Jakarta. Indonesian fisheries exporters are bracing for tighter margins as the United States prepares to impose a 19 percent tariff on Indonesian seafood products starting August 1, nearly doubling the current 10 percent levy and ending years of zero-tariff access..

While the final 19 percent rate is lower than the threatened 32 percent previously floated by the US, Indonesian businesses say the increase from zero to 19 percent remains a heavy blow.

“For us, it’s not about the drop from 32 percent to 19 percent, but the jump from zero to 19 percent. Even with 10 percent, we’ve already struggled,” said Budhi Wibowo, chairman of the Indonesian Fisheries Processing and Marketing Entrepreneurs Association (AP5I), in an online briefing with B Universe on Wednesday.

Indonesia’s seafood exports are valued at $6 billion annually, with $1.9 billion heading to the US market, of which shrimp alone contributes around $1.1 billion. The new tariffs could erode Indonesia’s competitiveness against other exporters in the US market, Budhi warned.

Amid the looming tariff increase, Budhi urged the Indonesian government to simplify licensing procedures and lower non-tax state revenue (PNBP) fees on fisheries, which he said drive up production costs and hurt the industry’s competitiveness.

“The more permits we need, the higher the costs. We’re asking the government not to raise PNBP in upstream fisheries. If fees remain high, we can’t compete or enter new markets,” Budhi said, adding that higher upstream charges could be counterproductive by shrinking business activity and reducing the government’s potential tax and market expansion revenue.

Budhi also called on the banking sector to increase credit ceilings for fisheries businesses to cover higher working capital needs under the new tariff regime.

“With the 19 percent tariff, our working capital needs will rise by 19 percent since we have to pay the tariff as soon as containers arrive at US ports,” he explained. “We hope banks will increase our credit ceilings and, if possible, lower interest rates during this challenging time.”