Indonesia, China's economies complementary

Relations between Indonesia and China have historically been very dynamic, not only from the political and sociocultural point of view but also from the economic perspective. The increasingly close economic ties between the two sides, particularly over the past two decades, have attracted considerable attention from scholars as well as ordinary people.

China has been Indonesia's most important trading partner for more than a decade and a major source of foreign investment, while Chinese tourists constitute one of the largest groups of visitors to Indonesia. China has also been the largest source of imports for Indonesia since 2010, and the largest export destination since 2016. In 2024, Sino-Indonesian trade reached over $135 billion.

Chinese investment, too, has seen a dramatic increase, from $173.6 million in 2010 to $7.4 billion in 2023, making the Asian giant the second-largest foreign investor in Indonesia, after Singapore.