Indonesia Economy Forum

[Indos]

Indonesia allocates $684m to lend to regions to boost economy, step up spending

• Adrian Wail Akhlas
  The Jakarta Post
  

Jakarta / Fri, August 7, 2020 / 08:32 pm

Rupiah banknotes (Shutterstock.com/Maciej Matlak)

The government is allocating Rp 10 trillion (US$684.72 million) this year to provide loans for regional administrations, while taking measures to step up government spending, as it seeks to speed up the recovery of the pandemic-hit economy.

Regional administrations have seen revenues decline by around 28 percent on average amid the coronavirus pandemic, said the Finance Ministry’s fiscal balance director general Astera Primanto Bhakti, adding that the pandemic had limited the ability of regions to fund priority programs.

“We know that this is a challenge for regions and therefore we’ve introduced this loan scheme to support economic recovery in the regions,” Astera told reporters in a press briefing on Friday.


Government-owned infrastructure financing firm PT Sarana Multi Infrastruktur (SMI) will act as a lender for the regional administrations and will allocate another Rp 5 trillion, thereby increasing the allocated budget to Rp 15 trillion this year for the loan scheme.

Last month, the government approved loans for the Jakarta and West Java administrations, the country’s top economic and industrial hubs, respectively, worth Rp 16.5 trillion, for this year and next year, to help revive economic activities.

The country’s gross domestic product (GDP), the broadest measure of goods and services produced, shrunk 5.32 percent year-on-year (yoy) in the second quarter, the steepest decline since the first quarter of 1999, Statistics Indonesia (BPS) announced on Wednesday.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s administration has allocated Rp 695.2 trillion of the state budget to stimulate the economy and strengthen the country’s pandemic response, but slow disbursement as a result of red tape is expected to delay the impact on the economy.


Government spending, which is expected to anchor the economy and boost people's purchasing power amid cooling private-sector activity, plunged 6.9 percent yoy in the second quarter.

Since the loan approval for the Jakarta and West Java administrations, several other regions namely East Java, Banten and East Nusa Tenggara have also expressed their interest in borrowing from the government, Astera went on to say.

“Banten has agreed on a Rp 4 trillion loan for this year and next year, while other regions are still in the discussion process,” he said. “This will be very important if regions do not have the capacity to implement their programs.”

Meanwhile, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati is pledging to spend Rp 1.4 quadrillion in the second half of this year to bolster economic growth, as the government promises faster stimulus spending for the remainder of the year.

The government has disbursed 41.93 percent of a Rp 203.9 trillion budget for social protection, 13.43 percent of the Rp 120.6 trillion budget for business incentives and 26.3 percent of the Rp 123.47 budget for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) stimulus packages, according to data from the national economic recovery task force.

However, stimulus spending for health care, ministries and regional administrations, as well as corporate financing lagged as the government only disbursed 7.83 percent of the Rp 87.55 budget for health care and 7.9 percent of the Rp 106.1 trillion budget for ministries and regions. The government has yet to disburse any funds for corporate financing.


Sri Mulyani expects the economy to grow at no more than 0.5 percent, or even contract further in the third quarter, while fourth-quarter GDP growth is projected to be near 3 percent, making for a full-year expansion of zero to 1 percent.

“The President always instructs us to disburse the economic recovery budget immediately so that the economy can recover sooner in the third quarter,” the head of the national economic recovery task force Budi Gunadi Sadikin told reporters on Friday.

“We must expedite the process so that spending can increase by the end of the third quarter and can be completed by the fourth quarter,” he said.

On Wednesday, Bank Central Asia (BCA) economist David Sumual told The Jakarta Post that the country’s economic performance would depend heavily on the government spending acceleration.

“Although we expect a recovery in the third quarter, the economy is at risk of recession if the government fails to ramp up spending and boost consumer spending,” David said.

https://www.thejakartapost.com/news...egions-to-boost-economy-step-up-spending.html

 

[Indos]

Govt mulling merger of state-owned Islamic banks to unify power, VP says

• Moch. Fiqih Prawira Adjie
  The Jakarta Post
  

Jakarta / Fri, August 7, 2020 / 03:40 pm

Vice President Ma'ruf Amin has said the government is mulling merging several state-owned Islamic banks – banks that offer services that are sharia-compliant – to unify their power and boost their global rating.

The state-owned Islamic banks in talks to be merged are PT Bank BRI Syariah, a subsidiary of Bank BRI, PT Bank Syariah Mandiri, a subsidiary of Bank Mandiri, and PT Bank BNI Syariah, a subsidiary of Bank BNI.

The Vice President, who previously chaired the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), expressed hope the merger would also boost the national economy and speed up the economic recovery amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

"[The banks] have been in talks to strengthen [Islamic banks] because we don't have a large Islamic bank that ranks in the top 20 internationally," Ma'ruf said Thursday during a discussion hosted by news publication Media Indonesia.

"We are also doing this so that we don't have too many banks with small potentials," he continued, expressing hope that a sizeable Islamic bank could also support the country's domestic and foreign interest.

Read also: Indonesia’s global bonds spike in popularity amid uncertainty: Mandiri Sekuritas

In early July, State-Owned Enterprise Minister Erick Thohir detailed plans to merge the Islamic banks by February next year to provide more options to customers seeking sharia-compliant funding.

However, the Financial Services Authority (OJK) deputy commissioner for banking, Teguh Supangkat, said in late July that the minister had not discussed the merger in-depth with the agency.

The Vice President also said the government would improve the country's halal industry and other Islamic financial services to support the goal of making Indonesia the center of the global Islamic economy.

He noted that while Indonesia had become a reference for halal product certification, homemade halal products still trailed behind the global competition. Additionally, he said that maximizing Islamic social fund services, such as for zakat and waqf, could also uplift the national economy.

However, Ma'ruf said the country was a leader in global sukuk (sharia-compliant bonds), claiming that the country's sukuk surpassed those offered by the United Arab Emirates and Malaysia.

https://www.thejakartapost.com/news...ned-islamic-banks-to-unify-power-vp-says.html

 

[Indos]

Patimban seaport to start first-phase operation in November after delays

• Mardika Parama
  The Jakarta Post
  

Jakarta / Mon, August 10, 2020 / 01:35 pm

Japan-backed Patimban Port in Subang, West Java is now scheduled for partial operation in November, while its first development phase will reach completion by October despite previous delays, Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi has stated.

The port is located about 70 kilometers from the Karawang industrial estate in West Java, where many Japanese companies have built factories, and is expected to ease logistics in the industrial neighborhood.

“We hope everyone is working hard so that Patimban seaport can start operations in November,” Budi said in a press statement on Sunday during a recent visit to the seaport with West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil.


“There are still lots of things that need to be finalized, such as [the construction of] an access ramp, the shipping route and the appointment of a port operator, among other things. Hopefully we can finish everything on time,” he added.

Patimban seaport is one of the government’s national strategic projects, funded by an official development assistance (ODA) loan from the Japanese government amounting to Rp 14.2 trillion (US$968.5 million) for the first development phase.

The port is expected to be Indonesia’s primary export port and to ease the burden on Tanjung Priok Port and traffic congestion in Jakarta from the transport of cargo. It is also projected to support the future Rebana Special Economic Zones (SEZ) in Cirebon, Patimban, and Kertajati in West Java, along with Kertajati International Airport.

In the first development phase, Patimban Port is planned to serve 3.75 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) and accommodate 600,000 complete built-up (CBU) vehicles. Meanwhile, in the second phase, Patimban's capacity will increase to 5.5 million TEUs and it is expected to reach its final capacity of 7.5 million TEUs in phase 3.


Japanese Ambassador to Indonesia Masafumi Ishii initially projected in 2017 that the port’s partial operation would start in the first quarter of 2019.

In February this year, the Transportation Ministry’s sea transportation director general, R. Agus H. Purnomo, said the auto terminal would be the first part of the port to be operational in September.

He stated that the operation of the auto terminal was awaiting the completion of a connecting bridge that would be the main access that linked the terminal with the backup area.

"The bridge will connect the auto terminal and the port in the middle of the sea. It will be 1- kilometer-long and as the operation of the auto terminal is scheduled for September, the connecting bridge must be completed long before, hopefully in April or June,” Agus told reporters in Jakarta in Feb. 13.

https://www.thejakartapost.com/news...phase-operation-in-november-after-delays.html

 

[Indos]

Fitch affirms Indonesia’s BBB rating with stable outlook despite vulnerabilities

• Adrian Wail Akhlas
  The Jakarta Post
  

Jakarta / Tue, August 11, 2020 / 11:46 am

Fitch expects Indonesia’s economy to shrink 2 percent this year due to the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, which has made a significant dent in household spending and investment. (Antara/Nova Wahyudi)

Credit ratings agency Fitch Ratings has affirmed Indonesia’s long-term foreign currency issuer default rating at “BBB with a stable outlook”, the lower medium investment grade.

Fitch cited a favorable medium-term growth outlook and low government debt-to-GDP ratio against high dependence on external financing among the reasons for retaining the rating, but also noted issues around low state revenue and lagging structural indicators.

Fitch expects Indonesia’s economy to shrink 2 percent this year due to the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, which has made a significant dent in household spending and investment. However, it forecast a rebound to 6.6 percent growth next year thanks to low-base effects and 5.5 percent growth in 2022 supported by a renewed push for public infrastructure development.


“Our forecasts are subject to considerable risks, in particular due to a continued spread of COVID-19 within Indonesia,” the rating agency said in a statement. “The government has responded swiftly to the crisis with a broad range of relief measures to support households and companies, including small and medium-sized enterprises.”

The government has allocated Rp 695.2 trillion (US$47.5 billion) to stimulate the economy, which shrank 5.32 percent in the second quarter as household spending and investment tumbled. The government has also widened the budget deficit target to 6.34 percent of GDP.

“We believe the government is likely to resume adhering to the 3 percent-of-GDP deficit ceiling by 2023” Fitch said, expecting Indonesia’s fiscal deficit to narrow to 5 percent in 2021 and 3.5 percent in 2022 as most of the pandemic-related spending was seen as temporary.

The government and Bank Indonesia’s (BI) $40 billion debt monetization scheme is expected to reduce the government's direct interest costs and “is unlikely to generate inflationary pressures”, according to the rating agency.


However, if the central bank financing goes beyond 2020 it may raise the potential for government interference in monetary policymaking and that could undermine investor confidence, Fitch warned.

“This may be mitigated by Indonesia's generally disciplined monetary policy stance of the past few years, which reinforces our belief this will be a one-off [policy].”

Fitch warned that Indonesia's dependence on foreign portfolio financing and commodity exports left it vulnerable to renewed bouts of external risk aversion and other shocks.

“The government remains open to any stimulus to boost the economy, but we will also remain accountable. They considered this to be prudent policymaking,” said Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati responding to Fitch's announcement, adding that the burden-sharing scheme with the central bank was being executed based on prudent monetary and fiscal practices.

“We have succeeded in giving credit rating agencies confidence that the government has a carefully designed policy framework” to support the economy, she went on to say.

https://www.thejakartapost.com/news...h-stable-outlook-despite-vulnerabilities.html

 

[Indos]

Indonesia to increase monthly production of test kits while vaccine under trial

• Budi Sutrisno
  The Jakarta Post
  

Jakarta / Tue, August 11, 2020 / 03:45 pm

A nurse takes a swab sample from a patient at the Tanah Abang district office in Central Jakarta on June 21. Swab tests, also called polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, use mucus samples taken from the nose or throat to detect COVID-19. (JP/P.J. Leo)


In a race against time before a potential vaccine passes its final trials, the government is set to expand its COVID-19 testing capacity by increasing the domestic production of test kits.

Research and Technology Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro said state-owned pharmaceutical company Bio Farma would increase the production of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test kits starting next month.

“Bio Farma currently produces 1.4 million PCR test kits per month, and it will be 2 million kits per month starting in September,” Bambang said on Monday, the 25th National Technology Awakening Day.


In addition, Bambang said, the government would increase the domestic production of synthetic peptide-based Immunoglobulin G and Immunoglobulin M (IgG and IgM) antibody rapid detection kits.

The rapid diagnostic test kits were developed by the ministry’s consortium for COVID-19, which includes Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta, Airlangga University in East Java and the Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT).

Read also: Sinovac launches late-stage trial for potential COVID-19 vaccine in Indonesia

Bambang said the production of the rapid test kits was in the hands of domestic companies with a current capacity of 350,000 units per month and would increase to 1 to 2 million per month. He said the ministry would also soon launch separate IgG and IgM rapid tests.


The government is also preparing two types of COVID-19 detection tools, with the first one, using reverse transcriptase loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RTLAMP) turbidity, being developed by the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI).

“[The RTLAMP] method can detect [infection] more quickly and more widely. It is hoped that the test kits will be ready by the end of August,” Bambang said.

The second detection tool is the microchip surface plasmon resonance (SPR) tool, which is being developed by the Bandung Institute of Technology and Padjadjaran University in collaboration with the BPPT.

“[The microchip SPR] is a real-time detection technique that has high reproducibility with relatively low costs. We can produce the main reagent ourselves. There are private partners ready to work together on this,” Bambang added.

Read also: WHO urges Indonesia to test more suspected patients amid high death rate

The phase III clinical trial of a potential COVID-19 vaccine developed by China-based biopharmaceutical company Sinovac Biotech started in Bandung on Tuesday.

The trials are expected to finish in six months at the earliest, with a total of 1,620 volunteers being tested.

The government eyes the domestic use of the Sinovac vaccine by early next year with a production capacity of 250 million doses per year.

With regard to the development of a vaccine by the national consortium, Bambang said the team had completed the production of recombinant protein and would also try other “platforms”, such as inactivated viruses and messenger RNA (mRNA).

“As an effort for independence with regard to national health and medicinal raw materials, the development of the Merah Putih vaccine against all strains of the COVID-19 virus will continue,” he said with reference to the provisional name for the homemade vaccine to be developed.

Bambang said the Cipto Mangunkusumo National Central General Hospital, the University of Indonesia and pharmaceutical firm Kimia Farma had completed Phase III clinical trials for a stem cell development.

The stem cell has been tested as an adjuvant therapy for COVID-19 patients to overcome cytokine storms through its immunomodulatory property. The product is expected to obtain a distribution permit this year.

https://www.thejakartapost.com/news...n-of-test-kits-while-vaccine-under-trial.html

 

[acelaw]

Jokowi Hopes Merah Putih COVID-19 Vaccine Set by mid-2021
https://en.tempo.co/read/1374952/jokowi-hopes-merah-putih-covid-19-vaccine-set-by-mid-2021




TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo said that while being in cooperation with other countries, the government was also striving to create its COVID-19 vaccines dubbed Merah Putih by developing the virus isolates existing in Indonesia.

The antibody development was being carried out by the Eijkman Institute for Molecular Biology along with the Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT), the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM), and the Research and Technology Ministry, as well as several Indonesian universities.

“I hope the [development of] Merah Putih vaccine will be finished in mid-2021,” said the president via his Instagram account on Wednesday, August 12.

Indonesia was cooperating with China, the U.S., and South Korea in developing the antibody. The partnership with China-based pharmaceutical firm Sinovac Biotech has recently entered the phase III clinical trials.


On Tuesday, August 11, the state head directly monitored the process of the vaccine trials on humans at the Eyckman Building, the Padjadjaran University’s (Unpad) Medical Faculty, Bandung.

The clinical trials involving 1,620 volunteers were expected to be the first step in the development and discovery of COVID-19 vaccines, which was targeted to complete at the end of this year.

“This partnership is aimed at getting all Indonesians vaccinated as soon as possible,” Jokowi remarked.

Read also: Merah Putih Vaccine Currently Developed for COVID-19, Says Jokowi

 

[Indos]

Indonesian aerospace is also producing Indonesian made ventilator. The ventilator is a simple one but is already enough to treat coronavirus patients. The research is conducted by Institute technology Bandung (ITB) , BPPT (Gov Research Agency), and Salman Institution (Salman is a mosque in ITB).

https://twitter.com/x/status/1293484082362343425

 

[Indos]

Fishery startup Aruna nets $5.5 million in fresh funds

• Eisya A. Eloksari
  The Jakarta Post

Jakarta / Thu, August 13, 2020 / 01:21 pm

Fishermen cure a basket of salted fish on a pier on July 25, 2020 in Tanjung Binga village in Belitung, Bangka Belitung Islands. Demand for seafood products has remained strong both globally and domestically. (JP/Donny Fernando)

Aquaculture startup Aruna has announced it had closed a US$5.5 million deal in the latest funding round with its current investors, on the back of the company's astronomical surge in revenue in the first half of the year

Aruna raised the funds from top Indonesian venture capital firms AC Ventures, East Ventures and SMDV, the venture capital arm of the Sinar Mas Group.

The fishery startup plans to use the fresh capital injection to expand its community of fishers to help improve productivity, product quality and standards. The aquaculture platform currently works with thousands of fishers in 31 coastal areas across Indonesia.


Aruna also intends to use the capital to scale up its domestic business-to-business (B2B) market as well as its export market to East Asia, Southeast Asia, Middle East and North America.

“E-commerce helps create fairness and transparency in the fishing industry, as well as a more efficient supply chain. [In] reaching more coastal areas across Indonesia, Aruna is supporting economic equality in Indonesia,” Aruna CEO and cofounder Farid Naufal Aslam said in a statement on Wednesday.

Farid stated that the company’s revenue in the first half of 2020 grew 86 times compared to the same period in 2019, on the back of strong global demand for fresh seafood products despite the pandemic.

“This is a company that has been positively impacted by the [health] crisis and we are excited to double down on them,” said East Ventures cofounder and managing partner Willson Cuaca.

Aruna also launched a home delivery service for seafood products called Seafood by Aruna to capitalize on the rising demand for food deliveries during the health crisis.. The service is currently available in Greater Jakarta, Bandung in West Java and Balikpapan in East Kalimantan.

Meanwhile, Aruna is seeking new partnerships with resellers after launching its official stores on online marketplaces Tokopedia, Shopee, Bukalapak and GrabMart, as well as online grocery stores Sayurbox, Nalayan and Delisari.

Another Indonesian aquaculture startup, eFishery, recently announced it had closed its series B funding round led by Go-Ventures, the venture capital arm of Gojek, and the Northstar Group. The company reported that it had quadrupled growth and profitability in the last two years.

https://www.thejakartapost.com/news...up-aruna-nets-5-5-million-in-fresh-funds.html

 

[Indos]

PT LEN Industry ventilator. Designed by BPPT (Gov research agency) and Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB). Production by PT LEN Industry.

 

[Indos]

Jokowi reaffirms Indonesia’s 'massive downstreaming’ of natural resources

• Norman Harsono
  The Jakarta Post
  

Jakarta / Fri, August 14, 2020 / 01:42 pm

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo (center) and Vice President Ma'ruf Amin (right) leave the People's Consultative Assembly plenary hall after delivering the state of the nation address in Jakarta on Friday. (Antara/Akbar Nugroho Gumay)

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has reaffirmed that Indonesia’s future natural resources policy will focus on “massive downstreaming” to produce higher-value products.

The President, speaking before legislators, officials, political elites and foreign ambassadors, highlighted the country's ambitious plans to develop domestic oil refineries, metal smelters, coal-to-gas facilities and better palm-oil based biodiesel.

Read also: 75 years later, with Indonesia’s oil industry in decay, options are wide open


“This will narrow down our current account deficit, increase our employment opportunities and start tackling fossil energy domination,” he said in his state of the nation address delivered before the People's Consultative Assembly in Jakarta on Friday.

Jokowi mentioned state-owned oil and gas giant Pertamina’s recent successful trial production of “D100” green diesel, a more engine-friendly biodiesel than the one currently available. He said the production would absorb “a million tons of farmer-produced palm” to produce 20,000 barrels of fuel each day.

Indonesia is the world's largest producer of palm oil, an industry that employs millions of citizens, mostly farmers. However, the palm oil industry is a major contributor to massive forest fires and deforestation.

Jokowi also mentioned the government’s landmark ban on the export of nickel ore, a metal mainly used to produce steel and car batteries. Its demand is expected to rise alongside the rise of electric cars. The ban shook global markets as Indonesia is the world’s largest producer of nickel.

Read also: Explainer: New rules in revised Mining Law

“This will place Indonesia in an even more strategic position in the development of lithium batteries, the world’s electric vehicles and as a future technology producer,” he said.

The President added that Indonesia would reform regulations and continue developing industrial estates, such as those in Batang, West Java, and Subang-Majalengka, West Java, to get more industries to invest in the country.

He promised the giant estates would not undermine Indonesia’s micro, small and medium enterprises, which absorb over 90 percent of the domestic workforce.

Developing downstream industries is part of the Jokowi administration's larger ambition of transforming Indonesia from a commodity-driven economy into an industrial one, with the ultimate goal of becoming the world’s fourth-largest economy by 2045.

https://www.thejakartapost.com/news...ssive-downstreaming-of-natural-resources.html

 

[Indos]

Jokowi pledges to cut red tape, develop industrial parks across Indonesia

• Dzulfiqar Fathur Rahman
  The Jakarta Post

Jakarta / Fri, August 14, 2020 / 01:22 pm

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo gets ready to deliver his state of the nation address at the People's Consultative Assembly in Jakarta on Friday. (Antara/Akbar Nugroho Gumay)

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has reiterated his commitment to eliminating overlapping regulations and developing more industrial parks across Indonesia.

“Regulatory reforms must be carried out. Regulations that are overlapping, complicated and misleading [for] those [who] are at risk must be put to an end,” Jokowi said in a televised state of the nation address at the People’s Consultative Assembly on Friday.

Read also: What you need to know about Batang industrial zone development

Red tape prevented Indonesia from climbing up the World Bank’s ease of doing business ranking last year, hence why the country has been ranked 73rd since 2018. The President wants the country reach the 40th position this year.

To achieve the goal, the Jokowi administration has proposed an omnibus bill on job creation to carry out regulatory reform. It seeks to attract investment by revising 79 laws and more than 1,200 articles deemed harmful to Indonesia’s ease of doing business.

In addition to regulatory reform, the government is also developing industrial parks, such as the Batang industrial park in Central Java and one in Majalengka regency, West Java, to solve land acquisition issues usually faced by investors.

The government is planning to develop at least 27 industrial parks, according to the 2020-2024 National Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMN). Most of them will be developed outside Java Island.


“Similar industrial estates will also be built in various regions all over Indonesia, always taking into account cooperation with community entrepreneurship and micro, small and medium enterprises to provide employment opportunities for the unemployed young generation and boost equitability of development in all corners of the country,” said the President in his speech.

“Consequently, a favorable national ecosystem for the expansion of quality employment opportunity must be established.

Read also: Guide to omnibus bill on job creation: 1,028 pages in 10 minutes

“We dedicate all of this to a fair national economy that caters to the interests of workers and job seekers in order to alleviate poverty by providing the widest possible quality employment opportunities.”

The Indonesian economy contracted 5.32 percent in the second quarter as the COVID-19 pandemic hit demand and disrupted the supply chain. As a result, around 3.7 million individuals have lost their jobs so far this year, according to data from the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas), with the number expected to hit around 10 million by the end of the year.

The speech came at a time when the government is pushing forward the conclusion of deliberation of the omnibus bill at the House of Representatives amid heavy scrutiny from observers, international institutions and labor unions that say the bill could jeopardize environmental protection and labor rights.

https://www.thejakartapost.com/news...evelop-industrial-parks-across-indonesia.html

 

[Nike]

Petrokimia Gresik exported 3,176 tons ZK fertilizer until August 14
15th Aug 2020 17:21

Gresik, E Java (ANTARA) - State-owned fertilizer manufacturer Petrokimia Gresik exported 3,176 tons of ZK fertilizer until August 14 this year, inching closer to the total exports of 3,350 tons recorded during 2019.

Most fertilizer exports were conducted to India, Pakistan, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates, Petrokimia Gresik President Director Rahmad Pribadi noted in a press statement released on Saturday.

"Last year, we could not enter the Pakistani market, but we were successful this year. Looking ahead, we will also explore other potential markets as part of the efforts to boost our exports," he pointed out.

Pribadi emphasized that the company remained steadfast in its efforts to boost exports to support the nation’s economic recovery as it adapted to the new normal amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

"In addition, the plan to increase exports correlates with the memorandum of understanding signed by the State-Owned Enterprises Ministry and Foreign Ministry in July as part of the economic diplomacy to support SOEs to go global," he explained.

Pribadi noted that the company had also seen its product, known as Kapur Pertanian (Kaptan) Kebomas, penetrate the Brunei Darussalam market this year.

"The achievement adds to the record of the company's excellent fertilizers capable of competing in the international market apart from urea, NPK, and ZK fertilizers. This is part of the company's contribution to the national economic growth in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, especially to enhance export performance in support of the rupiah's exchange rate against the US dollar," he added.
Related news: President expects tax incentives to boost investment

Related news: Govt allocates Rp356.5 trillion to support national economic recovery

EDITED BY INE

Translated by: A Malik Ibrahim/Suharto
Editor: Fardah Assegaf

 

[Indos]

We started the second semester with promising trade data as Indonesia once again create 3.26 billion USD trade surplus in July 2020 and the amount of surplus seems to be growing from previous months. Alhamdulillah.

Export is increasing 14 percent compared to previous month. It will help to strengthen our currency during this challenging period. For your information, our first semester trade is also in trade surplus.

Our biggest export destination is China and the biggest export components to that country are steel, coal, and palm oil. Second biggest export destination is USA with biggest export components are clothes, machinery, and electrical equipment. Third biggest is Japan with export components are coal/gas, machinery, electrical equipment, and precious metal (gold, silver, etc).

 

[Indos]

I dont know why there is no financial help given from Government to Gojek and Grab driver ??? They are getting huge negative impact because of the outbreak. While government give some financial help to some one who has earned salary around 3-4.9 million a month, and if both husband and wife work, it means 6-8 million a month. Not make sense to me. Since I know gojek driver who even cannot get any customer for a day just 5 days ago.

Gojek and Grab drivers have already had detail information from their company, including the bank account. It will be easy to disburse money to them.

The most vulnerable should be a priority and no need to inject too much money for families who can still survive financially during this outbreak since the main reason of low consumption during this outbreak period is more due to being cautious and careful to spend in the malls, restaurant, tourism spot, etc because of afraid getting Covid 19 infection instead of regarding to financial capability.

 

[nufix]

I dont know why there is no financial help given from Government to Gojek and Grab driver ??? They are getting huge negative impact because of the outbreak. While government give some financial help to some one who has earned salary around 3-4.9 million a month, and if both husband and wife work, it means 6-8 million a month. Not make sense to me. Since I know gojek driver who even cannot get any customer for a day just 5 days ago.

Gojek and Grab drivers have already had detail information from their company, including the bank account. It will be easy to disburse money to them.

The most vulnerable should be a priority and no need to inject too much money for families who can still survive financially during this outbreak since the main reason of low consumption during this outbreak period is more due to being cautious and careful to spend in the malls, restaurant, tourism spot, etc because of afraid getting Covid 19 infection instead of regarding to financial capability.

It is because they are informal sector workers with no NPWP or tax information, so imagine it would be really hard to determine their rights to have stimulus to from the government.


I wish Indonesia could integrate tax information as part of personal identification so that income of every money earning person is recorded and taxed accordingly. This would be beneficial also for the worker as both the government and the worker know what they owe to each other.