The Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported that the first round of negotiations on a free trade agreement between the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and Indonesia began today, Monday, in Jakarta.
The Gulf Cooperation Council includes Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman.
The first round of negotiations, which will take place from September 9 to 13, will discuss issues related to trade in goods, services, investment, customs procedures, rules of origin, technical barriers to trade, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, as well as trade facilitation, digital trade, and trade remedies.
“Foreign Trade” heads the Saudi negotiating team participating in the first round of negotiations on the free trade agreement between the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and Indonesia. https://t.co/y1sPvrdRND#SPA_Economic pic.twitter.com/Xz3aWQxjjb
— SPA Economic (@SPAeconomic) September 9, 2024
This round also aims to set the framework for the upcoming negotiating rounds and their desired objectives, in an effort to conclude the agreement within 24 months.
This tour comes as an extension of the signing of the joint statement to start free trade negotiations between the GCC countries and Indonesia last July, with the aim of increasing cooperation and strengthening economic relations between the two sides.
The agreement is expected to provide preferential access for Gulf goods and services to the Indonesian market by eliminating or reducing customs duties on most goods, according to the Saudi Press Agency.
Indonesia and the UAE signed a bilateral trade agreement in 2022.
The volume of trade exchange between Saudi Arabia and the Republic of Indonesia during the year 2023 amounted to about 7 billion dollars.
