Jakarta Fair enlivened by products of Chinese brands among others

For James Preston Truesdell, driving a bigger car from America in Jakarta means having a driver to take care of him.

Having lived in the city as an American-turned-Indonesian citizen for more than 30 years, the president director of Safety & Survival Training, is now planning to buy a Wuling, a Chinese EV brand that's very popular in Indonesia.

"From all the stuff I have seen, read and talked to, Wuling seems to be the best buy in Indonesia," Truesdell told China Daily.

Truesdell was one of the thousands of visitors who went to the Jakarta Fair which concluded on July 13. The 25-day fair was held to celebrate Jakarta's 496th anniversary as Indonesia's capital city.

Apart from vehicles, notably electric cars, a wide variety of goods under thousands of brands were also on display at the fair. They included Indonesian and Chinese products as well as goods from other countries like garments, footwear, laptops, furniture, juice, cosmetics and apparel.

Wuling, Cherry and BYD were the most visited booths at the Jakarta Fair. They are part of the Chinese hybrid and EV brands that can be seen on Indonesia's roads.

Morits Tengklo, sales manager at a Wuling showroom in West Jakarta, said the EVs had become more appealing to potential buyers.

"Electric car users now know when to recharge batteries," Tengklo said.

People say batteries are costly, but Wuling gives a lifelong guarantee, Tengklo said. Such a guarantee is also given for other EVs, thus reducing operational and maintenance costs. A guarantee of up to eight years is given for Wuling cars that utilize internal combustion engines.

The government has also promoted the use of EVs in Indonesia by constructing numerous battery charging facilities and extending subsidies to consumers.

Indonesia has an ambition to become a major player in the electric vehicle and EV battery industries, given its abundant nickel reserves.

Bagus Setiawan, a mechanic at a car shop in Jakarta, said he and his friends visited the BYD booth at the Jakarta Fair.

Having never driven BYD so far, Setiawan and his friends took turns to get into the car and tried to get a feel for the EV.

Setiwan said BYD's designs "are so attractive. It has quite many features". He said Chinese cars are of good quality and understandably, they are now faster to enter the Indonesian market.

EVs are now found in different islands in Indonesia, notably in the islands of Java, Sumatra and Papua. The government has reportedly planned to have 2 million EVs in operation in Indonesia by 2030.

In Jakarta, the number of EV buyers has increased after the government introduced a regulation that exempts them from the "odd-even system".

At the Jakarta Fair, visitors also flocked to motorcycle booths, including one that displayed lithium batteries.

Natasya Safitri bought an EV motorcycle two years ago and has used it to travel to work. She also charged its battery at a mini-market near her home. But Safitri went to the Fair as she's interested in viewing other Chinese brands.

"It is so interesting. These motorcycles are all-digital. Their designs are beautiful and we can operate their features with our mobile phone. Hopefully, we in Indonesia can emulate China," Safitri said.

Indonesia has also held regular vehicle expos like Gaikindo Indonesia International Auto Show, Indonesia International Motor Show, and PERIKLINDO Electric Vehicle Show. They attracted large numbers of visitors.

At Jakarta Fair's homelife section, Rangga A. Saputra expressed his pride that instant glues produced by her uncle's factory in North Jakarta had been shipped to Africa.

"Export to Malaysia and China? I am not certain. They have quality and competitive products," Saputra said.

Sunday night's closing ceremony featured "Barongsai," a traditional Chinese dance with performers comprising ethnic Chinese and native Indonesians.

The writer is a freelance journalist for China Daily.