Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Photo: AFP/VNA) Jakarta (VNA) – Indonesian President Joko Widodo has instructed the assessment of the impact caused by the novel coronavirus (nCoV) on the country’s economy, particularly its trade with China.
The President issued the instruction on February 4 following a ban on travel to and from China to curb the spread of the virus.
Indonesia has also temporarily suspended the granting of visas to Chinese citizens.
The same day, trade minister Agus Suparmanto announced a temporary ban on the import of live animal from China, which took effect immediately and will last until the nCoV is contained.
President Jokowi said the travel ban and import suspension is necessary to protect Indonesians from the virus. According to him, the move can also create opportunities for domestic industries to produce goods to replace imports and export to other countries.
Last year, Indonesia imported 44.5 billion USD worth of non-oil products from China, nearly 30 percent of all its imports.
In the first 11 months of 2019, the country received 1.9 million Chinese tourists, accounting for nearly 13 percent of total foreign visitors to the island country.
Meanwhile, Xinhua news agency reported on February 5 that Malaysia has had the first recovered nCoV patient.
The Malaysian Health Ministry announced on late February 4 that a four-year-old Chinese girl, one of the 10 confirmed cases in the country, has fully recovered and will be allowed to return home to China./.
VNA
