15/10/2018 (Agence Europe) – Indonesian and European negotiators on Monday 15 October in Palembang (Sumatra) launched a new week of negotiations on a trade and investment agreement (see EUROPE 12069). While the progress made by negotiators since the launch of the talks in July 2016 has not been particularly rapid, it has the merit of being steady. After the fifth round last July, both parties completed the exchange of specific tariff offers. Progress on the topics of services and investment should allow for the exchange of offers in this sixth round. The pace of discussions is not expected to accelerate as the April 2019 presidential elections in Indonesia take place. With Indonesian negotiators pursuing many negotiations in parallel, they will probably focus their efforts on concluding more mature negotiations, including a trade agreement with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), which should be concluded soon. (HD)