Asian Insider: Jokowi's 'hate foreign products' remarks confuse investors
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Mr Jokowi's latest remarks perhaps reflected the country's longstanding dilemma of welcoming foreign capital while resisting foreign domination.
PHOTO: REUTERS
SINGAPORE - Indonesian President Joko Widodo's recent battle cry to "love own products and hate foreign products" could harm global trade relations and alienate the very investors the country seeks to attract to boost trade and economic recovery, analysts say.
"The statement could be considered discriminatory and may trigger retaliation from other countries against Indonesia's export products. In the end, our exports will suffer," Mr Ahmad Heri Firdaus, an economist from the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef), told The Straits Times.