DECEMBERASIA BUSINESS OUTLOOK9Indonesia will grant tax breaks to automakers planning to build electric vehicle factories on imports of fully assembled electric vehicles by 2025, according to a new presidential decree, as Jakarta attracts more cash. According to the new laws, signed last December 8 and announced this week, companies that have invested in electric vehicle factories and those that are thinking of increasing or planning to invest in electric vehicles will be able to obtain incentives. The new laws will eliminate import taxes and luxury sales taxes on assembled vehicles imported into the coun-try and provide incentives for taxes collected by local governments. Previous laws provided these incentives for importing used vehicles that were shipped as parts and assembled to the country of sale. Indonesia is the largest car market in Southeast Asia.However, the number of vehicles the company can import depends on the size of its investment and the development progress of its factory, which the Ministry of Investment must approve. Rachmat Kaimuddin, the deputy minister of integration at the Ministry of Invest-ment and the Pacific, said during a webinar on Indonesia and the economic outlook on Dec 13 that the new law will help carmakers build the Indonesian market through electric vehicle imports."We try to be progressive because once we have cre-ated an EV industry in Indonesia, the battery (industry) will also come, and we already have the (raw) material and can create the supply chain," he said.The new regulations also delayed a deadline requiring companies to produce at least 40 percent of the content of EVs in Indonesia until 2026 from 2023. Also, the decree delays an increase in the local content threshold to 60 per cent to 2027 from the initial target of 2024. Japanese smartphone parts supplier Murata Manufacturing wants to expand sales beyond its concentrated base of low-cost smartphone makers targeting emerging markets. Murata, a leading battery supplier, expects the smartphone market to grow by 5 percent in March 2025, driven by demand for mid-range phones in regions such as India, Africa and Southeast Asia.Chinese manufacturers are increasing their exports to regions where the population is growing. President Norio Murata Nakajima said in an interview.Murata, a supplier to Apple and Samsung Electronics, is one of the industry players facing falling demand for smartphones as consumers spend more time with their phones. Smartphone sales rose 5 percent in October compared with the same period last year after more than two years of decline, driven by demand from emerging markets, according to data from research firm Counterpoint.Nakajima said the stock is only available in China. Last month, Apple said demand for iPhones in China remained strong, while analysts pointed to strong smartphone sales from local giant Huawei Technologies.Murata Manufacturing is a Japanese electronics manufacturer based in Nagaokakyo, Kyoto. It mainly produces electronic components such as capacitors and has the largest share of the global market in ceramic filters, high-end components and sensors. There are 24 companies in Japan and 52 overseas in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Germany, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Switzerland and India. NEWSROOMINDONESIA TO OFFER TAX INCENTIVES FOR EVAUTOMAKERSMURATA MANUFACTURING TO FORAY INTO LOWER-END CHINESE MARKETS
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