'Raket' sports tabloid suspends publication

JAKARTA (JP): Raket sports tabloid has suspended publication for at least six months due to the escalating price of newsprint, chief editor Sumohadi Marsis said yesterday.

He said the newsprint price, charged in American dollars, had created a heavy financial burden for the weekly.

"When the situation improves, we will be back in business as usual," he told The Jakarta Post, adding the decision followed an executive meeting last week.

Raket, which specialized in covering racket sports of tennis, badminton and squash, follows five North Sumatran-based weeklies -- Demi Masa, Dobrak, Bintang Sport Film, Taruna Baru and Persada -- which stopped publication earlier this month.

The rupiah's free-fall against the U.S. dollar has caused the newsprint price to rise nearly five times since December last year, and about 200 publications face the prospect of bankruptcy.

Marsis said 10 employees, including seven journalists, had been laid off as a result of the halt in publication.

"We are considering a better settlement than a golden handshake," he said.

Raket, launched as a bimonthly magazine and sister publication of sports tabloid Bola in July 1995, registered a drastic decrease in circulation -- from a record 100,000 -- when it switched to tabloid format in July last year.

Last month, its circulation was 45,000.

The tabloid is part of the country's largest publication company, Gramedia Group, which also publishes leading daily Kompas. (09)