Production of hand-rolled clove cigarettes (kretek) fell 30 percent year-on-year (y/y) in 2016 due to stricter smoking regulations in Indonesia. Kretek is a clove cigarette that consists of tobacco (70 percent), and ground cloves, clove oil as well as other additives (30 percent). These clove cigarettes are the clear favorite of Indonesia's smoker community. It is estimated that 85 percent of all smokers in Indonesia prefer kretek cigarettes over white cigarettes. In total, around 55 million Indonesians consume tobacco-related products.

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Indonesian clove farmers are optimistic that the nation's clove production in 2016 will be similar to last year's production realization in the range of 100,000 to 110,000 tons, provided that the weather is good and there will be no excessive rainfall. I Ketut Budiman, Secretary General of the Indonesian Clove Farmers Association (APCI), said Indonesia's clove farmers will not raise their production target in order to maintain clove prices at profitable levels. Currently, the clove price at the farmer level is IDR 100,000 (approx. USD $7.19) per kilogram, while farmers' production costs are estimated at IDR 75,000 per kg.

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In order to comply with new rules, Philip Morris International Inc. will increase the free float ratio of its Indonesian unit HM Sampoerna on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) from 1.82 percent to 7.50 percent. Per January 2016, all listed companies on the IDX are required to have at least 7.5 percent of their shares in public hands. Currently, however, Philip Morris owns 98.18 percent of HM Sampoerna, Indonesia’s largest cigarette manufacturer and among the largest Indonesian companies listed on the IDX in terms of market capitalization.

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Indonesia and four other countries have filed an official complaint to the World Trade Organization (WTO) over a recent new law in Australia. This law (‘2011 Tobacco Plain Packaging Act’), in effect since 1 December 2012, requires the removal of all branding (such as colours, imagery, and corporate logos) on cigarette packages. Indonesia’s Trade Ministry believes that the law violates several WTO rules, such as an agreement on trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights and an agreement on the technical barriers to trade.

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