[Kabar-indonesia] 23 RI Biz/Econ Reports: BI Keeps GDP Forecast Despite Disasters; Hyundai

[JoyoNews at aol.com]

23 reports:

- Bank Indonesia keeps 2006 GDP forecast 
  despite latest quake, tsunami disasters
- Natural disasters slow Indonesia's economic
    growth: BI governor
- Indonesia's per capita income seen rising to
    US$6,000 in 2025
- Indonesia could become new Hyundai
     production base: Exec
- Suzuki begins assembling new SUV
     model in Indonesia
- Indonesia Astra Agro 1H Net IDR414.7B
     Vs IDR385.5B
- Indonesian footwear exports seen jumping 
  13 percent this year: report
- Indonesia Shares End Lower, Led By 
  selling In BRI, Astra
- Indonesia Rupiah Ends Down; Foreigners 
  Take Pfts On Stocks
- Bank Indonesia hoping to clear nations's
    IMF debt by 2007
- Indonesia set to reduce dependence on
    foreign loans
- Bank Indonesia to keep inflation under
    control
- Bank Indonesia urges banks to review
    credit business plans
- Singapore investors return to Batam after
    SEZ pact
- Fifteen national media to hold "Indonesia
    Investor Forum I"
- Indonesia's Total Persada IPO of 300 mln shrs
    oversubscribed - CLSA
- European export creditor agency to share
    Garuda's restructuring cost
- Indonesia's Sriwijaya Air to open three
    new int'l routes
- Indonesia's Bakrieland reports decline in
    Q1 net profit
- Indonesia tells toll road investors to finish
    projects on time
- update: Indonesia's cement sales fall in
    H1
- Indonesia cooking oil up on tight supply,
    CPO trading dull
- Australian cattle exports to Indonesia
    continue to increase

Bank Indonesia keeps 2006 GDP forecast 
despite latest quake, tsunami disasters

JAKARTA, July 24 (XFN-ASIA) - Bank Indonesia (BI) is maintaining its
5.0-5.7 pct GDP growth forecast for this year despite the latest quake
and tsunami disasters, BI governor Burhanuddin Abdullah said.

"The (forecast growth) range doesn't change. I am still optimistic,"
he told reporters.

To support the growth target, he said the banking sector should
increase its lending by 18 pct this year.

"We hope that the credit growth target of 18 pct can be reached so
that the GDP growth forecast can be met, too," he said.

BI earlier said that based on its preliminary estimates of first-half
performance, full-year GDP growth may hit the lower end of the
projected 5. 0-5.7 pct range.

The latest tsunami that swept away homes and business establishments
in some densely-populated districts along the south Java coastline
last week killed a total of 596 people. Of these, 439 were killed in
West Java province, 154 in Central Java and three in Yogyakarta.

--------------------------------------

Natural disasters slow Indonesia's economic growth: BI governor

DENPASAR, Bali, July 24 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - Bank Indonesia (BI)
Governor Burhanuddin Abdullah said the successive natural disasters
that hit Indonesia this year have hampered the country's economic
growth.

"The country's economic growth has been hampered and it is not likely
to achieve the target that has been set due to various natural
disasters in various regions," Abdulah said here Friday night.

He said economic growth which was set at 20 per cent this year up to
the seventh month only reached 2.4 per cent.

"Economic growth was hampered by disasters such as earthquakes,
floods, drought and tsunami that struck Indonesia of late," he told a
regional bank representatives forum.

But a banker said earlier this month that Indonesia's macro economy in
the second half of 2006 would grow more rapidly in the first half
although such factors as the discontinued cut in the key interest rate
(BI Rate) may slow down its growth.

"The macro economy in the second semester of 2006 will not be as bad
as in the first semester," retail banking director of publicly listed
PT Bank Mega Kostaman Thayib said.

Bank Indonesia (the central bank/BI) was supposed to lower the BI Rate
in March or April but the rate had remained at 12.50 per cent up till
now, he said.

The central bank kept the key rate unchanged at 12.75 per cent for
four months in a row since December last year due to lingering
inflationary pressure and surging oil prices.

The decision to maintain the BI Rate at 12.50 per cent was the a main
obstacle to the channeling of bank credits as debtors put credit
applications to the bank on hold, he said.

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Indonesia's per capita income seen rising to US$6,000 in 2025

JAKARTA, July 24 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - Indonesia's per capita Gross
Domestic Income is forecast to rise to US$6,000 in 2025 from US$3,230
at present, according to the country's long term development bill.

The poverty rate is forecast to be reduced to no more than 5 per cent
in the country in 2025, the draft law said.

Economist from the University of Indonesia Bambang P.S. Brojonegoro
said in order to ensure achievement of the target, investment should
be boosted in the natural resource based manufacturing industry.

Head of the National Development Coordinating Board (Bappenas) Paskah
Suzetta said the bill is expected to pass into law by the House of
Representatives after a year of preparation.

-----------------------------------------

Indonesia could become new Hyundai production base: Exec

JAKARTA, July 21 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - Indonesia has a chance to
become a Hyundai production base because the South Korean automotive
principal is seeking new production bases in Latin America and
Southeast Asia, a businessman said.

"Hyundai is seeking new locations for its plants in the Southeast
Asian region because it already has some in China, Europe and India,"
Jongkie D Sugiarto, executive of PT Hyundai Mobil Indonesia, said here
on Friday.

According to him, two regions had drawn the interest of the company in
building new plants, namely Southeast Asia and Latin America.

PT Hyundai Mobil Indonesia had lobbied its principal and Minister of
Industry Fahmi Idris was even ready to assist to also convince them,
he said.

Apart from Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia have also similar chances.

But, he said, the choice depends on the type of cars it would build in
Southeast Asia. Indonesia itself has strong bases for multi purpose
vehicels and small sedans.

Thailand has strong bases for medium to upper class sedan industry
because it has a strong automotive component industry.

"Indonesia has comperative advantages, like skilled and relatively
low-paid workers. In addition Indonesia with a population of 220
million is a big market," he added.

He further said that Hyundai would suffer "losses" if it did not build
plants in the Southeast Asian region which applies an import duty of
zero to five percent on automotive products in ASEAN member countries.

In Indonesia, Hyundai`s market share accounted for five to six percent
of the total automotive market and about 50 pct came from the sales of
city cars or small MPVs.

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Suzuki begins assembling new SUV model in Indonesia

TOKYO, July 24 (Asia Pulse/Nikkei) - Japan's Suzuki Motor Corp.
(TSE:7269) announced Friday that it has begun producing and marketing
in Indonesia the new version of its Grand Vitara sport utility vehicle
(SUV), which is sold as the Escudo in Japan.

Suzuki's local production subsidiary, PT Indomobil Suzuki
International, is assembling a fully revamped model that has been in
production in Japan since 2005. This is the first foreign output of
the new model.

Indomobil Suzuki International is slated to roll out 10,000 of the
SUVs a year, selling them in Indonesia and exporting them to Thailand
and other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. The
vehicles have engine displacements of 2 litres.

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Indonesia Astra Agro 1H Net IDR414.7B Vs IDR385.5B

PT Astra Agro Lestari (AALI.JK) - Jakarta
First half ended June 30
Figures in rupiah (IDR)

                              2006           2005
Net Pft       IDR414.7 Bln   IDR385.5 Bln
Net Revenue       1.86 Tln       1.58 Tln

The figures are unaudited and based on Indonesian accounting
standards. 

JAKARTA, July 24 (Dow Jones)--Indonesia's crude palm oil producer PT
Astra Agro Lestari said Monday its first-half net profit rose 7.6% on
year to IDR414.7 billion, from IDR385.5 billion a year earlier, on an
increase in sales.

Sales revenue for the period ended June 30 rose 18% to IDR1.86
trillion, from IDR1.58 trillion a year earlier, as a result of an
increase in sales volume and rising commodity prices.

Astra said it sold 476,597 metric tons of crude palm oil in the first
half, up 23% from 388,529 tons a year earlier, at an average of
IDR3,351 a kilogram, compared with IDR3,275/kilogram as of June 30
2005.

As much as 35% of Astra Agro's CPO output is exported.

Astra Agro, which is 79.68% owned by automotive concern PT Astra
International (ASII.JK), expects sales this year to grow by 12% to
around 950,000 tons.

The company expects to open three new CPO refineries this year to
support the CPO output target.

----------------------------------------------------------

Indonesian footwear exports seen jumping 13 percent this year: report

JAKARTA, July 24 (AFP) -- Indonesian shoe exports are expected to
increase by at least 13 percent to 1.7 billion dollars this year, as
several foreign producers shift here and others expand, a report said
Monday.

The chairman of the Indonesian Footwear Association, Eddy Widjanarko,
was quoted by Media Indonesia newspaper as saying that exports could
rise a further 600 million dollars if producers also grab market share
in the European Union left free by China and Vietnam.

The two countries were last year accused of dumping their products in
the European Union and were slapped with high anti-dumping fees,
forcing the closure of shoe manufacturing plants in the two countries.

Widjanarko warned however that though prospects for the footwear
industry in Indonesia were good, bureaucratic costs were still the
highest in the region.

He said that buying an operating permit, for instance, costs about 50
million rupiah (about 5,500 dollars) in Indonesia compared to 25
million rupiah in Vietnam, 18 million rupiah in Malaysia and 11
million rupiah in Singapore.

Widjanarko told the Indonesian-language daily that four leading
international shoe brands plus 11 other smaller producers were
relocating manufacturing plants from Vietnam to Indonesia this year,
while several existing major producers were expanding their
production.

The new investment and expansions were expected to employ a further
250,000 workers, he added.

----------------------------------------------------

Indonesia Shares End Lower, Led By selling In BRI, Astra

JAKARTA, July 24 (Dow Jones)--Indonesia shares closed lower Monday,
led by selling in Bank Rakyat and car distributor Astra International
amid fears of poor first-half earnings as a result of high interest
rates and a weak rupiah, dealers said.

They said falls in most Asia markets after stocks in the U.S. finished
softer Friday also added to negative sentiment.

"The market also ran out of fresh leads on the domestic economic
front," said a trader with Paramitra Securities.

The Jakarta Stock Exchange Composite index ended down 11.427 points,
or 0.9%, at 1303.150, up from an intraday low of 11294.444.

Decliners led gainers 66 to 27, with 68 stocks unchanged. Volume fell
to 550 million shares valued at IDR926 billion, compared with 835
million shares valued at IDR939 billion Friday.

At 0915 GMT, the dollar was trading higher at IDR9,180, compared with
Friday's close of IDR9,145.

Bank Rakyat, the nation's fourth-largest lender by assets, dropped
4.8% to IDR4,000, while Bank Central Asia, the nation's second-largest
lender, fell 1.9% to IDR3,950 on profit taking and fears that the
banks would report poor first-half net profits due to a drop in net
interest income.

Indonesian companies are due to start announcing their first-half
earnings next week.

Car distributor Astra ended down 3.7% to IDR9,150 on fears of poor
first-half earnings following a drop in its car sales. Astra recently
reported that its first-half car sales fell 39% on year as a result of
a weak rupiah and high interest rates.

Also lower on profit warnings, cigarette maker Gudang Garam dropped
6.1% to IDR9,250.

On the upside, coal miner Bukit Asam rose 4% to IDR3,250 on a rebound
after falls last week.

Dealers expect the market to trade lower Tuesday led by selling in bank 
shares.

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Indonesia Rupiah Ends Down;Foreigners Take Pfts On Stocks

JAKARTA, July 24 (Dow Jones)--The Indonesia rupiah ended lower Monday
as foreign investors took profits on Indonesian assets and importers
demanded dollars, dealers said.

'Offshore funds took profits on local stocks and bonds, triggered by
the dollar's strength against the yen,' a dealer with a foreign bank
said.

The greenback closed at IDR9,180, versus its close Friday at IDR9,145.

Indonesian stocks ended nearly 1% down Monday, while local bonds were
a bit bearish, dealers said. For example, the price of the
government's FR0036 bonds, maturing in September 2019, fell to 95.25
late in the session from 95.75 Friday.

Dealers said that oil importers were also thought to be buying dollars
to settle import bills at the end of the month.

News that the Rajawali Group Monday signed a deal to buy a 25% stake
in Semen Gresik from Mexico's Cemex also sparked speculative bids for
the dollar. The local company is expected to buy dollars to settle the
$337 million deal Wednesday.

'The Rajawali factor was more of speculation than a genuine factor
behind the dollar's rise, as we don't see Rajawali in the market
today,' a dealer with a local bank said.

Meanwhile, the market ignored a statement by Bank Indonesia's Deputy
Governor Aslim Tadjuddin that the central bank sees 'ample' room for
rate cuts in the future, adding that the economy needs more rate cuts
to grow faster.

'We agree that easing inflation and the rate-hike pause in the U.S.
are giving Bank Indonesia room for further rate cuts,' a dealer added.

Bank Indonesia's next meeting on interest rates is Aug. 8. It cut the
benchmark one-month rate by 25 basis points to 12.25% during a meeting
earlier this month.

Dealers expect the dollar to trade between IDR9,150 and IDR9,225
Tuesday, with the dollar's global movement expected to give a cue for
the local market.

------------------------------------------------------

Bank Indonesia hoping to clear nations's IMF debt by 2007

JAKARTA, July 24 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - Bank Indonesia (BI) Governor
Burhanuddin Abdullah said here Monday he hoped Indonesia will be able
to pay off its debt to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 2007.

"Hopefully, the country's foreign debt to IMF can be paid off," he
said after a meeting with the governor of the Malaysian central bank
following the signing of a memorandum of udnerstanding (MoU) between
the Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz International Center for Education in
Islamic Finance and the Indonesian Banking Development Institution
here on Monday.

Earlier, the government and BI agreed to accelerate the settlement of
the country's foreign debt amounting to US$7.5 billion to IMF which
has so far been deposited to add foreign exchange reserves.

The payoff of Indonesia's debt to IMF is possible considering that the
total of the foreign exchange reserves and availability of funds as a
second line of defence.

The country's foreign exchange reserves currently stand at US$44
billion, enough to fund imports and pay installments of the country's
foreign debt.

Should the foreign exchange reserves be bigger than required, country
can still payoff its debt to the IMF, he said.

---------------------------------------------------------

Indonesia set to reduce dependence on foreign loans

JAKARTA, July 24 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - The finance ministry said it
will reduce dependence on foreign loans and funds from state bonds
issued for international market to finance the state budget.

Treasury Director General Mulia P. Nasution said the slashing of
foreign loans is aimed at keeping exchange rates under control.

By March, the country's debt totaled Rp1,282 trillion (US$140.4
billion) including Rp624 trillion in foreign exchange and Rp658
trillion in local currency.

The position of the debts is vulnerable to a number of risks such as
financing risks because of un-proportional maturity dates and market
risk due to changes in interest rate and exchange rates, Nasution
said.

In addition, the state debts in foreign exchange are dominated by a
number of hard currencies, which could increase the risk of rupiah
fluctuations, he said.

State debts are made up of 52 per cent in rupiah, 14 per cent in US
dollar, 4 per cent in Euro, 21 per cent in yen, and 9 per cent in
other currencies.

Increase in interest rate could push up or reduce debt burden as 32
per cent traded state bonds carry floating interest rates.

----------------------------------------------------------

Bank Indonesia to keep inflation under control

JAKARTA, July 24 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - Bank Indonesia said it is set
to keep the country's inflation from exceeding the government's target
of 8 per cent this year.

Bank Indonesia Governor Burhanuddin Abdullah said he is confident the
country's inflation could be controlled at around 7 per cent this
year.

The country's inflation in the first 6 months of this year was 2.87 per cent

Burhanuddin said Indonesia's open economy is sensitive to changes such
as a cut in interest rate.

A big cut in interest rate could trigger capital outflow which will
hurt the economy, he said.

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Bank Indonesia urges banks to review credit business plans

JAKARTA, July 24 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - Bank Indonesia (BI) Governor
Burhanuddin Abdullah has called on banks to review their credit
extension business plans in the wake of poor growth of banking loans
in the first semester of 2006.

"In light of the low performace of banking credits in the first
semester of this year which was recorded at 2.4 per cent only, we are
calling on banks to review and rearrange their business plans,"
Burhanduddin said after a meeting with Bank Negara Malaysia Governor
Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz here on Monday.

Burhanuddin said BI would evaluate the banks' business plans and ask
them about what contraints they were facing in channelling credits.

"We hope banks will have reviewed their business targets this year at
the end of this month or early next month," he said.

He said that the growth of loans in the second semester of this year
could be boosted further.

"We hope it would reach 18 per cent in the second semester," he added.

The Bank Indonesia governor said that credit growth was important to
support the growth of the country's economy.

If credit growth was not as expected, it would be difficult for the
country to achieve its economic growth target of 5.9 per cent or 5.7
per cent as the banks had predicted, he said.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Singapore investors return to Batam after SEZ pact

JAKARTA, July 24 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - At least 8 Singapore companies
are expected to immediately invest in Indonesia's islands of Batam and
Bintan after the governments of the two countries agreed on June 25 to
form a special economic zone in the Riau islands province.

The plan by the 8 companies came after reports earlier about a number
of foreign investors left Batam for uncertainty about the status of
the two islands as a free trade area and the re-imposition of value
added tax (VAT).

Riau island Governor Ismeth Abdullah said the Singaporean companies
plan to invest US$31.6 million and their operations will open 2,000
jobs badly needed by the country.

A memorandum of understanding will be signed on August 1 with the
companies operating in ferry transport, ship building and repair
industry, and off shore rig construction, Ismeth said.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Fifteen national media to hold "Indonesia Investor Forum I"

JAKARTA, July 24 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - Fifteen national media in
cooperation with a number of self regulatory organizations including
the Jakarta Stock Exchange (JSX), Surabaya Stock Exchange (SSX), the
Indonesian Stock Guaranting Clearing (KPEI) and the Indonesian Stock
Central Custodian (KSEI) will organize "Indonesian Investor Forum 1"
for two days starting July 31.

The forum will be a meeting among investors, domestic and foreign
stock exchange players as well as policy makers and stock exchange
observers, said President Director of PT.JSX Erry Firmansyah here on
Friday.

The fifteen national media are ANTARA News Agency, Kompas , Bisnis
Indonesia , Investor Daily, Media Indonesia, Sinar Harapan, Suara
Pembaruan, the Jakarta Post, Koran Tempo, Sindo, Republika, Kontan,
Metro TV, TV7, Radio Smart FM. Meanwhile and PT.Pacific 2000 as the
main sponsor.

Erry said the "Indonesia Investor Forum 1" would be themed "Challenges
and Prospects of Indonesia`s Stock Exchange".

The forum would be part of a series of activities to mark the 29th
anniversary of Indonesia`s stock exchange.

The event is slated to be held at Mulia Hotel, Jakarta from July 31 to
Aug 1, 2006.

On the first day, Finance Minister Dr.Sri Mulyani Indrawati would
present her paper on the direction and policies on fiscal and
macro-economic matters.

The chairman of the Capital Market Supervisory Agency Fuad Rahmany
would present his paper on the framework of policy and strategy in
developing Indonesia`s stock exchange.

Meanwhile, managing director of ABN Amro for Asset Management Division
, Nikhil Johri would speak at the forum on stock exchange bussiness
activities.

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Indonesia's Total Persada IPO of 300 mln shrs oversubscribed - CLSA

JAKARTA, July 24 (XFN-ASIA) - PT Total Bangun Persada's initial public
offering (IPO) of 300 mln shares was oversubscribed by 7.6 times for
the offer to retail investors and 1.3 times for the offer to
institutional investors, CLSA Indonesia president said Suwantara
Gotama said.

CLSA Indonesia, lead underwriter of the IPO, said the 300 mln shares
represented 10.9 pct of the company's enlarged capital.

Gotama said the underwriters allocated 285 mln shares to institutional
investors -- of which 60 pct were foreign investors -- and only 15 mln
shares to retail investors.

The shares will be listed tomorrow on the Jakarta Stock Exchange.

Total Persada has said that to increase the free float, its founders
have agreed to sell a combined 550 mln shares via private placement,
with the price set at the IPO level of 345 rupiah/share.

The placement shares will mean the investing public will, after the
IPO, hold a total of 850 mln shares or 30.9 pct of paid-in capital.

The founders are also willing to sell an additional 62 mln shares,
with the proceeds being allocated to help the underwriter support the
stock during the first 30 days of listing, the company said.

The firm's shareholders before the IPO are PT Total Interntional
Persada (63.4 pct), PT Bumi Permata Pratama (10.3 pct), Djajang
Tanuwidaja (8 pct), Komajaya (6.3 pct), Pinarto Sutanto (6 pct) and
Widodo (6 pct).

Of the two largest shareholders, Total Persada will hold a 56.5 pct
stake after the IPO and the private placement exercise while Bumi
Permata will retain only a 0.9 pct stake.

The other four founders will see their stakes diluted to between 5.7
pct and 2.2 pct.

Total Bangun Persada has had 193 construction projects under
management over the past three years and in 2005 posted a net profit
of 62.12 bln rupiah and operating profit of 117.67 bln on sales of
1.16 trln.

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European export creditor agency to share Garuda's restructuring cost

JAKARTA, July 24 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - The European Export Creditor
Agency (ECA), the largest creditor of Garuda Indonesia, has agreed in
principle to share the costs in restructuring the debt of the nation's
flag carrier.

Garuda Finance Director Alex M.T. Maneklaran said ECA hinted the
burden sharing agreement in a recent meeting between the airline's
restructuring team and ECA in London.

Alex said that with the burden sharing principle, repayment of the
debt to ECA will be rolled over with possibility of slashing or
abolishing the interest rate.

Garuda's debt to ECA makes up US$501.6 million of its total debt of
US$794.6 million.

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Indonesia's Sriwijaya Air to open three new int'l routes

JAKARTA, July 24 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - Sriwijaya Air said it will open
new international and domestic routes to increase utilization of its
fleet of 15 aircraft from 8 hours to 9 hours a day each.

Commercial Director of the airline Aditya Wardana said it will open
three new international routes between Jakarta and Guangzhou,
Singapore, and Kuala Lumpur next year.

This year it will start flights between Medan and Lhokseumawe, between
Makassar and Palu and between Surabaya and Denpasar, Aditya said.

He said the airline hopes to increase the number of its passengers
from 2.5 million a year now to 4 million next year.

Earlier, Sriwijaya said it planned to use 10 more Boeing aircraft to
increase its fleet to 25 units.

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Indonesia's Bakrieland reports decline in Q1 net profit

JAKARTA, July 24 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - Publicly listed property
company PT Bakrieland Development (JSX:ELTY) posted net profit at an
estimated Rp16 billion (US$1.7 million) in the first half of this
year, shrinking 79.87 per cent from the same period last year despite
an increase in income.

The company reported Rp142 billion in income in the first six months
of this year, up from Rp117.93 billion in the same period last year.

There are sales which could not yet be categorized as income, its
Finance Director Hamid Mundzir said, pointing to the earning from the
sales of units in Bakrie Tower and Rasuna Epicentrum in Jakarta and
housing in Bogor.

Hamid, however, described the performance of the company as improving
citing in the first half of last year the company earned Rp86.03
billion in extraordinary income such as from the sales of a hotel.

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Indonesia tells toll road investors to finish projects on time

JAKARTA, July 24 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - The Indonesian government has
instructed investors of four toll road projects in Central Java to
start work to ensure that they will not miss the target to complete
the project in 2010.

The four toll road projects totaling 287.5 kilometers will cost around
Rp15.07 trillion (US$1.6 billion).

A consortium led by PT Lintas Marga Sedaya will build the toll road
between Cikampek and Paliaman, PT Pejagan Pemalang Toll Road will
construct the road linking Pejagan to Pemalang while PT Marga
Seiapuritama will build the road between Semarang and Batang.

Corporate Secretary of PT Maga Setiapuritama Fernando said the company
will start land clearing.

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Indonesia's cement sales fall in H1

JAKARTA, July 24 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - The country's cement sales
dropped 4.1 per cent to 14.46 million tons in the first half of 2006
from 15.08 million tons in the same period last year.

Data from the association of cement producers (ASI) show that sales in
Java fell 10 per cent to 8.54 million tons from 9.45 million tons.

ASI chairman Urip Timuryono predicted the trend will continue for the
rest of the year due to the declining purchasing power of the people.

Oil prices remain high and the interest rates have not declined
significantly as expected resulting in weak purchasing power, Urip
said.

He said he is not convinced that the government's plan to implement
big infrastructure projects, which may boost cement sales, will be
implemented as scheduled this year.

Realization of the project is expected to start no earlier than next
year, he added.

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Indonesia cooking oil up on tight supply, CPO trading dull

JAKARTA, July 24 (Reuters) - Indonesia's cooking oil prices rose on
Monday supported by tight supplies, but trading for crude palm oil was
quiet with players remaining on the sidelines watching the movement of
prices.

RBD palm olein in Jakarta was quoted at 4,570 rupiah a kg, up from
4,500 rupiah a kg on Friday.

"Olein supply is a bit tight due to problems in shipments of crude
palm oil, particularly from Kalimantan. We don't have much olein to
offer today," said a trader in Jakarta.

Weakness in Malaysia crude palm oil futures stirred little trading
interest for crude palm oil with no local auctions both at the state
marketing centre in Jakarta and in Medan.

"Sellers are reluctant to make any offer today because Malaysia is
weakening again," said a trader in Medan, the capital of North Sumatra
province and a key port for palm oil exports.

The benchmark third-month October contract <KPOV6> on the Bursa
Malaysia Derivatives closed down by 15 ringgit to 1,565 ringgit ($424)
a tonne on Monday.

Lacklustre trading interest also reigned on the export front.

Offers for August/September shipment were seen at $420 a tonne, free
on board Belawan on Monday. Bids stood at $415 a tonne without any
deals reported.

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Australian cattle exports to Indonesia continue to increase

DARWIN, July 24 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - Australia`s cattle exports to
Indonesia through the Northern Territory continued to increase over
the last three years, according to data at the Indonesian consulate
office here on Monday.

The data showed that Australia`s cattle exports to Indonesia in 2005
reached 186,031 heads, or an increase by 27,431 heads if compared with
that of the previous year which stood at only 158,600.

Of the total cattle exports to Indonesia in 2005, 184,767 heads came
from the Northern Territory cattle farming industry.

Compared with the cattle exports in 2003, the exports in 2004 were
also 3,407 heads higher.

The trade data also showed that most of Indonesia`s imports from
Australia came from the Northern Territory, with Lampung and East Java
provinces as export destinations.

The importance of bilateral trade between the two nations will be
strengthened by a four-day visit by the Indonesian Ambassador to
Australia Hamzah Thayeb to the Northern Territory beginning Monday.

Trade ties between Indonesia and the Northern Territory continued to
increase along with cooperation in other fields such as
transportation, industry and mining, as can be seen in the number of
memoranda of understanding that have been signed since 1992.

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Joyo Indonesia News Service
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