Despite a global drop in piracy incidents in the first half of 2013, Indonesia has experienced a 50 percent surge in pirate attacks to 43 incidents in the same period. Total worldwide pirate attacks in Semester I-2013 fell to 138 cases (from 177). The location where most incidents take place in Indonesia are the waters around the Riau province, particularly around the ports in Dumai and Belawan. "Within Southeast Asia, most of the attacks occur on Indonesian anchorages [not when ships are sailing]" according to the International Maritime Bureau.

Read more ›

PT Pelabuhan Indonesia II (Indonesia Port Corporation in English but most widely known as Pelindo II), the state-owned enterprise that is involved in port and harbour services in ten Indonesian provinces, will choose its partner for the construction of terminal II and terminal III of the New Priok Port project from a selection of 12 companies. These companies can either opt to join the tender for the construction of one terminal, or, for both terminals together. At the end of the year, the winners of the tenders will be announced.

Read more ›

Royal HaskoningDHV, a Netherlands-based international project management and engineering consultancy services provider, has won the contract to supervise the construction of the extension of the main port of Jakarta, Tanjung Priok. The contract is part of the New Kalibaru Terminal Development. The first phase includes the development of a new 4.5 million TEUs container terminal which aims to enhance the economic development of Indonesia and will bring Indonesia's port facilities on par with other world-class ports.

Read more ›

PSA International (the Port of Singapore Authority) is one of the participants in the tender - organized by PT Pelindo II - for the construction of terminal two and three of the Kalibaru New Priok harbour in North Jakarta. According to the Director of Pelindo II, RJ Lino, there are 18 participants in the tender, of which the winner will probably be announced in September 2013. Companies can either opt to join the tender for the construction of both terminals, or, one of the two terminals.

Read more ›

Indonesia's trade deficit narrowed slightly in January as there has been better demand from developed countries. However, Indonesian exports remain under pressure with persistent weak global demand. Moreover, higher crude oil prices increase the country's import costs. In addition to Indonesia's trade deficit, annual inflation increased to 5.31 percent in February due to rising food prices and higher electricity tariffs.

Read more ›

Indonesia already is a strong trade partner to a number of countries in Europe. Based on data released by Indonesia's Ministry of Trade, the Netherlands and Spain are two European countries that import a considerable amount of Indonesian products and thus are important contributors to Indonesia's trade surplus in the non oil & gas sector. But other European nations, such as Germany and Russia, pressure Indonesia's trade surplus. It indicates that, despite the wide distance, Indonesia and Europe have a close and valuable trade relationship.

Read more ›

Although the United States continues its traditional focus on direct investments in developed countries, primarily in Western Europe, there has been a significant rise in US investments in Indonesia in recent years. Whereas US investments in the developed economies of Western Europe is mostly found in the financial sector and through holding companies, in developing Asia, the US is more focused on the manufacturing sector due to lower production costs. In the last two years, the US emerged as the second-largest investor in Indonesia after Japan.

Read more ›

Indonesia's central bank (Bank Indonesia or BI) announced on Wednesday (15/05/13) that the country's external balance has improved during Q1-2013 as non-oil and gas trade were up. Indonesia's current account deficit stood at USD $5.3 billion (2.4 percent of GDP) in Q1-2013, compared to the previous quarter's deficit of USD $7.6 billion (3.5 percent of GDP). Indonesia has experienced a widening trade deficit, although it recorded a trade surplus of USD $304.90 in March, the first trade surplus since September 2012.

Read more ›

The central bank of Indonesia (Bank Indonesia, or BI) decided to maintain its record low policy rate for the 15th straight month at 5.75 percent as it is considered consistent with its inflation target range of 3.5-5.5 percent in 2013 and 2014. The central bank also stated that the global economic recovery is accompanied by many uncertainties which result in a lower forecast for Indonesia's economic growth. The full press release of Bank Indonesia can be read below.

Read more ›