Irked by the customs service's long-tainted image as a hotbed of corruption and poor service, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati took herself down to the docks to see how things have improved -- or worsened, as the case may be.

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: The rank of ease in business in Indonesia has the chance to go up 41 places from the 123rd to 82nd in 2008. On the condition that the government repairs the mechanism for starting a business, ownership registration and obtaining credit. A team member of Doing Business 2008 of the World Bank and International Finance Corporation, Sylvia Solf, said that to raise the rank, first Indonesia must eliminate the requirement of minimum capital to found a business.

Batam-based electronics component maker PT Sat Nusapersada, fresh from its IPO, plans to build a new factory and acquire stakes in two other companies next year to expand its operations and meet the growing demand for its products. While the details remain sketchy, president director Abidin told reporters Thursday that the company would buy a stake in PT SM Engineering and the assets of PT Sat Nusapersada Brothers at a cost of Rp 23 billion (around US$2.5 million).

Rising construction costs resulting from the surge in oil prices will likely cause a delay in a number of large property projects in the country's major cities, particularly Jakarta, a property consultant says. PT Procon Indah chief executive officer Siswanto Widjaja said Thursday that the delays would affect most types of property developments, including office and condominium projects.

JAKARTA (JP): Hit by rising oil prices, many factory-gate prices will have to rise by up to 10 percent early next year unless the government can reduce its chronic red tape so as to bring down the cost ofdoing business, says an association. According to Sofyan Wanandi, chairman of the Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo), firms would be forced to increase prices as a result of increasing production and logistics costs.