Indonesia seeks faster trade pact with China as talks reach 80% completion
Airlangga Hartarto said the president wanted an early signing, with non-tariff issues among the matters still to be resolved.
Indonesia is pushing to accelerate its economic partnership agreement with China, with about 80% of discussions completed through the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area (ACFTA) framework, Coordinating Economic Affairs Minister Airlangga Hartarto said on 12 November 2026.
Speaking at a high-level event on foreign-exchange market development and rupiah-yuan transactions, Airlangga said he had briefed the president, who requested that the Indonesia-China Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IC-CEPA) be signed as soon as possible. Non-tariff issues and other matters remained outstanding, he said.
Airlangga sought support from the Chinese ambassador attending the event to speed up the process. He said Indonesia was working through the latest version of ACFTA while also pursuing a direct bilateral agreement with China, with faster progress expected to help both countries gain market access sooner.
China accounts for about 45% of Indonesia’s non-oil and gas imports, primarily auxiliary raw materials, machinery and capital goods, according to Airlangga. He also said China ranked among Indonesia’s three largest investors, with US$4.97 billion invested in January-September 2026, mainly in basic metals, trade and repair services.
Airlangga said settling trade in currencies other than the US dollar could ease pressure on the rupiah. He expressed hope that Pertamina and PLN would use local-currency transactions for oil and gas purchases, and stressed the need for better market access and more efficient logistics.
