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☆ Indonesia Presidential Frontrunner Skips Press Freedom Event
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-11 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Two of Indonesia's three presidential contenders pledged to protect press freedom in the world's third-largest democracy at a weekend event that frontrunner Prabowo Subianto didn't attend. On the last day of campaigning, ex-Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan and ex-Central Java governor Ganjar Pranowo signed the National Press Council's written declarations to uphold democracy and press freedom. It was unclear if Prabowo, represented at the Saturday event by the head of his campaign team, signed the declaration. He denies the accusations, but critics have questioned Prabowo's commitment to protecting human rights. "Two of the main political teams have done Indonesian voters a service by sharing their views," said Elaine Pearson, Asia director at Human Rights Watch.

Persons: Prabowo Subianto didn't, Joko Widodo, Anies Baswedan, Ganjar Pranowo, Prabowo, pip, Rosan Roeslani, Rosan, Ganjar, Elaine Pearson, Bernadette Christina Munthe, Ananda Teresia, Kanupriya Kapoor, Tom Hogue Organizations: Central Java, National Press, Rights Watch, Human Rights Watch Locations: JAKARTA, Jakarta, Asia

☆ Factbox-Policy Pledges of Indonesia's Presidential Candidates
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-06 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +5 min

(Reuters) - Three candidates are running in Indonesia's presidential election on Feb. 14. The following is a summary of policy objectives they have pledged while campaigning. ANIES BASWEDAN- Target 5.5%-6.5% average annual economic growth from 2025-2029- Create 15 million jobs, including 'green' jobs- Raise the tax-to-GDP ratio from 10.4% in 2022 to 13%-16% by 2029- Target annual inflation of 2%-3% from 2025-2029- Offer incentives for renewable energy projects- Impose a carbon tax with proceeds to be used as an endowment fund to finance development of renewable energy- Increase the 'village fund' to 5 billion rupiah ($317,965) for each village, from the current 1 billion rupiah. - Widen access to global markets for palm oil farmers- Strengthen free trade agreements and Indonesia's role in international financial institutions- Minimise imports of staple foods- Create 2 million new affordable housing units, including for informal workers, youth- Expedite forest conservation and rehabilitation projects- Limit new construction of, and retire existing coal-fired power plants, especially in Java, Bali islands- Review debt of state-owned enterprises, continue debt restructuring programme- Revise Jobs Creation Law with goal to ensure fair wages for workers- Evaluate the $32 billion new capital city project- Evaluate food estate programme, replacing it with contract farming, a scheme to ensure farm products will be sold- Impose a wealth tax on Indonesia's 100 richest people- Audit the nickel industry with focus on its impact on the environment and ensuring welfare of domestic workers- Strengthen the anti-corruption agency by revising the law that regulates it- Ease permitting requirements for building places of worshipGANJAR PRANOWO- Continue programmes of outgoing President Joko Widodo's administration- Target average annual economic growth of 7%- Create 17 million new jobs- Expedite construction of new capital city- Increase the defence budget as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) to between 1%-2%, from about 0.8% presently. Modernise military hardware- Target 30% share for renewable sources in energy mix by 2029- Allow more renewable energy producers to use electricity grids of state utility firms to boost green energy adoption- Set up a dedicated ministry for the palm oil sector- Maintain moratorium on deforestation, accelerate reforestation programmes- Create digital tax collection system under the new tax agency separated from finance ministry- Limit permit issuance of new nickel smelter to avoid a further oversupply- Expand social welfare to cover 15 million families, up from 10 million currently- Provide funding to ensure at least one member of a poor family receives education until college- Strengthen national anti-corruption agency- Maintain foreign policy of non-alignment- Strengthen Indonesia's commitment to support fight of Palestinian people- Revitalise the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and its decision-making process, especially regarding South China Sea disputes.

Persons: ANIES, GANJAR, Joko Widodo's, PRABOWO, Joko, Stanley Widianto, Ananda Teresia, Stefanno Sulaiman, Bernadette Christina Munthe, Martin Petty Organizations: Reuters, Association of Southeast Asian Nations Locations: Java, Bali, South

Bank Indonesia's logo is seen at its headquarters in Jakarta, Indonesia, January 17, 2019. Bank Indonesia (BI) plans to issue new rupiah-denominated securities, using its holdings of government bonds as the underlying asset, as a new monetary instrument aimed at attracting foreign portfolio capital flows, Governor Perry Warjiyo said. BI kept the benchmark 7-day reverse repurchase rate (IDCBRR=ECI) at 5.75% for its seventh straight monthly policy review, as widely expected by economists surveyed by Reuters. Guarding the rupiah "is our way to protect the domestic economy, inflation and growth from global spillovers," Warjiyo told reporters. Inflation slowed in July to 3.08%, roughly the midpoint of the central bank's 2% to 4% target range.

Persons: Willy Kurniawan, Perry Warjiyo, Warjiyo, Radhika Rao, Shivaan Tandon, Bank Danamon, Fransiska Nangoy, Bernadette Christina Munthe, Stefanno Sulaiman, Ananda Teresia, Gayatri Suroyo, Martin Petty, Kim Coghill, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: REUTERS, Bank Indonesia, BI, Reuters, Securities, U.S, Treasury, DBS Bank, Capital Economics, Bank, Thomson Locations: Jakarta, Indonesia, JAKARTA, Asia's, China

Key hurdles for the two projects include the country's caps on domestic gas prices, limits on gas exports and the high costs for carbon capture and storage - required for new gas projects to help fight global warming. Last month, Shell (SHEL.L) said it would sell its holding in the Masela project to Indonesia's Pertamina and Malaysia's Petronas, while Chevron (CVX.N) agreed to sell its stake in the IDD project to Italy's Eni (ENI.MI). Reuters GraphicsNEW TERMS NEEDEDOnce one of the world's top five liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporters, Indonesia's LNG exports have halved in the past decade, Kpler data showed. The country has not approved a major oil or gas project since 2016 - the expansion of BP's (BP.L) Tangguh LNG plant. The current formula for splitting revenue between the government and investors in gas projects sets the base rate at 48% for companies.

Persons: magnifier, Dado Ruvic, Benny Lubiantara, Andrew Harwood, Wood Mackenzie, SKK Migas, Benny, Prateek Pandey, Takayuki Ueda, Naing, Inpex's Ueda, Fransiska Nangoy, Bernadette Christina Munthe, Emily Chow, Yuka Obayashi, Florence Tan, Sonali Paul Organizations: REUTERS, Indonesia, Shell, Chevron, Indonesia Deepwater Development, Petronas, Eni, Essential Services, Reuters, Indonesia Petroleum Association, Rystad Energy, BMI Research, Fitch Group, Tcf, Thomson Locations: Indonesia, JAKARTA, Jakarta, Chevron, Tokyo, Masela, Singapore

☆ Indonesia launches new crypto bourse, clearing house
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration//JAKARTA, July 21 (Reuters) - Indonesia has launched a national crypto asset bourse to provide regulators with transaction records and better protect crypto investors, the government announced this week. The launch of the exchange and clearing house is also intended to strengthen monitoring of the booming sector amid a transition in regulatory oversight, according to the Commodity Futures Trading Regulatory Agency (Bappebti). Rising global interest rates have, however, dampened demand for crypto assets in recent months. The new bourse will list existing licensed crypto companies, such as Binance's Tokocrypto, Indodax and others as traders. PT Bursa Komoditi Nusantara will run the bourse and PT Kliring Berjangka Indonesia will clear transactions there, Bappebti chief Didid Noordiantmoko said in a statement.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Didid Noordiantmoko, Bernadette Christina Munthe, Gayatri Suroyo, Kanupriya Kapoor Organizations: REUTERS, Commodity, Trading Regulatory Agency, Bursa Komoditi Nusantara, bourse, Kliring Berjangka, Tennet Depository Indonesia, Financial Services, Thomson Locations: JAKARTA, Indonesia, Indodax, Bursa, Kliring Berjangka Indonesia, Bappebti

☆ Indonesia tech firm GoTo to cut 600 more jobs - statement
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 10 (Reuters) - Indonesia's biggest tech firm PT Goto Gojek Tokopedia (GOTO.JK) announced on Friday another round of layoffs aimed at streamlining the organisation and boosting the company's profitability. About 600 roles will be affected, the company said in a statement, following 1,300 jobs that were cut late last year. The company has previously said the laysoffs are aimed at making the company more "agile" and maintaining growth amid challenging global economic conditions. GoTo said last month that adjusted EBITDA is expected to turn positive in the last quarter of 2023 due to its cost management measures. Reporting by Stefanno Sulaiman, Writing by Bernadette Christina Munthe; Editing by Kanupriya KapoorOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Indonesia to provide incentives to boost EV sales starting March 20 - official
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

JAKARTA, March 6 (Reuters) - Indonesia will provide incentives to boost sales of electric vehicles (EVs) starting March 20 as part of efforts to accelerate adoption and attract investment into production, senior cabinet minister Luhut Pandjaitan said on Monday. The programme will cover sales of 200,000 electric motorbikes and 35,900 electric cars, said Industry Minister Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita. Officials have been trying to attract investment from electric car makers such as the United States' Tesla and China's BYD Auto. South Korea's LG and Hyundai have started construction on plants to assemble batteries and electric cars in the Southeast Asian country. "We believe with this programme, (auto companies) would be more attracted," Agus said, adding that companies eligible to join the programme are required to have a plant in Indonesia.

☆ Indonesia to tighten used shoe import controls after Reuters report
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

JAKARTA, March 6 (Reuters) - Indonesia will tighten customs checks at small ports to crackdown on the illegal import of second-hand shoes, the industry ministry said on Monday, responding to a Reuters report that found footwear donated to a recycling scheme in Singapore was shipped to Indonesia. In 2015, Indonesia banned the import of second-hand clothing and footwear over concerns about hygiene, as well as to protect the local textile industry. In a statement titled "dismantling the scandal of illegal imports of used shoes", Indonesia's Ministry of Industry said that as a result of the Reuters story it would increase checks at ports to intercept any illegal second-hand shoe shipments. "This incident shows that the illegal import of used shoes is carried out in an organised manner and misuses social projects," Industry Minister Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita was quoted as saying in the statement. "The practice of illegal importation of used shoes must be stopped because it has a bad impact on the domestic footwear industry."

☆ Indonesian officials call for audit after Pertamina fire kills 13
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Firefighters try to extinguish a fire at a fuel storage station operated by Indonesia's state energy company Pertamina, in Jakarta, Indonesia, March 3, 2023. REUTERS/Willy KurniawanCompanies Pertamina (Persero) PT FollowJAKARTA, March 4 (Reuters) - Indonesian officials called for an investigation and an audit of state energy company Pertamina's (PERTM.UL) facilities after a fire at its storage facility killed 13. "I have ordered Pertamina to immediately investigate this case thoroughly," State-Owned Enterprise Minister Erick Thohir said via his Instagram page. Sugeng Suparwoto, who heads parliament's energy committee, called for an audit of Pertamina's facilities. Sugeng also said there should be a bigger distance between Pertamina's storage facilities and residential areas.

☆ Investments in Indonesia's nickel industry
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Here are some of the major investment deals involving nickel in Indonesia:Jan. 2020: Indonesia bans exports of unprocessed nickel to attract investment in downstream processing. Dec. 2020: Indonesia's investment ministry signs an MOU with LG Energy Solution (373220.KS) on integrated EV battery investment with total investment of $9.8 billion. 2021: Indonesia establishes the Indonesia Battery Corporation (IBC), a joint venture of state owned enterprises to cooperate with foreign investors in developing an EV battery supply chain. Jan. 2022: Indonesia's Investment Ministry signs an MoU with Foxconn (2317.TW), Gogoro Inc, IBC and Indika Energy (INDY.JK) for investment in electric vehicle and battery development. Sept 2022: Vale Indonesia signs an agreement with Zhejiang Huayou to build a second plant to produce nickel MHP with 60,000 tonnes capacity.

☆ Indonesia close to EV deals with BYD Group and Tesla - minister
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

JAKARTA, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Indonesia is finalising agreements with China's automaker BYD Group and U.S. carmaker Tesla (TSLA.O) to invest in electric vehicle (EV) production facilities in the Southeast Asian country, a senior cabinet minister said on Tuesday. Indonesia is aggressively promoting investment into batteries and EVs at home to take advantage of its rich nickel resources. BYD Group, the number one in the world, Tesla, the number two, Hyundai and so on, they are all finalising deals with Indonesia," coordinating minister Luhut Pandjaitan said in a meeting with provincial governments. BYD Group and Tesla did not immediately respond to requests for comment. SGMW Motor Indonesia, part of a joint venture of SAIC Motor Corp Ltd, General Motors Co (GM.N) and Wuling Motors Holdings (0305.HK), has built assembly facilities in Indonesia.

☆ Thousands of Indonesian workers protest against president's job decree
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The Constitutional Court had ruled the 2020 Jobs Creation Law was flawed, saying there had been insufficient public consultation before the law was passed. "Job creation should be in line with workers' welfare improvement, but this decree runs counter to it. Protesters held a banner saying "Say no to outsourcing", while others had signs reading, "Refuse job creation emergency decree because there is no emergency situation". "We don't want the state to become only an agent for dirty entrepreneurs to weaken workers' welfare," Said told reporters. The Jobs Creation Law, revising more than 70 other laws, had been welcomed by foreign investors for cutting red tape.

☆ Indonesia says investment talks with Tesla still ongoing
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Bernadette Christina | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Luhut Pandjaitan, who has been leading the talks with Tesla, declined to disclose further details, citing a non-disclosure agreement. Bloomberg News also reported that the Indonesia talks include plans for production facilities and to facilitate the company's supply chain, citing people familiar with the matter. "I can't comment, we're still talking," Luhut told Reuters, adding that he had just recently held another round of talks with Tesla. Tesla currently makes its electric cars in China's Shanghai, Germany's Berlin, and Austin and Fremont in the United States. Indonesian authorities have said Japanese firms Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) and Mitsubishi Motors Corp (7211.T) have pledged investments in EV production.

☆ Indonesia eyes $11 bln in capital market fundraising this year
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

JAKARTA, Jan 2 (Reuters) - Indonesia is targeting 170 trillion rupiah ($10.92 billion) in capital market fundraising for this year, including from initial public offerings and debt instruments, its financial regulator said on Monday, well below the amount raised in 2022. About 260 trillion rupiah was raised through the capital market last year, including the IPO of top tech firm PT GoTo Gojek Tokopedia (GOTO.JK), which raised $1.1 billion in April. Inarno Djajadi, head of capital market supervision at the Financial Services Authority, said there were 84 offerings in the pipeline with 81.41 trillion rupiah ($5.23 billion) in total estimated value. About 54.5 trillion rupiah of that would be from 58 potential IPOs. Among firms expected to go public in 2023 are two units of state energy firm Pertamina, Pertamina Geothermal Energy and Pertamina Hulu Energi.

☆ Indonesia central bank raises key policy rate by 25 bps
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

JAKARTA, Dec 22 (Reuters) - Indonesia's central bank raised its key policy rate on Thursday, its fifth rate hike since August and widely expected by markets, as it aims to bring inflation back within target next year. Bank Indonesia (BI) hiked the benchmark 7-day reverse repurchase rate (IDCBRR=ECI) by 25 basis points (bps) to 5.50%, as expected by the majority of economists polled by Reuters. It also raised its deposit facility (IDCBID=ECI) and lending facility (IDCBIL=ECI) rates by the same amount to 4.75% and 6.25%, respectively. Reporting by Gayatri Suroyo, Fransiska Nangoy and Bernadette Christina Munthe; Editing by Martin PettyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Indonesia's 2022 fiscal deficit seen at 2.49% of GDP-president
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

JAKARTA, Dec 21 (Reuters) - Indonesia's fiscal deficit for the whole of 2022 will likely be 2.49% of gross domestic product, much smaller than deficits in 2021 and 2020, President Joko Widodo said on Wednesday. The deficit forecast was also below authorities' latest projection of a gap of around 3% of GDP and compared with a 4.5% deficit target in the revised 2022 budget. Last year's fiscal deficit was 4.6%, while 2020's was 6.1%. Economic recovery from the pandemic and a hike in value added tax (VAT) rate have also supported government revenues, Sri Mulyani said. The president also said with COVID-19 cases declining, Indonesia may lift all of its remaining pandemic-related mobility restrictions by year-end.

☆ Indonesia says lithium, anode plants are being built to support EV ambitions
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

JAKARTA, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Indonesia is building a lithium refinery and an anode material production facility to complement its nickel-based battery materials industry, an official said, as it aims to set itself up as a hub for making electric vehicles (EVs). An anode material plant with 80,000 tonnes capacity is set to start construction in January, he added. Indonesia has already started producing EV battery parts extracted from nickel, but other materials are also needed to produce EV batteries, Seto said. He did not elaborate on how the lithium ore for the plant would be sourced. The government has banned exports of unprocessed nickel to attract investment at home and secure material for domestic production of nickel metals and battery materials.

☆ Indonesia's GoTo to cut 1,300 jobs to step up cost cutting
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

GoTo said it has achieved around 800 billion rupiah ($51 million) in cost savings in the first half of this year through efficiency measures in technology, marketing and outsourcing. GoTo, which offers ride-hailing and financial services, went public in April with a $1.1 billion stock sale. Its shares are trading 44% below its initial public offering price, as investor sentiment on the tech sector sours amid soaring inflation and interest rates. Shares in GoTo rose 2.8% on Friday after announcing the job cuts. In recent months, Southeast Asia's largest-ecommerce firm Shopee cut jobs in various countries and shut some overseas operations as parent Sea (SE.N) struggle with losses.

☆ Musk to join G20 summit in Indonesia virtually, CNBC Indonesia reports
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

NUSA DUA, Indonesia, Nov 12 (Reuters) - Elon Musk will join the G20 summit in Indonesia's Bali virtually rather than in person, an official from the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce told CNBC Indonesia on Saturday. "He is unable to attend because...there are incidents in the United States and he must be present there," Arsjad Rasyid, head of the chamber was quoted as saying, adding the Twitter and Tesla CEO would join virtually. Organisers of the event did not immediately respond to a request from Reuters for confirmationReporting by Stanley Widianto and Bernadette Christina Munthe; Writing by Kanupriya Kapoor; Editing by Martin PettyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Musk to join G20 summit in Indonesia virtually - CNBC Indonesia
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NUSA DUA, Indonesia, Nov 12 (Reuters) - Elon Musk will join the G20 summit in Indonesia's Bali virtually rather than in person, an official from the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce told CNBC Indonesia on Saturday. Organisers of the event and Indonesian government officials did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for confirmation. Musk is due to speak at a business event related to the summit of the Group of 20 major economies. World leaders including U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping are attending in person, while Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to attend virtually. After recently acquiring social media platform Twitter, Musk has been mired in a series of strategy and policy changes that have thrown the future of the company into doubt.

The crash into the Java Sea after take-off from Jakarta, which killed all 62 people on board, was Indonesia's third major commercial plane crash in just over six years and shone a spotlight on its poor air safety record. A working autothrottle is not required for a plane to be dispatched because pilots can control the thrust levers manually. The first officer said "upset, upset" and "captain, captain" before the recording stopped, but the captain's channel was not working, making it more difficult for investigators to analyse events. KNKT had raised the lack of upset recovery training after the 2014 crash of an AirAsia Indonesia jet that killed all 162 people on board. Indonesia is putting in place updated upset prevention and recovery training, KNKT said in the report.

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