[Kabar-indonesia] 21 RI Biz/Econ Reports: Good Bond Demand; Telkom; Niaga; Palm Oil; IMF

[JoyoNews at aol.com]

21 reports:

- Good demand for Indonesia bonds 
  amid rate cut hopes
- Indonesia's economy growth to slow
    down in Q3: Central Bank
- Bloomberg: Indonesia buys back 
  Rp 2.37t (US$259 million) of bonds 
- JP update: IMF debt may be fully 
  repaid this year 
- Indonesia govt sells 2.37 trln rupiah 
  worth of T-bonds for debt switch
- Indonesia's electronic product sales
    drop
- Indonesia's pharmaceutical industry 
  forecast to grow 10%
- Clarity wins OSS contract with 
  Indonesia's PT Telkom
- Indonesia's Bank Niaga H1 net profit up 
  14.85 pct supported by loan growth
- Indonesia's BII says H1 net profit down
  11 percent
- Bank Buana Indonesia H1 net profit
  199.12 bln rupiah vs 215.08 bln
- Indonesia's Lion Air seeks financing 
  for aircraft purchase
- Indonesia Air Transport plans to list 
  on Jakarta bourse Sept 13
- Indonesia's Lippo Karawaci 2-for-1 stock
  split to take effect July 28
- Indonesian loan agency set to increase
  lending capacity
- Stock alert - Indonesia's Total Persada 
  higher vs IPO price on listing debut
- Indonesia's Astra Agro H1 net profit up
  7.6 percent
- Stock alert - Indonesia's Astra Agro 
  sharply higher after positive H1 results
- Users to buy 2007 palmoil on high
  price-Oil World
- Indonesia palm oil prices up on 
  Malaysia gains, buyers return
- Asia anti-piracy operation nets
    6.75 mln discs
- WSJ: South Korea Building Slump
  Slows GDP Growth [Central Bank 
  Keeps Forecast for Full Year; Rate 
  Rise Still Expected

Good demand for Indonesia bonds amid rate cut hopes

JAKARTA, July 25 (Reuters) - Indonesia attracted good demand for its
long-term paper in an auction on Tuesday amid hopes of interest rate
cuts, but analysts said any further gains on the bond market may be
limited after a recent spate of earthquakes.

The government swapped 2.365 trillion rupiah in bonds maturing
2007-2009 for 15-year debt FR0034 <IDGBFR0034=SU> on Tuesday. The
longer-term paper was priced to yield 12.41 percent, lower by one
basis point than the yield in an auction on July 11.

The bond swap came as the government stepped up its efforts to ease
the cost of servicing its heavy debt burden. The ratio of its public
debt to GDP currently stood at around half of GDP, or down from around
100 percent in 1999.

"The current market trend indicates further falls in yields because of
expectations of further interest rate cuts. This is a good time to
swap debt," Rahmat Waluyanto, the finance ministry's debt management
unit head, told reporters.

Yields have trended down in recent weeks, although they were still
among Asia's highest, as worries over higher U.S. interest rates
eases, while domestic interest rates are expected to come down as the
impact of the big Oct. 1 fuel price hikes fades.

Ratings agencies, however, rate Indonesian bonds below investment
grade, or as junk bonds. Standard & Poor's Ratings Services, for
example, rates Indonesian local currency government bonds "BB" -- two
notches below investment grade.

The central bank cut the BI rate <BIPG>, the one-month benchmark
interest rate, by 25 basis points to 12.25 percent this month, the
second reduction since the rate was introduced at 8.5 percent last
July following signs of an easing in inflation.

The bank is scheduled to review its rate policy on Aug. 8, with most
analysts expecting it to further cut the rate, although they ruled out
any aggressive rate cuts.

"Looking forward, yields may not continue falling as steep as before
amid worries the quakes may trigger more upward inflationary pressure,
which could prompt the central bank to slow the pace of its interest
cuts," said Handy Yunianto, a debt market analyst of Mandiri
Sekuritas.

---------------------------------

Indonesia's economy growth to slow down in Q3: Central Bank

JAKARTA, July 25 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - Bank Indonesia has forecast
that domestic economic growth will be slower in the third quarter of
this year with inflation and interest rate remaining high and in the
absence of fiscal stimulus.

In addition, inconsistency of the government policy, unfavorable labor
system, weak law enforcement and legal uncertainties will contribute
to lower than expected economic growth, according to a survey
conducted by the central bank.

The survey indicated that external factors are not expected to hinder
economic growth in the third quarter of this year, despite the surge
in global oil prices following the escalation of conflicts in Middle
East.

The macro economic condition is forecast to improve with the rupiah
expected to gain in value against the U.S. dollar and an increase in
current account surplus.

In general, the country's macro economic condition is predicted to be
better in 2006 than in 2005 with an anticipated stronger rupiah, lower
inflation and higher current account surplus, the survey said, without
providing data.

The chief representative of the International Monetary Fund in Jakarta
Stephen B. Scwartz said the country's economy is expected to expand by
5.2 per cent this year.

------------------------------------

Indonesia buys back Rp 2.37t (US$259 million) of bonds 

JAKARTA, July 25 (Bloomberg): Indonesia bought back Rp 2.37 trillion 
(US$259 million) of bonds and sold to investors the same amount of 
longer-term debt to cut interest payments.

The government purchased bonds maturing between February 2007 and July 2009 
and sold bonds due June 15, 2021, the finance ministry said in a statement in 
Jakarta. The government received Rp 2.6 trillion rupiah of bids for the debt it 
was seeking to sell.

The government has been buying back high-yielding debt to reduce its interest 
costs for more than two years. Indonesia spent more than Rp 450 trillion to 
bail out local banks after Asia's financial crisis of 1997 and 1998, raising 
funds through so-called recapitalization bonds.

The government sold the 2021 bond to investors at a price of 102.59 to yield 
12.41 percent, said Handy Yunianto, bond analyst at PT Mandiri Sekuritas in 
Jakarta.

On the secondary market, the bond closed at 103.39 to yield 12.29 percent.

Indonesia's government bought back Rp 3.04 trillion of short-maturity bonds 
and sold the same amount of longer-term debt on June 27. 

--------------------------------

The Jakarta Post
July 25, 2006

IMF debt may be fully repaid this year 

Indonesia may be able to press ahead this year with its plan to fully repay 
its remaining debt to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) -- a year earlier 
than scheduled -- on the back of recently strengthening foreign exchange 
reserves, the central bank said Monday.

"If we have enough money, then we will repay it this year," Bank Indonesia 
Governor Burhanuddin Abdullah told reporters Monday. 

"If not, then we'll give it another six months and made the final payments 
then." 

Burhanuddin's latest remarks are in line with those made by BI Senior Deputy 
Governor Miranda S. Goeltom in Malang last week, when she said that the 
repayment process would be completed this year. 

In June, Indonesia repaid half of its remaining US$7.8 billion debt to the 
IMF, which it received in the form of standby loans as part of a multibillion 
dollar bailout package after the eruption of the regional financial crisis in 
the late 1990s. 

Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati had earlier this year proposed 
accelerating the repayment of the debt to ease the increasing interest burden arising 
from it, with the government and the central bank finally agreeing to the 
repayment of the debt in two tranches. 

Burhanuddin had said that a second payment could be made either in November 
or December this year, or in 2007, after the making of the first payment in 
June. 

The original schedule for the repayment of the total debt was December 2010. 

The decision to fully repay the IMF debt will, however, still depend on the 
adequacy and sustainability of Indonesia's forex reserves, Burhanuddin said. He 
stated that the reserves must be sufficient to cover the cost of between 4.5 
and 4.7 months of imports, and the interest payments on the government's 
foreign debts. 

"If (the reserves) are more than that, then we will be able to pay (this 
year)," he said. 

Indonesia's forex reserves currently stand at US$44 billion, figures from the 
central bank show, which is enough to cover the cost of almost 5 months of 
imports and foreign debt interest payments. 

BI has also strengthened its reserves position through a number of swap 
agreements with other central banks in the region. 

But BI still needs to exercise prudence in managing the reserves, which serve 
to support the rupiah, given the jitters affecting the rupiah recently in the 
wake 
of persistently rising oil prices and worries over the new crisis in the 
Middle 
East. -- JP 

--------------------------------

Indonesia's electronic product sales drop

JAKARTA, July 25 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - Sales of electronic products in
Indonesia fell in the first half of this year compared with the same
period last year.

Data at the Electronics Marketer Club (EMC) show sales of air
conditioners shrank by 27 per cent from 438,649 units to 322,151
units.

Sales of television sets fell 10 per cent to 1.68 million units from
1.86 million units despite a 17 per cent increase in June
year-on-year.

EMC spokesman Hindrata Lengkey attributed the June's increase in sales
of television sets to recent World Cup football championship.

-------------------------------------------------------

Indonesia's pharmaceutical industry forecast to grow 10%

JAKARTA, July 25 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - The country's pharmaceutical
industry is forecast to grow 10 per cent in the first half of this
year from the same period last year.

The growth rate is expected to be about the same as last year as the
recent cuts in prices by local producers will not immediately has
effect yet, the association of pharmaceutical companies (GP Farmasi)
said.

Local producers agreed to cut the prices of 100 types of generic
medicines on July 1, 2006, GP Farmasi chairman Syamsul Arifin said.

--------------------------------------------------------

Clarity wins OSS contract with Indonesia's PT Telkom

SYDNEY, July 25/MediaNet International-AsiaNet/ -- Clarity
International, a leading global supplier of next-generation
Operational Support Systems (OSS), has signed a multi-million-dollar
contract with Indonesian tier one telecommunications service provider
PT Telkom.

PT Telkom selected Clarity OSS after an extensive international search.

It was seeking world-best technology to unify and improve its services
across all its products while reducing operational costs.

Clarity chief executive Dr Tomislav Mati said the $6.3 million PT
Telkom contract was the fourth enterprise-wide OSS deal won by Clarity
this year.

He said Clarity was the first new-generation OSS to be deployed
end-to-end by tier one telecommunications service providers across all
lines of business.

This contract reinforces Claritys belief that telecommunications
service providers require a single pre-integrated OSS, rather than a
complex mix of multiple best-of-breed solutions that are difficult and
expensive to integrate and operate, he said.

Ultimately, multiple vendor models may deliver strong technical
performance, but they are inevitably time-consuming and poor value for
businesses.

PT Telkom chief information officer Indra Utoyo said the company chose
Claritys pre-integrated OSS to fully automate its communications
network following a detailed evaluation process.

As Indonesias largest information communications company, it is
imperative that we continue to provide the highest levels of service
to our customers while driving down costs in our operations to retain
our competitive advantage, Mr Utoyo said.

Clarity OSS, once deployed, will give us full visibility of our
network, enable us to cater for future growth in subscriber volumes
through its inherent scalability, and ensure we are in a position to
deliver accurate and timely quality service and fulfilment to our
customers.

Dr Matic said the PT Telkom contract followed a number of deals this
year, including:

* Being selected by Indonesias Hutchison PT Hutchison CP

Telecommunications and its prime systems integrator, Tech Mahindra, to
provide highly scalable real-time provisioning of mobile services

* Signing a multi-million-dollar licence deal with Telekom Malaysia
Berhad for Clarity's convergent inventory system

* Being chosen by Philippine Long Distance Telecom as the strategic
OSS platform for the transition of its fixed-line network to a

next-generation network

-Ends- For more information or interviews, please contact: Clarity
Marketing +61 2 9925 5000 marketingclarity.com

About Clarity

Clarity is Asia Pacific's market leader in the delivery of innovative
telecommunications Operational Support Systems (OSS).

Developed as a pre-integrated end-to-end solution, Clarity OSS is
setting the standard for seamless delivery of resource management,
service provisioning and service assurance within the one system.

Uniquely designed to support convergence, Clarity engineers,
provisions and assures voice, data, IP, application and content
services over legacy and next generation networks.

About PT Telkom

PT Telkom (Telkom) is Indonesia s largest InfoComm company and full
service and network provider.

Telkom and its affiliated companies provide fixed wireline, fixed
wireless, mobile, data, internet and multi-media as well as network
and interconnection services.

With more than 12 million fixed-line subscribers and over 24 million
mobile subscribers Telkom is one of the world s leading telcos.

BusinessWeek magazine ranked Telkom twentieth in its 2005 list of the
world s 100 best information and technology companies. Further
information can be found at www.clarity.com and www.telkom.co.id

Source: Clarity International/PT Telekom

---------------------------------------------------------

Indonesia's Bank Niaga H1 net profit up 14.85 pct supported by loan growth

JAKARTA, July 25 (XFN-ASIA) - PT Bank Niaga said its net profit in the
first half to June rose 14.85 pct year-on-year to 353.49 bln rupiah
from 307.76 bln a year earlier, boosted by positive growth in lending
to the consumer, retail-commercial and corporate sectors.

"The bank's net profit rose 14.85 pct in the first half, supported by
the loan growth to the consumer, retail-consumer and corporate
sectors," bank president Peter Stok said.

However, credit performance was undermined by the high interest rate
environment, which triggered a 115.45 pct surge in interest expenses
to 1.52 trln rupiah from 709.10 bln, the bank said.

In a statement, the bank said its outstanding loans rose slightly by
4.6 pct year-on-year to 30.65 trln rupiah at the end of June.

"Although the banking industry recorded a slower loan growth in the
first half, Bank Niaga managed to increase its outstanding loans by 20
pct to 30. 65 trln rupiah in the first half 2006, from 25.55 trln
rupiah during the same period last year," Stok said.

Third party funds, or savings and term deposits, increased 23.4 pct
year-on-year to 33.5 trln rupiah from a year earlier, he said.

Interest income rose sharply by 69.67 pct to 2.63 trln rupiah, up from
1. 55 trln in the previous year.

As a result of rising interest expenses, Bank Niaga's net interest
income grew by only 30.88 pct to 1.10 trln rupiah in the first half
from 840.42 bln in previous year.

Stok said the bank's net non-performing loan (NPL) ratio fell to 4.11
pct in the first half of 2006 from 4.44 pct in the previous year while
gross NPL ratio fell to 5.24 pct from 6.05 pct previously.

The bank's loan to deposit ratio (LDR) fell slightly to 90.93 pct from
93. 20 pct, he said.

Operating profit in the half rose by 23.81 pct to 435.55 bln rupiah
from 351.77 bln the preceding year.

Its capital adequacy ratio (including market risk charge) rose to
17.30 pct from 10.33 pct a year earlier. Stok said the increase was
partly due to the sale of 100 mln usd of subordinated debt last July
and a rights issue worth 1.3 trln rupiah in the second half of last
year.

He added that the bank decided to revise down its outstanding loan
target for the full year to 33 trln rupiah from the earlier target of
35 trln amid slower than expected economic growth.

"However, we maintain our net interest income target of 2.28 trln
rupiah for the full year. Net interest may not necessarily decline,
depending on how we manage the cost of funds and lending," Stok said.

--------------------------------------------------------

Indonesia's BII says H1 net profit down 11 percent

JAKARTA, July 25 (Reuters) - Following are the consolidated results of
PT Bank Internasional Indonesia Tbk for the six months ended June 30,
2006.

(in billions of rupiah)
                                      2006     2005
Net Profit                        352       397
Net Interest Income     1,399     1,129

Note: Bank Internasional Indonesia is the country's sixth largest
lender with a market capitalisation around $996 million. A consortium
that consists of South Korea's Kookmin Bank , Singapore state
investment arm Temasek Holdings [TEM.UL] and Britain's Barclays Plc
controls the bank.

------------------------------------------------------

Bank Buana Indonesia H1 net profit 199.12 bln rupiah vs 215.08 bln

JAKARTA, July 25 (XFN-ASIA) - PT Bank Buana Indonesia's first half to
June results:

Interest income - 1.07 trln rupiah vs 734.95 bln
Net interest income - 549.87 bln rupiah vs 454.75 bln
Operating profit - 290.30 bln rupiah vs 304.90 bln
Net profit - 199.12 bln rupiah vs 215.08 bln
Earnings per share - 30 rupiah vs 37

----------------------------------------------------------

Indonesia's Lion Air seeks financing for aircraft purchase

JAKARTA, July 25 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - At least six syndicates of
international leasing companies are interested in financing the
purchase of 60 units of Boeing 737-900 ER aircraft by Lion Air, the
airline said.

Lion Air president Rusdi Kirana told newspaper Bisnis Indonesia that
negotiations were in progress with the six syndicates but declined to
provide any names.

Lion Air, the country's largest budget airline, has announced a plan
to buy 60 units of the latest series of Boeing aircraft at a price of
US$3.9 billion under a hire purchase deal.

Hasym Arsal Alhabsi, public relations manager of Lion Air, said the
airline will be the first user of the new series to be rolled out from
the Boeing aircraft factory in Seattle on August 8.

The aircraft will go through a test run for five months before they
are commercially operated in April, 2007.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Indonesia Air Transport plans to list on Jakarta bourse Sept 13

JAKARTA, July 25 (XFN-ASIA) - Chartered airline PT Indonesia Air
Transport, a unit of diversified business group PT Bimantara Citra,
said it plans to list its shares on the Jakarta Stock Exchange on Sept
13.

In a statement to the stock exchange, it said it plans to sell 432 mln
shares or 20 pct of its enlarged capital via an IPO prior to the
listing.

No further details on the IPO plan were given.

Bimantara president Harry Tanoesoedibyo earlier said the company hopes
to raise 60-70 bln rupiah from the IPO.

Bimantara is also planning to float shares of its CDMA-based cellular
operator unit PT Mobile-8 Telecom.

-------------------------------------------------------

Indonesia's Lippo Karawaci 2-for-1 stock split to take effect July 28

JAKARTA, July 25 (XFN-ASIA) - Property firm PT Lippo Karawaci said its
planned two-for-one stock split will take effect on July 28.

It said the split will reduce the nominal value of the shares to 250
rupiah each from the current 500.

Earlier, the company said the stock split aims to boost trading
activity in its shares and improve liquidity.

--------------------------------------------------------

Indonesian loan agency set to increase lending capacity

JAKARTA, July 25 (Asia Pulse/Antara) - PT Permodalan Nasional Madan, a
government agency offering loans for small and medium businesses said
it will issue a bond valued at Rp300 billion (US$33.3 million) to
increase its lending capacity.

PNM is selecting an underwriter for the bond to be issued in the last
quarter of this year, the newspaper Bisnis Indonesia said quoting
company sources.

There are six securities companies invited to compete for the bond -
PT Andalan Atha Advisindo Sekuritas, PT Trimegah Securities, PT
Mandiri Sekuritas, PT Danareksa Sekuritas, PT Indopremier Securities
and PT Investindo Nusantara Sekuritas.

Operational Director of PNM Wiwin P Soedjito said Rp250 billion of the
fund will be allocated for small business and share financing firms
and the rest for venture capital companies.

Last year, PNM posted Rp40.5 billion in net profit and in the first
half of his year its net profit already totaled Rp25 billion.

--------------------------------------------------------

Stock alert - Indonesia's Total Persada higher vs IPO price on listing debut

JAKARTA, July 25 (XFN-ASIA) - Construction firm PT Total Bangun
Persada was sharply higher against its IPO price on its listing debut,
dealers said.

Total Persada was up 30 rupiah or 8.7 pct at 375 on volume of 70.19 mln 
shares.

"I think there is genuine interest in the stock partly because,
valuation-wise, it is attractive," said a dealer with Mandiri
Securities.

He said there are hopes that the rally would be sustainable given that
prospects for the firm's construction business is positive.

Total Persada's IPO of 300 mln shares was oversubscribed by 7.6 times
for the offer to retail investors and 1.3 times for the offer to
institutional investors.

The underwriters allocated 285 mln shares to institutional investors
-- of which 60 pct were foreign investors -- and only 15 mln shares to
retail investors.

---------------------------------------------------------

Indonesia's Astra Agro H1 net profit up 7.6 percent

JAKARTA, July 25 (Reuters) - Indonesia's largest listed plantation
firm, PT Astra Agro Lestari Tbk , reported on Tuesday a 7.6 percent
increase in its first half net profit to 414.68 billion rupiah ($45.31
million).

The company, controlled by Indonesia's largest automotive distributor,
PT Astra International Tbk , booked a 17.6 percent rise in its sales
revenue to 1.86 trillion rupiah. It has around 200,000 hectares of
palm oil plantations in Sumatra, Sulawesi and Kalimantan.

Astra Agro had said its crude palm oil (CPO) sales jumped 23 percent
compared with the year-ago period to 476,597 tonnes, due to higher
output. High overseas demand boosted its exports by 58.2 percent to
166,559 tonnes, or around 35 percent of its total sales.

The company's average CPO price per kilo in the first six months rose
2.3 percent to 3,351 rupiah, driven by the strengthening of global
palm and soyoil prices.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Stock alert - Indonesia's Astra Agro sharply higher after positive H1 results

JAKARTA, July 25 (XFN-ASIA) - Shares of crude palm oil (CPO) producer
PT Astra Agro Lestari were sharply higher in morning trade after the
company reported positive first half results, dealers said.

The company earlier announced a net profit of 414.68 bln rupiah for
the first half, 7.6 pct more than it made a year before, due to higher
sales.

First-half sales surged to 1.86 trln rupiah from 1.58 trln rupiah the
year before, while operating profit rose to 614.88 bln from 591.64 bln
previously, it said.

At 9.52 am, Astra Agro was up 500 rupiah or 6.54 pct at 8,150 on
volume of 1.19 mln shares.

The composite index was up 9.594 points or 0.74 pct at 1,312.744 on
trade of 273.01 mln shares valued at 366.6 bln rupiah.

---------------------------------------------------------

Users to buy 2007 palmoil on high price-Oil World

HAMBURG, July 25 (Reuters) - The recent rise in palm oil prices to
two-year highs is likely to generate more consumer buying of 2007
supplies, Hamburg-based oilseeds analysts Oil World said.

Palm oil prices surged last week after the world's top producers
Malaysia and Indonesia decided to set aside nearly 40 percent of their
crude palm oil output for biodiesel production.

"Malaysian palm oil stocks are still very high but demand is now
picking up," Oil World said.

"Worldwide, consumers in the food industry are concerned about the
threat of rapidly increasing consumption of palm oil for biofuels,
once the new biodiesel production units currently being built or
planned in Malaysia and Indonesia become operational."

"One of the responses is likely to be consumer efforts to expand their
coverage as far as possible into 2007."

"This is already reflected in the widening price premiums of the
deferred positions."

----------------------------------------------------------

Indonesia palm oil prices up on Malaysia gains, buyers return

JAKARTA, July 25 (Reuters) - Indonesia's palm oil prices rose on
Tuesday, tracking gains in Malaysia crude palm oil futures while
buyers returned to the market in anticipation of a further rise in
prices, traders said.

Crude palm oil prices at the state marketing centre's auction in
Jakarta were quoted at 4,101 rupiah a kg, up from 4,077 rupiah a kg
last Thursday. The centre, which sells palm oil from state
plantations, failed to sell CPO on Friday and did not hold any local
auctions on Monday.

In Medan, CPO was traded at 4,101 rupiah a kg, up from 4,075 rupiah a
kg last Thursday. There were no local auctions in Medan on Friday and
Monday.

"A rally in Malaysia supports local prices. Buyers are rushing to
purchase palm oil for stocking as they see the uptrend in prices is
likely to continue," said a trader in Medan, the capital of North
Sumatra province and a key port for palm oil exports.

In Jakarta, cooking oil was quoted around 4,600 rupiah a kg, up from
4,570 rupiah a kg on Monday.

Malaysian crude palm oil futures rose by midday on Tuesday, fuelled by
improved export performance and higher prices of rival soyoil with the
benchmark third-month October <KPOV6> contract on the Bursa Malaysia
Derivatives up seven ringgit at 1,572 ringgit ($426) a tonne.

Exports of Malaysian palm products for July 1-25 stood at 968,714
tonnes, up 7.4 percent from the 901,923 tonnes shipped between June 1
and 25, cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services said on Tuesday.

In the export market, sellers offered August shipment at $420 a tonne,
free on board Belawan on Tuesday and buyers bid at $415 a tonne. There
were no deals reported.

September shipment was offered at $422.5 rupiah a tonne, free on board
Belawan. Bids were seen at $417.5 without any deals reported.

------------------------------------------------------------

Asia anti-piracy operation nets 6.75 mln discs

SHANGHAI, July 25 (Reuters) - A two-month Asia-wide anti-piracy
operation netted 6.75 million in counterfeit discs, with China and
Indonesia accounting for nearly two-thirds of the total, a film
industry group said on Tuesday.

Operation Red Card, which ran from early May to mid-July, also
resulted in 915 arrests and the seizure of 1,483 optical disc burners,
said the Motion Picture Association (MPA), whose members include all
the major Hollywood studios.

Authories conducted 1,919 raids in 12 countries throughout Asia, with
a special emphasis on piracy hot spots "that had caused significant
problems in the past and resisted previous arrest efforts," the MPA
said.

The operation in China was one of the biggest, consisting of 405 raids
and 1.96 million discs seized. Raids in Indonesia saw seizure of 305
DVD disc burners and 2.16 million discs.

Malaysia was also a hot spot, with 128 people arrested and 1.18
million optical discs seized in 455 raids, the MPA said.

"Over the past two years, the MPA's four biannual anti-piracy sweeps
have collectively resulted in more than 2,500 arrests and more than 23
million pirated optical discs seized," Mike Ellis, the group's
Asia-Pacific regional director, said in a statement.

Piracy resulted in $6.1 billion in lost sales globally last year for
MPA members, which include Walt Disney Co. , Time Warner Inc.'s Warner
Bros studio, and General Electric's Universal studio, according to the
MPA's own estimates.

Within that total, $1.2 billion in lost sales came from Asia.

------------------------------------

The Wall Street Journal
Wednesday, July 26, 2006

South Korea Building Slump
Slows GDP Growth

Central Bank Keeps
Forecast for Full Year;
Rate Rise Still Expected

By EVAN RAMSTAD

SEOUL, South Korea -- South Korea's economic-growth rate slowed in the second 
quarter because of a slump in new construction, but the nation's central bank 
stuck to its annual growth forecast, and analysts said they expect the bank 
to raise interest rates at least once more this year.

The Bank of Korea said its preliminary measurement of gross domestic product, 
a gauge of broad economic output, rose a seasonally adjusted 0.8% in the 
second quarter from the first, slowing from a 1.2% expansion in the first quarter 
and marking the slowest pace since the first quarter of 2005, when GDP 
increased 0.5%.

>From a year earlier, GDP rose 5.3% in the second quarter. The performance was 
below the central bank's forecast of 5.5% growth. In the first quarter, the 
rate of expansion from a year earlier was 6.1%.

Despite the slowdown in the construction sector, public-sector investments 
and consumer spending made it likely the economy would hit the bank's growth 
forecast of 4% to 5% for 2006, the bank said. Economists said the greatest risk 
to the Korean economy in the second half of the year is the prospect of slower 
growth in key export markets, such as the U.S. and China.

South Korea is the world's 10th-largest economy, with annual GDP of around 
$800 billion. While growth averaged in the high-single-digits range for much of 
the 1990s, economic growth in recent years has averaged around 5%.

The increase in the first quarter had signaled that 2006 might be much better 
than last year, when South Korea's economy expanded 4% from the year before. 
A government effort that began last year to curb real-estate speculation 
through higher taxes and new rules took a toll on construction spending, which fell 
3.2% from a year earlier and 2.7% from the first quarter. The sector accounts 
for about 17% of South Korea's GDP.

A construction rebound may not occur until next year, when building is 
expected to begin on a new complex outside Seoul that will become home for several 
units of South Korea's national government. That project is designed to relieve 
some of the stress on the sprawling Seoul area.

The cornerstone of South Korea's economy -- its export-focused manufacturing 
sector -- is flourishing despite the rising value of the Korean won, which can 
damp exporters' results in a variety of ways. The latest data show that 
exports of goods rose 16.3% from a year earlier, by far the strongest rate of the 
past 18 months, as process improvements allowed the country's manufacturers to 
lower prices and adapt to the rising value of the currency. The won has 
appreciated 5.7% against the U.S. dollar in the past 12 months.

The Bank of Korea has raised interest rates four times since October in an 
effort to stem inflation. Analysts said the latest economic-growth data are 
unlikely to prevent the bank from making at least one more rate increase this year.

"Inflationary pressure hasn't grown more," said Cho Won Dong, 
director-general at the Ministry of Finance and Economy's bureau of economic policy. He added 
it was up to the central bank to decide whether to raise rates further.

--Jin-Young Yook contributed to this article.

------------------------------------------
Joyo Indonesia News Service
------------------------------------------