Merrill buys 10% in KIA

JAKARTA (JP): Merrill Lynch and Co. of the U.S. has acquired a 10 percent stake in the publicly listed PT Keramika Indonesia Assosiasi (KIA), the ceramic subsidiary of the Ongko Group.

PT Ongko Multicorpora announced yesterday that the 10 percent stake represented 8.49 million shares. It did not disclose the transaction value of the shares.

"We're very optimistic about Merrill Lynch's investment in KIA. This is its first acquisition in Southeast Asia," said Imanto Ongko, president of PT Multicorpora.

The New York-based Merrill Lynch, which claims to be a global leader in investment banking, capital raising, securities brokerage and asset management, is the first U.S. securities firm to have a full-service Indonesian brokerage firm, PT Merrill Lynch Indonesia, in Indonesia.

KIA -- a major manufacturer and distributor of ceramic wall tiles which is listed on the Jakarta and Surabaya stock exchanges -- is also the sole distributor in Indonesia for PT Indo American Ceramics.

Indo American Ceramics is a joint venture between PT Ongko Multicorpora and American Standard Ltd., which is a leading producer of ceramic bathroom fixtures. (bnt)