Imports of textiles and textile products (TPT) worry business actors because they continue to flood the domestic market. Based on data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), the largest fabric imports during 2021 came from China, the value was almost half of the total domestic imports, which reached 48.87%. The second position is South Korea 12.99 percent, Vietnam 9.98 percent, Hong Kong 9.45 percent, Taiwan 7.03 percent, and Malaysia 5.58 percent. Entrepreneurs said that this condition could not be separated from the intervention of importers.
"These importers are forced, they don't have a sense of nationality. I know that garment importers, fabric importers, they insist on asking for an import permit, he says there is demand. Yes, demand for garments, fabrics, will always be there, but where do you want to fill it from? Local what imports?" Chairman of the General Chairperson of the Association for Fiber and Filament Yarn (APSyFI) Redma Gita Wirawasta said, quoted Monday (1/8/22).
In a new regulation from the Ministry of Trade, the General Importer Identification Number (API-U) is given to meet small industry raw materials (IKM). Redma considers this rule to be an obstacle.
"In the second quarter there was an increase in imports because of API-U. We have met Mr. Zulkifli (Minister of Trade Zulkifli Hasan), it has been opened to open API-U, PR is regulation, the main focus is at the port, I see it is still leaking," he said.
The flood of textile imports from other countries could be even greater because Indonesia is currently undergoing the Indonesia-Bangladesh preferential trade agreement (IB-PTA).
Redma said there were indications that one of the points in the trade agreement could sacrifice the textile industry. He has been in communication with the Director General of International Trade Negotiations. However, the discussion is still a lot because the textile industry is reluctant to become a victim.
"Flood imports are like this. But that is not the authority of the Director General, but is authorized by the Director General of other Ministries. Similar to China (a few years ago) suddenly flooded, we want security to be very difficult. So it is not synchronized with one ministry and another. promise, one I don't want to anymore," said Redma.
"If there is a national interest that we must sign the Indonesia-Bangladesh PTA we support, but we don't want textiles to be victims," he continued.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Industry, Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita, said that industrial textiles have a strategic role in the industrialization process.
"The government is spurring the utility of the textile industry to return to its pre-pandemic utilization level, which is between 60-80% so that it can support exports
national. Gradually this sector has begun to recover. Currently the utilization is at 70%," Agus said in a written statement quoted on Monday (1/8/2022).
Agus added that the national textile industry in 2025 is targeted to meet most of the domestic demand, to achieve an increase in exports of 15% per year.
