Indonesia signs energy, grain deals with US: minister

JAKARTA: Indonesia’s state oil company and agricultural firms have signed deals to increase their purchases of US goods, the country’s chief economic minister told AFP on Wednesday, as Jakarta lays the groundwork to avoid the worst of President Donald Trump’s tariffs.

Southeast Asia’s biggest economy has pledged to step up agriculture, energy and merchandise imports to close the trade gap with Washington and earlier this week struck a $1.25 billion deal to buy more US wheat.

Trump has threatened Jakarta with a 32 percent tariff on top of a base 10 percent if it does not strike a new trade agreement by August 1.

Chief economic minister Airlangga Hartarto, who has travelled to Washington for trade talks, said Wednesday that state oil firm Pertamina signed a memorandum of understanding pledging more US energy purchases, without providing more details.

Agriculture firms Sorini Agro Asia Corporindo, a member of Indonesia’s Corn Mill Association, and FKS Group also signed memorandums of understanding to up their purchases.

He did not disclose the value of the deals signed in Washington but last week he told reporters that Indonesian businesses would make a total spending commitment worth $34 billion.

The Indonesian embassy in Washington said the agreements were struck at meetings in Washington on Tuesday.

“The meetings resulted in several commercial deals, as reflected in the signing of various memorandums of understanding, paving the way for new cooperation opportunities and deepening bilateral economic ties,” it said.

US food corporation Cargill in a statement confirmed the slate of deals included an MoU for corn purchases.

Data from the US trade representative office shows Washington’s goods trade deficit with Jakarta was $17.9 billion in 2024, up 5.4 percent from the year before.