The president of the United States, Donald Trump, said he reached an agreement with Indonesia that will see the products of that country to face a 19%tariff, while US exports will not be taxed.
“They pay 19% and we don’t pay anything,” declared Trump to the press on Tuesday at the White House. “We will have total access to Indonesia.”
Trump has sent tariff letters during the last week to multiple commercial partners, which increases the pressure on the negotiators before the deadline of August 1 for the entry into force of higher tariffs. An agreement with Indonesia, threatened with a 32%tariff, would be the first reached with a country to which one of those messages has been sent to reduce its rate.
Trump announced the agreement previously on social networks, without giving more details. He claimed to have dealt directly with the Indonesian President, Pabowo Subianto, to specify it.
Indonesia is preparing a joint statement with the United States that will detail additional information, including non -tariff measures and trade agreements, said the secretary of Ministry Coordinator of Economic AffairsSusiwijono Moegiarso, in a text message on Tuesday night in Yakarta.
The main negotiator of Indonesia, Minister Airlangga Hartarto, met last week with US officials, Including commercial representative Jamieson Greer, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Treasury Secretary Scott Besent, to negotiate an improved agreement.
The largest economy of Southeast Asia had previously proposed tariffs close to zero for about 70% of American imports, as well as commercial agreements in critical minerals, energy, agriculture and defense, but that failed to convince Trump to reduce the tax on Indonesian products at the rate of 32% that he first established in April.
The markets have been in expectation of Trump’s commercial proclamations, since it has modified the fees And the deadlines repeatedly since he announced tariffs by country on April 2 and then suspended them quickly. The ETF ishares MSCI Indonesia came to rise 0.7 % on Tuesday morning, time of New Yorkafter Trump’s publication, while the S&P 500 barely registered changes.
An agreement with Indonesia would be the fourth commercial framework that Trump has announced with foreign governments, after Vietnam and the United Kingdom. The United States and China also reached a tariff truce that includes the planned trade resumption of minerals and critical technology between the two largest economies in the world.
So far, the pacts have not become complete commercial agreements, and many details will still be negotiated. Trump did not present any document that supported last week’s statement on an agreement with Vietnam. The country’s leaders were surprised by Trump’s statement that Hanói had accepted a 20%tariff, and the Vietnamese government continues to try to reduce it, according to people familiar with the matter.
Trump has kept foreign governments and investors in suspense with their tariff agenda, with partners hurrying to avoid greater taxes on imports and markets that face a new dose of uncertainty. The US president said Monday in his letters that he preferred to maintain the encumbrances, saying: “I really don’t want agreements. I just want the document to be sent.”
The president also said he was willing to continue conversations with the main economies, including the European Union.
During the last week, Trump unleashed a barrage of letters demanding tariffs, informing other economies of the new tariffs that would go into force on August 1 if they failed to negotiate better conditions with the United States. The letters extended the initial deadline of July 9 for three more weeks, which triggered another frantic negotiations.
The Trump tariff threat series have driven economies to expand commercial ties beyond the United States; Indonesia reached an tentative economic agreement with the EU over the weekend.
“There is a fairly high level of frustration with these agreements and there is more talk about exploring other options, including Europe,” Erin Murphy said, principal researcher in Emerging Economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
The nations of Southeast Asia, reluctant to choose between the United States and China, have been trapped in the midst of economic and political battles between the two superpowers for a long time. While it is said that Vietnam has advanced in commercial negotiations with the United States, Thailand maintains ongoing conversations and analyzes how to reduce US tariffs without giving too much or envive internal discomfort.
Filipino officials are also pressing to ensure a pact before the new deadline, With President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. hoping to visit Washington at the end of this month in an effort to reduce or eliminate the 20% tariff planned by Trump for the island nation.
