Mohammad Afdal Bahaudin has revealed a series of losses worth trillions of rupiah. The Pertamina director of investment planning and risk management said the state oil and gas company was not breaking even in its programs of distributing subsidized fuel and non-subsidized gas.

The meeting took place at the Novotel Pangkalpinang Hotel on Bangka Island. Organized by the Trade Ministry, it brought together around 60 participants representing a variety of business interests. These included tin exporters, the Indonesia Commodity and Derivatives Exchange (ICDX), customs officials and executives from state-run contractor Surveyor Indonesia. At first the atmosphere was cordial. Then, in the question-and-answer session, things heated up.

After three days of long lines at gas stations, Vice President Boediono called a meeting to discuss the subsidized fuel crisis. In attendance were National Police Chief General Sutarman, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Jero Wacik and his deputy, Susilo Siswoutomo. Also present were commissioners from the Downstream Oil and Gas Regulatory Agency (BPH Migas) and directors from state oil and gas company Pertamina. "The vice president asked for reports from the relevant officials," Suhartoko, a Pertamina director, told Tempo.

There is no better testament to a successful business environment than a company continuing to reinvest in an area it has been operating for 40 years. Convinced that Indonesia is a growing market in the manufacturing industry, Sandvik Coromant, a Swedish metalworks supplier, recently invested over US$1 million on new facilities in Cilandak, South Jakarta, which includes a training center, "We really believe in the growth of Indonesia's market," said Klas Forsstrm, 47, Sandvik Coromant's global president.

Small advertising booths display packs of A Mild Limited Edition cigarettes at 7-Eleven outlets around Jakarta. These days, Sampoerna, the A Mild manufacturer, offers them in a little tin rather than the usual cardboard box. The tin is plain, free of pictures of oral cancer, blackened lungs or that ubiquitous shirtless man puffing smoke before a pair of floating skulls. "Many customers are looking for the cigarettes in the tin, but we are out of stock," Herdiansyah, an employee at a 7-Eleven outlet in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta, said last week.

A security guard stopped the black Pajero Sport Exceed SUV right before it entered the Pertamina gas station on Jalan Abdul Muis in Central Jakarta and initiated a brief exchange. Upon hearing what the guard had to say, the SUV's driver turned around and sped away. This station did not sell subsidized diesel fuel. "It happens a lot," station employee Agung said last week.