Perkembangan perekonomian Indonesia

Perkembangan Perekonomian di Indonesia pada saat ini

Ekonomi indonesia saat ini optimis pertumbuhan ekonomi yang meningkat.dengan pertumbuhan dan pendapatan nasional yang semakin meningkat kita dapat melihat perkembangan dan kemajuan kita pada negara lain. dengan pendapatan nasional per tahun indonesia mampu memberikan kemajuan.ekonomi makro yang sangat berpengaruh dalam pertumbuhan ekonomi saat ini.salah satu pertumbuhan ekonomi itu dapat dilihat dengan permintaan domestik masih akan menjadi penopang utama kinerja perekonomian. Selain itu, ekspor dan impor, serta investasi.

Di lihat dari sedikit perekonomian makro dibidang perbankan ini dapat kita rasakan pertumbuhan ekonomi itu meningkat.Bank Indonesia (BI) memperkirakan pertumbuhan ekonomi sepanjang triwulan I-2011 masih akan tumbuh tinggi, yakni di kisaran 6,4 persen. Sehingga, sepanjang tahun ini, perekonomian Indonesia diproyeksikan tumbuh di kisaran 6-6,5 persen.

Gubernur Bank Indonesia Darmin Nasution mengungkapkan hal itu dalam rapat kerja dengan Komisi XI (membidangi keuangan dan perbankan) DPR, Senin (14/2). “Prospek perekonomian ke depan akan terus membaik dan diperkirakan akan lebih tinggi,” kata Darmin.

Dia mengatakan, permintaan domestik masih akan menjadi penopang utama kinerja perekonomian. Selain itu, ekspor dan impor, serta investasi, juga akan tumbuh pesat. Ia menambahkan, Indonesia sudah melalui tantangan yang di 2010. Dengan pertumbuhan ekonomi yang cukup baik di tahun lalu, yakni 6,1 persen, akan mempermudah mencapai target pertumbuhan di 2011. Meski demikian, inflasi tinggi masih akan menjadi tantangan serius di tahun ini.

Kondisi Perekonomian Indonesia Dilihat dari PDB

Pendapat Domestik Bruto (PDB) Indonesia saat ini menempati urutan ke-18 dari 20 negara yang mempunyai PDB terbesar di dunia. Hanya ada 5 negara Asia yang masuk ke dalam daftar yang dikeluarkan oleh Bank Dunia. Kelima negara Asia tersebut adalah Jepang (urutan ke-2), Cina (urutan ke-3), India (urutan ke-11), Korea Selatan (urutan ke-15).

Indonesia yang kini mempunyai PDB US$700 miliar, boleh saja bangga. Apalagi, dengan pendapatan perkapita yang mencapai US$3000 per tahun menempatkan Indonesia di urutan ke-15 negara-negara dengan pendapatan perkapita yang besar.

Pihak Swasta

Adanya lembaga – lembaga swadaya masyarakat, seperti Dompet Dhu’afa, bekerja sama dengan Institut Kemandirian yang berusaha mencetak kaum muda berpotensi meenjadi hebat sebagai pejuang ekonomi adalah cara salah satu membuat pemerataan pertumbuhan ekonomi dapat dirasakan oleh semakin 

banyak rakyat Indonesia.

Pihak Pemerintah

Sinergi antar kementrian  harus dibuat semakin solid dan saling mendukung sehingga tidak tumpang tindih dan lebih banyak bermanfaat bagi masyarakat. Kampanye pembentuka jiwa kewirausahaan , seperti seminar bertaraf internasional\, adalah salah satu jalan membangkitkan potensi jiwa – jiwa pejuang ekonomi yang pantang menyerah dan penuh kreativitas tinggi.

Dampak Globalisasi ekonomi positif dan dampak globalisasi negatif menjadi bagian yang tidak terpisahkan dalam dunia usaha. Ketika kita berfikir menjadi pengusaha dan memanfaatkan setiap peluang usaha yang kita miliki sebenarnya saat itu kita masuk kedalam sebuah sistem ekonomi dan yang paling populer adalah sistem ekonomi kapitalis yang menjadi bagian integral dari proses globalisasi. 

Ada banyak pengertian globalisasi yang secera umum mempunyai kemiripan salah satu pengertian globalisasi adalah proses yang melintasi batas negara di mana antarindividu, antarkelompok, dan antarnegara saling berinteraksi, bergantung, terkait, dan mempengaruhi satu sama lain .

Sebagaimana sebuah sistem globalisasi ekonomi mempunyai dampak positif dan juga dampak negatif, terlepas dari pendapat pro globalisasi ekonomi dan kontra globalisasi ekonomi kita akan mencoba menelaah secara sederhana dampak postif globalisasi ekonomi dan dampak negatif globalisasi ekonomi.

Dampak positif globalisasi ekonomi ditilik dari aspek kreatifitas dan daya saing dengan semakin terbukanya pasar untuk produk-produk ekspor maka diharapkan tumbuhnya kreatifitas dan peningkatan kualitas produksi yang disebabkan dorongan untuk tetap eksis ditengah persaingan global, secara natural ini akan terjadi manakala kesadaran akan keharusan berinivasi muncul dan pada giliranya akan menghasilkan produk2 dalam negeri yang handal dan berkualitas.

Disisi lain kondisi dimana kapababilitas daya saing yang rendah dan ketidakmampuan Indonesia mengelola persaingan akan menimbulkan mimpi buruk begi perekonomian negeri ini, hal ini akan mendatangkan berbaga dampak negatif globalisasi ekonomi seperti membajirnya produk2 negeri asing seperti produk cina yang akhirnya mamatikan produksi dalam negeri, warga negara Indonesia hanya akan menjadi tenaga kasar bergaji murah sedangkan pekerjaan pekerjaan yang membutuhkan skill akan dikuasai ekspatriat asing, dan sudah barang tentu lowongan pekerjaan yang saat ini sudah sangat sempit akan semakin habis karena gelombang pekerja asing.

Dampak positif globalisasi ekonomi dari aspek permodalan, dari sisi ketersediaan akses dana  akan semaikin mudah memperoleh investasi dari luar negeri. Investasi secara langsung seperti pembangunan pabrik akan turut membuka lowongan kerja. hanya saja dampak positif ini akan berbalik 180 derajat ketika pemerintah tidak mampu mengelola aliran dana asing, akan terjadi justru penumpukan dana asing yang lebih menguntungkan pemilik modal dan rawan menimbulkan krisis ekonomi karena runtuhnya nilai mata uang Rupiah. Belum lagi ancaman dari semakin bebas dan mudahnya mata uang menjadi ajang spekulasi. Bayangkan saja jika sebuah investasi besar dengan meilbatkan tenaga kerja lokal yang besar tiba2 ditarik karena dianggap kurang prospek sudah barang tentu hal ini bisa memengaruhi kestabilan ekonomi.

Dampak positif globalisasi ekonomi dari sisi  semakin mudahnya diperoleh barang impor yang dibutuhkan masyarakat dan belum bisa diproduksi di Indonesia, alih tehnologi juga bisa terbuka sangat lebar, namun kondisi ini juga bisa berdampak buruk bagi masyarakat karena kita cenderung hanya dijadikan objek pasar, studi kasus seperti produksi motor yang di kuasai Jepang, Indonesia hanya pasar dan keuntungan penjualan dari negeri kita akan dibawa ke Jepang memperkaya bangsa Jepang. Dampak positif globalisasi ekonomi dari aspek  meningkatnya kegiatan pariwisata, sehingga membuka lapangan kerja di bidang pariwisata sekaligus menjadi ajang promosi produk Indonesia.

Globalisasi dan liberalisme pasar dikampayekan oleh para pengusungnya sebagai cara untuk mencapai standar hidup yang lebih tinggi, namun bagi para penentangnya globalisasi hanya kedok para kapitalis yang akan semakin melebarnya ketimpangan distribusi pendapatan antar negara  kaya dengan negara berkembang dan miskin. 

Penguasaan kapital yang lebih besar dengan menciptakan pasar global terutama di dunia ketiga yang diyakini tidak akan mampu memenuhi standar tinggi produk global akan membuka peluang terjadinya penumpukan kekayaan dan monopoli usaha dan kekuasaan politik pada segelintir orang. So pilihan akan keblai kekita mana yang kita pilih Dampak Globalisasi ekonomi positif atau dampak globalisasi negatif.

http://www.anneahira.com/kondisi-perekonomian-indonesia-saat-ini.htm

http://dwi-ardianto.blogspot.com/2011/02/perekonomian-indonesia-saat-ini.html

http://www.peluangusahabisnisonline.com/2011/03/dampak-globalisasi-ekonomi-positif-dan.html

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Manfaat Cokelat Untuk Kesehatan

Manfaat Cokelat Untuk Kesehatan

Posted by febriana syachfitri on 04.36

Manfaat Cokelat Untuk Kesehatan

Selain coklat rasanya enak ternyata coklat memiliki manfaat untuk kesehatan kita . Banyak orang yang menghubungkan antara makan coklat dengan kerusakan gigi dan kegemukan. Sebenarnya yang menyebabkan kegemukan dan kerusakan gigi bukanlah karena coklatnya, melainkan karena kandungan gula yang ada pada coklat tersebut. Lalu apa sih manfaat coklat untuk kesehatan ?

                                                          

Manfaat coklat untuk kesehatan diantaranya :

1. Menurunkan tekanana darah dan kolesterol

Coklat merupakan zat yang mengandung senyawa yang berpungsi untuk menenangkan syaraf-syaraf yang tegang. Dengan memakan coklat maka perasaan seseorang akan menjadi  lebih rileks, oleh sebab itu dengan memakan coklat bisa menurunkan tekanan darah

Dark chocolate telah ditunjukkan dalam studi untuk menurunkan tekanan darah pada orang dengan tekanan darah tinggi. Dan makan coklat hitam secara teratur telah terbukti menurunkan kolesterol LDL sebanyak 10 persen.

2. Mengandung  Antioksidan Yang Tinggi

berdasarkan hasil penelitian ternyata coklat  mengandung flavanol, sejenis flavanoid yang ditemukan pada coklat. Flavanoid adalah senyawa yang terbentuk secara alamiah dalam makanan nabati dan bertindak sebagai antioksidan dan membantu menangkal radikal bebas dalam tubuh.

3. Mengandung  Anti-Depresi

Hasil penelitian juga membuktikan bahwa Coklat mengandung serotonin, alami anti-depresan. Dengan memakan Cokelat juga bisa  merangsang tubuh untuk memproduksi enzim endorfin, yang berperan menciptakan perasaan senang dan bahagia. Sebuah studi menemukan bahwa pencairan cokelat di mulut menghasilkan perasaan senang lebih lama. Jadi ketika anda merasa dalam keadaan stress atau tertekan sempatkan waktu untuk menikmati coklat.

4.    Mencegah Kerusakan Gigi

Banyak orang yang menganggap bahwa dengan mekakan coklat itu bisa menimbulkan kerusakan pada gigi. Sebenarnya yang membuat kerusakan pada gigi bukan coklatnya tapi gula yang terdapat pada penganan coklat. Jadi tidak masalah anda memakan coklat asalkan disiplin gosok gigi. Hasil penelitian telah menemukan bahwa dalam cokelat  terdapat zat theobromine yang bisa mencegah kerusakan gigi dengan menghilangkan streptokokus mutans, yaitu bakteri yang memberikan kontribusi terhadap kerusakan gigi pada rongga mulut. Jadi kata siapa coklat berbahaya? justru manfaat coklat untuk kesehatan gigi itu bagus ya.

5. Membuat Panjang Umur

Hasil penelitian yang dilakukan di Belanda yang diikuti 200 pria di atas 20 tahun, menemukan bahwa para pria yang mengkonsumsi sejumlah besar coklat, baik itu berupa dark coklat dan milk chocolate, usianya lebih lama dan telah menurunkan tingkat penyaki. Berdasarkan penelitian tersebut diketahui bahwa coklat  mengandung zat yang mampu memperlambat penuaan. Konsumsi coklat secara teratur dapat mengurangi keriput dan melindungi kulit dari terbakar sinar matahari.

Seorang nenek yang bernama Jeanne Louise Calment salah satu orang tertua dengan umur panjang yang hidup sampai usia 122  memperkuat hasil dari penelitian di Belanda tersebut. Dia  mempunyai resep panjang umur, yaitu dengan mengkonsumsi dark chocolate sebesar 2,5 pon dalam satu minggu.

Itulah sebagian dari manfaat coklat untuk kesahatan , masih banyak manfaat lain yang bisa diambil dari coklat yang belum digali.

sumber : http://www.andesschocolate.com

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Bahasa Inggris (Ekonomi) (Neither .... Nor)

1.)  New economic architecture with a human face ( Neither …Nor )

The devastating impact of the financial crises on the world’s most vulnerable populations over the last decade has really been a concern shared by governments and citizens from all over the world. The impact of the crisis only shows how globalized and closely interdependent our world has become.

A crisis sometimes brings with it “good things”, a blessing in disguise that is needed to help us reveal who we actually are and what has gone wrong with what we have done so far. But most often, a crisis can also give birth to all kinds of unwanted events.

Pope Benedict XVI recently observed, “The worldwide financial crisis has, as we know, demonstrated the fragility of the present economic system and the institutions linked to it. It has also shown the error of the assumption that the market is capable of regulating itself, apart from public intervention and the support of internalized moral standards.”

Each economic crisis over the past decade has shown the downside of economic globalization. However, the dynamics of economic globalization often remain difficult to understand in part, because we are caught up in a process that is still developing, and whose outcome is still unclear.

Economic globalization in itself is neither good nor bad, but its impact will depend on decisions made by us. It must be seen as a process, not as an end.Therefore, governing economic globalization calls for wisdom, not just empirical data on economic growth and fundamentals.

From the perspective of many developing economies, such as Indonesia, globalization must not only focus narrowly on the economic aspects of current global interconnections, which have been broadening and deepening, particularly in the areas of trade and finance.

Experience has shown that market forces, for all their efficiency, can be blind, particularly to the broader dimensions of human welfare and personal security. They also lack sensitivity to the demands of social justice and equality.

Thus, a more comprehensive concern for social issues, such as “human security and development” must also be given necessary attention through cooperation and the promotion of social justice in the process of globalization.The ugly consequences of focusing (rather narrowly) human development on real GDP growth, personal welfare on efficiency gains and on free and open trade as well as financial flows, has given globalization a bad name.

Rather than bank upon the “genius of the and” (complementation and cooperation), it has allowed the world to be hemmed in by the “tyranny of the or”.It is either the rich developed economies or the poor developing ones that benefit.

We should not forget that the same world that could find, within a few weeks, trillions of dollars to rescue banks and financial investment institutions, has not yet managed to find 1 percent of that amount for the needs of the hungry starting with the US$3 billion needed to provide meals for school children who are hungry, or the $5 billion needed to support the emergency food fund of the World Food Programme.

We have also had clear reminders from financial markets in recent years, such as a crisis in the US financial system in 2008, that there is more to a market competitive system than these narrow, strictly economic values and principles.

Indeed, at the bottom of any market competitive system are money and credit, both of which are based essentially on faith and trust. But, these flourish in the final analysis only within an ethical culture, which calls for virtue, and among others, the golden mean and a system of checks and balances.

Thus, self-interest must be balanced by common interest and the invisible hand of markets by the more visible hand of a public regulatory authority.A new globalization requires a new culture that can orient the changes.

These principles ultimately derive from universal natural law, he said. And thus, “the principles of this ethical order, inscribed in creation itself, are accessible to human reason and, as such, must be adopted as the basis for practical choices.”

On this premise, first, we need to propose a culture based on fundamental principles, such as the universal destiny of earthly goods and the common good, grounded in respect for the dignity of the people and acknowledged as the primary goal of production and trade systems, political institutions and social welfare.

It has become increasingly evident that the common good embraces responsibility to future generations. An essential aspect of globalization is, therefore, the promotion of the principle of solidarity. A global solidarity that must be recognized as a basic ethical criterion for judging any social system and will ensure all peoples can benefit from economic globalization.

Globalization, therefore, needs to be a process guided by a respect for human liberty. A globalization thus oriented by these two principles will result in a harmonious unity of the human family.

Indonesia, as the third-largest democracy in the world after India and the US, can offer a model on how to promote human liberty in a responsible manner in a modern, open and free society.Being also a country with the largest Muslim population, it is an opportunity for Indonesia to demonstrate to the world that Islam and democracy that respects human liberty is compatible and complementary.

When we talk about Islam we cannot avoid talking about religion that carries a universal moral law needed to guide the process of globalization.Thus, Indonesia can offer a unique solution to the many problems of globalization by actively proposing the common universal values of world religions as a foundation and source for a more human-friendly process.

It is in this context, the role of and the compatibility of  religion and politics, faith and democracy, virtues and wealth in Indonesian society are very relevant as a model of a new global economic architecture.The spiritual dimension is fundamental to converting the model of secular economic globalization into one that has a human face.

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Bahasa Inggris ( Ekonomi ) (Either ...........or )

  1.)   Indonesia should embrace an open economy (Either …. Or )

Indonesia has just experienced considerable turbulence in the financial markets during which some observers even raised concerns about another financial crisis.

As Indonesia’s currency, bond and equity markets plummeted, a number of economists believed that some policies may have contributed unwittingly to the predicament that Indonesia is currently faced with. This raises an important question for the future — what is the best way for Indonesia to embrace an open economy, yet protect its national interests?

Indonesia has opened its economy over time to the outside world. The capital account has been open for decades, allowing substantial flows of capital portfolio and boosting the development of capital markets. The trade sector has been gradually opened to imports though significant barriers remain. Foreign investors have been allowed to participate in Indonesia’s growth, resulting in a huge influx which has helped build up the country’s manufacturing sector in particular.

The country’s economic boom in the late 1980s and 1990s owed much too foreign investment by multinational companies that used Indonesia as a platform for export production as well as to serve the domestic market. Right after the 1997 economic crisis, foreign investments in the manufacturing, banks and telecommunications industry helped Indonesia to overcome that crisis.

As the economy started to perform well and the number of tourists increased, it created new opportunities for job creation. While it has not always been a good experience, the overall impact of the open economy policy has been good for Indonesia.

As we strive to a higher economic performance, leaving industrial development purely to the vagaries of the free market will not necessarily do the trick. Some state intervention is still needed to encourage the development of local industries that will create opportunities for local entrepreneurs to contribute to Indonesia’s economic growth.

Countries such as Japan, Korea and China have shown us that well-thought-out policies could enhance local industries to be more efficient, globally competitive and not perennially dependent on state subsidies. The question really is how can we structure a state intervention that is aimed at these local industries be delivered precisely?

Another great example is that Malaysia has enjoyed successful economic performance in general. In contrast, its automotive industry had a sad story where state intervention went wrong. In the early 1980s, the government chose to focus on developing an indigenous national car, Proton, and introduced a slew of tariffs and other inward-looking policies which allowed Proton to grow rapidly.

Sheltered from either domestic or foreign competition, Proton was able to edge out the other automotive manufacturers. However, by 2011, Proton was saddled with huge loss and its cars could not maintain their share even to the local market, while it had failed to gain any traction in export markets. Proton was not able to become a globally competitive company that could survive without government protection even after a nearly 30 years of government support.

As foreign automotive manufacturers shunned Malaysia in favor of Thailand, the latter emerged as one of the major automotive manufacturing hubs in Asia. It could be said that Malaysia’s nationalistic car project was the “best thing” that ever happened for the Thailand automotive sector.

Korea and Japan, however, took a different tactic. They did offer protection against foreign competition and worked hard to build national automobile manufacturers. But Korea’s policy ensured that they have a healthy competition among them and this has forced Korean companies to improve their competitiveness, cost structure, design capability and innovation capacity, while also pressing their supporting parts manufacturers to do the same.

The result is one of the most impressive automotive sectors in the world today. The lesson is clear — competition is vital to encourage companies to constantly improve their efficiency to a point where they could eventually take on global competitors effectively.

Similarly, Indonesia needs to be careful about how to conduct policies on developing indigenous industries. In some cases, even well-intentioned policies could result in a contradictive impact as it was planned. For instance, the authorities recently reversed their rules on allowing unlimited importation quota of live cattle, abandoning the previous policy on annual import quota system to promote the development of a local industry. Subsequently, the policy has caused the price of domestic beef to escalate significantly and created inflationary pressures.

Another example is the 2009 Mining Law, which stipulated a ban on mining firms exporting unprocessed ore from 2014 and requires the firms to build local smelters or to cooperate with smelting companies to process the ore. Mining companies have observed that the lack of power and other infrastructure makes it quite difficult to develop smelters. But this policy, though expected to move in Indonesia up on the value-added ladder, has created uncertainty among investors since 2009.

The lessons from others experiences are clear. Policy should be geared toward first ensuring that the environment will help the development of globally competitive local industries. Creating the right business climate means building the right physical infrastructure so that manufacturers’ costs of transportation are lessened.

A huge focus on skills development is necessary to create a cadre of technically skilled workers who can fill such positions as production supervisors and technical foremen. More controversially, perhaps, Indonesia needs a policy where it judiciously embraces multinational companies that can create a base of competitive components suppliers out of whom bigger national companies can grow.

Once this is in place, Indonesia could pursue policies to prod the development of local companies, even employing protectionist and other policies judiciously as Korea did so successfully. However, in prodding development through state intervention, policy makers should ensure that protectionist measures and subsidies are time-limited and they should ensure that there is still intense competition domestically so that local companies are always on their toes to keep improving themselves and remain globally competitive.

The writer is vice chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin Indonesia) and president commissioner of PT Panasonic Gobel Indonesia. These are his personal views.

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Bahasa Inggris ( Ekonomi ) ( Not Only ..... But Also)

   1.)   Insight: APEC can create jobs, growth via creative economy  ( Not Only … But Also ).

South Korea has looked to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum to lay comprehensive guidelines for working toward economic integration. For South Korea, bolstering the creative economy is an effective strategy for overcoming low growth and high unemployment. President Park Geun-hye elaborates her view on the issue and the future of APEC in an interview with The Jakarta Post’s Yohanna Ririhena.

Question: What do you see as the prospects for the future of APEC in the context of the current situation where there exist numerous free trade agreements and comprehensive economic partnership agreements? 

Answer: As of now, a great number of free trade agreements and comprehensive economic partnership agreements have been concluded or are being negotiated. In other words, this situation obviously signifies the increased importance of APEC’s role in the interest of global trade liberalization.

If regional trade agreements, such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership [TPP] and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership [RCEP] for which negotiations are now underway, can be described as tributaries, the Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific [FTAAP] can be likened to a river and the multilateral trade regime centered on the World Trade Organization [WTO] the sea.

As different tributaries join to form a river flowing into the sea, a variety of regional trade agreements among APEC member economies should harmoniously contribute to the conclusion of the FTAAP and ultimately help reinforce multilateral trade systems around the world. In so doing, APEC should play a crucial role in directing this process onto the right track.

Do you think APEC should focus only on economic issues by taking its hands off topics such as strategies, politics and security that are being discussed in other types of forums?

Economic development and integration in the Asia-Pacific region, the primary goal of APEC, will be made possible only when peace and stability can be brought to the region. For this reason, the APEC member economies have worked hard not only to promote trade liberalization, but also to actively carry out cooperative projects in a wide range of areas, including counterterrorism, prevention of epidemics and response to disasters.

How do you think APEC leaders can make contributions to addressing such pending global issues? 

Given APEC’s significant influence as evidenced by the fact that its population and GDP account for 39 percent and 58 percent of the global total, respectively, I believe the forum will be able to play a significant role in resolving pending issues. Such as after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the earthquake that generated the great Indian Ocean tsunami and global food price hikes, APEC leaders put their heads together to seek solutions.

It might be difficult for APEC to directly deal with the crises in Syria, Egypt and some other parts of the world. Notwithstanding this, APEC will still be able to discuss various global issues through the robust network for cooperation and contribute to the promotion of global peace.

What does APEC have to do to bolster the global economy and avoid the recent economic downturns in Europe and the United States? 

I think there are three important tasks. First, advanced APEC member nations have to make efforts to minimize the jitters in the global financial market by deliberately fine-tuning any alternation in their monetary policy stance. Second, through the efforts to better the investment environment and reform the labor market, APEC member nations have to eliminate the structural vulnerabilities of each nation’s economy. Third, APEC member nations have to prevent the protectionist moves within the region and spur endeavors for trade liberalization.

Are there new ideas that Korea will seek to put forth at APEC? Or outcomes it is looking forward to? 

My first hope is for participating leaders to demonstrate once again their unwavering commitment to achieving the Bogor Goals. I hope we will be able to lay the guidelines for working toward economic integration within the region. As for new ideas, one of the key talking points at the meeting is how to overcome low growth and high unemployment. Korea will propose as its solution to these problems the concept of a creative economy.

The creative economy is a paradigm for economic development that builds on the creative ideas of economic actors to combine science and technology with IT and to promote convergence between different industries as well as between industry and culture, creating in the process new markets and new jobs.

I believe that the creative economy is a compelling strategy for bringing about continued growth and job creation, not only for Korea but also for the rest of the APEC member economies and for the world economy as well.

Over the past 20 years, we have observed a partial reversal in trends: a movement away from trade liberalization toward protectionism. Do you see this kind of trend in effect among APEC member economies? If so, what kinds of measures do you think should be taken to address this? 

As economic conditions worsen, protectionism can become more tempting. Yet history has taught us that in the face of growing economic difficulties, all countries must come together to expand openness and promote trade; when this happens, all of us can win. It’s a clear message that the efforts of all member countries are needed to block the spread of protectionism.

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Bahasa Inggris ( Ekonomi ) (both....and)

 1.)  Economic gains top agenda on both sides ( both ….. And )

With US President Barack Obama and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono both facing challenges to create jobs and raise people’s welfare at home, the meeting between them will end in deals to maximize economic gain, experts say.

Obama has said that he would double the US’s exports to Asia, especially to the prosperous East Asia, while Yudhoyono told a gathering of Indonesian envoys last week that a priority of Indonesian foreign policy was to bring economic benefit and investment back home.“It’s all about economic gains. The US will make Indonesia a market for its products,” Alexius Jemadu, the dean of University of Pelita Harapan’s School of Social and Political Sciences, said Sunday.

Golkar Party legislator Tantowi Yahya agreed that Obama’s visit would mainly address how both countries could maximize economic gain in their bilateral relations. “We have to take advantage of Obama’s connection to Indonesia,” he said.

Alexius said that apart from rivaling China in gaining political influence in its strengthening presence in Asia, the US also wanted a piece of the economic benefits in the region.

He said Indonesia should use its potential as a huge market for US products as a bargaining chip when negotiating a strategic partnership with the US.“The recent US anger of our regulation to restrict film imports shows the country’s goals. They want to protect their movie industry,” Alexius said.

Deputy US Trade Representative Demetrios Marantis raised the issue with senior Indonesian officials last week, just over a month ahead of a planned visit by Obama, the US embassy said.“If implemented, the ministry of culture and tourism decree will disrupt bilateral trade in movies at a time when we have been working hard to improve the bilateral relationship,” he said in a statement.“The decree will severely restrict the availability of foreign films in Indonesia, harming stakeholders including Indonesian cinemas that want to display foreign movies and Indonesian patrons that want to watch them.”

The dispute centers on Indonesia’s plans to ensure that all movies shown in the archipelago are replicated by Indonesian firms.“The only beneficiaries would appear to be the one or two replicating firms being granted an oligopoly on the replication of films in Indonesia,” Marantis said.

His statement went on to say the proposed regulations would have the effect of imposing “sweeping new restrictions on imports of US films into Indonesia”.

Trade representative spokeswoman Carol Guthrie added, “We have asked that Indonesia remove the decree.”“If companies want to replicate elsewhere and then export to Indonesia, they should have the flexibility to do so.”

International law professor Hikmahanto Juwana from the University of Indonesia said the ministry had to coordinate with other institutions, especially the Trade Ministry and the Business Competition Supervisory Agency (KPPU), to avoid negative impacts from the regulation.

“The Trade Ministry is the focal point in WTO negotiation, and they know if it creates discrimination, while KPPU can assess if the regulation will create a monopoly, as feared by the US,” he said.

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