Indonesia, Australia Eye Trade Deal Conclusion Within the Year

Indonesia and Australia are aiming to conclude negotiations for a comprehensive bilateral trade deal before year’s end, according to Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, who met in Sydney this weekend for talks on trade and other issues. “We are very committed to concluding a high-quality bilateral free trade agreement, the Indonesia-Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership by the end of this year,” said the Australian leader on 26 February. The two leaders also reported that significant developments were made in tariff reduction, infrastructure investment, building cooperation in the beef and cattle industry, and mutual embrace of culture, arts, and creative industry. Officials stress untapped trade potential As the two largest economies in the Oceanic region, Australia and Indonesia entered the weekend keen to strengthen their trade ties through the Indonesian-Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IA-CEPA). The bilateral talks first kicked off in 2010, and were re-booted just last year. (See Bridges Weekly, 15 December 2016 ) “Identifying opportunities for expanding our economic, investment, and commercial relationship will be a focus of our discussions, including our commitment to concluding a high-quality Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement later this year. This Agreement will benefit Indonesians and Australians alike, generating jobs,...