VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The government is reviewing the impact of the trade war between the United States and China on Indonesia, Vice President M. Jusuf Kalla stated.

"Indeed, this trade war will come into force next month, and from now on, the minister of economy has the opportunity to evaluate what the pros and cons are. We will examine its impact to avoid negative ones," he noted at the Vice President’s Palace.

The vice president remarked that the trade war between the United States and China will have an impact on Indonesia. Hence, it is necessary to examine the extent of the impact on the economy and the opportunities that can be utilized in the situation.

The United States will impose a 25 percent import tariff on 818 products effective from July 6, 2018, and will levy a charge on 1,300 products from China valued at US$50 billion.

The imposition of high trade tariffs has triggered retaliatory action, which will also result in a trade war between the two sides. As a result, it will also affect other countries.

Earlier, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Darmin Nasution had remarked that the improvement of the nation`s export structure held significance to overcome the impact of potential trade wars between developed countries.

"We have to set a policy, either in terms of the industry or natural resources, to improve our exports," he explained.

Nasution has made assurance that Indonesia should seek opportunities from the trade war and not rely solely on it to ensure that the national trade performance does not interfere with the overall economic growth projection. (ANTARA)