The Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM), the investment service agency of the Indonesian government, claims it has prevented about 24,500 of layoffs through its special desk for footwear and textile industries. This special desk is an agency set up by the BKPM in early October 2015 to support local companies in the footwear and textile industries as these industries are considered most affected by the country's economic slowdown. BKPM Chairman Franky Sibarani said a total of 48 companies have requested support through this special desk.

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RSM Indonesia, one of Indonesia's leading audit, tax and financial advisory firms, expects to see more mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in Indonesia in 2016 due to the improving global and domestic economic conditions, a stable rupiah exchange rate, and Indonesian's growing purchasing power. For foreign investors a M&A deal is one of the strategies to enter Indonesia. Up to early November, the total value of M&A deals in Indonesia in 2015 stood at USD $3.53 billion.

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Both the Center of Reform on Economics (Core) and Aberdeen Asset Management Ltd expect economic growth in Indonesia to accelerate in 2016 after Southeast Asia's largest economy may post a seven-year low GDP growth figure of 4.7 percent in 2015. Both institutions believe that household and government spending will accelerate next year, while recently unveiled economic stimulus packages (involving deregulation and tax incentives) will create a more attractive investment climate, thus both foreign and domestic investment is expected to grow.

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The central bank of Indonesia (Bank Indonesia) expects the country's economic growth to come in the lower end of its 4.7-5.1 percent (y/y) gross domestic product (GDP) growth target range for full-year 2015. Bank Indonesia Governor Agus Martowardojo expects to see accelerated economic growth in the last quarter of the year (from the preceding quarter) due to increased government spending and investment. In the second quarter of 2015, Indonesia's economy expanded at the slowest pace in six years (+4.67 percent y/y), then accelerating to 4.73 percent (y/y) in the following quarter.

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In line with rising tourism in Indonesia, the value of hotel construction in Southeast Asia's largest economy is expected to grow 16 percent to IDR 21 trillion (approx. USD $1.6 billion) in 2016. Most of the new projects - roughly 21 percent - are located in the Greater Jakarta area. Besides tapping the tourism potential, hotel developers also want to tap the business potential, meaning that due to expected accelerated economic growth in 2016, there will arrive more foreign businessmen in Indonesia to attend meetings and other activities, particularly as the ASEAN Economic Community comes online.

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On 8 November 2015, 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 in the last seven days. Most of the topics involve economic subjects such as an analysis of Indonesia's Q3-2015 GDP growth, an inflation update, overviews of Islamic banking and the taxi services industry, a rupiah & stock market update, and more.

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Unemployment in Indonesia increased to 6.18 percent of the labour force in August 2015, or 7.56 million people in absolute terms, from 5.81 percent in February (or 7.45 million unemployed people) as the economic slowdown led to layoffs and slower absorption of the workforce. In the second quarter of 2015 Indonesia's economy grew at the slowest pace in six years at 4.67 percent (y/y) and only managed to improve slightly (4.73 percent y/y) in the third quarter.

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Statistics Indonesia (BPS) announced this morning that Indonesia's official third quarter gross domestic product (GDP) growth was 4.73 percent (y/y), slightly below analysts' consensus at 4.80 percent (y/y). However, Indonesia's economic expansion improved from the six-year low of 4.67 percent (y/y) in the preceding quarter. Still, growth in Southeast Asia's largest economy remains sluggish amid low commodity prices, weak global demand, weaker household consumption, the high interest rate environment, and stagnating investment.

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Indonesian stocks and the rupiah are feeling the negative impact of news from the USA. Both Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen and New York Federal Reserve President William Dudley said a Fed Fund Rate hike in December is a "live possibility" amid low US employment, continued GDP growth and confidence that inflation will rise to the US central bank's target range. As a result of these remarks gold dropped to a one-month low, stocks declined, while bond yields and the US dollar were pushed higher.

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The economic slowdown and looming capital outflows related to higher US interest rates have been the main reasons why it is highly unlikely for the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) to achieve its revised target of seeing 22 companies conducting an initial public offering (IPO) on the IDX in 2015. So far this year, only 13 companies have listed on the IDX. However, reportedly, there are still about a dozen local companies interested to prepare an IPO in the next two months.

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The government of Indonesia unveiled the last installment of a series of three stimulus packages on Wednesday (07/10). The first two installments had been unveiled last month. In general, these stimulus packages aim to boost economic growth of Indonesia (which has slowed to a six-year low) and restore investors' confidence in the Indonesian rupiah and stocks. When markets believed that the Federal Reserve would soon raise its key interest rate, Indonesia was plagued by severe capital outflows pushing the rupiah to a 17-year low.

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In the latest edition of its flagship publication, the World Economic Outlook (WEO), the International Monetary Fund (IMF) says it is concerned that sluggish global economic growth will persist in the foreseeable future particularly on the back of slowing growth in emerging markets (which account for the lion's share of global growth). The IMF's forecast for global growth in 2015 and 2016 was both cut by 0.2 percentage point to 3.1 percent (y/y) and 3.6 percent (y/y), respectively, from the July WEO Update. In 2014, the world economy grew 3.4 percent (y/y).

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The government of Indonesia unveiled the second installment of its September economic policy package on Tuesday (29/09). The package is introduced in an attempt to boost economic growth in Southeast Asia’s largest economy and defend the ailing rupiah. Indonesia’s GDP growth slowed to a six-year low of 4.67 percent (y/y) in Q2-2015, while the rupiah has depreciated to a 17-year low against the US dollar. Capital outflows from Indonesia are the result of monetary tightening in the USA, low commodity prices and sluggish global economic growth (particularly China’s hard landing).

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In the latest update of its flagship publication Asian Development Outlook 2015, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said softer economic growth prospects of China and India in combination with slow recovery in the major industrial markets were reason why the ADB has cut its economic growth forecast for developing Asia in 2015 and 2016. The ADB now estimates GDP growth in developing Asia at 5.8 percent (y/y) in 2015 and 6.0 percent (y/y) in 2016, down from previous GDP growth forecasts of 6.3 percent (y/y) for both years.

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The central bank of Indonesia announced on Thursday (17/09) that it the country’s key interest rate (BI rate) at 7.50 percent, while maintaining the deposit facility rate at 5.50 percent and the lending facility rate at 8.00 percent. According to Bank Indonesia (BI) this decision is consistent with its efforts to push inflation towards the target corridor of 4±1 percent in both 2015 and 2016. In addition, the decision is also part of Bank Indonesia’s measures to anticipate possibilities of a Fed Fund Rate (FFR) hike.

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Global credit rating agency Moody’s Investors Service cut its forecast for economic growth in Indonesia this year from five percent (y/y) to 4.7 percent (y/y) due to the perceived hard landing of China’s economy in combination with sluggish conditions in Japan and the Eurozone. Weak demand from China, the world’s second-largest economy and the top trading partner of Indonesia, is expected to continue to plague Indonesian exports and earnings.

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The residential property sector of Indonesia remains attractive in 2015 despite several factors having managed to slow growth over the past two years. In this column I discuss the factors that have slowed growth in Indonesia’s property sector and how Indonesian authorities (such as the central bank and Financial Services Authority) responded to these challenges through new regulations. Lastly, I provide an update on the recently announced plan of the Indonesian government to allow foreign ownership of luxurious apartments.

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A total of 1,555,609 foreign tourists have visited the island of Bali, the most popular tourist destination in Indonesia, in the first five months of 2015, an 11.3 percentage point growth from the same period last year. Given that the number of foreign tourists usually peaks in the period June-September it is most likely that the government’s target of welcoming 4 million foreign tourists on Bali in 2015 will be achieved, or exceeded. Most tourists that visit Bali originate from Australia, China and Japan.

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In a bid to boost economic activity in Indonesia, the central bank (Bank Indonesia) revised several regulations involving down payments for the purchase of cars and motorcycles as well as the maximum loan-to-value (LTV) ratios for first or more home purchases by Indonesian citizens. Yati Kurniati, Director of Bank Indonesia’s Macroprudential Department, said that the central bank implemented the looser monetary policy in the property and automotive sectors in an effort to boost credit growth, hence boosting the whole economy.

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Hariyadi Sukamdani, Chairman of the Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo), expressed his concern about unemployment in Indonesia, particularly unemployment among the younger generation of Indonesians (aged between 15 and 29). Amid slowing economic growth over the past six years, various industries have been cutting employment. With roughly half of the total population below 30 years of age, Indonesia’s demographic bonus can turn into disaster if this potential workforce fails to obtain employment opportunities.

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