Bagian Berita Hari Ini adalah bagian yang diperbarui secara teratur dan berisi informasi terkini mengenai topik-topik yang mewarnai pemberitaan di media massa Indonesia pada hari ini. Sebagian besar berita yang diterbitkan di sini meliputi hal politik, ekonomi dan sosial. Namun, seiring dengan penampilan berita terkini, tentu belum meliputi analisis yang mendalam. Silakan lihat kolom Berita, Keuangan atau Bisnis jika Anda ingin membaca topik tertentu dengan analisis yang lebih mendalam.
Exports of Indonesian palm oil may drop to 1.51 million metric tonnes (MT) in February, a 5.6 percent decline from January. Importers prefer to buy the commodity in Malaysia where the government has put in place a duty free tariff on its palm oil exports in order to reduce large stockpiles. Indonesia, on the other hand, has a nine percent export duty as the government tries to gain more revenue out of its natural resources.
Today, Indonesia's House of Representatives (DPR) passed a new law that restricts financial transactions that are meant for the funding of terrorist or radical organizations. People or institutions engaged in such transactions will face up to 15 years in prison and fines up to US $10.5 million. Previously, Indonesia did not have a law that prevented such transactions. This new law is regarded as a good step for the battle against terrorism.
Bank Indonesia, the country's central bank, continued its key interest rate at the level of 5.75 percent. The interest rate has been at this historic low level for the 12th month in a row. The current policy rate is "considered consistent with the contained inflationary pressure in accordance with its target range of 4.5 percent ± 1 percent in 2013 and 2014," according to the website of Indonesia's central bank.
Bank Indonesia's foreign exchange reserves have fallen by US $4 billion to US $108.8 in January from US $112.8 in December 2012. The current reserves translate to six months of imports and short-term government debt payments. Reasons behind the four percent decline are massive spending by Indonesia's Central Bank to support the weakening IDR rupiah in combination with overseas debt payments.
