In 2020, President Jokowi imposed an export ban on raw nickel and nickel ore, as part of the country's commodity-led development strategy. In response, the EU filed a complaint to the World Trade Organization (WTO), arguing that Indonesia's actions were unfair as the ban threatened domestic employment in nickel-related industries and limited EU manufacturers’ access to raw materials. In November 2022, the WTO ruled in favor of the EU and found that Indonesia's export ban and domestic processing requirements were highly trade-restrictive measures. As of January 2023, Indonesia has filed an appeal with the WTO to exert its right to ban nickel ore exports.
The WTO ruling poses a direct challenge to Jokowi’s commodity-led development strategy. Given Indonesia’s growing economic leverage based on its possession of valuable resources such as nickel, it remains to be seen if Indonesia will comply with the WTO ruling should its appeal fail.
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