Jakarta – The House of Representatives decided to include a controversial bill on a tax amnesty in its 2015 National Legislation Program (Prolegnas) during a plenary session on Tuesday.

Anton Hermansyah, Jakarta – An economist has warned that improper tax policies, such as applying a higher tax amid a weak economy, may slow the Indonesian economy.

Business – The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) announced a US$346.6 million trade deficit in November, breaking the streak of a 10-consecutive-month trade surplus, caused by an increase

Prima Wirayani, Jakarta – The government says it has completed 82 percent of the deregulation as outlined in its first six economic policy packages issued between September and November

Ayomi Amindoni, Jakarta – Indonesia potentially added an additional 4 to 6 million business enterprises over the last decade, from 2006 to 2016, bringing the total number of enterprises

Prima Wirayani, Jakarta – The government's recently issued economic stimulus package allowing street vendors to use state land will not be seen as an incentive since such regulation is

Raras Cahyafitri, Jakarta – As world prices continue to plunge, oil-and-gas companies operating in Indonesia are expected to further lower spending next year amid a slowdown in explorat

Anton Hermansyah, Jakarta – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has recently updated its outlook on Indonesia, forecasting moderate gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 4.8 percent in 20

Jakarta – The Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) has proposed income tax cuts to support the labor-intensive footwear and textile industry.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Indonesian rights activists said the brutal response of police toward protesting Papuan students has incited hatred and could further strengthen the resolve among

Jakarta – As part of efforts to boost the business of local manufacturers, the government has pledged to use more locally sourced materials for various infrastructure projects next year

Jakarta – The Public Works and Public Housing Ministry expects its early bidding policy will expedite budget disbursement to at least 90 percent by the end of next year.

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PT Modern Internasional Tbk has reported decreased profits in some of its 7-Eleven outlets across Jakarta, after the alcohol ban regulation was implemented, forcing them to find a new w

Anton Hermansyah – After enjoying windfall profits during the 2014 elections – the nation's biggest political festival – ad agencies have continued to enjoy a bountiful income from poli

Sri Wahyuni, Yogyakarta – Although many have recognized improvements made by the Indonesian government to create a better investment climate, foreign investors remain cautious about inv

Tassia Sipahutar, Jakarta – The current account deficit (CAD) narrowed in the third quarter from the previous quarter, paving the way for a lower full-year figure, the latest balance of payment (Bo

Khoirul Amin, Jakarta – The country's textile industry is hoping government efforts to curb illegal imports and reduce electricity costs will help improve the industry's growth in the fourth quarte

Ayomi Amindoni – Indonesia's economy is expected to grow by less than 5 percent this year, far from the 5.7 percent target stated in the 2015 state budget.

Prima Wirayani, Jakarta – The incentives to be given to some special economic zones (KEK) should be backed up by infrastructure upgrades; otherwise the policy would not work and miss the stated goa

Tassia Sipahutar, Jakarta – The government is expecting a bigger budget deficit than previously forecast this year as tax revenues have fallen well below target.

Ayomi Amindoni, Jakarta – Amid the persistent land and forest fires, the forestry and logging sectors experienced contraction in the third quarter.

Ayomi Amindoni, Jakarta – A survey from global market researcher Nielsen shows that the Indonesian consumer confidence index has continued to decline, going down four points, to 116, in the third q

Ayomi Amindoni, Jakarta – The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) announced on Monday that Indonesia had recorded 0.08 percent deflation during the month of October due to a surplus of food supplies.

Jakarta – A recent report by the World Bank revealed that doing business in Indonesia has become easier, especially after the government implemented an online system in several licensing sectors.

Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo witnessed investment agreements worth a total of US$20 billion between Indonesian and US companies during his trip to the US on Monday.

Sadachika Watanabe, Jakarta – East Timor is looking to upgrade its natural-resource and transportation infrastructure, creating new business opportunities for overseas construction companies and pl

Ayomi Amindoni, Jakarta – The Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) reported the growth of Indonesia's labor-intensive sector investments declined by 11.74 percent throughout the first nine months o

Ayomi Amindoni, Jakarta – The Coordinating Investment Board (BKPM) said despite the gloomy domestic outlook, Indonesia's realized investments showed a significant increase up until September 2015 a

Jakarta – The sales of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) in Indonesia have grown at a snail's pace during the past several months as people have reduced their spending to cope with the impact of th

Jakarta – Two months from year-end, Indonesia's economy is forecast to remain stuck in the doldrums next year, with the gross domestic product (GDP), the rupiah and state revenues lower than hoped

Randy Fabi and Kanupriya Kapoor, Jakarta – Indonesian President Joko Widodo will court tech giants Apple and Google during his first trip to the United States this month, in the hope of attracting

Jakarta – Indonesia's trade surplus reached US$7.13 billion in the first nine months of 2015, which was the biggest trade surplus from January to September in the last four years, according to Cent

Jakarta – The Indonesian Palm Oil Producers Association (Gapki) says the government should provide support and pay close attention to the national palm oil industry to ensure that it continues to g

Ayomi Amindoni, Jakarta – Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef) senior economist Didik J.

Business – Business owners are speaking out against the issuance of Ministerial Regulation No.

Jakarta – Central Statistics Agency (BPS) Suryamin said staple food contributed a lot to the deflation in September, which stood at 0.05 percent with a consumer price index (IHK) of 121.67.

Jakarta – The regional administrations will soon be authorized to establish tourist areas that will be allowed to sell liquor with up to five percent alcohol content, otherwise known as Group A liq

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Jakarta – The government will relax the sale of liquor and let regional administrations determine the places where people can buy alcoholic beverages with the condition the outlets are not close to

Jakarta – Publicly listed retail company PT Hero Supermarket (Hero) has closed the doors of dozens of its stores during the first half of this year to cut costs amid the domestic economic slowdown

Jakarta – The government's new economic policy package will not resolve the real problems currently being faced by Indonesian companies because it is mainly designed to mend structural problems in

Jakarta – Indonesia had a US$433.8 million trade surplus in August, which was triggered by a $1.01 billion surplus in the non-oil and gas sector, the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) said in a relea

Jakarta – The declining rupiah exchange rate, which currently stands at Rp 14,300 per US dollar, must be used to create momentum to consolidate Indonesia's business potential, according to one expe

Jakarta – Business players and analysts have strongly criticized the central bank's recent policy that required all business transactions conducted in the Indonesian territory be carried out in rup

Tassia Sipahutar and Khoirul Amin, Jakarta – Economic analysts have been underwhelmed by the government's newly launched economic policy package, regarding it as lacking the fresh solutions needed

Up to 134 regulations in 17 ministries and state institutions are set to be deregulated.

Slamet Susanto, Yogyakarta – People's decreasing purchasing power as a result of the downturn in the economy and increases in the prices of staple foods has affected demand for livestock ahead of I

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Kanupriya Kapoor & Gayatri Suroyo, Jakarta – Indonesia's 11th-hour decision to scrap plans for the nation's first high-speed railway has sown confusion among top investors from China and Japan,