Indonesia-Australia Trade Balance Shows US$3.1 Billion Deficit Through July 2021

Indonesia's trade balance with Australia recorded a deficit of US$3.1 billion in January-July 2021. This deficit increased by 45.2% compared to the full year of 2020, which amounted to US$2.1 billion (year to date/ytd).

Trade Minister Muhammad Lutfi stated that the widening trade deficit was caused by a large volume of industrial raw material imports from Australia. These commodities include beef, dairy products, and coal.

Imports from Australia to Indonesia totaled US$4.9 billion in the first seven months of this year. This includes US$454 million in oil and gas imports and US$4.51 billion in non-oil and gas imports.

Meanwhile, exports from Indonesia to Australia amounted to only US$1.86 billion in January-July 2021. Specifically, oil and gas exports totaled US$178 million, and non-oil and gas exports reached US$1.7 billion.

Lutfi hopes that trade relations between the two countries can improve through the utilization of the Indonesia-Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IA-CEPA). Currently, the utilization of IA-CEPA is still hampered by the COVID-19 pandemic.