With Indonesia’s announcement to implement a 100 to 200 % tax on China’s labor-intensive goods, Beijing’s efforts to boost trade relations with nations in the Global South have taken a hit.
The fourth-largest country in the world is drafting rules to implement anti-dumping duties and protect measures on cheap Chinese goods like shoes, clothing, electronics, ceramics, and bags, according to several Indian officials over the past couple days.
On June 27, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati announced that she will collaborate with the Minister of Trade and the Minister of Industry to create regulations enforcing the enactment of Anti-Dumping Duties and Safeguard Measures ( ADD and SM) on Chinese products.  ,
According to Indonesian Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan on June 28, the steps will help the country combat the effects of the continuing trade dispute between China and the US. He said the new China-specific tariffs will go into effect once the relevant legislation is published.  ,
He added that Indonesia may follow the US’s example by imposing tariffs on imported clothing and ceramics to ensure its little manufacturers can survive and prosper.  ,
Indonesia’s fresh tariffs go along with China’s plan to advance its Global South method, which rely on emerging areas in Southeast Asia, Africa, and South America to accept Chinese goods that are currently facing US trade barriers as a result of the ongoing Sino-US trade war.
Nearby textile associations have asked the government to move in after an flood of cheap products apparently hurt their businesses, according to Budi Santoso, the industry ministry’s director- general of international trade. He stated that the Indonesian Trade Safeguards Committee is conducting an investigation and may make a statement to the state in due course.  ,  ,
At least 13, 800 textile workers have been laid off this year as a result of local textile makers closing their factories as the domestic market is increasingly flooded with imported goods, according to Ristadi, president of the Confederation of Indonesian Workers ‘ Unions ( KSPN). According to him, there could be as many as 50 000 lay-offs in reality.  ,  ,
Ristadi claimed that the influx of closures was mostly caused by a change in rules earlier this year that eased import restrictions on ready-made clothing.  ,
He Wenping, a professor at the Institute of West- Asian and African Studies ( IWAAS ) at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences ( CASS), wrote in an article published on Monday that “it is unfair that Indonesia changed its own import regulations to import more goods but then criticized China’s so-called “overcapacity.”  ,
She argued that Indonesia may reconsider its deal plan if it wants to cooperate with China in expanding its tourism industry and that it would not tolerate any behavior that disparages Chinese goods in the name of “overcapacity.”  ,
According to Indonesia’s Central Statistics Agency, the Southeast Asian country’s bilateral trade with China fell 14.7 % to US$ 127.1 billion in 2023 from$ 149.1 billion in 2022.  ,
During the same period, China’s exports to Indonesia fell 12.8 % to$ 62.2 billion from$ 71.3 billion while China’s imports from Indonesia plummeted 16.5 % to$ 64.9 billion from$ 77.7 billion.  ,
Indonesia’s trade deficit with China contracted to$ 2.7 billion last year from$ 6.4 billion in 2022. Indonesia’s exports to China contain natural substances such as awaruite ( an alloy of nickel and iron ), ash, fuel and palm oil.
China’s imports to Indonesia include broadcasting products, smartphones, laptops, building vehicles, metal plates and electrical appliances.  ,  ,
Last year, China shipped about$ 500 million worth of toys,$ 1 billion of footwear,$ 2.5 billion of textile products and$ 430 million of ceramic products to Indonesia. About 7 % of China’s exports to Indonesia came from these four different types of light market products.  ,
Didi Sumedi, producer standard for National Export Development at Indonesia’s Ministry of Trade, said in early 2024 that the country aims to boost its exports to China again to approximately$ 65- 70 billion this year.  ,
A Sichuan-based columnist named Xiaoying wrote in an article published on Tuesday that” the rationale behind Indonesia’s 200 % tariff on Chinese goods is a far-fetched.” ” Is the proposed new taxes really overcome Indonesia’s problems from the source”?
The anonymous author claimed that the pressure on Indian businesses was not caused by Chinese goods but rather by the changing environment in worldwide trade markets. Indonesia may also try to figure out its own advantages, the author argued, while China has maintained its profitability by improving its companies.  ,
Xiaoying wrote that “blindly imposing tariffs against China may harm the basis of Sino-Indonesian relations and create more issues for Indonesian trade.” ” I believe Indonesia will not choose to leave China because the two countries have very promising assistance prospects,” he said.
Another Chinese commentators cited another instance of Asia’s growing protectionionism, which is related to India’s latest discussion of imposing tariffs on Chinese metal imports. They claimed that the Sino-US business war’s spillover effect will have an affect on both regional economic cooperation and international relations.
Chinese President Xi Jinping made the remarks at the Conference marking the 70th celebration of the Five Rules of Calm Cooperation in Beijing on June 28 that “developing governments should work together to stabilize the world and contribute to resolving issues around the world.”  ,
According to Xi, China has started the Five Principles of Calm Coexistence in an effort to shield the interests and aspirations of small and weak nations from power politics.
China’s most powerful chief added that the principles have established a significant academic foundation for a more just and equitable global purchase and absolutely oppose imperialism, colonialism, and hegemonism.
Beijing has referred to the Five Principles of Calm Coexistence as Xizang since last year as the name of the document that former Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai first proposed in 1953 during discussions with the Indian government regarding Tibet-related border issues.
Zhou traveled to India and Myanmar in June 1954, where he signed combined remarks with the leaders of the two countries, affirming the five tenets as the foundation of their relationship.
The Asian-African Conference held in Indonesia in 1955 affirmed the importance of the five principles, leading to the formation of the Non-Aligned Movement, which, ironically, was spearheaded by Indonesia to increase the political liquidity of the Global South in discussions with developed countries.  ,
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