TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - An economist with the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef), Bhima Yudhistira Adhinegara, on Thursday said that Indonesian palm oil businesses should be wary of the possibility of Joe Biden winning the United States election as he said the Democrat candidate will focus on environmentally friendly-economy.

"Biden is the antithesis of Trump, especially in policies related to the environment,” said Bhima to Tempo on Thursday, November 5.

He predicted that a future "Biden policy" will hamper fossil and palm oil-based energy commodity exports from Indonesia as the two are generally not environmentally sustainable. The Indef economist believed non-tariff obstacles in the trade sector will eventually emerge.

“Palm oil producers must be ready with this [possibility],” said Bhima.

However, Bhima viewed that Indonesia’s commodity exports will likely recover if Biden wins the United States election. He added that such a scenario will help cool down the global trade war.

For the moment, the US election vote count remains tight but favors the Democrat of Joe Biden compared to his rival and competitor Donald Trump from the Republican Party. As of November 5, Biden managed to garner 264 electoral votes, while Donald Trump got 214 votes.

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FRANCISCA CHRISTY ROSANA