Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Indonesia is still engaged in tough dialogs with Pakistan over preferential trade agreement (PTA), a Trade Ministry official said.

"The negotiations have turned quite tough," Director General of International Trade at the Trade Ministry Gusmardi Bustami said here on Monday.

In the last round of dialogs held in the resort island of Bali late last year, Pakistan insisted on demanding that duty on its Kino orange exports to Indonesia be lowered to zero percent from the current five percent, he said.

In addition, the South Asian country also demanded a reduction of import duty on 43 more items of goods, including textiles, garments and leather products, he said.

He said if their demand was fulfilled, Pakistan would charge import duty on Indonesia`s palm oil at the same rate imposed on similar product from Malaysia.

In the meantime, Indonesia urged for the inclusion of 35 more items in the list of products whose import duties were lowered in return for Pakistan`s request, he said.

"We will give what we have pledged at the fifth meeting of the trade negotiation committee, namely nil percent at the first season and the second season (November-March). This is based on approval from our agriculture ministry. Afterwards, the duty will return to five percent," he said.

Gusmardi said Pakistan also had urged Indonesia to fully open its market for Kino orange.

"But because Pakistan feels that the Kino orange is highly political sensitive product they asked for our understanding. We told them that we could not fulfill their request," he said.

He said the two nations were expected to resume the negotiations in the middle of this year.(*)