Mitra Keluarga Karyasehat, a leading Indonesian hospital operator and subsidiary of the Kalbe Group, plans to raise about IDR 4.2 trillion (USD $328 million) in an initial public offering (IPO) on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) in March 2015. The company plans to offer up to 261.9 million shares, or 18 percent of its enlarged equity, to the public. Five percent of this total constitute new shares, while 13 percent are shares divested by private equity firm Lion Investment Partners.

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The recently unveiled Indonesian regulation that forces the country’s 4G smartphone and tablet manufacturers to use at least 40 percent locally-produced components in their cell-phone devices is a source of concern for tech companies such as Apple and Samsung that are eager to expand into Indonesia where smartphone penetration is still low. Moreover, the restriction may encourage smartphone smuggling in Southeast Asia’s largest economy. The new regulation will come into effect on 1 January 2017.

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When we look at activity in the precious metals markets over the last decade, one of the biggest developing trends has been the increase in both demand and production output from emerging Asian economies. For most of this period, Indonesia has been participating with these trends - especially on the production output front. As recently as 2009, Indonesia was responsible for 130 tons worth of gold production, as mining activity becomes more efficient and increased investment resources flow into the country.

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In a surprise move, the central bank of Indonesia (Bank Indonesia) decided to lower its key interest rate (BI rate) by 25 basis points to 7.50 percent at the Board of Governor’s Meeting on Tuesday (17/02). The deposit facility rate (Fasbi) was also lowered by 25 basis points (to 5.50 percent), while the lending facility rate remained steady at 8.00 percent. In a press release the central bank stated that the current policy direction is estimated to moderate the country’s wide current account deficit further, while inflation remains under control.

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