Indonesia targets Jordan as next export destination

Indonesian government has send a trade delegation to Amman, Jordan, on Tuesday to boost export to the country, local press reported Wednesday. The mission is part of Indonesia diversify export destinations to Middle East countries, Jakarta Post reported here Wednesday. Deputy Trade Minister Bayu Krisnamurthi said that Jordanian government and business people had showed interest in setting up a distribution center for Indonesian goods in Aqaba. Aqaba is one of the largest ports in the Middle East, and the move would facilitate the flow of Indonesian goods exports to Syria, Iraq, Egypt, Saudi Arabia as well as to Jordan. Indonesian goods such as processed food, knocked-down furniture, moslem apparel, automotive spare parts and cosmetics would be welcome in Jordan, according to the delegation. It is reported that bilateral trade between Indonesia and Jordan was valued at 403 million U.S. dollars in 2011. For the period of January to August 2012, it stood at 364 million U.S. dollars, with a deficit of 100 million U.S. dollars posted by Indonesia due to high imports of phosphate, a material used to make fertilizer.