More Air Traffic Between Indonesia and Singapore Agreed Upon
Several Indonesian media reported that a deal has been reached between the governments of Singapore and Indonesia that will foresee in an increase of flights (accompanied by a lowering in fares) between Singapore and several big cities in Indonesia (including Jakarta, Surabaya and Medan). The route Jakarta-Singapore is one of the busiest airline routes in Asia, mainly due to business traffic because of (growing) trade and investments flows between the two countries.
This news was published on the same day that Batavia Air, one of Indonesia's low-cost private airlines, ceased operations after a Jakarta Commercial Court rule as it has been plagued by debt woes.
In recent years, demand for domestic air travel in Indonesia has grown significantly due to economic growth and a rising middle class. However, lack of quality and quantity in infrastructure (for example size of airports, roads and railways towards airports), and a lack of quality pilots, engineers, and technicians have hampered developments in the country's aviation sector.
Shares of Garuda Indonesia, Indonesia's sole publicly listed airline, climbed 1.56 percent on today's trading day.