Below is a list with tagged columns and company profiles.
Today's Headlines Property
On Thursday (6 April 2023), Indonesia Investments released the March 2023 edition of its monthly report. In this report we offer in-depth analyses of the key economic, political and social matters that impacted on Indonesia in the month of March 2023.
A homestay in Bantul (in the special region of Yogyakarta, one of the busiest tourist destinations in Indonesia) has just come on the market, and it could be a very interesting investment object for those who are active in the tourism industry (or those who seek to expand their business into the tourism industry).
At its latest monetary policy meeting, completed on 18 February 2021, Indonesia’s central bank (Bank Indonesia) decided to cut its benchmark interest rate (the seven-day reverse repurchase rate) by 25 basis points (bps) to 3.50 percent, a historically low level for Southeast Asia’s largest economy. Also the deposit facility and lending facility rates were cut by 25 bps to 2.75 percent and 4.25 percent, respectively.
The Indonesian government has revised its luxury goods tax policy (in Indonesia known as PPnBM) for (luxury) property. Previously, apartments with a selling price of at least IDR 10 billion (approx. USD $700,000) and houses with a selling price of at least IDR 20 billion (approx. USD $1.4 million) were subject to a 20 percent luxury goods tax. The latest revision has now raised the minimum price of the property to IDR 30 billion (approx. USD $2.1 million) for all types of property.
Urban Jakarta Propertindo, a Jakarta-based property developer that focuses on the integration between property development and the availability of public transportation, will offer 600 million shares - equivalent to 16.85 percent of the company's total shares - to the public through an initial public offering (IPO) on the Indonesia Stock Exchange.
The local government of West Java said it is currently busy compiling all data related to the Lippo Group's ambitious Meikarta project. West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil said thorough investigation will then be done - based on the data - to decide whether the grand property project can resume or whether there are matters that need to be fixed.
Those who are searching for a luxurious house at a strategic location in the city of Yogyakarta should take a moment to look at this house. The buyer will also obtain all furniture that is visible in the pictures (including a very luxurious dining table). The location of the house is not far from Yogyakarta's Adisucipto Airport.
At the latest policy meeting (29/06) Bank Indonesia decided to relax the loan-to-value (LTV) and financing-to-value (FTV) ratios in the country's property sector (effective per 1 August 2018). By lowering down payment obligations for the consumer, the central bank aims to make it more attractive for consumers to purchase property using House Ownership Credit (Kredit Pemilikan Rumah, KPR), hence boosting overall credit growth as well as Indonesia's macroeconomic growth.
Dynamic Credit, a Netherlands-based innovative asset management and direct lending firm, is set to become a new player in Indonesia's mortgage industry. Through local subsidiary Dynamic Credit Asia it will sell mortgages to Indonesian consumers using funds from local institutional investors. Tonko Gast, CEO at Dynamic Credit, said Indonesia's rapidly growing middle class leads to a rising pool of retirement and insurance funds. However, the availability of fixed-income investments are limited in Southeast Asia's largest economy.
Astra International, one of Indonesia's largest diversified conglomerates, announced it will develop a luxurious residential apartment complex, called Arumaya, in South Jakarta in cooperation with Hongkong Land, a Hong Kong-based multinational property investment, management and development group. The complex is estimated to require investments worth IDR 1 trillion (approx. USD $75 million).
Latest Columns Property
Indonesia's residential property market has shown robust growth in recent years as demand from the country's rapidly expanding middle class for mid-level and luxury property increased steadily amid a low interest rate environment and robust national economic growth. Demand for property is also backed by high consumer confidence as a recent Nielsen survey shows that Indonesians are among the world's most confident consumers. Indonesians' consumer confidence was at a four-year high in the fourth quarter of 2013.
When there are few positive sentiments that can push Indonesia's benchmark stock index (Jakarta Composite Index, also known as IHSG) into higher territory there is always the risk of downreversal due to profit taking. Particularly as the IHSG has shown a steady rising trend in recent weeks. The IHSG's decline on Monday (24/02) was influenced by falling Asian indices after a sell off of property and construction stocks emerged. The continued appreciation of the Indonesian rupiah exchange rate was also unable to provide enough support for the index.
With slowing economic growth and a stricter monetary policy approach of the central bank, Indonesia's ceramic industry is expected to record slowing growth in 2014. This year, the country's ceramic sales are projected to amount to 400 million square meters (m²). About 12 percent of this amount is exported to countries abroad. However, in 2014, sales are expected to plunge by 5 to 10% to 360-380 million m². A weakening rupiah and slowing property sector, which accounts for significant ceramic demand, are the major causes of the decline.
Indonesia Investments presents a selection of corporate earnings reports (third quarter 2013) of Indonesian companies that are listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange, categorized by sector: (1) agriculture & mining, (2) basic industry and chemicals, (3) miscellaneous industry, (4) consumer goods, (5) property and real estate, (6) infrastructure, utilities and transportation, (7) finance, and (8) trade, services and investment. The tables display both net profit (loss) and revenues over the first nine months of 2013, together with year-on-year (yoy) growth.
Indonesia's benchmark stock index (IHSG) was not able to continue its rebound. On Friday (15/11), the IHSG fell 0.73 percent to 4,335.45 points amid widespread profit taking. Foreign investors recorded net selling of IDR 193 billion (USD $16.9 million) on today's trading day. Moreover, investors are concerned about the impact of the higher interest rate of the central bank (7.50 percent), particularly on the property and banking sectors in the fourth quarter of 2013.
According to Ferry Salanto, Associate Research Director at Colliers International Indonesia, the weakening rupiah exchange rate against the US dollar in recent months has resulted in an increase of property sales in Indonesia, particularly apartments. Salanto says it is not just an investment for the buyer but also a matter of security. Property is currently a better and safer alternative to the holding of rupiahs. In the third quarter of 2013, property sales increased despite the higher benchmark interest rate and the tightening property credit environment.
According to the Indonesian Cement Association (ASI), cement sales in Indonesia reached 41.6 million tons in the first three quarters of 2013, a 5.3 percent increase compared to domestic cement sales in the same period in 2012 (39.5 million tons), while Indonesia's cement exports jumped by 187 percent to 503 thousand tons. As such, total cement sales from January to September 2013 grew 6.2 percent to 42 million tons. Meanwhile, Semen Indonesia, Indonesia's largest cement producer, managed to expand its market share.
Bank Indonesia amended its regulation concerning the Loan To Value (LTV) and Financing To Value (FTV) ratio for property credit and property-backed consumer loans. The LTV/FTV ratio is the ratio between the value of credit/financing that can be allocated by a bank and the corresponding value of collateral in the form of property when the loan is allocated. Property is real property that includes houses, vertical housing (apartments, flats, condominiums and penthouses), home offices and home stores.
In order to avert a potential bubble in Indonesia's property sector, Bank Indonesia (the central bank of Indonesia) is planning to further tighten its monetary policy in the sector. After having raised the minimum down payment requirement on housing loans to 30 percent for first home ownership (thus a loan-to-value ratio of 70 percent) in June 2012, Bank Indonesia now intends to prohibit credits for the purchase of a second, third (or more) house that has not been built yet (still in the preconstruction phase). This new rule is expected to be introduced this month.
According to data from the Indonesian Cement Association (ASI), domestic cement sales have fallen 5.8 percent to 3.3 million tons in August 2013 (from the same month last year). Being an important indicator of economic expansion (as cement sales inform about the development of property and infrastructure projects in the country), these lower cement sales confirm the slowing pace of economic growth in Indonesia. Compared to July 2013, cement sales in Indonesia fell by a massive 32 percent.
