Indonesia targets $37.4bn investment this year

A senior Indonesian official said on Friday that the country is targeting to see 450 trillion rupiah (about 37.4 billion U.S. dollars) of investment throughout this year as 2013 investment is estimated to surpass target. Mahendra Siregar, chairman of Indonesia Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM), said that to achieve the target his office would prioritize prime sectors considered to have the most potentials to lure investors this year. Commenting on the country's investment target last year, Mahendra expressed his optimism that it would likely surpass the figure initially set at 390 trillion rupiah (about 32.4 billion U. S. dollars). His estimation was based on quarterly investment figures that fit to the agency's expectation. He added that last year's exact investment figures would be announced later this month as the agency was still consolidating investment figures of the fourth quarter. He said that in the third quarter of last year, the country recorded 100.5 trillion rupiah (about 8.3 billion U.S. dollars) of new investment, the first quarter to have surpassed the 100 trillion rupiah threshold. "That was the highest quarterly figure that had ever been recorded in the country's history," Mahendra said. Compared to the corresponding period in 2012, the third quarter figure has grew 22.9 percent, the former deputy finance minister added.