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span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20.8px;">President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo opened the first trading day of 2016 at the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) on Monday as the Jakarta Composite Index (JCI) dropped 0.25 percent to 4,581 as investors remain in wait-and-see mode with regard to economic policies.

President Jokowi – who was accompanied by Bank Indonesia  Governor Agus Martowardojo, Financial Services Authority (OJK) chairman Muliaman D. Hadad, IDX president director Tito Sulistio and a number of ministers – said that 2015 was full of economic challenges on account of the global economic slowdown and concerns surrounding a US Federal Reserve rate hike. 

“But I am optimistic about our economy this year, especially after releasing a series economic packages” President Jokowi said in his speech. 

The government predicts that the impact of its deregulation policies will be seen in the first semester of 2016, as most economic policy packages begin to effect the economy three or six months after their launch.

Coordinating Economic Affairs Minister Darmin Nasution has said the stimulus policies are aimed at addressing short-, medium- and long-term problems in the sluggish economy. All seven economic packages are in action now as the minister has signed 90 percent of the regulation and deregulation measures they contain.

That regulation, he further stated, would allow fishermen to attain liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) converter kits this year to lower costs as LPG is cheaper than diesel fuel.

The government has fueled the market with positive sentiment by cutting the price of subsidized fuels, effective Jan. 5, and completing half of all tenders for 2016 projects worth Rp 29.6 trillion (US$2 billion).

The first economic package was unveiled on Sep. 9, focusing on boosting industrial competitiveness through deregulation, curtailing red tape and enhancing law enforcement and business certainty.

Asian shares began their first day of trade in 2016 on a cautionary note, while oil prices jumped 3 percent after Saudi Arabia's execution of a prominent Shiite Muslim cleric spurred regional anger and geopolitical tensions. (dan)(+)