On January 20 US time, Joe Biden was officially sworn in as the 46th President of America. The victory of Biden in the political contestation in Uncle Sam's country is a hope for the textile industry. Executive Director of the Indonesian Textile Experts Association (IKATSI) Riza Muhidin saw the momentum of Biden's election as a new hope for the revival of the Indonesian textile industry.
The promised economic stimulus will accelerate America's economic recovery so that their markets are open to globalization. Joe Biden is rumored to be pouring an economic stimulus of US $ 1.9 trillion. “Biden's step is right to improve the economic sector that has been hit by Covid-19 for a long time. "This stimulus is expected to improve the economy so that Indonesian textile products can sell well in their markets," he said.
It is known that local clothing products are selling well in the American market. This is evidenced in BPS data that the realization of Indonesia's exports to the US increased from US $ 1.6 billion to US $ 1.87 billion. "It can even increase again if the economy recovers quickly," he hoped. Riza added, if America can absorb Indonesian clothing as before, this will be a breath of fresh air for the upstream industry. This is because the upstream industry will see an increase in production because the demand for the downstream industry is starting to improve.
"This momentum also needs to be seen by the government. The hope is that the Ministry of Commerce will have bargaining value with the US government under Joe Biden. I see Pak Lutfi has the capacity and experience there, ”said Riza.
At the same time, Industry and Trade Policy Analyst of the Indonesian Fiber and Filament Yarn Producers Association (APSyFI) Farhan Aqil Syauqi said that what is interesting in the program offered by the 46th President is a new renewable energy program with the aim of reducing fossil fuel energy. "It was interesting when Biden proposed to use renewable energy. The textile industry usually has its own generator. If this can be realized and affects Indonesian industry with bilateral agreements, then the expenditure will be more efficient, "said Aqil.
This is in accordance with the National Energy General Plan (RUEN) which targets the use of new and renewable energy to reach 23% of the total national energy in 2025. In addition, Aqil reminded that the textile industry also needs to pay attention to the strengthening of the dollar if the stimulus offered by Joe Biden can run smoothly. good. Indeed, all financial transactions of the textile industry today still depend on the US dollar. "It is also dangerous if the US economic recovery is not matched by economic improvements in Indonesia. This can have an impact on the price of raw materials that are not produced domestically, so they need to be imported, ”said Aqil.
