Bluebird CEO Adrianto Djokosoentono spoke to The Jakarta Post’s Ni Made Tasyarani about how the company is navigating headwinds over rising fuel costs while trying to preserve customers’ purchasing power.

Oil climbed on Monday as stalled US-Iran peace talks prolonged the disruption of Middle East energy exports, while renewed excitement about artificial intelligence spending drove up chip stocks at the beginning of a week where war, central banks and tech earnings are in focus.

Trade Minister Budi Santoso has defended the government’s decision to pursue a trade agreement with the United States, known as the Agreement on Reciprocal Trade (ART), which has been criticized for placing Indonesia in an unequal position with the world’s largest economy.

The state asset fund is eyeing a US$30 billion renewable energy project that will export power to Singapore as well as supply the national grid, but licensing and funding issues related to a prior solar farm deal continues to cast a cloud of uncertainty among investors.

The close collaboration with Huawei on the new model, the V4, contrasts with DeepSeek's past reliance on Nvidia's AI chips.

"The last time we saw similar signals was during the severe 2015 to 2016 El Nino," a meteorologist has said.

An action plan said that the EU and US would explore setting minimum prices on critical minerals, effectively preventing China or other outside powers from flooding the market with inexpensive exports.

The investment comes just days after e-commerce giant Amazon said itwill invest up to $25 billion in the artificial intelligence (AI) startup.

Sanctions experts have long said, however, that the independent refineries are somewhat immune to the full effect of US sanctions as they have little exposure to the US financial system.

The latest ministerial regulation appears to be the final blow to the remaining support for the EV industry, which had been showing signs of taking off in Indonesia. 

Foreign direct investment (FDI) reached Rp 250 trillion in Q1 2026, rising 8.5 percent year-on-year, although it slightly declined compared with Rp 256 trillion in the previous quarter.

Badan Pengusahaan Batam (BP Batam) has reported an investment realization of Rp 17.4 trillion in the first quarter of 2026, marking a 102.85 percent increase year-on-year (YoY) and 68.92 percent growth quarter-on-quarter. The performance signals a strong start to the year and reinforces Batam’s position as one of Indonesia’s most dynamic investment centers.

The deal was forged during President Prabowo Subianto’s three-hour meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on April 13.

To capitalize on the potential shift, the government plans to accelerate the development of land connectivity to stimulate tourism flows.

The finance minister expects Chinese stakeholders "to be satisfied" with the government's latest debt restructuring plan for the Whoosh high-speed rail project, with the new setup aiming to address persistent cost overruns, delays and interagency incoordination through a more proportionate risk-sharing approach.

Prabowo met Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin last week, where they discussed strengthening strategic partnerships, including in the energy sector, cabinet secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya said in a statement.

The credit rating agency noted that there was a risk the government might substantially relax its fiscal and monetary policies to achieve President Prabowo Subianto's ambitious ​8 percent growth target.

Meta is locked in a bitter rivalry with other tech behemoths racing to invest heavily in AI, aiming to ensure the technology generates profits in the not-so-distant future.

Efforts to frame an interim trade pact, including a proposal to lower US tariffs on Indian goods to about 18 percent, have been clouded by uncertainty following a US Supreme Court ruling although negotiations are continuing.

The rupiah was the worst-performing currency in the region, depreciating 0.61 percent by market close, followed by the Philippine peso and the Thai baht, which weakened by 0.6 percent and 0.55 percent, respectively.

The Foreign Ministry has issued a counterstatement emphasizing Indonesia's adherence to international law in all maritime policies after the finance minister's backtracked suggestion referring to Iran's transit levy in the Strait of Hormuz.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has rattled NATO and led Berlin to pour huge amounts into rebuilding its armed forces, sparking a business bonanza for weapons makers and manufacturers of dual-use goods.

While airfreight volumes are expected to grow at a high single‑digit rate in the quarter, sea freight volumes are forecast to rise only at a low single‑digit pace year on year.

The total additional capacity from the new facilities is expected to reach around 900,000 tonnes, although individual warehouse sizes will vary.

Credit growth rebounded to 9.49 percent year-on-year (yoy) last month from the 9.37 percent logged in February. The latest figure, however, is still lower than the 9.96 percent yoy growth recorded in January.   

Iran on Wednesday captured two container ships seeking to exit the Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz, tightening its grip on the crucial waterway, as investors watch if the fragile ceasefire in the Middle East will hold.

India, the world's biggest urea importer, issued the tender earlier this month to secure 2.5 million tons of the fertilizer, or nearly a quarter of its annual imports of about 10 million tons in 2025.