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Trade Minister: Indonesia Lags Behind on Free Trade

01

Jun

Trade Minister: Indonesia Lags Behind on Free Trade

Indonesia has always relied on natural resources, whose commodity prices have now plummeted. "We must admit that we are far behind our competitors in [...]

Trade Minister: Indonesia Lags Behind on Free Trade. Indonesia has always relied on natural resources, whose commodity prices have now plummeted.
`We must admit that we are far behind our competitors in terms of FTA,` said Thomas at the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry National Working Meeting in Jakarta on Wednesday (1/6/2016).
According to Thomas, Indonesia has only 10 free trade agreements. Compared to Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines, and Malaysia, Indonesia has the least cooperation with other countries.
`We should catch up,` Thomas said.
Currently, countries that once had no natural resources are on the rise. This is because they have processed their raw materials into finished goods, whereas Indonesia still exports and sells only raw materials.
`In fact, countries that did not used to enjoy commodities are ready now,` said Thomas.
Currently, countries that once had no natural resources are on the rise.

Writer: Adiatmaputra Fajar Pratama
Editor: Sanusi
http://www.tribunnews.com/bisnis/2016/06/01/mendag-indonesia-ketinggalan-di-perdagangan-bebas

Indonesian coffee gets major promotion in Milan, Italy

30

May

Indonesian coffee gets major promotion in Milan, Italy

The promotions, taking advantage of outdoor mobile media was an innovation of the Indonesian Trade Promotion Center (PPPI/ITPC) in Milan and was [...]

Indonesian coffee gets major promotion in Milan, Italy. The promotions, taking advantage of outdoor mobile media was an innovation of the Indonesian Trade Promotion Center (PPPI/ITPC) in Milan and was inaugurated by the Indonesian Ambassador to Italy, Cyprus, Malta and UN organizations, August Parengkuan in Piazza Cairoli-Castelo Milano, Firday (27/5).IPTCMilan Chief Agung Pramudya FR in a press release on Sunday explained that three tram carriages would cross Duomo, the Via Torino business area, the Offices of the Milan Chamber of Commerce in Via Meravigli, Palazzo di Giustizia, Largo Augusto, Corso Porta Vittoria, Porta Vittoria Train Station and Corso Magenta, the location of the Santa Maria Della Grazie Church which hosts the `The Last Supper` mural painting by Leonardo da Vinci.Agung said that Italian community and business people were not very familiar with Indonesia so promotion needed to be stepped up.His team was committed to full implementation of intensive and integrated promotions by installing posters at strategic Metropolitana stations in Milan, and on the sides of 18-meter long buses passing through important places likeCastelo Sforzesco, Museo del Design, Triennale, Cadorna Train Station, Turati which is the area for consulates and foreign embassies, immigration offices and Mosca Train Station.In the inauguration of tram advertising attended by the Italian Honorary Consul for Indonesia Jaccopo Fusaia, Agriculture Attaché Yusral Tahir, Trade Attaché Sumber Sinabutar; Ambassador August Parengkuan said the KBRI continued to work with ITPC Milan to introduce Indonesia to Italian business people, not just on an import basis but also to attract them to become investors.`This activity is a follow-up to the promotions since the 2015 Milan Expo, and with several business forum activities in Italy, several Italian businessmen have visited Indonesia, especially since Italian President Mattarela visited Indonesia in November 2015,` he said.He added that ITPC Milan was active and very good at implementing promotions in Milan, the central city for business in Italy.The Ambassador acknowledged that the lack of historical connection between Indonesia and Italy, as well as the language difference, were key problems in doing business, therefore he felt that Indonesia should continue to be active given that the potential business between the two countries was very large.Meanwhile, concerning the promotional design on the tram media Agung explained that Italy was very close to the culture of drinking coffee and Indonesia also had superior coffee products.Therefore, his team used superior coffee products on the tram with the slogan `Noi e il caff` siamo due anime inseparabilli. Il suo aroma e il rituale che ci sveglia ogni mattina (We and coffee are two souls that are inseparable. Its aroma and its ritual are what awaken us every morning). Meanwhile, inside the tram werephotos with a palm oil theme for green energy purposes.  The big threeAgriculture Attaché Yusral Tahir explained that Indonesia was the 3rd largest coffee producer in the world after Brazil and Vietnam.The total export of Indonesian coffee at the moment is 12,317 tons, up by approximately 7.9 percent (ICO 2016), he said.Italian people were selective coffee drinkers, with a consumption of 5.8 kg/person. At the moment Indonesian coffee in a green bean form filled approximately 5.8 percent of the 529,000 ton of Italian demand.Apart from coffee, other superior Indonesian products for the Italian market are palm oil, chocolate, tropical fruit and spices.
Editor: B Kunto Wibisono
http://www.antaranews.com/berita/563850/indonesia-besar-besaran-promosikan-kopi-di-milan-italia

Sugarcane Farmers Write to 4 of Jokowi's Ministers, Reject Sugar Imports by State-Owned Enterprises

26

May

Sugarcane Farmers Write to 4 of Jokowi's Ministers, Reject Sugar Imports by State-Owned Enterprises

The letter was addressed to four ministers of the Working Cabinet, namely Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Darmin Nasution, Minister of [...]

Sugarcane Farmers Write to 4 of Jokowi's Ministers, Reject Sugar Imports by State-Owned Enterprises. The letter was addressed to four ministers of the Working Cabinet, namely Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Darmin Nasution, Minister of Trade Thomas Lembong, Minister of Agriculture Andi Amran Sulaiman, and Minister of Industry Saleh Husin.The letter was written on May 23, 2016. Here is the letter submitted by sugarcane farmers to the four ministers:To: The Esteemed1. Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs of Indonesia2. Minister of Trade of Indonesia3. Minister of Agriculture of Indonesia4. Minister of Industry of IndonesiaRespectfully,In connection with the existence of a letter from the Minister of SOEs No.: S-288/MBU/05/2016 dated May 12, 2016, concerning permission for raw sugar imports in 2016 and the letter No.: S-289/MBU/05/2016 dated May 12, 2016, concerning raw sugar imports in 2016 that assigned PTPN X to import 381,000 tons of raw sugar, we convey the following:That the 2016 sugar balance has not yet been determined so that it is not yet known if there is a sugar shortage in 2016. The estimation of real sugar production in 2016 has only been known around August 2016 at the peak of the milling season, so that it will be known whether or not there is sufficient sugar stock.That the basis for calculating the raw sugar import requirement of 381,000 tons is unclear, thus we are concerned that the 2016 sugar stock will exceed demand and the impact will be a drop in sugar prices, especially since at the beginning of 2016 there were PPI sugar imports of 200,000 tons. The policy on raw sugar imports under the pretext of it being compensation for PTPN and PT RNI to guarantee a minimum 8.5% yield is an instant policy and does not educate. The root of the problem of low yield is because the sugar factories are not efficient. This is proven by the fact that sugar factories that are efficient have yields that can exceed 8.5% so that what needs to be done is improving the performance of the sugar factories to be efficient. The basis of the policy on raw sugar imports for idle capacity should be that the amount of sugar production is lower than national consumption needs and the sugar factories lack raw materials. The problem that arises is that inefficient sugar factories will be abandoned by farmers so that in practice there is a shortage of sugarcane. It would be better to completely revitalize inefficient sugar factories rather than mill raw sugar. The profits from processing raw sugar for inefficient sugar factories will be used up to guarantee yield to farmers. Thus, it is impossible to use the profits from processing raw sugar to revitalize the sugar factories. In principle, we farmers strongly support the 8.5% yield guarantee as had been previously promised by the Minister of SOEs without the unnecessary compensation of raw sugar imports. Raw sugar imports have been carried out by both BUMN and private sugar factories but haven't had a positive effect on improving the performance of the sugar factories.That these matters are the result of a dialogue meeting of sugarcane farmers that are members of DPN APTRI that was held in Surabaya on May 20, 2016. Based on these matters, we the sugarcane farmers who are members of DPN APTRI reject the plan to import raw sugar as stated in the letter from the Minister of SOEs.Thus, we have drawn up this letter of rejection of raw sugar imports so that it can be used for consideration and input for you, Mr. Minister in making policies and we hope that you, Mr. Minister can provide protection to us sugarcane farmers, and we express our gratitude. (dtf)
http://www.medanbisnisdaily.com/news/read/2016/05/26/236273/petani-tebu-surati-4menteri-jokowi-tolak-impor-gula-oleh-bumn/#.V0a60yFna1u

Sawit Sumbermas (SSMS) Build Rp120 Billion CPO Factory

25

May

Sawit Sumbermas (SSMS) Build Rp120 Billion CPO Factory

Director of Sawit Sumbermas Rimbun Situmorang said that the funds for the construction of the factory will be allocated from internal cash. Total [...]

Sawit Sumbermas (SSMS) Build Rp120 Billion CPO Factory. Director of Sawit Sumbermas Rimbun Situmorang said that the funds for the construction of the factory will be allocated from internal cash. Total capital expenditure (Capex) this year reaches Rp500 billion.
`We will build a palm oil factory with a capacity of 60 tons per hour. The investment is around Rp115 billion-Rp120 billion,` he said after a public presentation, Wednesday (25/5/2016).
He added, the construction of the palm oil mill will be carried out at the palm oil plantation that was recently acquired last year. At the end of last year, the company executed the acquisition of two palm oil companies in a transaction worth US$50 million.
One was the acquisition of PT Mirza Pratama Putra (MPP) worth US$15 million and PT Menteng Kencana Mas (MKM) worth US$35 million. Both companies are located in Central Kalimantan, not far from the current plantation owned by the company.
The palm oil mill construction is expected to be completed in late 2017 or around 18-20 months. At the end of 2017, the company's palm oil mills will amount to seven units with a capacity of 435 tons per hour.

Editor : Bunga Citra Arum Nursyifani
http://market.bisnis.com/read/20160525/192/551225/sawit-sumbermas-ssms-bangun-pabrik-cpo-rp120-miliar

Malaysia's 1MDB Scandal: Singapore Authorities Order Closure of BSI Bank

25

May

Malaysia's 1MDB Scandal: Singapore Authorities Order Closure of BSI Bank

The Monetary Authority of Singapore said it has withdrawn the merchant bank license of Swiss-based BSI Bank and ordered it to shut down its [...]

Malaysia's 1MDB Scandal: Singapore Authorities Order Closure of BSI Bank. The Monetary Authority of Singapore said it has withdrawn the merchant bank license of Swiss-based BSI Bank and ordered it to shut down its operations for serious breaches of anti-money laundering requirements and other lapses.
In a statement the MAS said it had referred six current and former members of BSI’s senior management and staff to the public prosecutor to assess if criminal charges were warranted.
 “This is the first time that MAS has withdrawn the approval for a merchant bank since Jardine Fleming (Singapore) Pte Ltd in 1984, following serious lapses,” the MAS said, according to Reuters, Tuesday (05/24/2016).
Investigations in Switzerland and Singapore into 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) have focused on alleged fraud and misappropriation of funds from the state investment company, which critics say were used to benefit politically connected individuals, and possible money laundering.
The 1MDB investigations have shone an unwelcome spotlight on Singapore, which has been trying to clean up its image on anti-money laundering issues.
 “The BSI case represents the most serious case of control failures and breaches of AML (anti-money laundering) requirements that has come to the attention of the Singapore financial sector,” Ravi Menon, the MAS’s managing director, told reporters, according to Reuters, Tuesday (05/24/2016).
In a statement, BSI said its Chief Executive Stefano Coduri would step down. The MAS said it had ordered the bank to take steps to strengthen its management, including bringing in a new head of risk and appointing a new compliance officer.
Swiss authorities said in February that a criminal investigation into 1MDB had uncovered misappropriation of about $4 billion from the Malaysian fund.

Source : Reuters  Editor : Saenohttp://kabar24.bisnis.com/read/20160524/19/550839/1mdb-scandal-singapore-orders-bsi-bank-to-close

24

May

Sugar speculators are making a move

"From our several findings in the field, it is obvious that there is a link between these maneuvers. Sugar speculators are uncomfortable if the [...]

Sugar speculators are making a move. `From our several findings in the field, it is obvious that there is a link between these maneuvers. Sugar speculators are uncomfortable if the government has policies that favor farmers,` the Chairman of the Indonesian Sugarcane Farmers Association (APTRI) Abdul Wachid told the press in Jakarta, Monday (23/5).He said that earlier last week, farmers in Jombang were motivated into voicing threats to boycott the State-Owned Sugar Factories (PG), while in Surabaya traders tried to ride on the farmers by posing as farmer groups for the marketing of sugar in 2016.According to information circulating amongst journalists, sugar traders from various cities have gathered in a discussion event held by Soemitro Samadikun, the Yogyakarta version of APTRI which has been abandoned by sugarcane farmers.In the discussion version of APTRI by Soemitro which was held in Grha Kebon Agung Surabaya, Piko, a large sugar trader, was specifically asked to speak about `Sugar Marketing Strategy 2016.` `This is a strange but real thing, an organization that calls itself farmers seems to be steered by sugar traders, and what else can you call it besides a puppet APTR,` said Wachid.He confirmed that since the APTRI Congress in Yogyakarta in late 2015, Soemitro's group should no longer claim to represent sugarcane farmers because they have been voted no confidence.According to Wachid, the ideal attitude for a farmer's organization is neutrality and to avoid bias towards the interests of others, especially those who have opposing attitudes.If there are policies such as the Farmer Card and government policies that guarantee the certainty of producing yields and purchasing farmers' sugar, then these policies must be supported.`More than 60 percent of farmers' sugar is still yielding below 8.5 percent, so if there is a guarantee from the government that sugar will be purchased with an 8.5 percent yield by the State-Owned PG, then of course that policy must be supported,` said the Chairman of APTRI who is also the Deputy Chairman of the DPR RI Sugar Special Committee.On the other hand, sugarcane farmers themselves believe that the sugar traders' maneuvers will only further expose their true identity as people who simply want to profit from their business through sugar price speculation. `We as farmers appreciate the objectives of the State-Owned Enterprise Minister's various pioneering policies, including those regarding yield and price guarantees. This policy is positive for farmers, but for speculators it is naturally a blow,` said the Chairman of APTRI PTPN X H Mubin.According to Mubin, with the anxiety of traders who speculate on prices, they are adjusting their marketing strategies. Furthermore, they are involved behind the emergence of threats to boycott under the name of sugarcane farmers to PTPN X.`Early last week, there was a party that claimed to represent farmers in Jombang by stating that they would boycott by not sending sugarcane to PTPN X. Then where will they send it? What is their motive? Let's not consider the public to be ignorant about the fact that agents and puppet traders are playing around with puppet organizations,` he said.He stated that the boycott threat is pure fabrication because the majority of farmers in Jombang in particular and in East Java in general still hold loyalty and the rationality that their sugarcane will still be milled at the PG owned by PTPN X which is one of the largest sugar State-Owned Enterprises in Indonesia. `If sugarcane is not milled, wouldn't the farmers suffer a loss? Then if farmers suffer losses, who will be the one to pay for them? We farmers are not stupid. There must be some individuals who are playing by voicing the interests of traders and speculators,` said Mubin.He added that currently the number of sugarcane shipments coming into the sugar factory is relatively high, as shown by the long queue of sugarcane transport trucks stretching for 3 km both at PG Gempolkrep, PG Ngadiredjo and PG Pesantren Baru. `This long queue is proof that the farmers are ignoring the scenario of the individuals claiming to represent the farmers to carry out a boycott, and these are the true facts,` said Mubin while adding that the farmers have carried out logging and that they will continue to send sugarcane according to the schedule to the sugar factory.Pertaining to the guarantee of minimal income for farmers equal to an 8.5 percent yield, the farmers have welcomed it with delight because they can now achieve greater income than before. (ant)
http://www.medanbisnisdaily.com/news/read/2016/05/24/235632/spekulan-gula-bermanuver/#.V0QfQyFna1s

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