Incumbent President Joko Widodo is expected to announce his running mate for the 2019 presidential election this evening (Thursday 09/08). All local media are gathered at Plataran Restaurant in Menteng (Central Jakarta) where the leaders of those political parties that support Widodo meet for an announcement. Also present is former chief justice of Indonesia's Constitutional Court Mahfud MD. Thus, it seemed clear who had been selected as Widodo's vice presidential candidate.

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Indonesia Investments received information that presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto has selected Deputy Jakarta Governor Sandiaga Uno to become his vice-presidential candidate in the 2019 presidential election. The choice for Uno is allegedly accepted by Subianto's Gerindra party as well as by the National Mandate Party (PAN) and Prosperous Justice Party (PKS).

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On Wednesday (27/06) around 150 million people are estimated to have cast their vote for the local elections in 169 regions across Indonesia (in two Papuan districts elections were delayed due to administrative and security reasons). There have not been any reports of disturbances (including fraud) and we can therefore assume that the elections went peacefully (and fair) across Indonesia.

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While according to the opinion polls incumbent President Joko Widodo has a big lead over his (seemingly only) rival Prabowo Subianto for the 2019 presidential election, he declines to comment on the race. Instead Widodo - often called Jokowi - chooses to remain focused on work as "a lot has not been completed yet".

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Entering the second quarter of 2018 chief executive officers (CEOs) have become less optimistic about the Indonesian economy and politics. This should be no surprise considering there have emerged significant concerns about a looming global trade war (with the USA and China as main actors), while further monetary tightening in the USA has been putting pressure on the Indonesian rupiah.

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Indonesian Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati is popular not only in Indonesia but also abroad. Over the weekend she accepted the Best Minister in the World Award at the World Government Summit in Dubai. It is not her first award. Earlier, she was awarded the Best Finance Minister in Asia (2006). Moreover, she peaked at 23rd in Forbes' 2008 top 100 most powerful women ranking.

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Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Lestari Priansari Marsudi said the Indonesian government imposed zero tariffs for certain Palestinian products entering Indonesia since the start of the year. This policy aims at supporting Palestine economically.

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Despite the "political year" several Indonesia-based securities firms expect to see big appetite from local companies to conduct an initial public offering (IPO) on the Indonesia Stock Exchange in 2018. In 2018, Indonesia will see a new round of regional elections (to determine local leaders) across the country. These elections are likely to trigger new political tensions, particularly as the country's legislative and presidential elections are to be held the following year.

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Indonesia's House of Representatives (DPR) approved the government's proposed 2018 state budget bill in a plenary session on Wednesday (25/10), hence turning the bill into law. Taufik Kurniawan, Deputy House Speaker, announced this decision earlier today.

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On Monday (16/10), Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia, will see the inauguration of the new governor, Anies Baswedan (together with his deputy Sandiaga Uno), for the 2017-2022 period. President Joko Widodo will lead the ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta. The ceremony, which starts around 16:00 pm local Jakarta time, will be guarded by 7,000 security personnel.

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On Friday (04/11) a massive demonstration is scheduled to be staged in Jakarta. In this protest rally thousands of people are expected to gather to ventilate their disapproval of incumbent Jakarta Governor Basuki Cahaya Purnama (better known as Ahok). The rally is organized by a coalition of Islamic groups including hard-line group Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) which has often used violence to achieve their targets. The Muslim groups accuse Ahok of blasphemy by misquoting Quranic verses during a speech in Kepulauan Seribu, off the coast of Jakarta, in early October.

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After two years in office, the time is ripe now to take a look at the performance and accomplishments of the government under the leadership of Joko Widodo, often called Jokowi. Indonesia's seventh president was a bit unlucky. In the first year of his rule, commodity prices were at multi-year lows (curbing Indonesia's foreign exchange earnings) amid sluggish global economic growth, while capital outflows from Indonesia occurred on the back of monetary tightening in the USA, sending the rupiah to a 17-year low in September 2015.

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On Friday (14/10) Indonesian President Joko Widodo appointed Ignasius Jonan as Indonesia's new Energy and Mineral Resources Minister. Jonan is the nation's former Transportation Minister who was replaced by Budi Karya Sumadi in a cabinet reshuffle in late July 2016. Meanwhile, the position of Energy and Mineral Resources Minister had been empty (although for the time being filled by Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Luhut Pandjaitan) after the dismissal of Arcandra Tahar in mid-August 2016.

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Although Indonesia’s economic growth slowed further in 2014, there is optimism that growth will accelerate in 2015 despite sluggish global economic conditions (curbing Indonesia’s export performance) and Bank Indonesia’s relatively high interest rate environment. Indonesia’s central bank has raised its BI rate several times over the past one and a half years in an effort to combat high inflation (caused by fuel price hikes), curb capital outflows ahead of US monetary tightening, limit the current account deficit and support the rupiah.

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By the mid-1960s, politics and the economy of Indonesia had turned into disaster. After Independence in 1945 (and the cessation of hostilities with the Dutch in 1949), the young nation was plagued by hostile internal politics in which several political forces - consisting of the army, nationalists, Muslims, and communists - opposed each other. For over a decade, Sukarno, Indonesia’s first president, had reasonable success in keeping these forces in check by the force of his own personality. However, by the mid-1960s his failure became evident.

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Indonesian stocks and the rupiah have rebounded on Friday due to several internal and external factors. During the first trading session on Friday (17/10), the benchmark stock index of Indonesia (Jakarta Composite Index, or IHSG) surged 0.94 percent to 4,998.14 points. Meanwhile, based on the Bloomberg Dollar Index, the Indonesian rupiah exchange rate had appreciated 0.26 percent to IDR 12,228 per US dollar by 12:30 pm local Jakarta time. Why do Indonesian stocks and the rupiah perform well on Friday?

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Global credit rating agency Moody’s Investors Service stated that it maintains a stable outlook for Indonesia’s sovereign and corporate debt rating in the next quarters due to the country’s healthy credit fundamentals, solid macroeconomy, and reduced political tensions. Moody’s believes that Indonesia’s fundamentals are strong enough to offset the negative impact of external pressures such as looming higher US interest rates and slowing economic growth in China. Moody’s had raised Indonesia’s sovereign debt rating to investment grade in late 2011.

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Amid political uncertainty and a looming increase in US interest rates, Indonesian stocks and the rupiah exchange rate weakened considerably in the past week. Market participants are increasingly concerned about the situation in Indonesia’s parliament where a majority of political parties - named the Merah-Putih coalition (led by defeated presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto) - is expected to undermine president-elect Joko Widodo’s reform programs as well as the democratic foundations of the country.

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Indonesian stocks plunged considerably on Thursday (02/10). The country’s benchmark stock index (Jakarta Composite Index, abbreviated IHSG) declined 2.73 percent to 5,000.81 points, the largest drop in almost six months. This poor performance was caused by both external and internal factors. Externally, various weak economic data from the USA and Europe as well as an appreciating yen impacted negatively on Asian stock indices. Internally, market participants responded negatively toward the inauguration of the new parliament.

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More and more concerns have arisen recently regarding the democratic future of Indonesia. In fact, some media have reported that an impeachment of president-elect Joko Widodo, who will assume office on 20 October 2014, could become a reality as opposition in parliament - led by controversial and vindictive former army general Prabowo Subianto - is large. The Merah-Putih coalition, referring to the coalition of political parties that supported Subianto in the presidential election (which he narrowly lost to Widodo) will control 353 of the 560 seats in parliament.

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