87 billion, reflecting a five-year growth trend of 3.11 percent (2021–2025). Indonesian exports reached US$30.95 billion while imports from the US stood at US$12.92 billion, resulting in a US$18.02 billion trade surplus.

Indonesia's primary exports to the US include electrical machinery and equipment, knitted apparel, footwear, non-knitted apparel, and animal or vegetable fats and oils.

Meanwhile, leading imports from the US comprise mechanical appliances, oil seeds, electrical machinery and equipment, residues and waste from the food industry, and mineral fuels.

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