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Tag: Indonesia

  • Trade Expo Indonesia buying mission generates deals worth US$186.69 million

    Trade Expo Indonesia buying mission generates deals worth US$186.69 million

    Now into its second day, the Trade Expo Indonesia event has generated a total of US$186.69 million worth of transactions in the form of trade contracts.

    “Transactions worth US$178.7 million were signed on the first day while US$7.99 million worth of deals were signed on the second day,” informed the Trade Ministrys Head of National Export Development Arlinda in Jakarta, on Thursday.

    On the second day of the Expo, the buying mission contract signing was dominated by importers of food and beverage products from Australia.

    The signings were witnessed by Suprapto Martosetomo, Indonesias Ambassador to South Africa as well as the Kingdom of Lesotho, the Kingdom of Swaziland and the Republic of Botswana. The deals were signed by six importers from three countries, including Nigeria, Australia and South Africa, and eight local export businesses.

    In the pharmaceutical sector, Nigerias Jeijosh Pharma signed a deal with PT. Phapros, while Sony Trading Pty. Ltd signed a deal with PT. Mayora Indah.

    In the food and beverage products sector, PT. Pondan Pangan Makmur and PT. Sarimunik Mandiri signed a deal with Eastern Cross Trading Pty. Ltd and CV. Intrafood, while Hean Corporation and PT. Dua Kelinci signed a partnership in the same sector.

    Grein Australia Pty Ltd and PT. Sayap Mas Utama signed a deal for food and beverage products as well as consumer goods.

    Lastly, Wemco Investment & Trading Ltd and PT. KMI Wire and cable Tbk. signed a contract for wire products.

    A total of 37 trade contract signings were carried out between 30 importers from 16 countries and 34 local exporter companies based on the buying mission on the Expos second day.

    Essential oils and coconut milk were among the most sought after products and generated the most transactions, along with skilled workforce contracts from the services field.

    Other commodities that were also coveted by foreign importers included coffee, tea, cement, furniture, wires, food and beverage products, seafood, anti-fatigue mats, floor mats, cutting boards and modular tiles.

    Arlinda believes that this event has broadened Indonesias export opportunities in a number of markets, especially non-traditional ones.

    “We continue to work so that the Indonesian trade representatives contribute more overseas, while at the same time encouraging business makers to enhance the quality of their products because export opportunities are now very vast,” Arlinda remarked.

    The Trade Ministry aims for the goods trade transactions to reach US$800 million by the end of this Trade Expo, excluding the investment opportunities and services related transactions.

    It is hoped that overall, the total transactions signed can reach US$1 billion, exceeding the previous year’s figure of US$909 million of deals.

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  • Iran’s first LPG cargo for Pertamina arrives in Indonesia

    Iran’s first LPG cargo for Pertamina arrives in Indonesia

    State-run energy giant Pertamina officially received a cargo of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) from Iran on Thursday, marking Iran’s first shipment as a new supplier of LPG to Indonesia.

    Pertamina president director Dwi Soetjipto welcomed the 44,000 metric tons of LPG transported from Asaluyeh Port in Iran 13 days ago by its VLGC Pertamina Gas 2 vessel, at Kalbut Port in Situbondo, East Java.

    According to him, the LNG shipment from the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) would open up other business development opportunities between Pertamina and the NIOC, in both the upstream and downstream sectors.

    “It marks a new chapter of cooperation between Pertamina and the NIOC and makes trade cooperation between Indonesia and Iran more significant,” Dwi said in a statement on Thursday.

    Earlier, the NIOC agreed to supply Pertamina with a total volume of 600,000 tons of LPG for 2016 and 2017.

    Following the arrival of the first cargo, the NIOC will immediately send the next cargo, which is expected to arrive on Nov. 20.

    In addition to the LPG purchase, the two state-run companies signed an agreement to conduct a preliminary study of two giant oil fields in Iran, namely Ab-Teymour and Mansouri, which have an oil reserve of more than 5 billion barrels.

  • Discovery Japan Mall opens online

    Discovery Japan Mall opens online

    Tokyo-based craft products retailer DigitalStudio has launched Discovery Japan Mall, a cross-border eCommerce venture.

    Specialising in Japanese brands, the mall’s initial catalogue includes mainly toys, fishing gear, cosmetics, food, watches and fashion. About 100 Japanese companies have opened stores on the mall, offering about 15,000 items.

    Shipping is available to more than 120 countries and regions, and as part of the opening campaign free international shipping is offered for orders worth JPY 20,000 (US$190) or more until the end of this month.

    As well as credit cards, the mall supports payment by AliPay, PayPal, UnionPay and WeChat. The website is available in English, simplified and traditional Chinese, Indonesian, Korean and Thai. Purchases can be made by smartphone, and all orders include tracking and shipping insurance, plus delivery from Japan.

    Discovery Japan Mall representative Norio Itabashi says many hidden Japanese products do not reach the overseas market, and the mall is working with craftsmen and manufacturers to sell unique products.

    DigitalStudio was established in 2003 with the aim of “continuing to bring Japan to the world”.

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  • FJ Benjamin granted Casio Indonesia rights

    FJ Benjamin granted Casio Indonesia rights

    Singapore-listed fashion and lifestyle group FJ Benjamin has had a celebration to mark it gaining the Casio Indonesia rights to retail the full range of the Japanese watch brand’s watches.

    The brands include Baby-G, Edifice and G-Shock.

    While Casio distributes products to retailers in Indonesia already, only FJ Benjamin has the full range as exclusive retailer for all categories, CEO Nash Benjamin said at a Casio media event at a Jakarta nightclub venue attended by more than 1000 guests.

    He expects the watches to be sold at about 60 sales outlets in the first year. Associate Gilang Agung Persada is setting up G-Shock boutiques and stand-alone counters in malls across Indonesia, as well as selling Casio brands in 30 stores under its two multi-label watch chains, Watch Engine and Watch Zone.

    A G-Shock boutique opened at the end of August at the new St Moritz mall complex, which also houses high-end apartments.

    Benjamin says his company contacted Casio as it has an interest in G-Shock. “Casio came to Indonesia, saw our network of retail stores and was satisfied we could do a good job.”

    Casio senior executive managing officers and senior GM Shigenori Itoh says the company has had double-digit growth in Asia for the past three years.

    Meanwhile, Benjamin says his company could have up to 80 “or maybe even 100” stores in Indonesia in the next four to five years.

    FJ Benjamin has also won exclusive distribution rights in Indonesia for US fashion brand Marc Jacobs.

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  • Huawei Marine to build backbone network for PNG

    Huawei Marine to build backbone network for PNG

    Huawei Marine has secured a contract to build a national subsea cable backbone network for the Papua New Guinea government.

    The company will work with PNG DataCo, an operator established by the Papua New Guinea government, to construct a national backbone network linking major coastal centers and islands in the nation.

    The 5,457km cable network will provide domestic connectivity across the nation’s 14 largest cities, as well as international connectivity via a link to Jayapura in Indonesia.

    With a design capacity of 8Tbps, the cable will be designed provide more than 70% of Papua New Guinea’s domestic bandwidth requirements. Currently domestic telecoms capacity largely relies on satellite and microwave communications due to the country’s unique geography.

    “This new system is very important to Papua New Guinea as it not only includes a new submarine cable network but also provides internet gateways and data centers,” DataCo managing director Paul Komboi said.

    “This will improve the whole ICT infrastructure in the country and greatly increase network coverage, capacity and the availability of Internet and broadband services to end users.”

    He said Huawei Marine was selected for the project through a competitive tender process.

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  • Mobile Banking Users in Indonesia Remains Low

    Mobile Banking Users in Indonesia Remains Low

    Research institute Microsave reported that only 0.73 percent of cellphone users in Indonesia have utilized online financial services.

    “The figure is lower than those of Malaysia with 5.79 percent and Cambodia with 2.73 percent,” Microsave Country Development Senior Manager Grace Retnowati said on Wednesday, October 12, 2016.

    Grace revealed that the number of SIM card users in Indonesia stands at almost 200 million. At least 20 percent of them are cellphone users.

    “Mobile device utilization for financial services remains low, although the Internet network coverage has reached 90 percent,” Grace added.

    In addition, Grace pointed out that only 36 percent of Indonesian people own bank accounts.

    “The awareness level for mobile banking services is only 0.3 percent,” Grace went on.

    According to Grace, the digital financial literacy is important for middle-class and low-income people.

    “The digital financial services are expected to boost the annual GDP by US$3.7 trillion in 2025 or six percent when compared to the conventional financial services,” Grace said.

    Grace suggested that payments made via smartphone would reduce the cost of financial services by 80 to 90 percent.

    “The cost efficiency will allow financial institutions to provide low-cost services,” Grace said.

  • Number of Indian tourists to Bali rises by 61.57%

    Number of Indian tourists to Bali rises by 61.57%

    The number of Indian tourists visiting Bali has increased by 61.57 percent — the highest rise among all countries — compared to the same period last year, from 72,969 to 117,897 people.

    “India ranks fifth among the top 10 countries visiting the island, after Australia, China, Japan and the UK,” Adi Nugroho, head of Balis Central Statistics Agency (BPS), said on Wednesday.

    Indian tourists constitute 3.69 percent of the total foreign tourists visiting Bali. About 3.19 million tourists have visited the destination in the first eight months of 2016. This figure is by 22.76 percent higher than the number of visitors seen during the same period last year, which was 2.6 million.

    India tops the list of countries that have seen the highest rise in the number of visitors to Bali, followed by the UK (42.56 percent) and China (35.06 percent), Nugroho said. The number of German tourists has risen by 35.05 percent, French by 31.48 percent, Australian by 18.51 percent and Japanese by 7.98 percent.

    Bali tourism practitioner Made Sudana said Bali is seeing an increasing number of Indian tourists because of the similarity between both places in terms of art, culture and Hinduism. Improved cooperation between India and Indonesia has also had a positive effect. Bali has actively pursued this as it expects more and more Indian tourists to visit the island.

    Earlier, Indonesian Ambassador to India, Rizali W Indrakesuma, said the Indonesian government is seeking direct flights to India and vice-versa. Direct flights are important as they will help increase the number of Indian tourists as well as facilitate business and investment opportunities between both countries.

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  • BRI Syariah plans to conduct IPO

    BRI Syariah plans to conduct IPO

    PT Bank BRI Syariah, a sharia compliant subsidiary of state lender Bank Rakyat Indonesia, plans to conduct an initial public offering (IPO) of its shares in 2018 to boost alternative funding sources.

    “During the IPO we will float our shares worth Rp1 trillion to the stock exchange,” BRI Syariah President Director Moch. hadi Santoso said after a press conference here on Wednesday.

    The decision to turn the bank into a publicly listed company was taken to strengthen capital structure particularly at “Tier 1”, he said.

    The bank wants to strengthen its capital through various funding sources to expand its financing business. Moreover, the bank wants to expand its financing portfolio from retail and business segments to infrastructure financing, he said.

    “After the IPO, we will continue to expand our business. This year we have been engaged in infrastructure financing,” he said.

    Also this year, the bank has explored several commitments for infrastructure financing. But its amount is not yet significant to boost the business growth of PT Bank Rakyat Indonesia Ybks subsidiary,” he said.

    The BRI Syariah has set itself the target of boosting its financing growth at 13 percent year on year from to Rp18.8 trillion from Rp16.5 trillion at the end of this year.

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  • Jokowi Visits Trade Expo Indonesia

    Jokowi Visits Trade Expo Indonesia

    President Joko Widodo has attended the 2016 Trade Expo Indonesia (TEI) at the Jakarta International Expo, Kemayoran, Jakarta. Jokowi delivered a warm welcome and opened the event.

    Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita, also delivering a speech, said that the expo was meant to help boost trade relations. “We aim to gain direct transactions,” he said October 12, 2016.

    Moreover, Enggartiasto said that Indonesia has to have other top products in export, in light of the weakening global economy.

    There are over 1,100 national corporates in the expo, and around 14,700 buyers. The buyers are also coming from abroad, namely from some African countries and the Middle East. The government expects that the buyers can conduct business transactions which the expo aims to score at around Rp2 trillion.

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  • Trade Expo lures visitors with prime Indonesian products

    Trade Expo lures visitors with prime Indonesian products

    Visitors to the 31st Indonesia Trade Expo are sounding out the possibility of buying Indonesian products they consider to be of good quality.

    Visiting the Trade Expo on Wednesday, Syrian Mohammed Khair Hadiaf said he was looking for Indonesia-manufactured pharmaceuticals.

    “I work in the medical sector and my specialty is cancer. I came here to seek more information about Indonesia’s medical technology and products,” he told us through a translator application on Wednesday when he visited a booth at the expo, held at the Jakarta International Expo (JIExpo) venue in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta, from Oct.12 to Oct.16 . It was the first time Hadiaf had come to Indonesia.

    In another booth, Palestinian Shokri Zahedah and an Iranian calling himself only Amir were looking for snacks and sweets they could sell in their respective countries. Shokri and Amir frequently visit Southeast Asia to buy products from countries in the region, including Malaysia, but it was the first time they had looked at Indonesian products.

    “You have good products. In Iran, snacks mainly come from Malaysia. Indonesian products need more promotion,” Amir said. He said if he found interesting products he would return on Thursday to make a deal.

    The Foreign Ministry through its diplomatic missions invited 1,200 potential buyers from 70 countries to the expo, including those from small countries.

    Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi said 225 buyers from Middle Eastern countries attended the expo, followed by African and South Asian countries, which sent 49 buyers each, Eastern Europe ( 48 ), Afghanistan ( 42 ), Palestine ( 42 ), Latin America ( 35 ) and Fiji ( 22 ).

    Poor communication skills appeared to be the biggest obstacle for buyers from small countries to make deals at the Trade Expo. Most of them could not speak English well while the expo lacked liaison officers who can speak foreign languages besides English, especially Arabic.

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  • Indonesia, Romania strengthen economic ties

    Indonesia, Romania strengthen economic ties

    Indonesia and Romania have agreed to boost economic ties through the signing of a cooperation agreement between the chambers of commerce and industry of the two countries during the visit of Romanian Foreign Minister Lazăr Comănescu to Jakarta.

    “The fact is, last night, upon my arrival to Indonesia, the chambers of commerce and industry from both Indonesia and Romania have signed a memorandum of understanding on their cooperation. The agreement has opened up the path for both chambers to diversify contact between business players from both countries,” Comănescu said following a bilateral meeting with his Indonesian counterpart, Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi, in Jakarta on Wednesday.

    Comănescu brought a team of business delegates from various industries, including energy, construction, customer goods and agriculture. While in Indonesia he is also participating in the Trade Expo Indonesia 2016. Trade between Indonesia and Romania reached US$117.64 million in 2015.

    Comănescu’s visit to Indonesia is the first from a Romanian foreign minister since relations between the two countries were established 66 years ago.

    Both Retno and Comănescu highlighted the potential for strengthening cooperation in infrastructure development.

    “There is a possibility for our two countries to strengthen bilateral relations in infrastructure because it is one of the priorities of the Indonesian government,” Retno said.

    Comănescu is set to meet with Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi to discuss possible forms of cooperation.

    The two countries have expressed mutual support for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council. Indonesia hopes to secure a seat for the 2019-2020 term, while Romania is eyeing a seat for the 2020-2021 term.

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  • Indonesian President Inaugurates Trade Expo Indonesia (TEI) 2016

    Indonesian President Inaugurates Trade Expo Indonesia (TEI) 2016

    President Joko Widodo inaugurated Trade Expo Indonesia (TEI) 2016, which opened today at the Jakarta International Expo Kemayoran. Accompanied by Enggartiasto Lukito, Minister of Trade, and Djarot Saiful Hidayat, Vice Governor of Jakarta, the President also awarded the Primaduta Award and Primaniyarta to the best 30 Indonesian exporters.

    Widodo also urged Indonesian exporters to expand to new markets, such as African countries and India, despite the unpredictable global economic conditions. “We have to start to turn our heads to the markets we used to overlook, the markets like India and Africa that offer a huge business opportunities from populations that reach over 60 million people,” stated the President at the opening ceremony.

    Not only Africa and India, which provide lucrative opportunities for Indonesian products, the President also noted that other developing markets like South Asia and Latin America hold great potential for Indonesian exporters to expand markets and distribution of their products. “I urge Indonesian exporters to make moves toward the markets we have previously overlooked,” added President Widodo.

    The President also mentioned that design and packaging play an important role in grabbing the consumer’s attention. “I highly appreciate the Ministry of Trade and the Creative Economy Agency’s initiatives in helping our SMEs to design attractive packaging for their products,” stated Jokowi.

    In addition to showcasing the quality Indonesian export products, TEI 2016 also serves as a trade making platform for businesses, both local and foreign. Trade Minister Enggartiasto said that the event would see approximately 1,100 exhibitors, including SMEs, and expects 15,562 potential buyers from 152 countries. He added that business commitments already sealed totaled Rp 2.6 trillion from 14 countries.

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  • Indonesia’s Indosat Ooredoo & XL Axiata Suspected of Cartel Practices

    Indonesia’s Indosat Ooredoo & XL Axiata Suspected of Cartel Practices

    Indonesia’s Business Competition Supervisory Commission (KPPU) has ordered telecommunication operators Indosat Ooredoo and XL Axiata to provide more details concerning the establishment of their joint venture One Indonesia Synergy. The KPPU suspects that both companies are involved in cartel practices, more specifically the companies are suspected to have breached Law No. 5/1999 on the Ban on Monopolistic Practices and Unfair Business Competition in terms of price fixing, market allocation and output restriction.

    Muhammad Syarkawi Rauf, Chairman of the KPPU, informed that there are indications that both telecommunication operators – both listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) – are (1) coordinating to determine prices, (2) coordinating to divide geographical areas for their products, and (3) coordinating to restrict the output of their products. These allegations are the result of the establishment of their joint venture One Indonesia Synergy.

    Turina Farouk, Vice President Corporate Communication of XL Axiata, said the company cannot respond yet to the KPPU’s summon as XL Axiata is yet to receive the full details of the case. However, regarding One Indonesia Synergy Farouk said this joint venture is not a vehicle used to engage in cartel practices but is part of cost efficiency efforts for the development of their 4G LTE network. Farouk added that One Indonesia Synergy is not operational yet as it awaits several permits from authorities.

    Cooperation is a strategy of Indosat Ooredoo and XL Axiata to make their operations more efficient in the future. Indonesia’s telecommunication sector is dominated by state-controlled Telekomunikasi Indonesia.

    Indosat Ooredoo and XL Axiata each own a 50 percent stake in joint venture One Indonesia Synergy. Alexander Rusli, President Director and CEO of Indosat, said One Indonesia Synergy will offer consultation services for both companies’ cooperation in telecommunication networks, for example the so-called multi operator radio access network.

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  • South Korea’s Largest Retailer Joins Hands With Sinar Mas Land in Indonesia

    South Korea’s Largest Retailer Joins Hands With Sinar Mas Land in Indonesia

    South Korea’s largest retailer, GS Retail, opened its first supermarket in Cibubur, East Jakarta, on Friday (07/10) in partnership with Indonesian property developer Sinar Mas Land, to target the country’s upper-middle class.

    “We decided to choose Legenda Wisata for GS Retail’s first supermarket because Cibubur is home to middle- and high-income families,” GS Retail  senior executive Won Yong Kim said in a statement.

    The supermarket offers a wide range of food, household, electronic, beauty and hygiene products, as well as the popular South Korean bakery shop Tous le Jours and Indonesian café Bengawan Solo Coffee.

    The 2,913 square-meter supermarket, which is located inside the Legenda Wisata housing estate, was constructed by Sinar Mas Land.

    In October 2014, Sinar Mas Land was assigned to build a megastore for one of the Southeast Asia’s largest retailers, Courts Asia Limited, in Kota Harapan Indah residential estate in Bekasi, West Java, and in January 2015, to build another in BSD City in Tangerang, Banten.

    Established in 1971, GS Retail has 11,000 convenience stores and 290 supermarkets in South Korea. It booked $5.7 billion in revenue last year.

    The company has had a presence in Indonesia since March 2014.

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  • Hang Nadim Airport to serve flights to China, Korea

    Hang Nadim Airport to serve flights to China, Korea

    The Citilink airline company will soon serve flights from Hang Nadim International Airport here to China and South Korea, according to the airports general manager, Suwarso.

    “Two international flights from Batam to China and South Korea have been approved and will soon be launched early next year, probably in February 2017,” Suwarso remarked here on Tuesday.

    According to him, the opening of two routes is part of an effort by the Riau Islands provincial government to increase the number of tourist visits, especially from East Asia.

    With the two new international flights, the Riau Islands provincial government hopes tourist arrivals will increase to enjoy the great tourism potential in the province.

    He said Citilink will operate Airbus A320 aircraft, with the capacity to accommodate 180 passengers, to transport tourists from China and South Korea to Riau Islands Province.

    “The Riau Islands province has formed a partnership with the tour and travel associations in China and Korea. So, with this partnership, these Batam-China and Korea routes could run smoothly,” stated Suwarso.

    He added that Indonesias free visa policy is also applicable to China and South Korea, so tourists from these countries will not need visas when visiting Indonesia.

    “Hang Nadim International Airport is open 24 hours and ready to serve international flights, so there is no problem anymore,” Suwarso noted.

    He said the airport had an international flights lounge area, with a capacity of up to 600 seats.

    International flights from this airport are currently served only by Malindo Air, travelling to Malaysia once per day.

    “If the international flights area becomes crowded, we are ready to increase the capacity of the international waiting room,” remarked Suwarso.

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