The Idul Fitri celebrations (also known as Lebaran) in Indonesia appear to take place in a safe and orderly manner. Idul Fitri is an important religious holiday for Muslims as it stresses the importance of unity for the Islamic community, and marks the end of the holy fasting month (Ramadan). Business comes to a near stand-still in Indonesia during these days, and Jakarta, the political and economic center of Indonesia, has become empty after millions of people went back to their hometowns ahead of Idul Fitri (this is known as the annual mudik tradition).

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The annual mudik tradition has started in Indonesia. The term mudik refers to the exodus of Indonesian workers from the cities back to their hometowns ahead of Lebaran (the Indonesian name for Idul Fitri) which starts on 28 July 2014. Lebaran, a national holiday (from 28 July to 1 August), marks the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan and is usually celebrated at people’s places of origin, implying that Indonesian cities become more-or-less deserted for one week. In the week up to Lebaran people start to mudik.

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The Indonesian government announced that the holy fasting month of Ramadan (1435 Hijrah) will start on 29 June 2014. This decision was made after the Ministry for Religious Affairs held an isbat (confirmation) meeting on Friday evening joined by various Muslim organizations. However, Indonesia’s second-largest Muslim organization, the Muhammadiyah, previously determined 28 June as the starting point of the Ramadan. This difference is due to a different method of determining the location of the moon.

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Bayu Krisnamurthi, Indonesian Deputy Trade Minister, expects that domestic consumption will rise by approximately 40 percent during the holy Islamic fasting month of Ramadan, which starts on 28 June 2014, and subsequent Idul Fitri (Lebaran) celebrations. Traditionally, this period of festivities brings along inflationary pressures as consumers spend more money on food, transportation, clothes and souvenirs. Moreover, Krisnamurthi stated that the center of consumption will shift to the regions.

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Indonesia is a large and diverse country. One of the implications of this diverse context is that the country contains a variety of different religions and traditional beliefs. The Constitution of Indonesia, a secular democratic country containing a Muslim-majority population, guarantees all Indonesian citizens the freedom of worship, each according to his or her own religion or belief. This also means that Indonesia contains many, mostly religion-inspired, public holidays on which financial markets are closed.

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According to Indonesia's police department, heavy traffic caused by the Idul Fitri celebrations resulted in the deaths of more than 471 people as well as 740 seriously injured people in over 2000 traffic accidents. Most accidents are caused by drivers that fall asleep during the journey. Idul Fitri marks the end of the holy fasting month (Ramadan) and is one of the major national holidays in Indonesia. This year Idul Fitri fell on Thursday 8 August and, as usual, is accompanied by the tradition that Indonesians travel back to their places of birth.

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The city center streets of Indonesia's capital city of Jakarta, which are normally characterized by heavy traffic jams, are becoming quiet. As the holy Islamic fasting month (Ramadan) is getting towards the end, people are traveling back to their places of origin for the Lebaran celebrations. This annual tradition is known as 'mudik'. Usually, the people spend a few days at their hometowns before traveling back to their places of work. This period also means that businesses (including the stock exchange) are mostly closed until 12 August 2013.

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The holy fasting month of Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic calender, and subsequent Idul Fitri (or Lebaran) festivities, when many Indonesians go back to their home towns for several days, will arrive soon (on or around 9 July 2013). This annual recurring tradition has some big economic implications as Indonesia's Muslim community increases spending prior and during this period to buy new clothes, shoes, food and drinks as well as transportation fares to travel back to their places of birth.

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Seven suspected terrorists have been shot dead and 20 more have been arrested by Densus 88, Indonesia’s anti-terrorism squad, on Wednesday (08/05/13) during raids in Kendal (Central Java), Sumedang (West Java), Bandung and Banten. The suspects are believed to be part of a terrorist network that imported weaponry from the Philippines and engaged in violent robberies on bank branches of Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI) to fund various terrorist activities in Poso (Sulawesi).

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According to research conducted by Lembaga Survei Indonesia (LSI), a leading Indonesian public opinion research institute, Indonesia's population increasingly prefers nationalist-oriented political parties (these parties stress the importance of a religious pluralist and harmonious society) over Islamic parties, which aim for a more dominant role of Islam in society. In 2014, Indonesia will organize its next legislative and presidential elections.

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Pihak-pihak berwenang keuangan Indonesia sedang mempertimbangkan untuk mempermudah kepemilikan asing di bank syariah lokal serta mempromosikan instrumen-instrumen finansial (taat syariah) baru dalam rangka menciptakan industri keuangan syariah yang lebih menarik untuk investor asing dan masyarakat Indonesia. Meskipun memiliki populasi Muslim terbesar di dunia dan merupakan negara dengan ekonomi berkembang yang dinamis, Indonesia hanya memainkan peran kecil dalam industri perbankan syariah global. Sementara itu, secara domestik, perbankan syariah masih jauh di belakang perbankan konvensional.

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Perbankan syariah atau jasa keuagan syariah adalah potensi besar yang belum banyak dimanfaatkan di Indonesia, negara tempat tinggal 13% dari total populasi umat Muslim dunia. Mengingat hampir 90% dari 250 juta orang di Indonesia memeluk agama Islam, pangsa pasar jasa keuangan syariah masih sangat rendah sekarang. Dengan asetnya sebesar 24 miliar dollar Amerika Serikat (AS), bank-bank syariah di Indonesia hanya memiliki 4,9% dari jumlah total aset perbankan di 2013. Hal ini membuat Otoritas Jasa Keuangan (OJK) berencana meluncurkan roadmap lima tahun untuk mendongkrak perbankan syariah.

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Pada pertengahan 1960an, perpolitikan dan perekonomian di Indonesia berada di dalam bencana. Setelah kemerdekaan di tahun 1945 (dan penghentian konflik dengan Belanda di tahun 1949), negara muda ini dilanda dengan politik internal yang berbahaya karena beberapa kekuatan politik - termasuk militer, nasionalis, partai-partai Islam, dan komunis - saling berlawanan satu sama lain. Selama satu dekade, Sukarno, Presiden pertama Indonesia, cukup sukses untuk membendung ancaman dari kekuatan-kekuatan ini dengan menggunakan kekuatan kharismanya. Namun, pada pertengahan 1960an, kegagalannya terbukti nyata.

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The Regional Investment Coordinating Board said that Aceh (Sumatra), known for its strong Islamic identity, expects to receive IDR 5 trillion (USD $438.6 million) in foreign and domestic investment in 2014. In the first quarter of 2014, Indonesia's western-most province already saw IDR 2 trillion (USD $175.4 million) worth of investments. Aceh, a resource-rich province (in particular oil and natural gas), is one of the more mysterious Indonesian provinces and has had to deal with considerable negative publicity throughout its modern history.

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