Jakarta, Oct. 30 -- Trade Minister Budi Santoso said the Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IEU-CEPA) is expected to take effect in January 2027, ahead of the expiration of the European Union's Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) tariff facility for Indonesian products.

"Hopefully, the IEU-CEPA can be signed in November and implemented in January 2027 because the special tariff facility under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) will no longer apply from January 2027," he said at the 2026 National Leadership Meeting of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) in Jakarta on Friday.

Santoso explained that trade agreements should not be assessed solely based on trade surpluses o...