Bahana TCW Investment Management on 14th January 2015 hosted a press conference to put into context Indonesia’s major economic developments over the course of 2014 as well as discuss its market outlook for 2015. Held at the firm’s head office in Jakarta, the event marked the release of Bahana TCW’s annual end of year publication comprised of market analysis and investment strategies.

The 2014 edition - titled ‘The Magic of Seven’ in reference to the recent election of Indonesia’s 7th president, Mr Joko Widodo, and his target of 7% economic growth – touched upon topics such as macroeconomic factors projected to have a substantial bearing upon investment strategies in 2015. Other articles within the publication include a bottom up view of several key sectors, insights into market timing when investing in mutual fund products in Indonesia, and further information regarding the launch of Bahana Pulse­­ – a mobile app providing users with regular financial updates (See Bahana TCW Investment Management’s The Magic of Seven).

The press conference also featured a presentation by Mr Budi Hikmat, Bahana TCW’s Chief Economist and Director for Investor Relations, who sought to scrutinize the ‘magic of seven’ notion in an analysis of the impact of projected macroeconomic trends such as declining oil prices. In his overview, Mr Hikmat came to the conclusion that it is "very difficult not to be bullish" and highlighted industries involved in infrastructure, industrial estates and consumer goods as those most likely to prosper in 2015. This assertion is based upon the fall of global oil prices as well as steps taken by the government to spur the development of infrastructure such as the recently announced plan to inject 48 trillion IDR of capital into state owned enterprises to carry out infrastructure-related projects.

Mr Edward Lubis as President Director of Bahana TCW Investment Management delivered closing remarks in which he announced the company’s target of 12% growth in assets under management (AUM) for 2015. Having surpassed its 2014 target of 25 trillion IDR, Bahana TCW has its sights set on increasing AUM from 27 trillion IDR (as of December 2014) to 30 trillion IDR over the course of the year. Spurring this growth will be the company’s strategy to introduce at least one new product every month.