thejakartapost.com
Mustaqim Adamrah , The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Mon, 09/15/2014 10:07 AM | Headlines
Indonesian textile manufacturers may redirect exports from Turkey to Syria and Russia, after the former accused three Indonesian firms of dumping, says the Indonesian Textile Association (API).
Association chairman Benny Soetrisno said last Friday Syria and Russia could suitably replace Turkey as the two countries offered potential markets just as large as Turkey.
“We have been thinking of two nations: Syria and Russia. These two countries have the potential to replace Turkey as new export markets,” he said during a discussion.
He, however, could not provide the market value in Turkey that Indonesian textile makers might lose upon redirection. The two-way trade was recorded at US$1.78 billion in 2014, according to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS).
The dumping allegation goes back to 2014, when 22 Turkish firms petitioned seven textile makers from three countries — China, India and Indonesia — for allegedly dumping “yarn of man-made or synthetic or artificial staple fibers, such as rayon yarn and polyester yarn”, said Benny.
Dumping is a global trade term that refers to a country, or companies in a country, exporting goods to a destination in bulk and at low price — sometimes even lower than the production cost — in such a way as to undermine local industries.
The Indonesian companies accused of dumping are PT Polysindo Eka Perkasa, PT Indo Liberty Textiles and PT Yans Manunggal Jaya.
Later on, the allegation was extended to four other firms. They are PT Kamaltek in Semarang, Central Java; PT Sunrise Bumi Textile in Bekasi, West Java and PT Elegan Textile Industry and PT Apac Inti Corpora, both located in Jakarta.
Benny said the results of the dumping allegation come out in a court hearing in Turkey next month, adding that Turkey’s dumping allegations were “absurd” as the country “does not produce rayon yarn and produces only a very small amount of polyester”.
Gusmardi Bustami, Trade Ministry director general for international trade cooperation, said Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu would raise the issue during her planned visit to Turkey later this month.
“Turkey should drop its charges,” he told The Jakarta Post at his office.
Indonesia is facing similar accusations from Brazil, with the Latin America country accusing 29 Indonesian producers of “dumping rayon yarn”.
According to Benny, Indonesia may lose at least $40 million from its textile and garment exports to Brazil.
If the Indonesian manufacturers lost their market in Brazil, they could shift their exports to Mexico, Chili, Peru, Argentina, or Bolivia, he said.
Dumping allegations, coupled with a sluggish global economy, have made Indonesian textile manufacturers less optimistic that they can meet their export target of $11 billion this year, up from $10.03 billion last year.
