Indonesia Morning News For October 31

Black box recovered as investigators in UK probe cause of Vichai crash
AIR ACCIDENT investigators yesterday began the slow process of ascertaining the cause of the helicopter crash which took the lives of King Power chairman Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha and four other people at the weekend.
— The Nation

Lion Air crash: 10 bodies recovered from crash site; all 189 people on board feared dead
Rescuers at the Lion Air Flight JT610 crash site off the waters of Karawang, West Java, have sent 10 body bags containing human remains, including possibly that of a baby, for DNA testing on Tuesday
— The Straits Times

Foreign direct investment in Indonesia contracts again in Q3
Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Indonesia fell for the second straight quarter in July-September from a year earlier, the investment board said on Tuesday.
— Nasdaq

YLKI: Lion Air Victims Entitled to Get Compensation of Rp1.25bn
Indonesian Consumer Institution Foundation (YLKI) asked the Ministry of Transportation to ensure that Lion Air provides compensation for JT 610 plane passengers. The plane was lost contact and crashed on Monday morning, October 29, at 6:33 a.m.
— Tempo.co

Indonesia parliament body approves $161.7 bln budget for 2019
The Indonesian parliament’s budgetary committee on Tuesday approved President Joko Widodo’s 2019 budget without many changes from his August proposal, but an opposition party criticised an expansion of the president’s social programmes.
— Reuters

Current Account Balance Expected to Pass Beyond 3% of GDP in Q3-2018
The current account balance is a key concept in macroeconomic analysis. It involves exports and imports of currently produced goods, services as well as income flows to and from foreign residents.
— Indonesia Investments

Italia, Indonesia sign US$41.6 million trade contracts
Indonesian and Italian businesspeople signed trade contracts worth US$41.6 million during the 2018 Trade Expo Indonesia (TEI 2018) from Oct. 24 to 28 at the Indonesian Convention Expo (ICE) hall in Tangerang, Banten.
— The Jakarta Post

Indonesia to inspect all Boeing 737 MAX jets after Lion Air crash
The Indonesian government has ordered the inspection of all Boeing 737-MAX airliners, as rescue teams recovered more victims from a brand new jet that plunged into the sea with 189 people on board.
— Al Jazeera

Indonesian plane crash: ‘Vomiting’ and unusual noises on Lion Air jet’s previous flight
Relatives numbed by grief have provided samples for DNA tests to help identify victims of the Lion Air plane crash, as terrifying accounts emerged of problems on the jet’s previous flight.
— 9news.com.au

Turnbull not helping in Indonesia: Joyce
Barnaby Joyce has accused Malcolm Turnbull of throwing petrol on a fire by criticising a government proposal to move Australia’s embassy in Israel.
— 9news.com.au

Google, Tencent And JD.com Invest $1.2B To Indonesia Ride Hailing Unicorn Go-Jek
Go-Jek, the Indonesia-based rival to Grab and Uber, has received US$1.2 billion commitment from Google and Chinese giants Tencent and JD.com in a new round of financing, according to the report of The Information citing insiders.
— China Money Network

240 schools in North Jakarta own waste banks
Two-hundred-and-forty schools, from elementary to high School level, in North Jakarta have installed waste banks that are expected to have a positive impact on the environment as well as educate students on waste management.
— The Jakarta Post

Telkom Indonesia’s Revenues Grow 8.8 Percent in Q3 2018
State-owned telecommunications company Telekomunikasi Indonesia (IDX:TLKM), also known as Telkom Indonesia, has shown satisfying performance in the third quarter of 2018, with revenue growing by 8.8 percent quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) as compared to the second quarter of 2018.
— Netral News

Indonesian jet flew erratically the day before it crashed
The Lion Air Boeing 737 MAX jet that crashed in Indonesia on Monday morning flew erratically during a flight the previous evening when it experienced a “technical problem”, according to data from flight tracking website FlightRadar24.
— Reuters

Indonesia summons Lippo’s James Riady to assist in bribery probe involving $21 bln project
Indonesia’s anti-graft agency on Tuesday summoned Lippo Group Deputy Chairman James Riady as a witness in a bribery probe involving a $21 billion construction project, as it cracks down on widespread bribery in Southeast Asia’s biggest economy.
— Reuters

Indonesia is the biggest plastic polluter after China. This 17-year-old wants to change that
Indonesia, a vast archipelago of 17,000 islands, may conjure images of golden beaches and blue seas — but the reality may be far murkier.
— CNBC

Indonesia deploys divers, ‘pinger locators’ in hunt for doomed plane’s cockpit recorders
Indonesian divers resumed a search on Tuesday for an airliner that crashed with 189 people on board, as “pinger locators” tried to zero in on its cockpit recorders and uncover why an almost-new plane went down in the sea minutes after take-off.
— Reuters

PLN books Rp 18.5 trillion loss as of Q3
State-owned electricity company PLN has booked Rp 18.50 trillion (US$1.22 billion) in losses as of the end of the third quarter of 2018, compared to Rp 3.04 trillion in profit in the corresponding period last year, PLN’s financial report published on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) on Tuesday announced.
— The Jakarta Post

Indonesia publishers follow counterparts in South East Asia to form a private marketplace
PubMatic has partnered with Indonesian publishers to create a private marketplace (PMP) to provide advertisers with media advertising at scale.
— The Drum

News Focus – Indonesia needs to boost its fisheries products by Andi Abdussalam
Known for its vast seas and rich fisheries potential, Indonesia still has to boost the development of its fisheries sector to increase production and reach target.
— Antara News

Palm oil executives arrested in bribery scandal in Indonesia
Three executives from one of Indonesia’s biggest palm oil firms were arrested over the weekend by the nation’s anti-graft agency after an employee was caught bribing politicians to kill an inquiry into water pollution and plantation licenses in Borneo, the agency said on Sunday.
— Mongabay.com

Indonesian Diaspora, SMEs Actors Sign MoU to Encourage Exports
In order to continue to increase the export market penetration of Indonesian UKM-IKM (Small and Medium Enterprises-Small Medium Industries), the Empowerment Task Force of Indonesian Diaspora Network-United (IDN-United) SME-SMI Exports, Indonesian Diaspora SME-SMI Export Empowerment Development (ID-SEED), and Indonesia.
— Tempo.co

5.2 Magnitude Earthquake shakes Sunda Strait
The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) said a 5.2 magnitude tectonic earthquake had occur in the Sunda Strait on Tuesday, Oct 30.
— Netral News

Marine protected areas increasing fish stocks
Surrounded by severely damaged coral reefs, the fishers of Indonesia’s Seraya Besar, off the west coast of Flores, struggle to make ends meet. Year-on-year fish stocks have shrivelled as the damaged reef can only support limited life.
— The Asean Post

Indonesia just 40% self-sufficient in dairy – with demand growing
Day two of the Bord Bia trade mission to Indonesia began with a market briefing. Two things that continue to be emphasised are the growing middle-class population in the country and the fact that Indonesia is only 40% self-sufficient in dairy.
— Agriland

Rotten From the Top: Another House Speaker Named Suspect in Corruption Case
The national antigraft agency has named House of Representatives deputy speaker Taufik Kurniawan a suspect in a bribery case involving a scheme to secure the transfer of funds from the state budget to a district government in Central Java.
— Jakarta Globe

Indonesia announces commitment to implement e-fishing logbook
Indonesia has announced its commitment to implement electronic fishing logbook to domestic fishing vessels authorized to operate in the country`s 11 Fisheries Management Areas and High Seas.
— Antara News

Indonesia must scrap workers agreement with Saudi Arabia following execution: NGO
The Migrant CARE advocacy group has called on the Manpower Ministry to cancel a recent agreement with Saudi Arabia to send Indonesian migrant workers to the kingdom in limited numbers, following the execution of Indonesian worker Tuti Tursilawati on Monday.
— The Jakarta Post

Kerry Commends Indonesia’s Efforts on Illegal Fishing
Former United States secretary of state, John Kerry, has commended Indonesia for its efforts on tackling illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, and emphasized that issues relating to the ocean are a global security challenge.
— Jakarta Globe

ASEAN is ripe for Islamic banking: Moody’s
Moody’s Investors Service says ASEAN is ripe for Islamic banking, but various challenges are evident even though authorities are putting measures in place to develop this sector.
— The Jakarta Post

Indonesia meets ocean conservation target 2 years early: Jokowi
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo opened the 2018 Our Ocean Conference at the Bali Nusa Dua Convention Center by announcing that the nation had realized its ambitious target of establishing 20 million hectares of ocean for conservation.
– The Jakarta Post

Deadly industry for Indonesia
Jakarta: The crash of a new Lion Air Boeing-737 MAX into the sea, minutes after taking off from Jakarta, is the latest in a series of air accidents to rock the archipelago.
— The Star Online

Indonesia warns Australia over possible embassy move in Israel
Australia is to expect a “very negative reaction” from Indonesia if it follows the United States by moving its embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a former prime minister warned on Tuesday.
— Al Jazeera

Police uncover civil servant test-taker-for-hire syndicate involving top university graduates
Being a government bureaucrat may not seem like an exciting job prospect in some countries, but in Indonesia, becoming a civil servant (PNS) is one of the most desirable career paths in the country.
– Coconuts Indonesia (paywall)

After Forest Fire, Mount Merbabu to be Opened in November
After almost a month, starting November 1, the climbers will be allowed again to climb Mount Merbabu, a mountain with an altitude of about 3,145 meters above sea level (masl).
— Tempo.co

Feature photo Hasrul Said/Radar Makassar

This week’s Indonesia morning news feature photo acknowledges International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, November 2.

Find our previous morning news feature photos in the AEC News Today Morning News Feature Photos gallery where you will find a pictorial display of daily life throughout the Asean Economic Community (AEC).

Indonesia morning news by AEC News Today is your one stop source for Indonesia news on matters of governance and policies affecting Asean business communities and is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.

Indonesia morning news for October 31 added by Stella-maris Ewudolu on October 31, 2018
View all posts by Stella-maris Ewudolu →

Bio
Latest Posts

Stella-maris Ewudolu

Journalist at AEC News Today

Stella-maris graduated with a Bachelor of Arts, Education from Ebonyi State University, Nigeria in 2005.

Between November 2010 and February 2012 she was a staff writer at Daylight Online, Nigeria writing on health, fashion, and relationships. From 2010 – 2017 she worked as a freelance screen writer for ‘Nollywood’, Nigeria.

She joined AEC News Today in December 2016.