Indonesia's Exports to RCEP Countries Decreased by 4.2% in 2020

The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) reported that Indonesia's exports to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) countries amounted to US$ 91.43 billion in 2020, representing 55.54% of total national exports. This figure decreased by 4.2% compared to the previous year, which reached US$ 95.4 billion. This decline was a consequence of the pandemic, which hampered economic activity.

From 2015 to 2020, the highest value of Indonesian exports to RCEP countries occurred in 2018, reaching US$ 101.3 billion or 56.31% of total national exports. Meanwhile, the lowest export value occurred in 2016, amounting to US$ 77.2 billion or 53.23% of the total.

Indonesia officially signed the RCEP trade agreement in November 2020. RCEP is a comprehensive regional Asian economic partnership initiated by Indonesia when it held the ASEAN chairmanship in 2011.

RCEP member countries consist of the 10 ASEAN member states (Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, and Brunei Darussalam), and 5 ASEAN FTA Dialogue Partners (People's Republic of China, South Korea, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand).

The benefits of RCEP for Indonesia include opening market access and encouraging foreign direct investment (FDI).