TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said Indonesia was not significantly affected by the trade war between the U.S. and China considering the country did not directly participate in the global supply chain.

On the other hand, Indonesia would be difficult to earn advantages from the trade war because of its position.

“So [Indonesia] is less exposed and also less able to gain positive output,” said Sri during a national seminar by Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef) in Jakarta, Tuesday, July 16.

In other words, countries taking part in the global supply chain would take more benefits, including Vietnam that experiences hike in economic growth. But, Sri added, Vietnam became highly dependent on other countries’ economy. Besides Vietnam, another big country such as China shared the same condition.

Therefore, many countries are striving to reduce the impact of the trade war by enhancing the intensity of bilateral economic ties. For example, Bank Indonesia (BI) initiated bilateral currency with a number of Southeast Asia countries.

According to the minister, this is one of the efforts to minimize the negative impact of the trade war on the country.

Indef executive director Taufik Ahmad seconded Minister Sri Mulyani's statement that Indonesia was not much negatively affected by the trade war, but was also difficult to seize positive opportunities.

FAJAR PEBRIANTO