Remarks of President of the Republic of Indonesia at the 39th Trade Expo Indonesia (TEI) Opening Ceremony, at Tangerang Regency, Banten Province, October 9, 2024

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim,

Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh,

Good morning,

May prosperity be upon us all.

Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,

To date, the global economy has not fully recovered yet. It is still growing slowly in the range of 2.6-2.7 percent. Inflation is still haunting many countries, with global inflation estimated at 5.9 percent. In addition, conventional and trade wars are still ongoing, which have caused some countries to impose trade restriction policies. Currently, at least 19 countries are imposing it. This has caused global trade volume to become sluggish.

On the other hand, there has also been much discussion about overproduction in China. Many countries have begun to worry and prepare to protect their domestic markets from the massive influx of low-cost products imported from China.

Indonesia as a country with a large market with the fourth largest population in the world, 280 million people, we must be able to protect our domestic market and sell our products, so that we can dominate the domestic market and expand into foreign markets. Marketing should not always be done conventionally. Now, it is the digital age. We must step up there massively to market Indonesian products.

When many countries impose restrictions due to trade wars, I think there lie opportunities. When many countries experience high inflation, I think there are also opportunities for us.

Therefore, I welcome the 39th Trade Expo Indonesia as the largest Indonesian export product exhibition, held in a hybrid format, in offline and virtual manners, to sell our featured products to the global market. We must be able to take advantage of this momentum to encourage higher export growth, improve the quality and competitiveness of our products, and expand its market reach.

That concludes my remarks. By saying bismillahirrahmanirrahim, this morning, I hereby declare the 39th Trade Expo Indonesia open.

I thank you.

Wassalamu’alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.

(AW/MUR)