Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – Having learned the hard way from the financial crisis about the importance of managing lending risks, Indonesia's banking sector has now improved significantly,

Andi Haswidi, Jakarta – After four months of improvement, consumer confidence fell in June amid concerns about cooking oil, milk and other food-product prices, a survey reveals.

Jakarta – An economic think tank has warned the government of a possible sudden reversal in short-term capital inflows, which it says could destabilize the economy and cause even more c

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – A group of economists have criticized the government for being "overly pro-market" and abandoning its own pro-poor policies, claiming that these were the underly

Jakarta – An unclear division of responsibilities between local and central government is hampering both from reaping more benefits from fiscal decentralization, international experts s

Debnath Guharoy, Consultant – Whichever way you look at it, not many people in Indonesia have real disposable incomes.

Andi Haswidi – The upcoming Negative Investment List has infuriated some foreign investors, who fear they may lose some of their shares and have fewer options for further investment.

Jakarta – The government stepped into a controversial quagmire Monday when it announced that only six businesses met the criteria for classification as a military business from among th

Andi Haswidi, Jakarta – The latest trade figures show that Indonesia's monthly exports declined 3.7 percent in April to US$8.85 billion from $9.19 billion a month earlier.

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – Indonesia's real sector is still hampered by poor infrastructure and access to financing, resulting in continued slow growth despite stable macroeconomic conditi

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Ary Hermawan, Jakarta – The government's expectation that the banking industry will be able to increase lending by 33 percent by 2008 in order to meet its economic growth target of 7 pe

Washington – The United States and Indonesia are to launch a set of initiatives aimed at boosting bilateral trade and investment ties, their trade ministers said after talks here Monday

Andi Haswidi and Hendarsyah Tarmizi, Jakarta – It is still unclear whether the mistake was the finance minister's or the media's, but the recent remarks by Sri Mulyani appear to have pu

Ary Hermawan, Jakarta – The chairman of the National Banks Association (Perbanas), Sigit Pramono, has pinned the blame squarely on the shoulder of businesses for the slow lending growth

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – Following Vice President Jusuf Kalla's latest criticism of the reluctance of local banks to provide more lending to the real sector, the central bank has pitched

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – It appears to be payback time for Indonesia's banks, with the Vice President again urging them to do their part in helping finance the country's development need

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – With encouraging increases in consumption, exports and investment during the first three months of this year, the Indonesian economy is well on track for higher

Cirebon, West Java – Traditional market traders, backed by members of the Cirebon municipal council, have urged the municipality administration to stop issuing building licenses for min

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – While the government and central bank need to be on alert against the backdrop of a recent surge in overseas borrowing by the private sector, they should avoid d

Andi Haswidi, Jakarta – A number of legislators are insisting that certain sectors of the economy remain closed to foreign investment despite the fact that the newly enacted 2007 Invest

Ika Krismantari, Jakarta – Modern retail outlets in the country such as hypermarkets and minimarkets do not pose any threat to wet markets and traditional grocery stores despite their m

Andi Haswidi, Jakarta – Both local and foreign investors are seeking clarification from the government on its commitment to providing a more conducive investment climate amid growing de

B. Gunawan, Jakarta – Believe it or not, although the monetary authority has continued to lower the interest rate, loans for the real sector have not increased.

Jakarta – Indonesia could suffer losses as great as, or even worse, than those that other developing countries have suffered as a result of entering into free trade agreements, such as

Apriadi Gunawan, Medan – Many small- and medium-scale businesses in Medan have reportedly shut up shop over the past six months due to the low purchasing power of consumers there.

Jakarta – Indonesian consumers have become more confident about the economy, while at the same time seeing risks ahead, the latest survey by the central bank shows.

Ary Hermawan, Jakarta – The government will allocate more money for infrastructure development in next year's budget in an effort to ease the distribution bottlenecks that have seriousl

Andi Haswidi, Jakarta – Despite the enactment of the Investment Law last week, business players continue to reserve their enthusiasm, maintaining that it is far from enough to improve t

Ary Hermawan, Jakarta – While last year's moderate economic growth and the establishment of a more stable macroeconomic environment were positive accomplishments, they were still insuff

Jakarta – The government has reiterated its commitment to attracting more foreign investment, affirming its guarantees for major infrastructure projects and longer-term land and propert

M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – Economists criticized Friday the target set by a strategic group for Indonesia's transformation into a developed nation in the next 20 years.

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – As a result of prudent macroeconomic policies, the Indonesian government now has sufficient resources to finance the country's infrastructure development and red

Jakarta – The losses caused by the massive flooding in Greater Jakarta last week may reach up to Rp 8 trillion (US$879 million), almost double the earlier estimate of about Rp 4.3 trill

Andi Haswidi – The presidential regulation on the modern retail market scheduled to be issued in March will not restrict the operation of foreign retail chains, which have been criticiz

Andi Haswidi, Jakarta – Policyholders whose homes, cars and other property were damaged by the floods over the past days may find themselves being turned away by their insurance compani

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – The sharp drop in actual investment last year indicates that there are serious problem in the government's industrial development policies, a senior economist sa

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – In the latest – and somewhat populist – take on the politically sensitive issue of foreign borrowing, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said Indonesia no longer

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Jakarta – Indonesia's economy would be poised for higher economic growth this year were it not for inability of the government of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to deliver, accordin

Bambang Nurbianto, Jakarta – The polemic in the media over the sale of shares by two foreign-owned water companies in Jakarta ended after Governor Sutiyoso approved the proposal of RWE

Budiawan, Yogyakarta – Floods and the shortage of rice stocks leading to higher prices for the essential commodity are two of the current problems facing the country.

Jakarta – A survey from Australian research firm Roy Morgan has found that most Indonesian consumers are predicting better economic prospects for 2007.

Slamet Susanto, Yogyakarta – Small-scale aluminum casting producers in Yogyakarta are on the brink of collapse, losing out to a boom in Chinese products and handicapped by limited acces

Andi Haswidi, Jakarta – The country's exports broke yet another record in November at US$8.92 billion, the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) reported Tuesday, adding weight to predictions

Jakarta – The growing number of minimarkets and convenience stores in Jakarta is forcing many small-scale traders out of business.

Jakarta – Incentives should be given to businesses to improve their productivity and increase their taxable incomes, an economist says.

Benget Simbolon Tnb., Jakarta – The government made a big push in 2006 to lure new foreign investors to Indonesia, but a number of urgent problems continue to keep investors away.

Hendarsyah Tarmizi, Jakarta – If the government's macroeconomic targets are used as the yardsticks to assess the country's economic performance this year, the results would be fairly go

Andi Haswidi, Jakarta – With a number of sectors having contracted in 2006, the country's industrial sector is set to grow by a less-than-expected 5 percent this year, almost 1 percent