Aditya Suharmoko, The Jakarta Post, Semarang The government on Monday expanded its National Single Window (NSW) scheme, an online service for importers to register for permits, to include Tanjung Emas port in Semarang, Central Java. The scheme, which was first introduced last December at Jakarta's Tanjung Priok Port, is designed to reduce the time for importers to be cleared to receive goods to a maximum of 7.5 hours. Before the scheme, importers had to wait several days to receive clearance.

Three cellular phone manufacturers, possibly including world leader Nokia, are constructing plants in Indonesia to take advantage of the rapidly growing industry, an association and a ministry official say. Many of the plants are scheduled to begin operating before the end of this year. Each firm has set aside roughly US$100 million in investment, said Eko Nilam, head of the Indonesian Cellular Phone Importers Association, on Monday.

Tuesday, 12 August, 2008 | 14:41 WIB TEMPO Interactive, Bandung: The Government has allocated Rp19 trillion from the state budget for developing Indonesian railways within the next three years. “This is a challenge for the Directorate General of Railways,” said State Minister for State Enterprises Sofyan Djalil in Bandung yesterday (11/8). He said the fund allocation shows the government serious in improving the national railways.

Tuesday, 12 August, 2008 | 15:00 WIB TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: Trade between China and Indonesia during the first half of 2008 amounted to a total US$15 billion. Deputy Director for the Shanghai Foreign Economic Relations and Trade Commission Wang Qing Jiang said that trade was growing fast as this year it has already surpassed the trade target of US$20 billion. He said that trade had increased by 31 percent in 2007 and reached US$25 billion, compared to the growth in 2006.

Tuesday, 12 August, 2008 | 14:43 WIB TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: Business electricity customers (offices, hotels, and shopping centers) are waiting for the new electricity tariff structure from the Government. Minister of Trade Mari Elka Pangestu said that discussions were still going on between shopping centers administrators and the State Electricity Company (PLN). “We have not yet decided anything,” she said yesterday (11/8).

Vincent Lingga, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Although tourist arrivals in Indonesia increased by a respectable rate of almost 12 percent in the first half of the year to 2.9 million, that record is still far from the target of 7 million visitors set for the Visit Indonesia 2008 campaign. The performance is even poorer compared with our neighbors: Singapore last year welcomed 10.3 million tourists, Thailand 14.5 million and Malaysia nearly 21 million.

Monday, 11 August, 2008 | 18:01 WIB TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta:Deputy-Coordinating minister for the economy, Bayu Krisnamurthi, explained that the collaboration will not be in the form of a cartel or a monopoly. “Malaysia and we have common interests,’ he said in Jakarta last week. According to Bayu, the collaboration was brought on by the huge palm oil harvests in the two countries, reaching 85 percent of the world’s production.

Monday, 11 August, 2008 | 18:15 WIB TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta:Lee said Singapore and Indonesia have collaborated well in Batam, Bintan and Karimun, islands grouped under the Riau Archipelago. “Certainty on Batam’s status will motivate Singaporean businesspeople to increase investment there,” he said.