Economic Minister Hatta Rajasa said that Indonesia's preparations for the implementation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) in late 2015 are currently for 78 percent completed. The AEC aims to enhance regional economic integration among the ASEAN member states. It will transform the ASEAN region into one with free movement of goods, services, investment, and skilled labour, as well as a freer flow of capital. Most important is to develop Indonesia's infrastructure in order to foster connectivity, thus reducing logistics costs.

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The Gini ratio of Indonesia - the coefficient that measures inequality in income distribution - is expected to improve slightly this year as commodity prices have a stable outlook. Based on data from Statistics Indonesia, the ratio increased significantly since the country's Reformasi period. Between 1999 and 2013, it rose from 0.31 percent to 0.41 percent (a coefficient of zero expresses perfect equality, while one implies perfect inequality). In the last three years (2011- 2013), however, the ratio remained stable at 0.41 percent.

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Four publicly listed - yet state controlled - construction companies recorded a combined 42 percent growth (year on year) in net profit in 2013. The combined net profit of these four companies - Wijaya Karya (Wika), Adhi Karya, Pembangunan Perumahan (PP) and Waskita Karya - totaled IDR 1.74 trillion (USD $146.2 million) last year. These numbers evidence the robust growth that Indonesia's property and infrastructure sectors experienced in 2013 and is expected to continue in 2014.

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In 2013 Indonesia managed to attract a record number of foreign tourists. Around 8.8 million foreigners entered Indonesia - mostly in Bali - last year, a 9.42 percent increase from 2012, and earning up to USD $10.05 billion in foreign exchange (up 10.23 percent from 2012). Indonesia's tourism sector thus grew at a faster pace in 2013 than the general economy (5.78 percent) and now accounts for 3.8 percent (IDR 347.35 trillion) of the country's gross domestic product (GDP). However, this is still a low figure compared to its regional peers.

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General Electric (GE), one of the largest American multinational conglomerates, has already started to show its commitment to invest in Indonesia. Over the course of three years, the company will invest USD $300 million in Southeast Asia's largest economy. CEO of General Electric Indonesia, Handry Satriago, stated that - although the year 2013 was a year full of challenges - the company managed to record revenues worth about USD $1 billion and aims to reach double-digit growth in 2014.

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On Sunday (26/01), Indonesia's National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) reported that the floods in Jakarta have led to 23 casualties (due to drowning, electrocution or the impossibility for sick people to reach the hospital) in the last two weeks in Indonesia's capital city, while almost 28,000 people are still displaced from their homes. The good news, however, is that in many parts of Jakarta floodwaters have begun to subside since the end of last week although several neighborhoods remain flooded up to this day.

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Contrary to reports last week, the central bank of Indonesia (Bank Indonesia) expects that the country's January inflation rate may exceed 1 percent due to the disturbance of food products distribution amid severe floods in several cities in Indonesia, particularly Jakarta and Manado. Higher food prices are expected to add 0.3 percent to the monthly inflation rate. Apart from the flood issue, higher LPG as well as electricity tariffs (in the industry sector) will also contribute to January 2014 inflation.

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Wika Beton, a subsidiary of majority state-owned construction company Wijaya Karya, will sell over 20 percent of its enlarged capital in an initial public offering (IPO) on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) in the first quarter of 2014. The company, which has appointed Bahana Securities, Mandiri Sekuritas, Danareksa Sekuritas and Sucorinvest Central Gani to act as underwriters for the IPO, expects a 20 percent increase (yoy) in revenue to IDR 2.4 trillion in 2013, and targets a similar growth rate in 2014.

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In 2013, domestic production of heavy equipment in Indonesia fell 30 percent to 6,127 units from the previous year as commodity prices (such as crude palm oil and coal) were still down. This made Indonesian miners reluctant to ramp up production figures, thus having less need to purchase heavy equipment. According to Pratjojo Dewo, Chairman of the Indonesian Heavy Equipment Association (Hinabi), demand for heavy equipment in Indonesia started falling at the end of 2012 and continued into 2013.

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Indonesia's Ministry of Finance is optimistic that the country's inflation rate can be kept at 5.5 percent in 2014 as demand and supply of goods is expected to remain stable although the depreciating rupiah exchange rate and weak state of the country's infrastructure will continue to provide inflationary pressures. Deputy Finance Minister Bambang PS Brodjonegoro expects inflation in January 2014 to be lower than in the same month last year (1.03 percent) but it remains uncertain the extent to which the current floods will impact on the inflation rate.

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It has been more than a week since the Indonesian government raised its subsidized fuel prices (Pertalite, Pertamax, and automotive diesel fuel) by an average of slightly over 26 percent. One of the most interesting things is to see whether this decision leads to overall growing prices in Indonesian society. After all, fuel is crucial for the movement of goods and services, and has a significant impact on logistics costs.

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When writing this introduction, the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (also known as COP26) had just started in Glasgow (Scotland). Indonesian President Joko Widodo is among the delegates who is slated to speech about the importance of preventing – and adapting to – climate change, and to seek ways to obtain climate financing as Indonesia is unable to finance the huge and costly energy transition by itself.

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On 30 September 2021 Indonesia’s House of Representatives (Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat, DPR) approved the 2022 State Budget (Anggaran Pendapatan dan Belanja Negara, APBN) that had previously been proposed by the cabinet. And with 14.2 percent of total government spending being reserved for infrastructure development in the 2022 State Budget, the Indonesian government confirms that it remains committed to much-needed infrastructure development.

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Sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) have existed for many decades around the world. By establishing a SWF – and inject capital into the SWF – governments can strengthen their national economies and generate wealth for future generations. In fact, a SWF is essentially a state-owned investment fund typically funded using excess capital.

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As regards Indonesia’s investment and business environment, there were a couple of interesting developments in February 2021. These were developments that – in our opinion – help to strengthen the economy of Indonesia in a fundamental way, albeit it will take a few years (as well as the assistance of other reforms) to fully enjoy the fruits of this labor.

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On 28 August 2020 Indonesian President Joko Widodo officially opened Yogyakarta International Airport (YIA), a brand new airport that is located in Kulon Progo in the Special Region of Yogyakarta; a region known as one of Indonesia’s main tourism centers. Many in fact call Yogyakarta the ‘heart and soul of Indonesia’.

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Those who have visited Indonesia should be well aware of the lack of infrastructure development across the country. Those who have been in urban centers (such as the capital city of Jakarta, Bandung or Surabaya) must have had the experience of being stuck in traffic as the number of road users (mostly cars and motorcycles) outpaces available road surface.

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Across the world, concern over the COVID-19 pandemic grew in September 2020 as the number of new COVID-19 cases continued to rise rapidly. Worldwide, at the end of September 2020, some 34 million people have been infected with the virus, while more than one million people have died after contracting the virus.

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One characteristic of the Indonesian economy is that the state-owned enterprises (SOEs) play an important role in this USD $1.0 trillion economy. They not only play an important role because some of them rank among Indonesia’s biggest companies (in terms of profit, sales and assets), thereby generating plenty of money for the government (in the form of tax revenue or dividend) while at the same time creating jobs for millions of Indonesians.

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On 25 September 2019, only a few days before Indonesia’s House of Representatives (in Indonesian: Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat, or DPR) finished its 2014-2019 term, it approved the 2020 State Budget bill (UU APBN 2020).

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