Tempo plans to buy Indofarma unit

Tempo plans to buy Indofarma unit

JAKARTA: Publicly listed pharmaceutical company PT Tempo Scan
Pacific said on Friday that it planned to acquire a 51 percent
stake in PT Indofarma Global Medika (IGM), a unit of troubled
state-controlled pharmaceutical firm PT Indofarma.

In a statement to the Jakarta Stock Exchange (JSX), Tempo Scan
said that it was currently in talks with Indofarma over the plan.
However, thus far, no binding agreement has been signed between
the two companies.

Tempo Scan is known as the producer of Bodrex and Bodrexin
tablets for headache, and food supplement Hemaviton.

Indofarma plans to sell IGM to help increase its operational
efficiency after the company booked a widening loss in its 2003
operation. Indofarma recorded an audited loss of Rp 130 billion
(US$15.2 million), up from Rp 60 billion in 2002.

Its sales also plunged to Rp 498 billion from Rp 687 billion.

IGM engages in drug distribution businesses and health
equipment supplying activities. -- JP

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Brief-acquisition-Buana
UOB to complete buying Buana stakes in May
JP/14/

UOB to complete buying Buana in May

JAKARTA: United Overseas Bank Ltd. (UOB), Singapore's second
largest bank, may complete its plan to buy a 23 percent stake in
Bank Buana, Indonesia's 11th largest bank in terms of assets, in
May after conducting a due diligence on the bank.

Buana director Pardi Kendy said that UOB was currently in the
process of auditing the bank before wrapping up the purchase
agreement.

"We hope that the purchase can be concluded next month," said
Pardi after attending the bank's general shareholders meeting on
Friday.

UOB earlier said that it had allocated around Rp 774 billion
(US$91 million) to buy the shares from PT Sari Dasa Karsa, a
holding company which owns 62 percent of Buana.

As of December last year, Buana has total assets of Rp 14.3
trillion and a net income of Rp 222 billion. The return on equity
and on assets stood at 17.0 percent and 2.3 percent,
respectively.

In the aftermath of the financial crisis of 1997, out of the
15 largest banks in Indonesia, only a few banks managed to
survive without a government bailout and Bank Buana is one of
them. -- JP

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Brief-Inco-profit
Inco profit surges almost 500%
JP/14/

Inco profit surges almost 500%

JAKARTA: PT International Nickel Indonesia (Inco), a local
unit of the world's second-largest nickel producer, Inco Ltd.,
said its first-quarter profit skyrocketed by almost 500 percent
on higher nickel demand and prices.

In a media statement on Thursday, Inco said that profit in the
first quarter jumped to US$73.4 million from $15 million in the
same period last year.

"The strong rise in nickel prices enhanced earnings as Inco's
average realized price in the first quarter rose 87 percent from
the same period in 2003 and 35 percent from the fourth quarter of
2003," said Inco chief executive officer Bing R. Tobing.

The company has benefited from a high nickel demand from China
and the United States, amid a limited supply of the product on
the market. Global demand this year is estimated to reach around
1.34 million metric tons, while the available supply is only
about 75,000 metric tons.

Inco shares on the Jakarta Stock Exchange surged by Rp 1,100
to Rp 36,700 on Friday's trading. -- JP

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Brief-Antam-shares
Antam cancels right issue plan
JP/14/brief

Antam cancels rights issue plan

JAKARTA: State-controlled mining company PT Aneka Tambang
(Antam) announced on Friday that it would cancel its plan to
issue new shares via a rights issue in May, after failing to
complete the necessary requirements for the plan.

In its report to the Jakarta Stock Exchange, Antam said it
would need more time to complete the necessary procedures needed
for the rights issue. Antam did not provide any detail on the new
schedule for the issue.

Antam had previously planned to issue new shares worth around
US$31 million to the public, on the tail of the government's plan
to sell 14 percent of its shares in the company through the stock
market in the second semester of this year.

The government currently holds 65 percent of the company's
shares, with the remaining 35 percent owned by the public. -- JP.