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Puspita Anggraeni, Corporate Secretary at state-controlled construction company Wijaya Karya, said the company's rupiah-denominated global bonds (called "komodo bonds", in reference to the komodo dragon found on several islands in the eastern part of Indonesia) proved popular among investors.
Indonesia's state-owned utility company Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) plans to issue rupiah-denominated global bonds (known as 'komodo bonds', 'nasi goreng' bonds or 'rendang' bonds) in the second quarter of 2018. PLN targets to raise up to USD $2 billion through the bond issuance. Proceeds will be used for financing its part in Indonesia's 35,000 MW power development program as well as for debt payments.
The latest series of (conventional) Indonesian Retail Bonds (in Indonesian: Obligasi Ritel Indonesia, or ORI) was poorly absorbed by Indonesian retail investors. According to the latest available data, only IDR 8.95 trillion (approx. USD $663 million) was invested in the ORI014 series that was on sale between 29 September and 19 October 2017.
Based on information from Bloomberg, Indonesia is now the most attractive country in Asia in terms of returns on US dollar-denominated corporate bonds as an improving domestic economy - and especially an upturn in the country's coal sector - is driving gains in Indonesia's US dollar-denominated corporate bonds.
There are several reasons why the number of corporate bond sales in Indonesia is still low compared to other Asian countries (even though we do detect a rising trend in Indonesia from year to year). Anup Kumar, senior fixed income analyst at Maybank Indonesia, said the number of corporate bonds sales in Indonesia is on the rise this year, but total outstanding bonds in Indonesia is considerably lower than in other Asian nations. What explains this situation?
According to a statement of Indonesia's Finance Ministry, Indonesia raised a total of 100 billion yen (approx. USD $901 million) from the issuance of three, five and seven-year Samurai bonds (yen-denominated bonds) on Wednesday (31/05). The issuance, Indonesia's first public sale of Samurai bonds, was led by Mizuho, Nomura and SMBC Nikko.
Despite the recent rating upgrade from Standard & Poor's, Indonesia's banking sector will not immediately issue bonds to enjoy (expected) higher demand and lower yields. Based on data from the Financial Services Authority (OJK), per March 2017, the value of bonds issued by Indonesian banks fell from IDR 93.22 trillion in December 2016 to IDR 90.25 trillion (approx. USD $6.8 billion) per March 2017.
More rupiah and foreign-denominated bonds are expected to be issued in Indonesia now credit rating agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) assigned investment grade status to Indonesia's sovereign rating (BBB-/stable outlook). Yields are expected to decline gradually, while the cost of funds become cheaper. Therefore, it now becomes more attractive for the Indonesian government and local companies (those that also have been assigned the investment grade rating) to issue bonds and collect "cheaper funds".
The central bank of Indonesia (Bank Indonesia) said the nation's foreign exchange reserves rose to USD $121.8 billion in late March 2017 from USD $119.9 billion in the preceding month. The increase was primarily attributed to proceeds from tax collection, state revenue from the oil & gas sector, the issuance of global bonds and the auction of Bank Indonesia foreign exchange bills.
Few foreign investors invest in Indonesia's corporate bonds. Foreigners currently only hold seven percent of total outstanding corporate bonds in Indonesia. Salyadi Saputra, President Director of Pemeringkat Efek Indonesia (Pefindo), said this figure is too low. Ideally, it should be between 20 - 30 percent. Moreover, the percentage share of Indonesian corporate bonds that are in foreign hands has fallen over the past year. On 1 January 2016 foreigners still held 7.29 percent of total outstanding corporate bonds in Indonesia.
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Indonesian food company Tiga Pilar Sejahtera, a market leader in the country’s dry vermicelli and dry noodles segments, considers to acquire two food companies in Malaysia and Vietnam in a move to expand business beyond the Indonesian borders. Sjambiri Lioe, Finance Director at Tiga Pilar Sejahtera, said that the company (which is listed under ticker symbol AISA) has set aside a total of USD $80 million for this acquisition. He refrained from mentioning the names of the targeted Asian companies.
In an attempt to strengthen the domestic investor base and to meet financing of the Revised 2014 State Budget (APBN-P 2014), the government offers Indonesian Retail Government Bonds (Obligasi Negara Ritel Indonesia, abbreviated ORI) again. This is the 11th time, the government issues ORI bonds since its first launch in 2006. The ORI series ORI011 is offered in the period 1-16 October 2014 with a coupon rate of 8.5 percent and a tenor of three years. The minimum allowed order is IDR 5 million and the maximum IDR 3 billion per individual.
US Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen reminded global investors to prepare for a sooner-than-expected US interest rate hike (Fed Funds Rate, FFR) provided that the economy of the USA - the world’s largest economy - continues its improving trend. In fact, speculation has emerged that the FFR will be raised before the end of 2014 although Yellen stated more than once that the ‘close-to-zero’ interest rate environment would be maintained for a considerable period after the US bond-buying program (quantitative easing) has ended.
The benchmark stock index of Indonesia (Jakarta Composite Index, abbreviated IHSG) ended at a record high on Wednesday (03/09) as market sentiments were positive after the Indonesian government raised USD $1.5 billion from 10-year dollar-denominated Islamic bonds (known as sukuk) on Tuesday (02/09). Foreign investors submitted USD $10 billion worth of bids, six times the amount offered, showing that they are confident about the country’s current and future economic prospects.
The Indonesian rupiah exchange rate depreciated slightly on Thursday (03/07). The US dollar gained as markets reacted to Wednesday’s ADP nonfarm payrolls report which showed that 281,000 jobs were added in the US private sector in June 2014, thus exceeding expectations. Furthermore, the market is optimistic that US employment data, released later today, will be positive too. According to the Bloomberg Dollar Index, the currency of Indonesia depreciated 0.04 percent to IDR 11,918 per US dollar.
The Indonesia rupiah exchange rate depreciated 0.16 percent to IDR 11,992 per US dollar on Monday (23/06) according to the Bloomberg Dollar Index, thus extending the currency’s recent depreciating trend. Meanwhile, Bank Indonesia's benchmark rupiah rate (known as the Jakarta Interbank Spot Dollar Rate, or, abbreviated JISDOR) depreciated 0.03 percent to IDR 11,971 against the greenback. What were the factors that influenced the rupiah’s performance today?
The Indonesian rupiah exchange rate depreciated 0.62 percent to IDR 11,893 per US dollar on Tuesday (17/06), a four-month low. The main reason behind this poor performance is increased concern about the impact of violence in northern Iraq - namely higher global oil prices - on Indonesia’s trade and budget deficits as Indonesia subsidises a significant amount of domestic fuels). As oil and gas imports accounted for about 23 percent of total imports of Indonesia in April 2014.
The Indonesian rupiah exchange rate is heading for its biggest weekly decline since the second week of December 2013. According to the Bloomberg Dollar Index, the currency of Southeast Asia's largest economy had depreciated 0.36 percent to IDR 11,572 per US dollar by 2.30pm local Jakarta time on Friday (23/05). However, year to date, the rupiah is still among the best performing Asian emerging currencies against the greenback (+5.19 percent). What are the reasons that explain the rupiah's weak performance this week?
While most emerging Asian currencies fell, the Indonesian rupiah exchange rate appreciated 0.08 percent to IDR 11,523 per US dollar based on the Bloomberg Dollar Index on Monday (12/05). The depreciating Chinese yuan, after its central bank set the midrate at its lowest level in eight months, put pressure on other Asian currencies. Today, Indonesia's Finance Ministry sold IDR 10 trillion rupiah (USD $867 million) of bonds, higher than the indicative target of IDR 8 trillion rupiah. Meanwhile, Indonesia’s two-year bonds gained.
Fitch Ratings, one of the three major global credit rating agencies, said that its latest annual survey on economic prospects and the business climate in Indonesia indicates an optimistic view. Respondents in the survey, mostly CEOs and Division Heads at financial institutions, companies, government and media, were asked 11 questions about the Indonesian economy, reformation and prospects for the next five years. Andrew Steel, Managing Director Head of Asia Pacific Corporate Ratings Group, presented results of the survey.
