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The development of Indonesia’s first high-speed railway, connecting Jakarta and Bandung in West Java, might see further delays, as the Chinese-led consortium has refused to meet some of the government’s requirements contained in the concession agreement.
Although the consortium, led by the China Railway Corp, agreed that the government would only provide a political guarantee instead of a financial guarantee as earlier demanded, it had asked the Indonesian government to give it an exclusive right to use the route.
PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia China president-director Hanggoro Budi Wiryawan said on Thursday that if another high-speed railway could be built near or along its Jakarta-Bandung route, it would hurt the financial viability of the consortium. – The Jakarta Post/ANN
 
JET AIRWAYS TO FLY FROM BANGKOK TO AMSTERDAM
Jet Airways yesterday announced the introduction of daily flights from Bangkok to Amsterdam via Mumbai and New Delhi, from March 27.
From that date, its schedule will change to three daily flights from Bangkok to Mumbai and two to New Delhi.
The Indian airline will also operate a daily service from Amsterdam to Toronto.
 
PANASONIC PLAYS DOWN UNION CLAIMS
Japanese electronics-maker Panasonic says the figure mentioned in claims by a labour union about mass lay-offs in some of its plants is much higher than the actual number.
 PT Panasonic Manufacturing Indonesia president-director Ichiro Suganuma said his company had shut down one plant and terminated the jobs of 425 workers, not two factories and 1,600 workers as reported earlier by the Confederation of Indonesia Labour Unions.
He added that the move had been made amid a drop in demand for compact fluorescent lamps in the domestic and Japanese markets.
“People now prefer LED lamps, so we focus on making LEDs now,” he said via a text message.
the plant closure and lay-offs, Suganuma asserted: “The more important thing is that our commitment to the industry remains the same and our investment in LED technology development is still big.”
Panasonic now runs two lamp factories in Java. – The Jakarta Post/ANN

MALAYSIA’S ECONOMIC GROWTH TO REMAIN SOLID
Malaysia’s economic growth should remain solid this year, despite challenging external and domestic conditions last year, according to the International Monetary Fund.
In a statement, the IMF said the implementation of a goods and services tax was among the things that had helped limit the impact on government finances amid an oil-price decline.
The IMF reached the conclusion after its team – led by division chief Alex Mourmouras – met with senior government officials and the central bank, Bank Negara Malaysia, as well as representatives from the private sector, think-tanks and academics recently.
Mourmouras said that despite the challenges, Malaysia had been able to maintain macroeconomic and financial stability, while making significant progress in improving foundations for sustained economic growth over the medium term. – The Star/ANN