Indonesia: Fighting for More FDI

taxIn an effort to expand FDI in the region, Indonesia will increase its tax holiday from 10 years to a maximum of 15 years for investments that fall into one of three categories: those of IDR 1 trillion (US$76 million) plus; labor-intensive investments, and investments that are made into the economically-poorer region of eastern Indonesia. It will also be applied to those categories viewed as “pioneer” like: base metals, communications equipment industry, machinery, oil refinery, and renewable energy.

Interestingly at the end of the first quarter of 2015, there was a notable increase in investment in Indonesia. It hit a record since when Joko Widodo was elected President, indicative of how he is succeeding in “revitalizing Southeast Asia’s biggest economy.” Indeed, figures showed that total investment went up 16.9 percent, resulting in a quarterly record of 124.6 trillion rupiah ($9.6 billion) during that time frame.