REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, MANADO -- The province of North Sulawesi exported 30,000 tons of crude coconut oil (CCO) in the first half 2017, a regional official said on Monday.

"Significant volume of CCO has been exported to the United States as demand for that commodity is high in that country," head of the provincial Industry and Trade Office Jenny Karouw said.

Jenny said CCO exports to the United States contributed US$47.99 million in foreign exchange income to the country in the January-June period this year.

CCO is North Sulawesi's largest export earner, therefore, shrinking price of that commodity resulted in slow down in the economic growth of the province. income of that region in the second quarter of this year.

The North Sulawesi's economy grew only 5.8 percent in the April-June period, slowing from a growth of 6.43 percent year-on-year in the previous quarter, head of Bank Indonesia representative office for North Sulawesi Soekowardojo said last week.

Jenny said North Sulawesi has to take advantage of the market opportunity in the United States, adding the quality of North Sulawesi's CCO has been recognized in the U.S. market.

In the United States, the CCO consumers are households and biofuel industry, she added.

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