JakartaGlobe-Dec 17, 2025
Indonesia’s chief negotiator Airlangga Hartarto recently said that he would fight for tariff cuts on palm oil in an upcoming round of trade talks with US officials, as Washington has already rolled back on its cocoa import tax.
Senior minister Airlangga has reconfirmed his plans to meet US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Washington later this week. Speaking to the Jakarta-based press on Tuesday evening, Airlangga went on to say that Jakarta would pursue zero tariffs on palm oil — something that Malaysia already got in a trade deal struck in October. Jakarta initially had been nudging the Washington into drop the tariffs on cocoa, citing the latter’s inability to grow sufficient amount of the commodity in its own soil. But just last month, US President Donald Trump inked an executive order that exempted cocoa, alongside hundreds of other agricultural products, from the reciprocal tariffs amidst Americans’ concerns over the high costs of groceries. Indonesia is the world’s largest supplier of palm oil alongside Malaysia. The Indonesian Palm Oil Association (Gapki) reported that Jakarta had a huge lead in US-bound exports compared to Kuala Lumpur. Between January and October 2025, Indonesia exported nearly $1.8 billion worth of animal or vegetable fats and oils, according to the Trade Ministry. Trump’s 19% tariffs on Indonesian goods officially entered into force in August, although the rate was lower than the 32% tax that Trump had originally intended. Read more at: https://jakartaglobe.id/business/indonesia-to-fight-for-zero-tariffs-on-palm-oil-in-this-weeks-us-trade-talks#goog_rewarded
