From: The Jakarta Globe By Francezka Nangoy Amid a bumper day of positive economic news for the country, the Investment Coordinating Board announced that foreign direct investment in Indonesia rose 11.6 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier. News of the increase from the board, also known as the BKPM, complemented a standout day on the Jakarta Composite Index. The JCI rose 62.11 points, or 1.7 percent, to a record close of 3,794.76.

TEMPO Interactive, Yogyakarta:The number of foreign tourists in Yogyakarta still depends on Indonesia’s main tourism destinations, such as Bali. That is the reason the Yogyakarta government has tried to improve their tourism industry through a world travel fair or “Travelmart”, from May 6 to 8. The Head of Yogyakarta Tourism Office, Tazbir, said that Yogyakarta is not as popular as Bali internationally.

TEMPO Interactive,Slawi:Tegal’s traditional broom exports to Japan have doubled to meet demand from the disaster-stricken country. “We are sending four containers per month to Japan,” Ismi Juliani, broom company CV Kembar Bina Usaha’s Production head, told Tempo yesterday. Each container contains 9,000 brooms. Besides Japan, Tegal’s traditional brooms made of sorgum plant are also exported to Thailand and the US.

TEMPO Interactive, Kulon Progo:The Kulon Progo government is ready to welcome potential Spanish investors, some of whom plan to make a return visit in early July. Kulon Progo regional secretary, Budi Wibowo, said that to accelerate Kulon Porgo economic development, the government will prioritize the first interested parties. A number of investors in the past, especially regarding the coastal megaproject, were seen not to be serious.

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Indonesia`s oil production can be boosted by reactivating the many old but still productive oil wells it has inherited from the Dutch but have been neglected so far, an observer said. "Out of the 13,824 existing old oil wells in Indonesia, only 745 have so far been reopened while the rest remains neglected," Sayogo Heru Prayitno, an oil and gas affairs observer at the Yogyakarta-based National Veterans` Development University (UPN), said here Wednesday.

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Indonesian Young Entrepreneurs Association (HIPMI) hopes China will balance its huge volume of trade with Indonesia with more investments in priority sectors. "We hope they will bring in more investments to Indonesia especially for infrastructure as they have the capacity for it," HIPMI general chairman Erwin Aksa said when explaining about the meeting between young entrepreneurs of ASEAN and China here on Wednesday.