GENERAL NEWS AND HEADLINES

Syarifuddin appointed head of Supreme Court
Kompas (https://tinyurl.com/y8pzys6a); Tempo (https://tinyurl.com/y7nmoymt); Detik (https://tinyurl.com/y9d6p7em); CNN Indonesia (https://tinyurl.com/ycc2n3xc)

President Joko “Jokowi’ Widodo officially appointed Syarifuddin as the Supreme Court head at the State Palace on Thursday.

Syarifuddin replaces Hatta Ali, who had retired from the position. His inauguration was stated in Presidential Decree No. 41/P/2020 on the dismissal of the deputy head of the court’s judicial departments, along with the appointment of the Supreme Court head. Syarifuddin successfully collected 32 votes, beating Andi Samsan Nganro who managed to secure 14 votes.

Furthermore, President Jokowi also appointed Constitutional Court judge Manahan Sitompul to serve the 2020-2025 term after previously serving at the court throughout 2015-2020.

 

All Jakarta subdistricts confirmed to have cases of COVID-19
Detik (https://tinyurl.com/y9rg7zvk)

All 44 subdistricts of Jakarta province have confirmed cases of COVID-19, with the Tanah Abang area in Central Jakarta having the highest transmission rate.

According to the official website of the Jakarta provincial government, the area had up to 4,033 positive cases as of April 29 with all regions of the province already affected. The last subdistricts to report confirmed COVID-19 cases were in the Thousand Islands area, namely the North Thousand Islands and South Thousand Islands subdistricts.

 

Civil servants to report to govt before ‘mudik’
CNN Indonesia (https://tinyurl.com/ycag3tpy)

The government has decided to give concessions to state civil servants (ASN) and their families who needed to return to their hometowns due to emergencies.

Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform Ministry spokesman Bambang D. Sumarsono said that state employees were still prohibited from partaking in the Idul Fitri mudik (exodus) as well as crossing regional borders unless absolutely necessary. Even in cases of emergency, Bambang explained that civil servants were required to request a permit from relevant officials including the secretary-general, the ministry secretary or the main secretary at the central level and the regional secretary for the regional level.

 

BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS NEWS AND HEADLINES 

Finance Ministry projects RI economy to grow more than 4 percent in Q1
Kontan, (https://tinyurl.com/ycov4hbt); Investor Daily, (https://tinyurl.com/ybygv9xs)

Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati projects the country’s economy to grow by more than 4 percent in the first quarter this year since the period is supported by the economic activities that took place in January and February. However, the large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) implemented in April are estimated to result in economic growth dropping to 2.3 percent, or even negative growth of 0.5 percent in a worst-case scenario, in the second quarter. Meanwhile, the economy is predicted to pick up in the third and fourth quarters.

According to ratings agency Moody’s Investors Service, Indonesia would be one of three Southeast Asian countries to have positive economic growth this year at 2.1 percent. The two other countries are Vietnam and the Philippines which are predicted to grow 3.1 percent and 2.3 percent, respectively.

 

BI projects 0.18 percent monthly inflation in April
CNN Indonesia, (https://tinyurl.com/y9bgacjj); Detik Finance, (https://tinyurl.com/y9c83evj)

Bank Indonesia (BI) projects 0.18 percent monthly inflation and 2.78 annual inflation in April. BI Governor Perry Warjiwo said a sugar price increase contributed the most to the inflation at 0.02 percent, followed by orange and shallots with 0.05 percent and 0.21 percent respectively. However, although several commodity prices are rising, Perry believes the level of inflation is manageable because the large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) have reduced demand.

Sugar prices have soared to Rp 18,250 (US$1.21) per kilogram, almost 50 percent higher than the government-set price ceiling of Rp 12,500. The government recently established a food task force (Satgas Pangan) to investigate abnormal food prices in the market, especially sugar. The task force found that state-owned plantation company PT Perkebunan Nusantara (PTPN) II in North Sumatra had been selling 5,000 tons of sugar at Rp 12,900 to local traders, who would then resell the sugar to retailers at higher prices. The Trade Minister then gave a reminder to all sugar producers and distributors to sell sugar below the price ceiling.

 

OJK: 65 banks provide credit relief worth Rp 113.8 trillion
CNBC Indonesia, (https://tinyurl.com/yat9lkta), (https://tinyurl.com/y6w66kxq); Kompas, (https://tinyurl.com/y7rxp2md)

The Financial Services Authority (OJK) announced today that, per April 26, 65 banks have provided credit relief worth Rp 113.8 trillion (US$7.57 billion) to debtors affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes debt restructuring approved for 522,728 micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). Meanwhile, per April 27, the multi-finance industry has provided credit relief for 253,185 debtors worth Rp 13.2 trillion. Furthermore, applications for debt restructuring from 367,465 debtors worth Rp 25.36 trillion are currently being processed. OJK spokesperson Sekar Putri Djarot said that the financial service’s intermediary performance grew positively in March with bank lending growing of 7.95 percent year-on-year.

 

Gojek announces acquisition of online cashier app Moka
CNBC Indonesia, (https://tinyurl.com/y7qq559z); Kontan, (https://tinyurl.com/ybz6ghgc); Detik, (https://tinyurl.com/ydd3n3gp); Bisnis Indonesia, (https://tinyurl.com/ya8abshc)   

Homegrown ride-hailing app Gojek has officially acquired Singapore-based online cashier Moka Technology Solutions. Through this acquisition, Gojek and Moka plan to integrate their services to support the digitalization of Indonesian micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) by helping offline businesses to go online. Furthermore, the acquisition allows Moka to remain an independent entity integrated in the Gojek merchant ecosystem. "We are very excited to be a part of the Gojek ecosystem and to accelerate our mission to help small businesses continue to grow," Moka CEO and co-founder Haryanto Tanjo said Thursday.

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