The Today's Headlines section of Indonesia Investments is a regularly updated section which contains the latest information with regard to topics that are currently causing headlines in Indonesia's media. Most of our headlines cover political, economic and social matters. As a consequence of their recent nature, these topics may not have crystallized fully yet and can, therefore, lack a profound analysis. For publications with a more in-depth understanding of subjects, we refer you to our News, Financial or Business columns.
Indonesia's motorcycle exports in the first four months of 2018 reached 174,123 units, up 41.1 percent year-on-year from exports in the January-April period one year earlier. These data were released by the Indonesian Motorcycle Industry Association (AISI). The marked increase in exports is attributed to the competitive price of Indonesian motorcycles in combination with good quality.
On 14 May 2018 Indonesia Investments released the latest edition of its newsletter. This free newsletter, which is sent to our subscribers once per week, contains the most important news stories from Indonesia that have been reported on our website over the past seven days. Most of the topics involve economy and market-related topics such as Q1-2018 GDP growth, expectations of monetary policy, falling foreign exchange reserves, the issue of foreign worker, terrorism, and more.
One of Indonesia's most famous volcanoes - the Merapi volcano that is located on the border between Central Java and Yogyakarta - erupted on Friday morning (11/05), spewing ash as high as 5,500 meters into the sky. The sudden eruption of Mount Merapi led to the temporary shutdown of Yogyakarta's Adisutjipto International Airport. Meanwhile, local residents who live within a five kilometer radius of the volcano are forced to evacuate.
There is a big possibility that the central bank of Indonesia (Bank Indonesia) will raise its benchmark interest rate (the 7-day Reverse Repo Rate) at the monthly policy meeting in May (scheduled for 16-17 May 2018). Bank Indonesia Governor Agus Martowardojo confirmed that Bank Indonesia is currently preparing "strict and consistent monetary policy measures, including the adjustment of the benchmark rate, as the central bank gives priority to market confidence and macroeconomic stability".
