Data from the Ministry of Industry shows that the trade balance (export-import) of textiles and textile products, especially apparel, has continued to erode in the last three years, both in volume and value. The volume and value of Indonesia's textile exports during the 2022-2024 period were always lower than textile imports with a widening difference.
The volume of textile imports is no less than 1 million tons annually with a value ranging from 7-8 billion US dollars per year. In 2022, the textile import volume was 88.34 thousand tons more than the textile export volume. In 2023 and 2024, the difference became 69.09 thousand tons and 183.56 thousand tons. In fact, during the first seven months of 2025, the volume of textile imports was 211.52 thousand tons more than textile exports.
However, the opposite condition was seen in the apparel commodity, where exports performed better than imports. In the same period, the export volume of apparel was always higher than the import volume of apparel with a difference of more than 300 thousand tons.
If the export-import of these two commodities is combined, then the textile and apparel trade balance still shows a surplus condition, although the trend is shrinking. This suggests the need for anticipatory policies to prevent the national textile industry from getting worse.
This is because many factories have stopped operating and cut the number of employees due to the invasion of textiles and textile products. Many of these imported products enter with dumping practices, where goods are sold at below-market prices.
One of the policies implemented by the Ministry of Finance under the new minister that needs to be appreciated is the establishment of Safeguard Measures Import Duty (BMTP) on imports of yarn and cotton products. The BMTP policy is contained in Minister of Finance Regulation (PMK) Number 67 of 2025 which was signed on October 8, 2025.
The policy, which aims to protect the textile industry from upstream, will apply for three years with different tariffs. In the first year, the BMTP rate is set at IDR 7,500 per kilogram. The second year is IDR 7,388 per kg and the third year is IDR 7,277 per kg.
In addition to taking initial steps that protect the textile industry upstream, the next step that the government will take is to tighten enforcement against importers of used clothing. The government willblacklist importers of used clothing and impose fines in addition to taking action to destroy and imprison the perpetrators.
