Salim to float Indomobil soon, BCA next year<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The giant Salim Group plans to float its
\nautomotive arm PT Indomobil on local stock markets this year and
\nPT Bank Central Asia (BCA) next year.<\/p>\n
The group's executive Benny S. Santoso told journalists at the
\nsidelines of a capital market conference here yesterday that the
\ngroup was also preparing other companies, especially those in
\nplantations and distribution, to enter local stock exchanges.<\/p>\n
\"We will continue to prepare our companies. As we planned, we
\nexpect Indomobil will enter the market this year. Next year will
\nbe BCA,\" Benny said.<\/p>\n
Indomobil is the country's third largest auto producer after
\npublicly listed PT Astra International and PT Krama Yudha Tiga
\nBerlian. Last year, it sold 60,000 vehicles, a drop from 70,000
\nin 1995.<\/p>\n
But no financial statements on Indomobil were made available
\nto the public.<\/p>\n
Indomobil assembles various automobiles from Japan, South
\nKorea and Europe. They include vehicles under the brand names of
\nSuzuki, Mazda, Nissan, Ssangyong and Volvo. Currently it also
\nhelps produce the national Timor sedan. It will also assemble the
\nluxury Porshe car.<\/p>\n
BCA is the country's largest private bank in terms of assets.
\nIts assets totaled Rp 35.26 trillion (US$12.15 billion) at the
\nend of last year, an increase from Rp 25.94 trillion in 1995.<\/p>\n
BCA posted a net profit of Rp 168.9 billion in 1996, up from
\nRp 115.77 billion in 1995.<\/p>\n
Benny said the Salim Group would continue to increase
\nshareholders value of the group's publicly listed firms to
\nmaintain minority shareholders' confidence in the group.<\/p>\n
\"We always pay attention to the interests of minority
\nshareholders so they are happy investing in our companies,\" Benny
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
\"We must satisfy our minority investors. So, if any of our
\ncompanies don't perform so good, we will improve to make minority
\nshareholders happy. Otherwise, we will be abandoned,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Benny said the planned controversial restructuring in the
\ngroup's cement firm PT Indocement Tunggal Prakarsa and foodstuff
\nfirm PT Indofood Sukses Makmur also aimed to improve the
\nshareholders value.<\/p>\n
Indocement has proposed a spin-off and sale of its 50.1
\npercent share in Indofood to QAF, a tiny foodstuff company listed
\nin Singapore, which is also 70 percent controlled by the group.<\/p>\n
Under the proposed spin-off, Indocement would give most of its
\nIndofood shares to the existing shareholders as a special
\ndividend and sell the remaining shares to the Sampoerna family,
\nwhich currently has a 5.63 percent stake in the food giant.<\/p>\n
QAF would then buy Salim Group's 45 percent stake in Indofood
\nthrough three locally incorporated firms, in addition to the 5.6
\npercent Indofood stake it would directly buy from the Sampoerna
\nfamily.<\/p>\n
This will allow the Singaporean company to have a 50.1 percent
\nstake in Indofood. QAF will issue right shares and seek loans to
\nfund the acquisition.<\/p>\n
Benny, who is also an Indocement executive director, said the
\nspin-off aimed to improve Indocement's performance in stock
\nmarkets and shareholders value.<\/p>\n
So far, Indocement shares performed below par, compared with
\nother listed cement companies -- state-owned PT Semen Gresik and
\nPT Semen Cibinong.<\/p>\n
The price earning ratio of Indocement's cement business was
\nonly 6.5 times, compared to the ratio of Semen Gresik and Semen
\nCibinong which could reach between 10 and 15 times.<\/p>\n
\"We are confident after restructuring Indocement that it will
\nperform better in stock markets because so far our margin is
\nbetter than our competitors,\" Benny said.<\/p>\n
But the planned restructuring must be approved by minority
\nshareholders before Indocement goes ahead with the plan. The
\nshareholders will decide this at a special shareholders meeting
\nscheduled for Aug. 21.<\/p>\n
\"I don't see any reason for minority shareholders not to
\napprove our plan because what we do is for their sake. So we are
\nconfident they will approve our plan,\" he said. He was also
\nconfident QAF's minority shareholders would approve the plan
\nbecause QAF would not stop buying Indofood but would expand its
\nfood business across Asia.<\/p>\n
\"We will make QAF an Asian food maker with Indofood as its
\nbasis... There must be an interesting story ahead. If not, they
\nwill not buy QAF's planned rights issues,\" Benny said. (rid)<\/p>",
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