Aditya Suharmoko, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta The government and the House of Representatives last week finalized an amendment to the income tax law, which, when enacted next month, will cut taxes and offer incentives to businesses. Income tax for businesses will be set at 28 percent next year, replacing the current progressive system, and will be further reduced to 25 percent at the start of 2010.

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Samsung Group, South Korea's largest company, plans to develop a 25,000-hectare oil palm plantation and a biodiesel refinery in Riau province with an investment of up to Rp 15 trillion (US$1.63 billion). Head of the national team for biofuel development Al Hilal Hamdi said Monday the company had spent Rp 1.5 trillion on acquiring the land and the factory. "They bought the land recently and that was their first investment.

Aditya Suharmoko, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta In a bid to amend the country's drastic ratio of registered tax payers to eligible tax payers, the tax office will impose fines and prison sentences upon those who fail to apply for tax identification numbers (NPWP) by the end of the year. Under its so called sunset policy, the Directorate General of Taxation requires that eligible taxpayers apply for NPWPs by Dec. 31, 2008.

The central government has recommended the cancellation of about 2,000 regional bylaws on tax and retribution, in an attempt to simplify the management of local economy and to create a conducive investment climate, says the finance minister. These bylaws are about 28 percent of a total of 7,200 bylaws evaluated by Finance Ministry until mid July.

Indonesia's tea exports may increase 8 percent this year on the back of stronger demand, an industry player says. The national tea council chairman Abdul Halik said Tuesday tea shipments this year may increase to 102,600 tons of green and black tea from 95,000 tons shipped out last year. "International demand for our tea will likely increase as demand for tea from Kenya and Srilanka -- the world's largest tea exporters -- is predicted to decrease this year," he said.

Which local governments govern best? That is the central question addressed by the Local Economic Governance report launched Tuesday by KPPOD (Regional Autonomy Watch) and The Asia Foundation. The report ranks 243 districts across Indonesia on the quality of their local economic governance based on a survey of over 12,000 businesses in 15 provinces, one of the largest surveys of its kind in the world.

Paris (ANTARA News) - Indonesia needs to improve the business environment and make better use of labour inputs to put the economy on a higher growth trajectory, the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said. In its economic assessment of the country, the OECD said raising Indonesia's growth potential and sustaining it over the longer term is the nation's foremost policy challenge, as the current level of growth is insufficient to reduce poverty and unemployment.

Jakarta, (ANTARA News) - Indonesia`s non-oil/non-gas exports are expected to grow 8.98 percent this year, falling short of the target of 13.5 percent due to low demand in export destination countries such as the United States, Europe and Japan, an economist said. "We cannot expect too much from India and China because their imports from Indonesia mostly consist of raw materials to produce goods for exports to the US and Europe.

Jakarta, (ANTARA News) - The Union of Indonesian Rubber Companies (Gapkindo) is asking the government to ban foreign investment in the rubber processing industry in the country, a spokesman said. "There is no reason to allow foreign investment in the rubber processing industry because the required technology is not difficult and Indonesia already masters it," Gapkindo chairman Daud Husni Bastari said here on Thursday.