Tom McCawley, Banda Aceh – In a crammed row of storefronts, only Joy Optikal, an eyeglasses shop, has reopened on a dusty street of the tsunami-battered city of Banda Aceh.

Anton Muhajir, Denpasar – It was drizzling that Saturday, but Ketut Karja and his two friends were still working in their rice field in Legian, on the outskirts of north Kuta.

Jakarta – The House of Representatives (DPR) has rejected a government's plan to merge state-owned Bank Tabungan Negara (BTN) with a publicly-listed state bank.

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Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – Despite pre-election jitters and a final-quarter slowdown, the economy in 2004 still managed to grow by 5.13 percent, continuing a steady four-year improvement,

Sydney – Woodside Petroleum Ltd said the 5 billion AUD Greater Sunrise gas project in the Timor Sea is stalled but remains viable.

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – Indonesia's economy grew faster than projected last year, thanks to continued robust spending and signs of investment revival, Coordinating Minister for

The public furor over the 8.14 percent increase in tap water rates charged by PAM Jaya could scare off investors intending to submit bids for 91 infrastructure projects over the next fe

Leony Aurora, Jakarta – The World Bank expects investment in Indonesia to grow by 15 percent this year, but warns that further measures to improve the investment climate must be taken t

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Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – While the legal battle involving Total E&P Indonesie – a local affiliate of French oil giant Total SA – and its contractors is only in its early sta

Rendi A. Witular, Jakarta – The government will raise fuel prices by up to 30 percent in the first quarter of this year in a bid to lower the fuel subsidy.

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Melbourne – Tiny East Timor will open the door to a growing queue of foreign oil and gas explorers later this month when its parliament is due to pass the country's first petroleum laws

Natural gas reserves in Indonesia have risen by 7.45 trillion standard cubic feet (TCF), thanks to new reserves found in either new sites or existing fields, the Ministry of Energy and

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – Global acknowledgement of the country's macroeconomic stability, as evident in the recent upgrading of Indonesia's debt rating, would boost positive sentiment in

Rendi A. Witular, Jakarta – Today marks the 100th day of the administration of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Vincent Lingga, Jakarta – The President's lack of leadership to act firm and fast in resolving the government's four-year dispute with Cemex over the Mexican company's investment in the

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Fabiola Desy Unidjaja and Rendi A.

Sumitomo Corporation Chairman Kenji Miyahara, who is also vice chairman of the powerful Nippon Keidanren (Japanese Economic Federation) talked to The Jakarta Post's Kornelius Purba on S

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Bill Guerin – Indonesia's economy, the biggest in Southeast Asia, may not be badly hit by the devastating tsunami disaster.

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Jakarta – Many people in the automotive industry are really happy these days with the handsome bonuses they have received after achieving or even surpassing sales targets and other perf

Jakarta – Indonesia's economy has been given a real boost by recent promises of financial reform.

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Dadan Wijaksana, Jakarta – The Constitutional Court will soon rule on the validity of the current oil and gas law, but industry executives are gravely concerned that an annulment could

Evi Mariani, Jakarta – Billions of rupiah in change from traffic fines remain idle at a state bank, as most people have been reluctant to go to court over traffic tickets and preferred

James Rose – Indonesian and international groups have called for a halt to BP's Tangguh liquefied natural gas project in Indonesia in a letter to BP chief executive Lord Browne, citing

Jakarta – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is upbeat on this country's economy, saying it could expand even more than predicted, due mostly to a favorable market response to the pe

Timothy Mapes, Jakarta – BP PLC's plans to invest about $5 billion in a natural-gas project in Indonesia's remote eastern region are coming under fire from human-rights groups, which ch

John Aglionby, Jakarta – Three hundred non-governmental organisations and individuals yesterday wrote to Lord Browne, the chief executive of energy group BP, to express their "mounting

Bill Guerin, Jakarta – Indonesia's prolonged transition to democracy may have distracted it from issues tied to its Association of South East Asia Nations (ASEAN) membership and lessene

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The Jakarta Post, Jakarta – Bank Indonesia is asking the government to carefully consider the timing of its plan to raise domestic fuel prices next year, so as to keep its effect on the

Jakarta – A number of Japanese investors complained to the Minister of Industry Andung A.

State-owned Bank Mandiri, the nation's largest bank in terms of assets, estimates that lending may grow by at least 20 percent next year on the back of rising business confidence and im

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We are quite apprehensive about the real objective behind the government's plan to grant a tax amnesty.

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – Despite improving interest rates and a peaceful election year, legal uncertainties remain the main obstacle for Indonesian firms in obtaining business finance, a

Jakarta – Exports in October jumped by 46 percent from the same period last year, defying earlier concerns that the country was losing its share in the export market due to tougher comp

Dadan Wijaksana, Jakarta – The public will pay up to 40 percent more for fuel by early next year, as the government insists on raising the price of the commodity in order to lower subsi

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Delight and relief after the successful elections lifted the Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) by 6.2 percent to a 37-month high of 105.8 in October, Danareksa Research Institute (DRI) an

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – The government is considering revising upward next year's state budget deficit to 1 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) from a previous projection of 0.8 per

Leony Aurora , Jakarta – The year 2004 has been a good one for Imelda Ladianto.

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – A hike in domestic fuel prices next year – if carefully planned and carried out – will have only a limited effect on the inflation rate, Bank Indonesia has said.

Leony Aurora, Jakarta – Following months of steady growth, Indonesia's exports would hit a record US$65 billion worth this year, up 6.5 percent from last year, due to soaring oil prices

Santiago, Chile – On the sidelines of the Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit in Santiago, US President George W.