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Jakarta (ANTARA News) – Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his visitng Finnish counterpart, Tarja Halonen, have agreed to intensify bilateral cooperation in the trade and investment sectors which has so far remained low.

“We have agreed to intensify trade and investment cooperation. The value of our two-way trade last year was still low, namely only US$550 million, while Finnish investment in Indonesia amounts to only US$2 million,” Yudhoyono said at a joint press conference with Halonen at the Merdeka Palace on Monday.

The joint press conference was held as part of the Finnish President`s two-day state visit to Indonesia.

Yudhoyono added Finland was a potential market for Indonesian exports which so far had mostly gone to the United States, China and parts of Europe.

“I have asked our trade minister and the chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry to identify or find ways in which trade with Filand can be stepped up,” he added.

President Halonen, meanwhile, noted Indonesia had huge natural resources that could be developed for the benefit of its people.

She said Finland had much international experience in the management (of natural resources) and would look into the possiility of sharing its experience with Indonesia.

She added Finland also wanted to intensify cooperation in many sectors with Indonesia.

Indonesian Trade Minister Mari Elka Pangestu, meanwhile, said opening trade relations with Finland would also mean opening opportunities to step up trade with the European region, Scandinavian nations and Russia.

The trade balance between Indonesia and Finland was now still in the latter`s favor as Indonesia`s imports from Finland totaled US$373 million and its exports to Finland US$177 million in 2007.

Pangestu said the Indonesian government was actually hoping that some big companies in Finland, including Nokia, would invest in Indonesia.

A meeting between Indonesian and Finnish trade ministry officials was scheduled to take place on Tuesday

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Jakarta (ANTARA News) – Indonesian shares were higher in early trade Tuesday, driven by palm oil stocks and tracking gains in other Asian markets.

“We basically look for leads from other markets, especially Hong Kong, today. Normally, some traders would use a moment like this to quickly lock in profit,” said Paulus Thomas, a senior dealer at Batavia Prosperindo.

After a strong opening, the main index is nearing its resistance level simply because investors are not so optimistic about the market’s longer-term outlook, he told Thomson Financial.

Denpasar, Bali (ANTARA News) – Bali province in the first eleven months of 2007 exported US$461.9 million worth of non-oil/non-gas commodities, exceeding its target of US$458.7 million for the year.

“I believe the foreign exchange earnings from Bali`s non-oil/non-gas exports will be 10 percent higher than the central government-set target,” Head of the Foreign Trade Division at the Bali Industry and Trade Office Ni Wayan Kusumawathi said here Tuesday.

On average, handicraft, agricultural, plantation and aquatic product exports contributed US$40 million to the province`s foreign exchange coffers per month, meaning that non-oil/non-gas exports would near US$500 million at the end of last year, she said.

The province had so far exported non-oil/non-gas commodities to 79 countries. The number would continue to increase as local exporters were making efforts to expand export markets for their products, she said.

The United States was the biggest market for Bali`s non-oil/non-gas exports in the January-November period of 2007, buying US$105 million or 22.9 percent of the province`s total export value.

In total, European countries imported US$185.5 million worth of non-oil/non-gas commodities from Bali in the period, accounting for 40 percent of the total export value.

Kusumawathi said local exporters were also looking into the possibility of expanding their export markets in the Middle East and South Africa.

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Kerajinan kayu ukir mungkin sudah merupakan suatu hal biasa. Gading yang diukir juga sudah banyak dijumpai. Di Dusun Sidembunut, Desa Cempaga, Kabupaten Bangli, seorang kakek-kakek menekuni satu jenis seni yang cukup langka, yakni seni mengukir telur.

Nengah Padet (75) merupakan salah satu contoh pria lanjut usia yang tetap kreatif di usia senja. Meski sudah terhitung renta, Padet tidak mau hanya berdiam diri dalam mengisi hari tuanya.

Di rumah sekaligus bengkel kerjanya di Dusun Sidembunut, Kabupaten Bangli, Bali, setiap harinya Padet berkutat dengan aktivitas mengukir telur. Dengan alat pahat khusus untuk telur, Nengah Padet tampak serius menggarap seni telur ukir, pesanan seorang pejabat yang juga kolektor seni di Pulau Bali.

Telur yang diukir Padet bukan sembarang telur, tapi telur burung Kasuari atau burung Unta yang berukuran lebih besar dari telur ayam atau bebek.

Telur-telur ini dibeli dari pemasok telur burung Kasuari atau Unta seharga Rp 300 ribu hingga Rp 500 ribu per butirnya. Tak jarang, Padet mendapatkan telur langsung dari pemesan telur ukir yang datang ke rumahnya.

Untuk menyelesaikan satu ukiran telur burung Kasuari atau Unta bertema pewayangan, Padet membutuhkan waktu hingga 2 bulan. Waktu pengerjaan telur ukir ini relatif lama karena butuh kesabaran dan ketelitian yang tinggi.

Nengah Padet mulai menekuni seni ukir sejak zaman penjajahan Jepang. Awalnya ia belajar mengukir dengan menggunakan tempurung kelapa.

“Saya mulai pakai telur Kasuari atau Unta sejak jamannya Suharto. Susah Pak ngukir telur, kalau tidak hati-hati bisa pecah kena pahat,” kata Padet kepada Beritabali.com, belum lama ini.

Satu telur ukir Karya Nengah Padet dijual antara Rp 3,5 hingga Rp 10 juta rupiah. Harga jual ini berbeda-beda tergantung tingkat kesulitan ukiran dan juga pembelinya.

Sudah berbagai penghargaan diraih Padet, salah satunya penghargaan dari Gubernur Bali sebagai salah satu seniman tua yang berjasa bagi dunia seni di Bali.

Di usia senjanya, Padet boleh berbangga karena karyanya sudah dikoleksi para pecinta seni baik dari dalam maupun luar negeri

Tahun 2008, Bali menargetkan pertumbuhan ekonomi 6,02%. Untuk mendorong tercapai target tersebut diperlukan dana investasi Rp 7,62 triliun.

Demikian diutarakan Gubernur Bali Dewa Beratha dalam sambutan tertulis yang dibacakan Sekretaris Daerah Propinsi Bali, Nyoman Yasa, pada acara Sosialisasi Kebijakan Penanaman Modal di Sanur, Selasa (12/2).

Investasi sebesar itu, menurut Gubernur, berasal dari pemerintah sebesar Rp 1,92 triliun, sedangkan dari sektor swasta sebesar Rp 5,7 triliun. Angka-angka tersebut dikutip Gubernur dari BPS (Badan Pusat Statistik) Propinsi Bali.

Bila investasi yang dibutuhkan itu terpenuhi, dan sekaligus mampu menumbuhkan perekonomian sampai 6,02%, maka diyakini akan mampu mengurangi jumlah pengangguran dan juga rumah tangga miskin (RTM).

Terkait pencapaian investasi tersebut, salah satu pembicara Muhamad Najib berharap agar calon investor yang ingin menanamkan modalnya di Bali diberikan kemudahan dalam pelayanan. Bila perlu yang menyangkut retribusi, perlu ditunda
pemungutannya terhadap investor.

Gubernur Beratha juga mengatakan, pertumbuhan ekonomi nasional pada 2008 ditargetkan 6,8% dengan kebutuhan investasi sebesar Rp 1.296,1 triliun.