Illustrative image. Source: www.swissinfo.chSwiss Economics Minister Johann Schneider-Ammann announced on November 1 that Switzerland and Indonesia have agreed on a free trade agreement (FTA).
The agreement was reached after 17 rounds of negotiations, he said, adding that Switzerland negotiated the deal on behalf of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) member countries including Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
According to the minister, the joint declaration on the conclusion is planned for the EFTA Ministerial Conference in Geneva on November 23. The free trade agreement will be signed before the end of the year.
Indonesia is one of the major partners of Switzerland in South Asia, with two-way trade hitting 830 million USD.
Johann Schneider-Ammann said thanks to the agreement, all customs duties on Swiss exports to Indonesia are to be abolished in the medium term./.