Around Indonesia in 180 Days would be a suitable title for the latest foreign investor soap opera to emerge from south-east Asia’s largest economy. That is how long international arbitrators have given Newmont Mining of the US and Sumitomo of Japan to divest 17 per cent of a subsidiary that owns a major gold mine on the remote island of Sumbawa. After years of largely ignoring Indonesia, global miners are considering it again since a new mining law was passed in December.

A senior official at the Ministry of Agriculture says new regulations have been drafted to open Indonesia’s market to beef imports from countries with foot-and-mouth disease. To date, such imports have been prohibited, leaving Indonesia reliant on beef from Australia and New Zealand to make up for domestic production shortfalls.

The government says it will temporarily exempt exporters that are already bound by contractual obligations from the unpopular requirement to obtain letters of credit from local banks, which came into force on Wednesday. Speaking on Wednesday, the Trade Ministry’s director general of foreign trade, Diah Maulida, said that mining firms and crude palm oil exporters that satisfied the requirements would now be given up to August 31 to comply with the new rules.

The decision by an international arbitration unit based in Jakarta to order the US-based Newmont Mining Corp. to divest its holdings in the copper and gold-rich PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara mine is being watched closely by mining interests both domestically and internationally, because of allegations the politically powerful family of Aburizal Bakrie is involved.

The nation’s exports continued to fall in February, off by nearly 33 percent year-on-year and 1.02 percent month-on-month to $7.08 billion, the Central Statistics Agency, or BPS, announced on Wednesday. Analysts said the trade picture would likely deteriorate further as the global economy weakens. Demand fell in most major export destinations. It was the lowest since November 2005 and off from $10.52 billion in February 2008.

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - International arbitrators have ruled in favour of Indonesia in a dispute with US giant Newmont Mining Corporation over the mandatory divestiture of shares, the mining minister said Wednesday. Arbitrators have ruled that Newmont has 180 days from Tuesday to sell 17 percent of local unit PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara (PTNNT) or be found in default of its contract, Purnomo Yusgiantoro was quoted as saying by AFP from Dow Jones Newswires.