Indonesia, China, tourism pact aims to nurture future industry leaders
The China Centre in Bali is expected to serve as a focal point for tourism training, cultural exchange, and international cooperation. - Caixin Global
JAKARTA: Indonesia and China have launched a new "China Centre' on the resort island of Bali to boost vocational tourism education and strengthen cultural cooperation, marking a significant step in developing future tourism professionals.
The centre, established in partnership with Jiangxi Science and Technology Normal University, was officially inaugurated on Sunday (June 1). It is housed within Politeknik Pariwisata Bali, a government-run vocational higher education institution specialising in tourism, hospitality, and culinary arts.
The polytechnic director Ida Bagus Putu Puja said the China Centre will serve as a focal point for tourism training, cultural exchange, and international cooperation, with a strong emphasis on vocational education.
"This collaboration will create a positive and mutually beneficial synergy, including student and faculty exchanges, joint training programmes, collaborative research, and cross-cultural promotion,' she stated in a statement.
The initiative follows a tourism cooperation agreement signed earlier this year by Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Jakarta.
Officials from Jiangxi Province and representatives of Jiangxi Science and Technology Normal University attended the launch, highlighting growing sub-national cooperation.
"Just like Jiangxi and Bali, both blessed with picturesque mountains, rivers, and seas. I hope that our peoples will visit each other often and become close friends,' said Minister of the Propaganda Department of the Jiangxi Provincial Committee, Lu Xiaoqing.
China remains a key tourism partner for Indonesia, with Chinese tourist arrivals reaching 1.19 million in 2024, up 52 per cent from the previous year, and 279,040 in the first quarter of 2025, marking a 1.15 per cent year-on-year growth. - Bernama
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Straits Times
30 minutes ago
- New Straits Times
Precious-safe-haven gold rises on weak data, simmering uncertainty
Gold rose one per cent on Wednesday, supported by a softer dollar and weak US data, as investors grappled with mounting economic and political uncertainty. Spot gold climbed 0.8 per cent to US$3,378.22 an ounce by 02:02 pm ET (1802 GMT), after rising as much as 1 per cent earlier. US gold futures settled 0.7 per cent higher at $3,399.20. The US dollar index fell 0.5 per cent, making gold cheaper for buyers holding other currencies, while benchmark US 10-year Treasury yields edged lower. "The US services sector - two-thirds of the economy - contracting for the first time in a year has goosed gold a percent higher after bullion had shrugged off a weak though historically volatile ADP employment report," said Tai Wong, an independent metals trader. "A close back above $3,400 will prime a run for new all-time highs." The Institute for Supply Management said its non-manufacturing purchasing managers index dropped to 49.9 last month, the lowest reading since June 2024, while ADP data showed US private employers added the fewest workers in over two years. "There is considerable geopolitical uncertainty with Russia-Ukraine, Iran, Syria and China driving people to buy gold... and although traders may not expect gold to rise as quickly, there is still plenty of upside," said Daniel Pavilonis, senior market strategist at RJO Futures. US President Donald Trump said his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping was tough and "extremely hard to make a deal with", just days after accusing Beijing of violating an agreement to roll back tariffs. In addition, Washington doubled tariffs on steel and aluminum imports and urged trading partners to submit their "best offers" to avoid more import levies. All eyes are on Friday's US payrolls report for clues on the Federal Reserve's next move. Gold, a safe-haven asset during times of political and economic uncertainty, tends to thrive in a low-interest-rate environment. Spot silver was down 0.1 per cent at US$34.45, platinum rose 1.5 per cent to US$1,089.99, while palladium lost 1 per cent to US$1,000.55.
New Straits Times
35 minutes ago
- New Straits Times
Wall Street ends narrowly mixed in choppy trade on weak economic data
The services sector contracted in May for the first time in nearly a year, while businesses paid higher input prices, a reminder that the economy was still at risk of slowing growth and rising inflation. Early gains in the S&P 500 evaporated toward the close and trading volume was relatively light. "Tariff impacts are likely elevating prices paid by services sector companies," said Jeffrey Roach, chief economist for LPL Financial. The ADP National Employment Report showed US private employers in May added the fewest number of workers in more than two years. Investors await Friday's nonfarm-payrolls data for more signs on how trade uncertainty is affecting the US labor market. Washington doubled tariffs on imported steel and aluminum to 50 per cent, and Wednesday was also Trump's deadline for trading partners to make their best offers to avoid other punishing import levies from taking effect in early July. Investors focused on tariff negotiations between Washington and trading partners, with Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping expected to speak sometime this week as tensions simmer between the world's two biggest economies. "If we can't get to an agreement on China, the tariff battle will be a headline issue for many months to come and will have an impact on both domestic and international economies," said Phil Blancato, CEO of Ladenburg Thalmann Asset Management. May saw the biggest monthly increases for the S&P 500 index and the tech-heavy Nasdaq since November 2023, thanks to a softening of Trump's harsh trade stance and upbeat earnings reports. The S&P 500 remains more than 2 per cent below record highs touched in February. Barclays joined a slew of brokerages in raising its year-end price target for the S&P 500, pointing to easing trade uncertainty and expectations of normalized earnings growth in 2026. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 91.90 points, or 0.22 per cent, to 42,427.74, the S&P 500 gained 0.44 points, or 0.01 per cent, to 5,970.81 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 61.53 points, or 0.32 per cent, to 19,460.49. Shares of Hewlett Packard Enterprise rose 0.8 per cent as demand for artificial-intelligence servers and hybrid cloud segment helped second-quarter revenue and profit beat estimates. GlobalFoundries rose 2.3 per cent after the chip manufacturer announced plans to increase investments to $16 billion. Shares of the fourth-largest US bank Wells Fargo ended 0.4 per cent lower, although they briefly hit a three-month high after the Federal Reserve lifted a longstanding $1.95 trillion cap on its assets. Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf told Reuters he expects the bank to grow in all businesses including wealth, commercial and investment banking and credit cards, but not mortgages. Tesla fell 3.5 per cent as the electric-vehicle maker's sales dropped for the fifth straight month in big European markets. Shares of cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike slumped 5.8 per cent after it forecast quarterly revenue below estimates. Dollar Tree dropped 8 per cent as the discount store operator forecast second-quarter adjusted profit could fall as much as 50 per cent from a year ago due to tariff-driven volatility. Volume on US exchanges was relatively light, with 14.5 billion shares traded, compared to an average of 17.8 billion shares over the previous 20 sessions. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.3-to-1 ratio on the NYSE. There were 223 new highs and 45 new lows on the NYSE. On the Nasdaq, advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.18-to-1 ratio. The S&P 500 posted 23 new 52-week highs and no new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 84 new highs and 35 new lows.
New Straits Times
35 minutes ago
- New Straits Times
Oil settles 1pct lower after US data shows large builds in fuel stocks
Brent crude futures closed down 77 cents, or 1.2 per cent, at US$64.86 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate crude settled 56 cents, or 0.9 per cent lower at $62.85. US gasoline stocks swelled by 5.2 million barrels, the Energy Information Administration said. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a rise of 600,000 barrels. Distillate stockpiles rose by 4.2 million barrels compared with expectations for a rise of 1 million barrels. Crude inventories dropped by 4.3 million barrels. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a draw of 1 million barrels. "The report is in my view bearish, due to large builds in refined products," Giovanni Staunovo, an analyst with UBS. "There was a strong increase in refinery demand for crude, resulting in a large crude draw. But post-Memorial Day, the strong supply increase with weaker implied demand resulted in large refined product inventory increases," he added. Plans by OPEC+ producers to increase output by 411,000 barrels per day (bpd) in July were also weighing on investors. On Tuesday, both benchmarks climbed about 2 per cent to a two-week high, driven by worries about supply disruptions and expectations that OPEC member Iran would reject a US nuclear deal proposal key to easing sanctions. Russia posted a 35 per cent decline in May oil and gas revenue, which could make Moscow more resistant to further OPEC+ output hikes, as such moves weigh on crude prices. On Tuesday, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) cut its global growth forecast as the fallout from Trump's trade policies takes a bigger toll on the US economy, which would in turn impact oil demand. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping are likely to speak this week, days after Trump accused China of violating a deal to roll back tariffs and trade curbs. US economic activity has declined and higher tariff rates have put upward pressure on costs and prices in the weeks since Federal Reserve policymakers last met to set interest rates, the central bank said in its latest snapshot of the economy. Geopolitical tensions continued to escalate. Russian President Vladimir Putin told Trump that he must respond to high-profile Ukrainian drone attacks on Russia's nuclear-capable bomber fleet and a deadly bridge bombing that Moscow blamed on Kyiv. "Overall, we see limited upside potential amid ongoing concerns about a supply glut and softening demand growth," analyst Ole Hansen at Saxo Bank said in a note. Meanwhile, production operations in Canada, some of which was shut-in due to wildfires, were restarting on Wednesday. Canadian Natural Resources said it has restarted its Jackfish 1 oil sands site in northern Alberta after determining wildfires in the region were a safe distance away. Wildfires in Canada had reduced the country's output by some 344,000 bpd, according to Reuters calculations on Tuesday.
