EU rule may jeopardise Indonesian rubber industry

Looking for relief: A file photo of a worker with a sheet of natural rubber. Indonesia exported 300,000 tonnes of rubber to European countries in 2022. — Bloomberg

JAKARTA: Indonesian rubber producers fear that the European Union’s Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) will pile more pressure on an already ailing industry by hindering exports to EU countries and beyond.

South-East Asia’s largest economy exported 2.08 million tonnes of rubber worth US$3.66bil in 2022, Statistics Indonesia (BPS) data show, with exports to EU countries recorded at 300,000 tonnes, or around 14% of the total.