Indonesia to Buy 50 Boeing Jets in New US Trade Deal, Accepts 19% Tariff Under Trump Agreement
The United States has sealed a new trade agreement with Indonesia that will see the Southeast Asian nation purchase 50 Boeing aircraft and billions of dollars’ worth of American energy and agricultural products, in exchange for reduced U.S. tariffs on Indonesian goods.
Under the deal, Indonesian exports to the U.S. will now face a 19% tariff — down from the 32% initially threatened by President Donald Trump. In return, Indonesia has committed to purchasing $15 billion in U.S. energy products, $4.5 billion in agricultural goods, and 50 Boeing jets, many of which are Boeing 777s.
“We’re going to pay nothing. They’re going to pay 19%. And we get full access to their market,” Trump said outside the Oval Office. “It’s a great deal for everybody.”
The agreement, finalized following direct talks between Trump and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, is part of the U.S. president’s broader campaign to rebalance trade relationships and reduce America’s trade deficit.
In a statement posted to his Truth Social platform, Trump confirmed the terms of the agreement, though no specific timeline for the purchases was provided.
While Indonesia is not among the U.S.’s largest trading partners, bilateral trade totaled nearly $40 billion in 2024. The U.S. goods trade deficit with Indonesia stood at approximately $18 billion last year, with American exports up 3.7% and imports rising by 4.8%.
Trump also warned that goods transshipped through other countries to avoid higher duties will face increased levies under the deal.
The announcement follows Trump’s wider tariff policy introduced earlier this year, which imposed a 10% duty on nearly all U.S. trading partners and threatened further increases. Though the steeper tariffs were originally scheduled to take effect on July 9, Trump extended the deadline to August 1 and began sending formal tariff letters to over 20 countries, including the EU, Japan, South Korea, and Malaysia.
The Trump administration has so far finalized separate trade deals with the UK and Vietnam, and temporarily eased retaliatory tariffs in an agreement with China. Trump said talks are also ongoing with other nations, including India and the European Union.
Despite the Boeing deal announcement, the company’s shares closed down 0.2% on Tuesday.
As Trump’s “reciprocal tariff” strategy continues to unfold, trade partners remain wary of last-minute changes. Earlier this month, Vietnam was caught off guard when Trump unexpectedly doubled its expected tariff rate in a phone call with President To Lam. That rate was later revised down as part of a preliminary trade deal.
With Trump promising more deals in the coming weeks, global markets and trade officials are closely watching the shifting landscape of U.S. trade policy.
