Retail News CRM

Tag: Indonesia

  • Agriculture ministry to stop corn imports in 2017

    Agriculture ministry to stop corn imports in 2017

    Indonesias Agriculture Ministry has targeted to stop the import of corn that is used as raw material for producing livestock feed in 2017, an official of the ministry stated.

    The ministry has expanded the corn plantation area by two million hectares and has encouraged feed producers to buy corn produced locally, an official of the Ministrys Directorate General of Animal Feed Triastuti Andajani said in a statement.

    Corn is the largest component in livestock feed production.

    “With the increasing population of poultry, including broilers, hens, local chicken, and ducks, the demand for corn has also increased,” she pointed out.

    The Indonesian Feed Millers Association (GPMT) has forecast that feed production in 2017 could reach 18.5 million tons, and it would need 9.25 million tons of corn.

    Independent farmers will need some 3.6 million tons of corn based on the assumption of 300,000 tons of consumption per month.

    Corn demand for animal feed in 2017 is estimated to reach 12.85 million tons, or 1.1 million tons per month on an average.

    In September, the ministry and GPMT had signed a memorandum of understanding, which was followed by cooperation between the agriculture offices in 33 provinces and local feed producers to buy corn produced locally.

    The cooperation is aimed at ensuring that animal feed producers buy locally produced corn, with price reference based on Trade Ministers Regulation No. 21 of 2016.

    The ministrys data revealed that corn imports in 2016, as of December, had declined to 884,679 tons, or 68 percent as compared to imports during the last five years.

    The country had imported 3 million tons of corn in 2011, 1.5 million tons in 2012, 2.95 million tons in 2013, 3.1 million tons in 2014, and 2.74 million tons in 2015.

    Lees ook:

  • Lolalola closes online store

    Lolalola closes online store

    Indonesian online lingerie store Lolalola closed yesterday, but customers can still shop on its social-media platform.

    Lolalola says incoming orders will be processed “normally”.

    There has been no word yet from the startup on why it decided to close down the service, but it could be related to the increasingly tight competition among fashion eCommerce startups in Indonesia, says DailySocial. Berrybenka and SaleStock last year laid off employees in order to save their businesses, while Pink Emma temporarily shut down its service before resuming in September.

    Under CEO Donna Lesmana, Lolalola officially launched in March 2015 after being active for six months.

    Claiming to have been inspired by global lingerie brands such as Agent Provocateur and Victoria’s Secret, the startup aimed to “change the way Indonesian customers shop for lingerie” by providing products from local and international brands.

    Lolalola is backed by Ardent Capital and received logistics support from aCommerce. When the startup tested its service for Thai market, it claimed to have sold out within two weeks.

    Lees ook:

  • MDS ups stake in MatahariMall.com parent

    MDS ups stake in MatahariMall.com parent

    Matahari Department Stores (MDS) has increased its ownership in Global eCommerce Indonesia (GEI), the parent company of Indonesian eCommerce startup MatahariMall.com.

    MDS has paid Rp164.9 billion (US$12.2 million) for 7.3 billion shares, or 3.62 per cent of paid-up capital, in GEI. This gives it a 12 per cent share in total.

    MDS last ramped up its stake in GEI in January last year to 10.33 per cent, but its ownership was diluted to 8.38 per cent over the 12 months because of investments by other shareholders. In October, Mitsui & Co announced plans to inject $100 million in GEI over the next 12 months, and MDS has decided to expand its control gradually.

    “The company sees large potential in the eCommerce sector. With increased stakes in the platform, Matahari secures opportunities for huge returns in the future. We will also be able to synergise MatahariStore.com into MatahariMall’s platform, which will in turn widen reach across the country as well as boost Matahari’s net profit,” the company says in a statement.

    MDS has 148 stores in 68 cities across Indonesia.

    Proceeds from the new funding round will be used to improve market share, and to strengthen its position as Indonesia’s “leading eCommerce player”.

    MatahariMall warehouses and ships products from about 5000 affiliated sellers, and also procures goods directly to sell independently.

    Lees ook:

  • Over 4.48 million tourists visit Bali

    Over 4.48 million tourists visit Bali

    More than 4.48 million foreign tourists visited Bali via the resort islands Ngurah Rai Airport from January to November 2016, up 23.52 percent from 3.63 million in the same period last year.

    Some 4.48 million tourists traveled to Bali by air, and 70,449 others by sea, Chief of the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) Office in Bali, Adi Nugroho said here Tuesday.

    The number of foreign tourists visiting the resort island from January to November 2016 exceeded the target of tourist arrivals for all of 2016 at 4.2 million, he said.

    Bali has set the target of tourist arrivals for 2017 at 5.5 million.

    In November 2016 alone, the number of tourist arrivals in Bali reached 413,232 consisting of 396,150 who traveled to the island by air and 17,082 by sea.

    The figure increased 52.52 percent compared to the same month a year earlier but declined 4.39 percent compared to the previous month.

    The number of tourists from eight out of top ten sources of tourist arrivals in Bali increased significantly, Nugroho said.

    The eight countries were Australia, China, Japan, Britain, India, France, the United States, and Germany, while the number of tourists from Malaysia and South Korea declined.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • India, Indonesia key areas of focus for DBS in 2017

    India, Indonesia key areas of focus for DBS in 2017

    India and Indonesia will be the Development Bank of Singapore’s “big” areas of focus for this year, its chief executive officer Piyush Gupta has said. “We also remain focused on building leading regional cash management, foreign exchange, debt markets and wealth management franchises,” Gupta said here.

    “So India and Indonesia will be our big areas of focus in 2017,” Gupta was quoted. DBS leads foreign banks with expansion plans in India.

    DBS’ wealth management business has quadrupled over the past six years, and now accounts for to 13 to 14 per cent of group revenue.

    “Over the next five years, we think it could get up to 20 per cent,” he said in a report on Singapore banks’ prospects during this year.

    “The world will have to grapple with massive consequences behind technological disruption on jobs displacement, both blue-collar and white-collar workers. My own bet is that you will find a lot more entrepreneurship, or what people call the gig economy,” he said.

    “It is likely that there will be a new wave of redistributive economics. Governments may prove inadequate to do this entirely under their own steam, and the private sector will have to play a meaningful role,” said Gupta.

    DBS’s top priorities for this year is to be prepared for volatility as markets will continue to be choppy.

    An increase in US dollar rates could also create negative impact, he added.”Step up the pace on transformation of the bank that is re-imagine banking, and be a 22,000-person start-up,” stressed Gupta. “The third priority is to continue our steady business expansion,” he said.

    But he also cautioned that uncertainties over US President-elect Donald Trump’s policies will be a headache for Asian strategies and could result in heightened market volatility in the short-term. At the same time, global growth is expected to remain subdued, said Gupta.

    “To navigate these uncertain times, we need to remain watchful and vigilant, as well as disciplined about costs and the risks we take,” he advises.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Trump’s Indonesia projects proceed despite potential conflicts of interest

    Trump’s Indonesia projects proceed despite potential conflicts of interest

    One resort, planned as the largest in Bali, will overlook a spectacular Hindu temple. The other, in the verdant hills of West Java, will adjoin a theme park. The properties will be so luxurious, the Trump Organisation says, that even an impressive five-star rating will not do them justice. So it will give them six stars instead.

    Even as President-elect Donald Trump promises to end foreign business deals that could pose conflicts of interest — there will be “no new deals” while he is in office, he has said — his company is moving ahead with two Indonesian projects that illustrate how tricky that pledge might be.

    None of the construction work to build or renovate structures at the Indonesian resorts has even begun, but Mr Trump has forged relationships with powerful political figures in Indonesia, where such connections are crucial to pushing through big projects.

    That tangle of relationships includes an Indonesian business partner who aspires to high office; a powerful politician accused of trying to extort billions of dollars from a United States mining company; and Mr Trump’s new adviser on regulatory issues, Mr Carl C Icahn, a top shareholder in the mining company.

    The resort projects, which a Trump spokeswoman said last week were “binding contracts”, have created a grey area of conflicting interests that could be hard to separate from an array of issues facing the US and Indonesia, including trade and contested claims over the South China Sea.

    Mr Trump’s local partner on the resorts, Mr Hary Tanoesoedibjo, is a billionaire media mogul with his own political ambitions. He ran for vice-president of Indonesia in 2014 and is organising a political party for another possible run at national office in 2019. If Mr Tanoesoedibjo or his party wins a major role in government, the potential conflicts could escalate significantly.

    “You could have two world leaders that are business partners,” said Professor Richard W Painter, who served as a White House ethics lawyer during the George W Bush administration. “It makes it almost impossible to conduct diplomacy in an even-handed manner. That does not work.”

    Through the partnership with Mr Tanoesoedibjo, Mr Trump has gained access to some of Indonesia’s top political figures, including Mr Setya Novanto, Speaker of the House of Representatives, who was temporarily forced to surrender his leadership post because of corruption allegations in 2015. Mr Novanto was heard on an audio recording seeking a US$4 billion (S$5.8 billion) payment from the US mining giant Freeport-McMoRan.

    Months before the recording came out in December 2015, Mr Trump met Mr Novanto during the presidential campaign at Trump Tower. After their lunch, Mr Trump pulled Mr Novanto before the cameras at a news conference and called him “a great man”, adding, “We will do great things for the United States.”

    The knot of potential conflicts includes Mr Icahn, the billionaire investor who will serve as a special adviser to Mr Trump. He is one of the largest shareholders in Freeport, which does so much business in Indonesia that it is the country’s largest taxpayer and has been seeking to extend its mining contract with the Indonesian government.

    “This stuff is so murky,” said Ms Karen Hobert Flynn, president of Common Cause, a nonprofit group that has called for Mr Trump to sell off his businesses to avert conflicts of interest. “It is not going to be clean moving forward. There are going to be complications as these projects move forward.”

    Mr Trump has provided little clarity about what he means by “no new deals”, a vow made in a Twitter post he sent out in mid-December. His aides suggested in interviews last week that even if construction had not started on a project, the Trump Organisation would move ahead if it had a binding agreement.

    For Mr Trump, the Indonesian deals are licensing and management agreements in which he provides the use of his name and his company manages the resorts.

    Even though no structures were built, Mr Trump secured a considerable payout on the two deals, according to a financial disclosure report that listed payments ranging from US$1 million to US$5 million for each of the projects between January 2015 through May 2016. That is far more than the US$400,000 salary paid to the President, which Mr Trump has said he will decline.

    Mr Trump created the corporations that manage these projects — including DT Bali Hotel Manager and DT Lido Hotel Manager — in late June 2015, just a week after he declared his intention to run for President.

    His companies have operations in at least 20 countries, including the Philippines, India, Turkey and Britain, but the full extent of his foreign financial ties is unclear because he has refused to release his tax returns or disclose the identity of his lenders.

    In addition to the no-new-deals pledge, Mr Trump has said that his sons, Eric and Donald Jr, along with other executives, will manage the family’s global real estate business.

    The Trump Organisation has recently moved to resolve potential controversies, in part by closing family foundations. It has also dropped a number of its proposed projects, including Trump Office Buenos Aires in Argentina; Trump Towers Rio and Trump Hotel Rio de Janeiro, both in Brazil; Trump International Hotel & Tower Baku in Azerbaijan; Trump Tower Batumi in Georgia; and Trump Riverwalk in Pune, India, representatives from the Trump Organisation have said last week, in response to questions.

    But other projects — including some on which construction has not started or is not well underway — are moving ahead, including Trump Tower Mumbai and a Trump tower in Gurgaon, both in India; Trump Tower Punta del Este in Uruguay; Trump International Golf Club, Dubai, and Trump World Golf Club, Dubai, both in the United Arab Emirates; and Trump International Hotel & Tower Vancouver, in Canada, the Trump Organisation confirmed.

    Ms Amanda Miller, the Trump Organisation spokeswoman, said of the two Indonesian projects: “Construction is well underway and will proceed as planned.”

    In fact, construction has started only on a golf course and toll road as part of the Lido Lakes resort in West Java. Separating the enterprise from politics may also be difficult because Mr Tanoesoedibjo’s MNC Group is building the road to the site as part of a government highway project.

    No new structures have been built at Lido Lakes or at the resort near the stunning Tanah Lot temple in Bali. A 20-year-old hotel, the Pan Pacific Nirwana Bali Resort, stands on the Bali property and could be renovated to create a Trump hotel, but that work has not begun.

    The two resorts will give the Trump brand a high profile in Indonesia — which has the world’s largest Muslim population — with the Trump name adorning two luxury hotels and premier golf courses as well as high-end villas and condominiums. Yet the US President’s name on the projects could also make them potential targets. During the campaign, Mr Trump made statements about Muslims widely viewed as inflammatory. US hotels in Jakarta have been attacked by terrorists several times.

    On Wednesday, Mr Trump accused the news media of exaggerating any potential conflicts presented by his business holdings. “It’s not a big deal; you people are making it a big deal, the business,” Mr Trump said on the steps of his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, where he was spending the holidays. “They all knew I had big business all over the place.”

    Lees ook:

  • Apple allegedly deepening partnership with Foxconn

    Apple allegedly deepening partnership with Foxconn

    Apple is turning to manufacturing partner Foxconn to facilitate efforts to expand both research centers and business further into Southeast Asia, and open up facilities in China and Indonesia, according to recent reports

    Foxconn has been manufacturing for Apple for over a decade. While Apple’s Indonesian presence is somewhat limited at the moment, Foxconn has been in Indonesia for several years.

    Not clear is what assistance Foxconn may specifically give Apple, beyond access to already-forged business arrangements with local suppliers and businesses.

    In late November, Indonesian Communication and Information Minister H.E. Rudiantara said that the country’s Communication and Informatics Ministry was “finalizing the plan” for an Apple-led research center in Jakarta. Apple has reportedly already selected a few locations in the country for the center.

    Earlier in the year, Chinese media reported that Apple is launching its first research and development center, located in technology incubation area Zhongguancun Science Park, Beijing. According to reports on the matter, the center has a budget of about $15 million, with a long-term expenditure goal of $45 million over the next few years. The center is allegedly seeking to hire around 500 workers, with no particular focus beyond Apple products and software.

  • Indonesia to boost nutmeg exports to Germany

    Indonesia to boost nutmeg exports to Germany

    The Indonesian government intends to encourage local exporters in North Sulawesi to sell nutmeg to Germany, as the country was the number one buyer of the spice in 2016.

    “The (nutmeg) demand from the Germans is high, with exports occurring every week,” said Secretary of Trade and Industry Department Darwin Muksin here on Tuesday.

    According to the North Sulawesi Trade and Industry Department, the export volume of nutmeg to Germany had reached 29 tons and earned US$234,725 in revenue by the end of 2016.

    Muksin added, the demand from Germany showed a positive trend that tended to increase occasionally, with imports arriving almost every month.

    “The export volume to and revenue from Germany is proof that food commodities have not been shaken by the global financial crisis that started in Europe,” he noted.

    The government is optimistic that the exports from North Sulawesi will continue to increase in December 2016, as no postponement of the trade contract has been reported.

    Besides nutmeg, North Sulawesis prime commodities are coconut powder, crude coconut oil, and fisheries products.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Bank Mandiri disburses Rp1.2 trillion for double-track railway

    Bank Mandiri disburses Rp1.2 trillion for double-track railway

    State-owned Bank Mandiri has disbursed Rp1.2 trillion to state-owned railway firm PT KAI for the development of a double-track railway in South Sumatra.

    Senior Executive Vice President of Bank Mandiri Alexandra Askandar in the signing of the agreement with KAI on Tuesday said the special transaction loan has a term of 10 years.

    “The development of a double-track railway in South Sumatra will accelerate the delivery of coal to the coal-fired power plant in Suralaya,” he noted.

    The double-track railway line links the mining area of Bukit Asam in Tanjungenim Baru to Tarahan, Lampung.

    The special loan transaction agreement was signed by Askandar and KAI Finance Director Didiek Hartantyo.

    Askandar said the disbursement of the loan was a form of support for the development of strategic infrastructure projects nationwide, one of which is the transport sector.

    By October 2016, Bank Mandiri had provided Rp37.1 trillion to the transport sector. This is the largest financial commitment in the infrastructure segment which totalled Rp96.9 trillion, or an increase of 53 percent on an annual basis.

    Besides the railway sector, Mandiri has also provided financing for power plants amounting to Rp32.1 trillion.

    Infrastructure financing is included in the corporate loan segment. Mandiri disbursed corporate loans until the third quarter of 2016, amounting to Rp212.4 trillion, up 14.3 percent year on year.

    Lees ook:

  • President says high electricity prices due to unnecessary costs

    President says high electricity prices due to unnecessary costs

    President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) revealed on Tuesday that the price of electricity in Indonesia was higher compared to other countries because power companies were saddled with unnecessary costs.

    “Our electricity is expensive because players are burdened by too many unnecessary costs,” the president said when inaugurating a geothermal power plant (PLTP) in Tomposo, Minahasa, on Tuesday.

    He was inaugurating Lahendong PLTP, Unit 5 and 6 and Ulubelu PLTP, Unit 3, which is located in Lampung.

    Jokowi said the price of electricity was also high because there were too many brokers involved in one project. “There are too many people who become brokers,” he said.

    He said that in many countries the price of electricity was lower and electricity management was efficient.

    “Why can they do that while we cannot? There must be something wrong,” the president stressed.

    He also expressed concern over the fact that many districts/municipal cities in the country still often face power outages.

    Electricity concerns competitive edge; it has to meet the peoples and industrial needs so that it should not be more expensive than in other countries, he stated.

    “In Serawak, Malaysia, the price of a hydro power plants (PLTPs) electricity is only two cents while in Indonesia it is seven cents.

    “Electricity from a solar power plant in the United Arab Emirates is only 2.9 cents while in Indonesia it is 14 cents although we are rich in abundant water resources and rivers,” he said.

    He said if large rivers such as the Mahakam, the Musi, and the Bengawan Solo can be utilized to produce electricity, which could be offered at 2 cents, then Indonesias competitiveness will rise.

    “Why are there middlemen between state-owned enterprises? Why should there be middlemen between the private company and the state-owned electricity firm PLN? What are they for? Our country needs efficiency in all sectors or else it will be left behind in the competition era,” Jokowi noted.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Aprindo Foresees 10% Increase in Retail Sales Volume for 2016

    Aprindo Foresees 10% Increase in Retail Sales Volume for 2016

    Indonesian Retailers Association (Aprindo) said that this year’s retail performance has been better than last year. Aprindo chairman Roy Mandey is confident that volume of retail sales will increase 10 percent this year.

    “We are confident of ending 2016 with 10 percent increase in volume of retail sales compared to last year,” Roy Mandey said in Jakarta on Wednesday.

    Roy explained that the figure of 10 percent is equal to Rp200 trillion. Last year, with national economic growth at 4.7 percent, the volume of retail sales reached 8 percent or equal to Rp181 trillion. “Adding processed food and beverages into the equation would take the sales volume to Rp1,630 trillion.”

    Roy said that sales volume increased significantly in November and December, despite some rallies staged during that period.

    As for next year, Aprindo is confindent of achieving similar figure of sales volume because Indonesian economic growth is predicted at 5.4 percent, which will help the growth of retail industry.

    Roy revealed that the growth of Indonesia’s retail industry is better compared to that of other countries. The United States, for instance, only saw 0.1 percent increase in retail industry. “Indonesia’s [retail sector] is better [in terms of growth], more so because inflation rate is low.”

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Air cargo transport in Asia to double by 2035

    Air cargo transport in Asia to double by 2035

    Airborne logistics networks are expanding in Asia as demand for air cargo delivery in the region is forecast to roughly double in volume over the next two decades.

    Garuda Indonesia and budget carriers are rapidly expanding operations to capitalize on the increase of goods traded via e-commerce as well as electronic products and parts. But with other transporters, including global leaders, stepping up competition, the industry may undergo a shake-up.

    Indonesia has more than 13,000 islands, and Garuda, the country’s national airline, plans to establish an airborne logistics network connecting the core islands. As a first step, Garuda is eyeing a 40% increase in the number of its domestic freight bases to 100 by the end of 2017.

    Domestic demand for airfreight delivery is strong due to Indonesia’s growing middle class, Muhammad Arif Wibowo, president and CEO of Garuda, said. With the increase in e-commerce giving consumers faster access to goods and growing demand for fresh food, land and maritime transportation alone cannot handle the increased freight volume, Wibowo added.

    In the first nine months of 2016, Garuda chalked up $155 million in sales in its freight business, up 13% from a year earlier. While this accounts for 5% of Garuda’s consolidated sales, the carrier intends to raise the ratio to more than 10% as its initial target, Wibowo said.

    Flying high

    Global routes for air cargo transportation are roughly divided into five major networks: Asia/Pacific-Europe, Asia/Pacific-North America, Asia/Pacific, Europe-North America and North America.

    Asia is leading the sector’s growth. Japan Aircraft Development Corp., a consortium of Japanese commercial aircraft developers, forecasts that demand for airfreight services in the three Asia/Pacific networks will grow on average 3% per year and roughly double from the 2015 level by 2035. The average growth of demand on the Europe-North America route and within North America is projected at around 1% each.

    Ocean shipping in Asia is currently slowing. According to the Japan Maritime Center, the volume of ocean cargo transportation dropped 3% in terms of the 20-foot equivalent unit in 2015 from the previous year and logged a 2% year-on-year fall in the January-October period of 2016.

    The slowdown in ocean shipping possibly reflects the consolidation of plants and increased local production by manufacturers.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Lippo Malls Indonesia Retail Trust Has A Yield Of 9%: 3 Things Investors Should Know

    Lippo Malls Indonesia Retail Trust Has A Yield Of 9%: 3 Things Investors Should Know

    Lippo Malls Indonesia Retail Trust was listed over nine years ago on November 2007. It was the first real estate investment trust that focused on Indonesian retail malls in Singapore’s stock market.

    Today, LMIRT remains the only REIT in Singapore with that focus. The REIT currently has a portfolio of 19 retail malls and seven retail spaces that are all located in Indonesia. At end-2015, LMIRT’s portfolio had a total net lettable area of over 765,000 square metres.

    At its current price, the REIT has a distribution yield of 9%. For perspective, this is nearly three times higher than the SPDR STI ETF‘s yield of 3.2%. The SPDR STI ETF is an exchange-traded fund that tracks Singapore’s market barometer, the Straits Times Index.

    Here are three things that current and prospective investors in LMIRT may want to know about now:

    1. Performance in the first nine months of 2016

    In the first nine months of 2016, LMIRT saw growth in a number of important metrics in Singapore dollar terms. Its gross revenue, net property income, unitholders’ distribution, and distribution per unit saw year-on-year growth of 8.6%, 7.5%, 13.2%, and 10.9%, respectively.

    2. Historical growth

    lmirt-results-chart
    Source: LMIRT 7th annual general meeting presentation

    From the two charts above, we can see that LMIRT has managed to grow its revenue, net property income, and distribution income over the past five years from 2011 to 2015 in rupiah terms. The growth rates have been strong, with the REIT’s revenue and net property income more than doubling and distribution income climbing by 80%.

    There’s growth in Singapore dollar terms as well for LMIRT, but the depreciation of the rupiah against the Singapore dollar over the past few years has left its mark. For instance, the REIT’s distribution income has stepped up by only around 30% from 2011 to 2015 in Singapore dollar terms.

    This highlights the fact that investors in LMIRT are subject to currency risks.

    3. The diversity of the REIT’s income sources

    It is important that a trust does not depend too heavily on any particular trade sector for its rental income so as to prevent high concentration risk.

    The chart below shows the trade sector breakdown for LMIRT’s property portfolio by rental income and net lettable area:

    lmirt-trade-sector-breakdown
    Source: LMIRT 2016 third quarter earnings presentation

    We can see that the REIT does not depend on any individual trade sector for more than 17.6% of its rental income.

    But, LMIRT is still exposed to some form of concentration risk since all its assets are related to the retail industry in Indonesia. So, any downturn in Indonesia’s retail scene could affect the REIT’s earnings.

    Investors can perhaps rest a little easy for the time being given that Indonesia’s economy is forecast to grow by 5% in 2016 and 5.1% in 2017, according to data from the Asian Development Bank. From 2011 to 2015, the country’s economy has expanded at an annual rate of between 4.8% and 6.2%.

  • Indonesia initiates an anti-dumping investigation of Vietnamese steel

    Indonesia initiates an anti-dumping investigation of Vietnamese steel

    Indonesian Anti-Dumping Committee (KADI) has initiated an anti-dumping investigation of relevant colour-coated steel sheet imports from China and Việt Nam.

    This was revealed by the Việt Nam Competition Authority (VCA) under the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

    VCA said the investigation could be implemented for 12 months and extended to 18 months if required.

    The decision was made following the complaint by PT NS BlueScope Indonesia alleging that repeated illegal trade practices have devastated production and employment and are causing irreparable harm to the Indonesian steel industry. The colour-coated steel being investigated have HS codes of 7210.70.10.00, 7212.40.10.00 and 7212.40.20.00.

    Large Indonesian steelmakers are seeking an anti-dumping investigation and the imposition of tariffs on steel imports from both Việt Nam and China.

    KADI said from July 2015 to June 2016, Indonesia imported 224,120 tonnes of colour-coated steel, of which, imports from Việt Nam and China were 196,191 tonnes, accounting for 87.5 per cent of the country’s total steel imports.

    VCA said Vietnamese colour-coated steel has been also under investigation by Thailand following the complaint of the NS BlueScope Company. The product can be levied anti-dumping taxes of 4.51 to 60.26 per cent in Thailand.

  • President Jokowi wants Jakarta to become world sharia financial center

    President Jokowi wants Jakarta to become world sharia financial center

    President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has said Jakarta should aim to become the global sharia financial center as Indonesia has the worlds largest Muslim population.

    “Ive ever conveyed (it) to chairman of the Financial Services Authority (OJK) that it is natural if we make Jakarta as the world sharia financial center,” Jokowi said, at a gathering of stakeholders related to the eight-year issuance of state sharia-based bonds at the state palace here on Friday.

    According to Jokowi, he had heard that an effort to make Jakarta as the world sharia financial center was being discussed by the OJK.

    “We have the potential and power, why we do not use (that), not only sharia financial services such as banks, insurance companies, I think many other things that can be developed, including sharia travel, and halal restaurants,” the president pointed out.

    The president stated that Indonesia should focus on its great market potential.

    “It will trigger economic growth in our country and eliminate issues that often appear such as rumors of 10 million to 20 million Chinese laborers coming into Indonesia, while actually it was only 21,000 of them,” he explained.

    On state sharia-based bonds for the national state budget, the president said that the essence of the budget is that it will be used for the welfare of the people, meaning to eradicate poverty, reduce unemployment, and social inequality.

    “Therefore, the government uses various ways to strengthen the state budget such as strengthening the tax base for instance through the tax amnesty, state sharia securities (SBSN) or the state bonds,” he disclosed.

    The president also declared that Indonesia should be proud that it is the issuer of the largest state bonds in US dollars.

    Up to November 2016, the issuance of SBSN in the international market reached US$10.15 billion with outstanding US$9.5 billion.

    “This means that we have huge potential and it plays an important role in the development and improvement of the welfare of the Indonesian people,” he cited.

    The president further said that Indonesia has a variety of sharia-based bonds (Sukuk), so there are many alternatives to invest.

    Jokowi also pointed out that in 2015 and 2016 as much as Rp20.8 trillion of Sukuk has been used to construct railway lines, including bridges that are beneficial for the people.

    “Then (the sukuk) is also to construct facilities of higher learning institutes and rehabilitate various buildings including those for preparation of Hajj Pilgrimage rituals” Jokowi added.