• Indonesia to Focus on Renewable Energy, Not Nuclear Power

    Indonesia will most likely abandon its plans to establish four nuclear plants (with a combined capacity of 6 GW) by 2025. Sudirman Said, Indonesian Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, recently said there are plenty of alternatives - especially renewable energy - in Indonesia to meet the government's target of 136.7 GW of power capacity by 2025 and 430 GW by the year 2050. Nuclear power is controversial due to health risks, environmental damage and nuclear proliferation (when used as a weapon). The nuclear disaster in Japan in 2011 highlighted the risks of tapping nuclear power.

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  • Indonesian Companies: Update Performance of Malindo Feedmill

    The outlook for Malindo Feedmill, one of the largest animal feed producers in Indonesia, has become more upbeat after the arrival of fresh funds (IDR 537 billion) through the company's rights issue and on expectation of improving conditions in the nation's chicken breeding industry. Malindo Feedmill will use proceeds from the rights issue to repay US dollar-denominated debt to Bank Central Asia (BCA) and Bank CIMB Niaga. Based on a financial report, the company had a total debt of IDR 2.2 trillion (approx. USD $157 million) in the third quarter of 2015.

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  • Car Sales in Indonesia Remain Slowing at the Year-End

    In line with expectations and the general trend so far this year, Indonesian car sales fell 4.4 percent to 87,311 units in November 2015. In the January-November 2015 period, the country's total car sales reached 940,317 units, down 16.7 percent from car sales in the same period last year. The main cause of this weak performance is Indonesians' weakened purchasing power amid the country's economic slowdown, high inflation (in the first three quarters of the year), and low commodity prices.

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  • Indonesia Stock Market & Rupiah Update: Ahead of Fed Meeting Asia Weakens

    Stock markets in Asia are experiencing rough weather as investors pull funds out of emerging markets. By 11:25 am local Jakarta time, Indonesia's benchmark Jakarta Composite Index had plunged 1.11 percent to 4,344.69 points, while the rupiah had depreciated 0.54 percent to IDR 14,068 per US dollar (Bloomberg Dollar Index). Investors are seeking safe(r) haven assets as the Federal Reserve is expected to raise its key Fed Fund Rate (for the first time in almost a decade) at its next FOMC meeting (scheduled for 15-16 December).

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