Indonesia targets $42B investment in 2014

Indonesian government targets investment realization this year to reach US$42.2 billion. Similar to last year, the focus will still lie on major sectors—mining, transportation, and food and beverages.

According to Coordinating Economic Minister Hatta Rajasa, the target is not too far from last year's investment realization, which was almost around US$33.3 billion (Rp400 trillion). The consideration is the global economic pressure.

Investment realization in 2013 was slightly higher than the targeted Rp390 trillion, an increase of 20 percent compared to 2012. About 63% of this figure was new investment, while the rest represented development on ongoing investment.

Approximately US$22.5 billion (Rp270.4 trillion) was foreign investment, while US$10.6 billion (Rp127.6 trillion) was domestic. This means, according to Hatta, that Indonesia has become a production-base country.

Chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Suryo Bambang Sulisto, is optimistic about investment realization. Although there are the issues of bureaucracy and infrastructure, foreign investors see the promise in the Indonesian market.

An economist at the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance, Enny Sri Hartati, said that the target is reasonable. She said investment growth in several years has reached 30%. “There is nothing extraordinary about that,” she said.