Susilo's visit to Japan boosts investment by US$1.3 billion

Susilo's visit to Japan boosts investment by US$1.3 billion

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's visit to Japan from May 31 to June 3 has attracted investment commitments from Japanese businessmen of US$1.3 billion, Japanese Ambassador to Indonesia Yutaka Iimura said on Thursday.

The new projects from these investments were predicted to be able to provide up to 2,900 job opportunities, Yutaka said.

"We don't know many more details, but they (the Japanese businessmen) have reported to us about their investment plans... The plans were concluded after the visit of President Yudhoyono to Japan," Iimura said.

The companies intending to invest in Indonesia after the visit include Daihatsu with a total investment commitment of $1.1 billion, followed by Honda with $100 million, Yamaha $67 million, Toyota $40 million and Nissan $40 million.

The new commitments show Japan's intention to continue increasing its investment in Indonesia, Iimura said.

Japan's investment commitments tumbled to only $818 million and $519 million in 2001 and 2002, respectively, from $1.81 billion in 2000, the Japanese embassy's data shows.

"Since that time, the Japanese investments in Indonesia have continued increasing, and we will try to maintain such a rising trend," Iimura said. -- Antara