|
(Continued from page 3)
puted the proposal. Under the restructuring plan, Chandra Asri will pay the $700 million owed to a Marubeni-led consortium over 15 years with interest pegged at 1.5 percentage points above the one-year U.S. dollar London interbank offered rate, or Libor. The Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency on behalf of the government, will remain a creditor for $50 million of the debt. It remains unclear whether Marubeni will still take a 20% stake in Chandra Asri as agreed in the June deal. Dow Jones May 2
vvvvvvvvvvvvvv
 | Economic Affairs
|
ISSA protests government regulation on shipping
JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Shipping Agencies Association (ISAA) has called on the government to annul a controversial regulation that requires every agency of a foreign shipping company in the country to own, at the minimum, a 5,000-ton Indonesian-flagged vessel.
"More than 1,300 local agencies of foreign shipping companies will certainly go bankrupt and more than 65,000 employees will face mass dismissal if the government goes ahead with its plan to enforce the regulation from Oct. 5, 2001," Capt. Anthon Sihombing told a press conference here on Monday.
He accused domestic shipping companies of being behind the controversial 1999 regulation as part of their efforts to create a monopoly in the industry.
"Only state-owned PT Pelni and Djakarta Lloyd own 5,000-ton vessels. These two ship owners are trying to set up a monopoly, which is against the law," he asserted. The Jakarta Post April 17, 2001
Decentralization hurts business activities: Kadin
JAKARTA (JP): The government's step toward financial decentralization has encouraged regional administrations to use their enhanced power to generate revenues rather than creating a conducive environment for business activity, according to the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin).
Soy M. Pardede, the Chamber's senior executive, said here on Wednesday that the regional government's hunger for cash was unhealthy for business activity.
He acknowledged that the regional administrations needed more sources of revenue to finance their budget, but warned that the overzealous actions aimed at imposing local taxes would backfire on them.
"The autonomy should not only be used to raise revenue, but more importantly it should be used to stimulate overall business activity," he told The Jakarta Post on the sidelines of the chamber's dialog with the government.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
| Consumer News
|
Car Sales up
JAKARTA -- Indonesia's car sales rose 8.8% in March to 24,843 units from 22,824 units in February, car maker association Gaikindo said Wednesday.
Leading automaker PT Astra International (P.ASI) saw car sales in March drop 10% to 9,227 units from 10,248 in February.
Astra's sales comprised around 40% of Indonesia's total car sales.
Overall exports rose to 3,571 units from 3,474 in February, with sales again dominated by Astra, which exported 3,560 units in March.
The upturn in domestic sales supports government forecasts of continued economic growth in 2001 based on stronger consumer spending. (Dow Jones Newswires April 18, 2001)
INFLATION UP
Inflation averaged 9.3% during the first quarter of 2001 according to figures published by Bank Indonesia. The March rate was up to 10.62%.
vvvvvvvvvvvvvvv
(Continued on page 5)
| 
