Fed Rate, and Its Influence Towards the JCI

On Thursday, March 19, 2015, chairwoman of Federal Reserve, Janet Yellen, said that the Fed (a popular term for Federal Reserve, which is the Central Bank of the United States of America) is not in a hurry to raise its benchmark interest rate, or known as the 'Fed Rate'. Shortly after the statement was released, stock indices in Europe and Asia increased significantly. Prior to the statement, investors in Europe and Asia, including Indonesia, were concerned that if the Fed raised the Fed Rate, then the foreign funds in the local stock markets will be withdrawn to be placed in the US. In the view of global investors, if the benchmark interest rate was higher, then investment in the United States will offering higher yields, while on the other hand the risk is still considered to be very low because the US is a country with the largest economy in this world.

Indonesia's Current Economic Developments

Based on data from Bank Indonesia (BI), on March 14, 2015, Rupiah closed at the position of Rp13,191 per US Dollar, and this is the lowest level for the Indonesian currency towards the US Dollar since.. well.. the financial crisis in 1998. So although in the past two years I was trying to ignore the macro-economic developments in the country in order to be focus on the company's fundamentals in investing in the stock market, but this remains an issue, because even in 2008, at the peak of global crisis, the exchange rate of Rupiah had never drops to as low as today. Back to 2008, Rupiah only dropped to Rp12,768 per US Dollar as its lowest point, before then immediately return to the normal level of Rp9,000’s per US Dollar.

Show Me the Money!

Some time ago I met with an old friend (we meet regularly every 2 – 3 months for small chit chat), and we talked about stock investments and others. Coincidentally a few days earlier, this friend of mine had just met with one of the hottest figures in Jakarta: The Governor of Jakarta, Mr. Ahok, in one event of gathering. In the forum Mr. Ahok talked much about this and that, and my friend told me that he was a fun person! Previously my friend did not ever notice about Ahok, but after the gathering, he explicitly said that he liked the governor.

Bank BTN, a Short-Term Trading Opportunity

Bank BTN (BBTN) had a rather poor financial performance in 2014 in which its net profits fell from Rp1.6 trillion in 2013, to only Rp1.1 trillion in 2014, or down 28.6%. Although seem disappointing, but in fact this is the first time in the last eight years in which the company recorded a net profit that is down over the previous year (in 2006, BBTN profits were down compared to 2005, but it was because in 2005 the company did not do a provision for the payment of taxes). While between 2006 and 2013, the bank profits continue to rise consistently, as well as its equity.