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03/04/2009

Seputar Indonesia highlights the statement of UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown saying, ‘This is the day that the world came together, to fight back against the global recession. Not with words but a plan for global recovery and for reform and with a clear timetable.’

Republika notes that G-20 will ‘empower IMF roles’ to enable the institution to help gravely-affected countries. The daily notes that everyone is quite satisfied with the outcome of the Summit.

Kompas highlights the forum’s decision to ‘impose strict regulation in financial sector’, which it says could hopefully prevent a deeper recession.

Kontan believes that the decisions to strengthen financial regulation will bring a ‘significant change in the world’s financial market’, it says, describing the summit outcome as showing that the  G-20 ‘initiated concrete steps to deal with crisis’.

01/04/2009

Seputar Indonesia reports President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono expressing hope that G-20 leaders would be able to produce concrete solution to deal with the global financial crisis. In the 20-minute meeting, Yudhoyono told British Prime Minister Brown that Indonesia fully supports the G-20 forum and hope it would produce a coordinated action.

Republika highlights Yudhoyono’s statement that 'Indonesia should not be left behind' and that it wishes to give equal contribution in finding the solution of the global financial crisis. Yudhoyono added that Indonesia has three main interests in the G-20 summit, namely ensuring coordinated, effective and concrete action between developed and developing nations, global financial architecture reform, and to make sure that the global action agreed in the summit will bring benefit to the national economy.

In a column in Seputar Indonesia, M Ikhsan Modjo Director Institute for Development of Economics and Finance notes that the world puts high hopes on the G-20 Summit and expects the summit to yield  real actions to overcome the crisis as the impact of the economic crisis start getting worse, marked with massive lay offs around the world. He points out that it would not be easy to achieve an agreement on the three agenda: which have been set out: commitment on free trade, coordinated economic stimulus, and reform the global system of financial regulation.

In its editorial, Republika says a heated debate is expected in the G-20 meeting as the United State and China are pushing to continue the stimulus program which is staunchly rejected by Europe, mainly Germany and France. It argues that continued fiscal stimulus would not be the most sustainable policy for Indonesia.  

31/03/2009

Papers are focussing their attention to the London Summit as President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his entourage arrived in London for a three-day visit to attend summit. Jurnal Nasional expects fierce debate in the G-20 meeting especially concerning the tendency of protectionism and concerning the huge stimulus pushed by the US against Europe's penchant to boost efficiency.

Republika and Seputar Indonesia highlight presidential spokesman Dino Patti Djalal's statement saying the London Summit would be the first time that Indonesia had been in the forefront of efforts to manage the world economy which were previously dominated by G-7 countries. He said that President Yudhoyono's participation in the G-20 Summit was an honour and at the same time a responsibility to the international world.

In a column in Kompas, Anggito Abimanyu, head of the Finance Ministry's Fiscal Policies Agency, highlighted Indonesia's unique position to defend the interest of emerging market, ASEAN and Low Income countries. The G20 meeting was an opportunity for Indonesia to participate in forming the global financial and economic system.

30/03/2009

Seputar Indonesia reports that Indonesia has prepared a recommendation and a proposal for the Summit. President Yudhoyono says that Indonesia will provide a recommendation to deal with the global financial crisis, which has affected developed countries. He also stated that Indonesia will push for an outcome that will not sacrifice the interest of developing countries.

In a column in Kompas analyst Christianto Wibisono says Indonesia needs a new comprehensive approach to discussions over building a new global financial system.

23/03/2009

An op-ed by Lord Malloch Brown, Institutional Reform Should Be Inclusive, is published by Seputar Indonesia.

20/03/2009

In a column in Jurnal Nasional, UK International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander points out that the global financial crisis poses a threat to humanitarian efforts. Even though most developing countries were not directly affected by the crisis, they were more vulnerable as the crisis now threatened access to education and nutrition among under-privileged communities. A coordinated global response was needed to overcome the problem, and the London Summit was an opportunity to set out steps to protect poor countries and the most vulnerable population.

18/03/2009

In a column in The Jakarta Post, John A Prasetyo, Vice Chairman of Kadin (Indonesian Chamber of Commerce), says economic nationalism is on the rise all over the world - despite the rhetoric on the evils of protectionism. He said it was crucial that the US remain the champion of open trade, and that G20 leaders demonstrate leadership to keep trade open.

Meanwhile, Jakarta Globe notes that despite calls for further stimulus measures at the G20, some top economists say there is no need for the government to increase its stimulus plan to above 2% of GDP. Analysts said that the government's Rp73.3tr fiscal stimulus package - equal to about 1.4 percent of GDP - was sufficient to support growth this year and limit the impact of the global economic downturn.

17/03/2009

The Jakarta Globe reports that Russia has unveiled radical and specific plans for sweeping global financial reforms designed to consign an 'obsolescent' world economic order to the past. The Kremlin says the current crisis has demonstrated the need to abandon traditional approaches and adopt collective and internationally agreed decisions aimed essentially at developing a globalization process management system.

16/03/2009

Bisnis Indonesia reports that Indonesia has proposed a facility to help companies extend their matured debts to cope with the global crisis. Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said the facility should be provided by US and European banks to help the private sector weather the crisis, especially in emerging economies.

Seputar Indonesia reports the head of fiscal policy at the Finance Ministry, Anggito Abimanyu, as saying: 'The world needs a fiscal stimulus' of at least 2 per cent of GDP in order to restore the global economy by 2010.

14/03/2009

President Yuhoyono spoke with US President Barack Obama via telephone on Friday, according to the Jakarta Post. The two leaders discussed the global economic crisis and the upcoming London Summit. In the 10-minute conversation, Obama told Yudhoyono that he wanted to build 'a comprehensive partnership' between the two countries especially in confronting the economic crisis.

10/03/2009

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva will represent Asean at the April 2Group of 20 Summit in London, where world leaders will discusssolutions to the global economic crisis, says The Nation. He would meet British PM Gordon Brown to discuss bilateral issues as well as prepare for the G-20 Summit.

16/02/2009

Falling commodity prices and export demand caused by the global economic slowdown led to the lowest quarterly growth rate in two years in the final quarter of 2008. Growth in the fourth quarter was 5.2 per cent over 2007, bringing the figure for the whole of 2008 to 6.1 per cent - The Jakarta Post.