"The President urged businesspeople to instead open up dialogues to solve workplace disputes. Yudhoyono said he was concerned about news reports of companies dismissing their employees. Every time massive layoffs occur, I cannot sleep, as many people gather outside the palace and a barrage of text messages floods my mobile phone to protest the dismissal," the President said." So is old SBY looking at this whole situation as a way to get a better nights sleep?

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono warned employers across the country Wednesday against resorting to layoffs whenever disagreement arose between them and their workers. The President urged businesspeople to instead open up dialogues to solve workplace disputes. "Employers and workers need each other," the President told members of the Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) upon opening the organization's congress at the State Palace.

Bandarlampung, Lampung (ANTARA News) - State-owned plantation company PT Perkebunan Nusantara (PTPN) VII has set itself the target of producing 174,500 tons of sugar this year. The sugar production would originate from the company`s two business units, namely Bungamayang in North Lampung and Cintamanis in North Sumatra, the company`s spokesman, Sonny Soediastanto, said here on Wednesday.

Tokyo (ANTARA News) - State-run oil and gas company PT Pertamina is currently negotiating the extension of its natural gas supply contracts with a number of gas companies in Japan, its chief, Ari Soemarno, said here Wednesday. "Pertamina`s vice president director is now in Osaka for the negotiations. We don`t know the results yet, maybe we will tomorrow," Soemarno said after signing an agreement to provide funds for the rehabilitation of an Indonesian school in Tokyo.

Singapore (ANTARA News) - Malayan Banking Bhd, the largest bank in Malaysia, said Wednesday it has agreed to buy a 56 percent stake in Bank Internasional Indonesia (BII) from Singapore's state-linked Temasek Holdings Ltd and South Korea's Kookmin Bank, for 4.8 billion ringgit or about 1.5 billion US dollars. The acquisition is part of Maybank's strategy to become a regional bank as it tries to catch up with the regional expansion of its Malaysian banking peers.

Beijing (ANTARA News) -Indonesia still have ample opportunities to export its furniture to China, trade attache at the Indonesian Embassy in Beijing, Imbang Listiyadi, said here on Wednesday. "Indonesia still has an opportunity to export its Furniture to China and therefore as a furniture producer, its products is still reckoned with in that country," Imbang Listiyadi said.

The President should issue a new decree slashing corporate tax if the House of Representatives refuses to pass the income tax bill, the chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) said Wednesday. "The corporate tax should be cut to allow us to be more competitive," MS Hidayat told reporters on the sidelines of the Indonesian Employers' Association (Apindo) national congress at the State Palace in Jakarta.

Aditya Suharmoko , The Jakarta Post While the global economic slowdown is not expected to greatly affect Asian economies, Indonesia's biggest challenge lays in subduing its inflation rate to protect public purchasing power, a discussion concluded Wednesday. "Indonesia's biggest challenge is probably in keeping inflation rate under control in light of increasing commodity prices," Singapore-based Citigroup economist, Moh Siong Sim, said on Wednesday.

The number of individuals and groups holding life insurance policies dropped 11 percent last year as people opted instead to pursue short-term profits and gain easier access to cash, an association said Wednesday. According to the Indonesian Life Insurance Association (AAJI), the number of policy holders declined to 28.38 million as of last December from 31.93 million in the same month in 2006.