Kuala Lumpur (ANTARA/Bernama) -- Malaysia should not be alone in battling the anti-palm oil smear campaign, mounted by European activists and non-government organisations (NGOs), former Malaysian prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad said Tuesday. "Indonesia is also a leading oil palm producer. If both countries can join forces and speak out in one voice, it will be more effective," he said in his keynote address at the Malaysia-Indonesia Economic Seminar 2009.

From the APB website: APB Purchases Breweries in Indonesia and New Caledonia It sells its two breweries in India * Extends regional footprint to Indonesia and New Caledonia * Adds leading beer brands, Bintang and Number One, to its portfolio Today, Asia Pacific Breweries Limited (APB) entered into agreements with Heineken International B.V. and Heineken Brouwerijen B.V.

BBC News Jakarta Ask James Sunda about corruption in Indonesia and he will tell you a story that will make you laugh out loud. The 50-year-old musician had a simple problem - he lost his driving licence last year, so he went to his local police office thinking his details must be on file and getting a replacement would be easy Instead, he was told he would have to get a new licence. "The police told me it would be a quick and painless procedure," he said.

Ministers will meet on Friday to discuss a proposal to renegotiate the Asean-China Free-Trade Agreement, which will reduce thousands of trade tariffs to zero and make it hard for some Indonesian manufacturers to compete with cheaper Chinese imports. Minister of Industry MS Hidayat said the government will ask Asean to give Indonesia “special status” and could begin renegotiating the FTA as early as next year.

Tuesday, 08 December, 2009 | 17:13 WIB TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta:The government is expecting domestic investment for the next five years to be 10 times the value of the 2009 target, valued at US$ 20-30 billion. However, to boost the investment, the government must complete a number of tasks, including revising land release regulations for public projects, such as toll roads, airports, seaports and railways. This year, the target for domestic investments is US$ 3 billion.

does this mean that Bintang will start tasting more like Heineken?

Jakarta (ANTARA News/Asia Pulse) - Asia Pacific Breweries Limited has signed a deal to acquire 68.5 per cent of Indonesian brewer PT Multi Bintang Indonesia (JSX:MLBI) at a price of Rp2.23 trillion (US$240 million). Chief Executive of Asia Pacific Roland Firmez said he signed the sales and purchase agreement yesterday with Heineken International BV, which owned 75 per cent of Multi Bintang.