PALMOILMAGAZINE, MUMBAI – The Indonesian Ministry of Trade, through the Indonesian Trade Promotion Center (ITPC) Chennai, is encouraging Indian businesses to deepen trade cooperation with Indonesia. The call was made during the Jakarta–Mumbai Update (JaMU) 2025 Forum, held at the Indian Merchants’ Chamber (IMC) office in Mumbai, India.
Head of ITPC Chennai, Nugroho Priyo Pratomo, stated that there is still significant potential to expand bilateral trade. According to him, opportunities can be realized through business-to-business (B2B) interaction, people-to-people contact, and cultural as well as tourism exchanges.
“We invite more Indian businesses to connect with Indonesian counterparts. Palm oil, for example, continues to be one of the main commodities driving Indonesia’s trade surplus with India,” he said in an official statement published by Palmoilmagazine.com on Sunday (Sept 14, 2025).
Also Read: Indonesian Palm Oil: Huge Potential, Lagging Policies
The forum, organized by the Indonesian Consulate General in Mumbai, attracted 148 participants including entrepreneurs, academics, Indian government officials, consular representatives, and Indonesia observers. Alongside trade discussions, the event also showcased Indonesian culture through a photo exhibition on Indonesia–India relations, traditional culinary booths, a pacu jalur (rowing festival) selfie wall, and a traditional dance performance from West Sumatra.
Prominent speakers included IMC President Sunita Ramnathkar, Indonesian Consul General in Mumbai Edy Wardoyo, Bank Indonesia Deputy Governor Juda Agung, University of Indonesia academic Evi Fitriani, IIPC Director Nova Herlangga Masrie, and Erry Herjuno, Economic Attaché of the Indonesian Embassy in New Delhi. On the business side, Anant Singhania, former IMC president and CEO of JK Enterprises, shared his experience of over five decades investing in Indonesia. He highlighted that the availability of natural resources, including palm oil, along with skilled labor and supportive government policies, has been key to sustaining his investments.
The forum also introduced the upcoming 40th Trade Expo Indonesia (TEI), scheduled for October 15–19, 2025, at ICE BSD City, Tangerang. TEI is recognized as Indonesia’s largest trade exhibition, with India emerging as the top participant in the past two years. In 2024, the Indian delegation reached 944 participants, generating transactions worth US$ 7.46 billion and resulting in 33 business MoUs.
From a trade perspective, Indonesia–India relations continue to show strong growth. Between January and July 2025, bilateral trade reached US$ 13.66 billion, with Indonesia’s exports at US$ 10.87 billion and imports from India at US$ 2.79 billion, resulting in an US$ 8.09 billion surplus for Indonesia. In 2024, total trade between the two nations hit US$ 26.07 billion, dominated by Indonesian exports of coal, crude palm oil (CPO), and metals.
With palm oil and other strategic commodities leading the way, the JaMU 2025 Forum is expected to further strengthen business networks and sustain the positive momentum of Indonesia–India trade relations. (P2)
