In the period April-June 2013, at least 13 Indonesian companies are planning to pay the final dividends for book year 2012. It is expected that this number will rise in the weeks ahead as there are still companies that need to hold the annual general meeting (AGM), in which dividend payouts are decided. Last year, more than one hundred listed companies on the Indonesia Stock Exchange paid out dividends (of a total number of 462 listed companies at end 2012).

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Express Transindo Utama (Express), the Indonesian taxi operator that is controlled by Peter Sondakh's Rajawali Corpora, has acquired an entire stake in Jakarta-based taxi operator Ekspres Mulia Kencana for IDR 67 billion (USD $6.87 million). This take over - which had been announced last year - will add 2,000 licensed taxi units to the company's current total taxi fleet size of about 8,000 taxis (which are primarily in operation in the Greater Jakarta area).

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Indonesia's demand for cars stayed strong as the first quarter of 2013 saw double-digit growth in car sales compared to the same period last year. According to Gaikindo (the Indonesian Automotive Industry Association), Indonesia posted an 18 percent growth in car sales in Q1-2013, which translates to 297,785 car units sold in this year's first quarter. However, Gaikindo believes that growth for full-year 2013 will be limited or equal to last year's record sales performance.

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Indonesia's palm oil exports (palm oil and palm kernel) rose by 9.1 percent (month-on-month) to 2.04 million metric tons in February, according to data from the Indonesian Palm Oil Association (Gapki). This level - the highest in about five years - was brought on due to increased purchases from China and Pakistan. Indonesia's palm oil industry may experience a better year in 2013 as exports in the first two months of 2013 rose 29 percent from last year.

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