Portuguese Business Delegation Intends to Enter Indonesian Market

Current economic conditions in Europe are encouraging European companies to focus on exports to expand their market to other countries.

Entering The Indonesian Market

Indonesia has become an attractive destination for expansion due to its consistent economic growth and large population. The same strategy applies to companies from Portugal in response to the current conditions in that country’s domestic market. A business delegation from Porto, in the northern part of Portugal, conducted a business mission to Jakarta, Indonesia, from October 16th to 18th, 2013. The mission was coordinated by AEP, a Portuguese Chamber of Commerce, and Expandia, a market expansion consulting firm from Portugal, with our company acting as the market entry consultants in Indonesia.

There are five participating companies from Portugal, the majority of which are from the building materials industry, including sanitary ware, door hardware, door manufacturers, cork composites, natural marble, and granite, as well as one company from the oil and gas industry, specifically focusing on gas installation systems. Each company held a meeting with nine Indonesian companies related to their sector. For building materials, the majority of Indonesian companies were distributors, supermarkets, or direct customers, including hotels. For the gas installation company, we focused on Indonesian companies with connections to the oil and gas industries.

The business delegation had the opportunity to have dinner at the Portuguese Ambassador’s residence and was received directly by Mr. Joaquim Moreira de Lemos. We hosted a small networking event by inviting top management from one of Indonesia’s largest conglomerates, which is involved in development, real estate, energy, and infrastructure.

Mr. Lemos emphasized that currently, Portuguese companies are increasing their interest in entering the Indonesian market. They realized that Indonesia is a vast potential market, into which not many Portuguese companies have tapped. This was related to the unfavorable relationship between Portugal and Indonesia in 1975, connected with East Timor. However, that was resolved in 1999, after East Timor gained independence (now known as Timor Leste).

The Director of AEP, Mrs. Maria Helena Ramos, stated that, in addition to expanding to Indonesia, Portugal also welcomes Indonesian investors to invest in Portugal. Currently, the most prominent investors in Portugal are from Angola and China. One of the incentives for foreign investors is that they will be entitled to obtain permanent residence in Portugal, which covers the European Union area, if they invest a minimum of EUR 500,000 in Portugal.

The development and construction sectors in Indonesia grew 6.4% in the first half of 2011, with a total US$41.8 billion, representing 10% of GDP and making the industry one of the largest contributors to the national economy.

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