Australian firm may invest in Bogasari

Australian firm may invest in Bogasari

MELBOURNE (Bloomberg): AWB Ltd., the monopoly exporter of
Australian wheat, is interested in investing in PT Bogasari Flour
Mills, Indonesia's largest flour miller, Chairman Trevor Flugge
said.

"It is of some interest," Flugge said of the chance to invest
in Bogasari, which is majority owned by PT Indofood Sukses
Makmur.

"We've had discussions" about taking a stake in Bogasari, he
said, but no action has been taken. Flugge added that he was
still not certain what if any parts of Bogasari are for sale, or
what type of investment AWB might make there.

Indonesia is the second largest customer for Australia wheat
after Iran. In the year ending Sept. 30, 1997, Indonesia bought
almost 2.4 million metric tons of wheat.

AWB Ltd., formerly known as the Australian Wheat Board,
already has joint venture stakes in flour mills in Egypt and
Vietnam, which serve as important "listening posts" for those
markets, Flugge said.

Trade with Indonesia, which almost came to a halt earlier this
year as the Indonesian rupiah plunged to an all-time low when the
country sank into economic and political chaos, is slowly
returning to normal, Flugge said.

"There is a commercial trade still going on in Indonesia," he
said. "That commercial trade, we believe, will probably return to
normal within a relatively short time. That might be 12
months ... there's certainly even indications now that it could
be even soon than that."