Best part of it is all is the world can see that the Aussie...

Note- outgoing administration.
That move will only exacerbate the problems that the ‘Indonesian’ nickel boom has produced.
Chinese companies get up to 90% of the profit.
Indonesian locals get 100% of the environmental damage and all the negative health and social issues that flow from that.

It comes off as ‘well, we won’t be around anymore so… let’s buy ourselves a lot of favours with foreigners by selling out our own people’. A very nasty, self centred and short sighted path.

Environment? We all know the Chinese- oops- the Indonesian nickel sector has ruined a lot of people’s immediate environment.
Health? Long term pollution issues which will cause immediate, medium and long term health issues.
Social? We’ve just heard from the very top that the danger of secession is growing. For friends outside the Asia Pacific you might enjoy learning about East Timor.

Indonesia has lost territory in the recent past.

The really silly part of all this is that the only major outcome will be to speed up the exploitation of resources to China’s benefit. That tells me that money is flowing directly in to politician’s/political group’s pockets. It’s just pouring fuel on to the powder keg.

Net result is stable to positive? I like that. If there’s one thing that’s good for long term planning it’s stability.

Also thanks for your recent note. Very kind of you.

Best part of it is all is the world can see that the Aussie government is staying out of the way when it comes to mining in agriculturally etc benign areas.