American Indonesian Chamber of Commerce

AMERICAN INDONESIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

About wayne-forrest2

Wayne Forrest is President of the American Indonesian Chamber of Commerce, a private not for profit membership organization based in NY.

Third Time A Charm

Third Time A Charm Commentary by Wayne Forrest Based on the quick counts Prabowo Subianto is predicted to be Indonesia’s next President, winning close to 60% of the vote; there will not be a July runoff. (Indonesia’s quick counts are reliable but official results will be released March 20.) The perennial candidate, 72, Prabowo takes

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Indonesia’s Response to Hamas Attacks

Indonesia's Response to Hamas Attacks Commentary by Wayne Forrest A few days ago Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo said that the Israel-Gaza conflict should be resolved according to United Nations-agreed parameters regarding “Israel’s occupation of Palestinian lands.” In his first public comments since Hamas fighters attacked southern Israel from the Gaza Strip Jokowi urged both sides

Recent Trends As Indonesia moves closer towards a pivotal national election, I thought it might be useful to set out a few trends to keep in mind going forward. Economic China: As Indonesia’s most important economic partner, China will remain key to Indonesia’s future. China is Indonesia largest two-way trading partner and Indonesia’s is

Democracy and Development

Democracy and Development Indonesians are worried about democracy and development, or at the least those that work at Indonesia’s leading English language publication, The Jakarta Post, and spoke at its 40th anniversary event: “The Sustainability of Democracy in Southeast Asia”.  The event and subsequent editorials show significant concern over the direction of democracy and

Rubber is the Pathway to Indonesia’s EV Future

Rubber is the Pathway to Indonesia's EV Future Commentary by Wayne Forrest I am a little tired of all the attention EV’s are getting. Their emergence in the world’s marketplace has energized countries, no pun intended, all over the world including Indonesia. Everyone wants to make them or their batteries, creating new jobs in

The Political Season

The Political Season The political season is underway in Indonesia.  Its political parties have begun announcing their candidates for President, although none have yet chosen their Vice-Presidential candidates. President Jokowi cannot run for a third term and attempts to extend his time because of the pandemic have been unsuccessful.  What then should we be

Are We More Palistinian Than The Palistinians?

Are We More Palistinian Than The Palistinians? Commentary by Wayne Forrest Indonesia doesn’t usually receive worldwide press attention for its accomplishments and reforms. Rather, it takes something bad like a disaster or cultural anomaly for Indonesia to get a lot of ink. So the world doesn’t hear stories such as Ford and Vale have

March Crazy Weather

March Crazy Weather Commentary by Wayne Forrest Where I live, 20 miles north of New York City, March is a complete mix of weather patterns. Snow one day, warm temperatures the next. “In like a lion and out like a lamb”, goes the saying. To read about developments in Indonesia is to experience this

Issue To Watch: Two Nations Adopting Industrial Policies

Issue To Watch: Two Nations Adopting Industrial Policies Commentary by Wayne Forrest Indonesia and the US are two nations that share many characteristics: large agricultural exporters, similar mottoes (Bhinneka Tunggal Ika, Unity in Diversity, E Pluribus Unum, Out of Many One), diversity of ethnic groups and languages; big producers of oil, gas, and minerals;

Outlook for 2023

Issue To Watch: Outlook for 2023 Commentary by Wayne Forrest​​​​​​​ As we predicted last January, Indonesia’s 2022 economic performance outstripped 2021, itself a return to growth following the first year of the pandemic. It was more than just government spending and higher mineral prices that helped boost GDP to over 5.0% by Q3: manufacturing

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