For Immediate Release: December 14, 2011
Contact: Lorri Crowley (202) 482-3809
Commerce Assistant Secretary leads First Meeting of U.S.-Indonesia COmmercial Dialogue
Partnership expands opportunities for U.S. businesses
JAKARTA, Indonesia – Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Market Access and Compliance Michael Camuñez co-chaired the first official meeting of the U.S.-Indonesia Commercial Dialogue (USICD) on behalf of the International Trade Administration today.
Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Francisco Sánchez initiated
the USICD with Indonesian Ambassador Dino Patti Djalal during a trade mission to Indonesia earlier this year. The partnership was formalized at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings in Honolulu last month by Sánchez, Camuñez, Djalal, and Indonesian Deputy Minister for Economic Affairs Rizal Lukman.
“Joint U.S. Commercial Dialogues are rare, which is why the development of the U.S.-Indonesia Commercial Dialogue is indicative of the priority the Obama Administration places on our commercial relationship with Indonesia,” said Sánchez. “In less than one month after being formalized, the USICD is serving as an indispensible forum for sharing best practices, building capacity, and exchanging information. The USICD is helping to expand trade and strengthen commercial cooperation between our two countries.”
During the meeting, Camuñez discussed the fact that as bilateral trade and investment expanded rapidly in the Asia-Pacific region in recent years, U.S. companies have increasingly come to view Indonesia as a strategic market. In the first nine months of 2011, U.S. goods exports to Indonesia expanded by 9 percent compared to the same period in 2010.
“The USICD is representative of our commitment to being an active trading partner in the region in the years to come,” Camuñez stated. “Today’s meeting sets the stage for a deepening commercial relationship that will produce economic growth and support job creation in both of our countries.”
Indonesia is an important trading partner for the U.S. and is one of six priority “Next-Tier Markets” within the National Export Initiative, which seeks to double U.S. exports by the end of 2014. Two-way trade in goods and services between the two countries totaled over $23.4 billion in 2010. As one of the fastest growing G-20 economies, Indonesia plays a critical role in the demand for U.S. goods and services.###
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