Under President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s watch, the total capital expenditure of state firms reached Rp 128 trillion, nearly a 400 percent increase compared to the previous government leadership, and is expected to continue growing. “State enterprises have played an important role in the national economy in the last five years. They no longer burden the government as they used to.

There are at least three reasons why the structure of the national oil industry today requires reform by improving or substituting the 2001 Law on Oil and Gas. First, the application of this oil and gas law has proven to be highly unprofitable for the state. The sale of the LNG-Tangguh gas field at a very low price and the low production of crude oil are inseparable from the system developed under the law.

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) has asked the government to postpone the signing of a free trade agreement (FTA) with Australia until domestic industries were in a stronger bargaining position.

The Riau branch of the Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) has demanded the Batam administration remove a regulation limiting the number of newcomers claiming it will restrict the number of qualified workers needed on the island. Abidin, head of Riau’s Apindo branch, said Thursday that his office was demanding the administration remove the 2001 regulation that may slow investment growth in the area. “Recently, businessmen are in dire need of up to 36,000 skilled workers.

Fruit growers say they are opposed to the Agriculture Ministry’s plan to introduce new rules next month to control the quality of fresh agricultural produce, arguing the move is unrealistic given current conditions in Indonesia’s agribusiness sector. The Good Agriculture Practices are based on guidelines issued by the Food and Agriculture Organization, an agency of the United Nations, and apply to on-farm production and subsequent processing.