Govt. to raise oil output to 1.2M bpd by 2010

The government intends to increase the country's crude oil production by 200,000 barrels to 1.2 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2010, Vice President Jusuf Kalla said, Asia Pulse reported Thursday.

"I think we will be able to raise our crude oil production to 1.2 million barrel per day by 2010 as we have adequate oil resource potential," he said.

Indonesia had large potential to raise its oil production to meet its rising consumption, he said.

Inflation rose to a 19-month high in April, but the Indonesia Stock Exchange composite index put on gains on strong first quarter reports, with the market largely ignoring the inflation figures.

The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) announced Friday that year-on-year inflation rose in April to 8.96%, up from the March figure of 8.17%, with a monthly rise during April of 0.57%.

Raw food produced the strongest gain at 15.73%, with clothing next at 11.29% for the month, Reuters reported. Virtually all sectors saw rises, apart from transportation, which fell by 0.01%.

Higher kerosene prices were also a major factor in fueling inflation, BPS said.