Jakarta – The economy expanded 5.6 percent last year, higher than 2004, with increased government spending compensating for sagging private consumption and investment hit by the rise in

Jakarta – The government will go ahead with its plans to repay Indonesia's debts to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) ahead of schedule, the finance minister said, citing a prelimin

Jakarta – When it comes to the problems faced by Indonesian industry, the same words crop up again and again: smuggling and soaring imports.

Jakarta – Despite record 2005 export earnings, a closer look at the trade statistics suggests the country's manufacturers are having a tough time competing overseas, particularly agains

Jakarta – Indonesia's foreign debt has many people seriously worried.

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – Hopes of a breathing space for the economy in the form of easing interest rates may prove to be unfounded, with the central bank saying inflationary pressures co

Jakarta – Although the latest figures from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) show year-on-year inflation slowing for the second month in a row to 17.03 percent in January, high inflat

Jakarta – As would-be easy riders get revved up over the prospect of cheaper cars and motorcycles in the wake of falling import duties, the local industry sees the lower tariff regime a

Leony Aurora, Jakarta – Businesspeople, arguing that power rates are already higher than those in neighboring countries, are threatening to refuse to pay proposed additional charges, ev

Bill Guerin, Jakarta – Recent comments by Indonesian Minister for State-Owned Enterprises Sugiharto that Jakarta planned to "buy back" a stake in publicly listed Indosat, the country's

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – Indonesia's economy is set for moderate growth this year as the country struggles to recuperate from last year's slowdown amid lingering high oil prices, a weak

The Regional Representatives Council (DPD) and local investment agencies have urged the central government to ensure more consistency in investment permit regulations as many foreign in

Leony Aurora, Jakarta – Lack of legal certainty continues to dissuade investors from exploring mining prospects in Indonesia, particularly with a bill introducing a licensing scheme to

Jakarta – While noting an improvement in the Indonesian investment climate, the government still has a long way to go to provide a sense of policy certainty to firms doing business here

Bill Guerin, Jakarta – Despite current unfavorable economic indicators, optimistic 2006 budget parameters set by the Indonesian government assume the country's US$280 billion economy wi

Surabaya – The sweet, pungent scent of cloves and tobacco hangs heavy in the air as women paste, roll and snip cigarettes, their fingers flying faster than the eye can follow as tourist

Rendi Akhmad Witular and Mustaqim, Jakarta – The government will push through a number of crucial policies this year to promote robust economic activity for the private sector and help

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Leony Aurora, Jakarta – From elementary school on, students have the postulate drummed into them that Indonesia is rich in natural resources, including abundant oil and gas, to be used

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – "Philip Morris buys Sampoerna for US$5.2 billion." If there was one sentence that could summarize Indonesia's investment sector in 2005, that could well be it.

Anissa S. Febrina, Jakarta – The already-ailing Indonesian textile sector had the ladder kicked away from it this year.

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Denpasar – The increase in the number of applications for domestic and foreign investment shows Indonesia is recovering from a slump in investment, said the Head of the Investment Coord

The government will spend Rp 18 trillion (about US$1.82 billion) next year for a range of infrastructure projects including irrigation, roads, dams and bridges, to help drive higher eco

Jakarta – The government will soon disburse Rp 75 billion (some US$7.5 million) in fresh funds to bail out ailing state-owned domestic airliner PT Merpati Nusantara to speed up its fina

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – Indonesia's economy may have to brace for interest rates of 14 percent in the first half of 2006 as the central bank continues its monetary policies designed to

Leony Aurora, Bandung – Despite the soaring oil prices, exploration activities in Indonesia remain low at between 60 percent and 75 percent of the plans submitted to the government, whi

Urip Hudiono and Mustaqim, Jakarta – As high inflation and interest rates continue to climb, the economy is expected to remain sluggish until the end of 2006, Bank Indonesia said, wrapp

Joyce Barnathan – It has been a tough road for Indonesia.

Jakarta – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) foresees stronger coordination between the fiscal and monetary authorities in navigating Indonesia's economy through the high inflationar

Jakarta – Higher crude palm oil and rubber production contributed to a 19 percent increase in the country's non-oil and gas exports during the first 10 months of the year, the Central S

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – Indonesia's economy has continued growing at a slower rate, official figures from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) show, as high oil prices and rising interes

Slamet Susanto, Yogyakarta – Higher production costs prompted by the government's decision to raise fuel prices on Oct.

Leony Aurora, Bandung – Analysts and industry players have expressed a wide range of views over the government's target of raising the country's oil production to 1.3 million barrels pe

Indonesia's economy expanded in the third quarter at the slowest pace in a year as rising fuel costs, higher inflation and interest rates curbed consumer spending.

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – To invite more private participation into public infrastructure development, the government has issued a new regulation providing more incentives and governmenta

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – Indonesia will miss the opportunity to attain a tax-based economy if it fails to address the main problems of complicated tax laws and tax officials with questio

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Jakarta – The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) reported on Tuesday that the country's exports showed continuous growth during the first nine months of the year, driven by higher demand f

Jakarta – The average 126.6 percent fuel price hike last month has pushed inflation to a six-year high of 17.89 percent for the year to October, with unemployment also rising.

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – Foreign direct investment (FDI) is maintaining its upward trend, data from the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) shows, ahead of a possible slowdown due to ri

Terrorism will damage the Balinese tourist industry, but there are deeper structural problems which threaten the broader Indonesian economy.

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – The fact that one in five Indonesians still lives on less than US$1 a day is made even gloomier by the fact that every person in the country – including those ex

Kornelius Purba, New York – Less than two weeks before completing his first year in office, foreign businesspeople reminded President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono about the danger of the ri

Max Lane – Over the last few weeks, the Indonesian rupiah has lost more than 10% of its value. It has "stabilised" at around 10,500 to the US dollar compared to 9500 before August.

John Roberts – Just a year after former general Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono won the Indonesian presidential election, skyrocketting global oil prices are compounding the country's economic

Urip Hudiono, Jakarta – Observing the recent improvement of investment to Indonesia, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has maintained its optimism about the country's economy, revising i

Singapore – The Indonesian rupiah firmed on Friday, outperforming its Asian peers as sentiment towards the currency continued to improve, but dealers said the currency needed more gover

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