January 26, 2016 edition
Friday two weeks ago was a busy day for Iswandi Said. As the head of the state-owned Hotel Indonesia Natour, he met with a number of people to discuss the company's business. One of them was the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK).
"I was summoned to their office to discuss audit results," said Iswandi in his office last Thursday. His entire team of directors and commissioners accompanied him to meet with BPK member Achsanul Qosasi and a team of auditors.
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More Economy articles in other editions
January 19, 2016 edition
Hari Sugiandhi must pay twice for cargo loading and unloading at Soekarno-Hatta Airport in Cengkareng. The owner of Rush Cargo Nusantara freight company first has to pay when his goods are inspected by regulated agents on Line 2, a spot with no security at Soekarno-Hatta, and then once again when they are re-examined in a sterile area on Line 1.
"This ruling has caused unloading costs to go up four times. Twice with the official rates, and twice more in tips," he said Friday. For each loading and unloading activity, he is charged Rp125-250 per kilogram. He delivers 1-2 tons of goods per day.
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January 5, 2016 edition
Happy 2016. We all need a moment of prayer when facing tough challenges. Indonesia, especially, a country whose economic health depends very much on commodity prices, continues to remain soft.
One key factor determining our economy's 2016 destiny is China. When its economy grows, there is hope that commodity prices will move in sync. In turn, the trickle effects from rising commodity exports should help lift Indonesia up.
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December 29, 2015 edition
A few hours after President Joko Widodo stated his support for app-based transportation services on Friday two weeks ago, Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung immediately distributed meeting invitations to several stakeholders. One of those invited was Agus Pambagio, a member of the Transportation Sector Balanced Public Policy Committee at the Ministry of Transportation. "I was asked to attend a focus group discussion about online motorcycle taxi services at his office," said Agus on Tuesday last week.
The meeting was held on the fourth floor of the Cabinet Secretariat building and attended by representatives from the transportation ministry, the coordinating ministry for the economy, the coordinating ministry for maritime affairs, the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) and the Organization of Land Transportation Owners (Organda). Go-Jek CEO Nadiem Makarim was also present to represent app-based transportation executives.
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December 22, 2015 edition
STATEMENT sheets were distributed on Monday last week to Bank Indonesia employees on secondment to the Financial Services Authority (OJK). On the sheets were instructions to select between two available options: stay on with the OJK, or return to Bank Indonesia.
The statements have to be completed and duly signed on duty stamps with the knowledge of department heads no later than Tuesday this week. These documents will later be submitted to the head of the OJK's organization and human resources department in sealed envelopes. "There will be a quick count. The final outcome will be known on December 31," said Darmansyah, the OJK's human resources director, on Tuesday last week.
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December 15, 2015 edition
It was almost noon and Sunandar had barely moved in his chair. The Trend Tour & Travel reservation clerk in Yogyakarta only occasionally twiddled on his computer and received phone calls. "At the beginning of December, there were hardly any tour orders. Things will pick up nearing Christmas and New Year," he said two weeks ago.
Sunandar, who has worked at the travel agency for three years, has become somewhat familiar with the business' patterns. Outside public holidays or school holidays, there are very few bookings, especially by domestic tourists. "This entire day there have only been 25 orders. Two from foreign tourists, from Amsterdam," he said. Usually, the travel agency on Jalan Kusumanegara in Yogyakarta draws up to 100 orders per day.
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December 8, 2015 edition