Indonesia lures foreign auto part makers to invest

Indonesia will soon be the destination of new investment in the auto parts sector as talks are under way, the Jakarta Post quoted a minister as saying on Saturday. Industry Minister M.S. Hidayat said that investment in car components and sub-components would come in part by relocating auto part production centers that were experiencing production slowdown, including in Japan and Thailand. Auto parts supply has reportedly suffered a disruption by the worst flooding in decades in Thailand -- a regional production base in Southeast Asia for leading carmakers such as Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Mitsubishi, as manufacturers halt operation. "We have begun talks about the planned relocation. Some ( companies) from Japan are willing to enter (Indonesia), and they are mainly in the electronics and automotive component sectors," he told reporters at the ministry. Industry Ministry Director General of high tech priority industries Budi Darmadi told the daily that apart from relocation, Indonesia was currently the key destination for investment in auto component and sub-component facilities thanks to the recent robust expansion of car production.