21/02/2012 (Jakarta Post) - PT Astra Agro Lestari Tbk (AALI), Indonesia’s biggest listed palm oil producer, recorded 98,042 tons crude palm oil (CPO) production in the first month of this year, up 6.4 percent from the same period a year ago.

The rise in CPO production was in line with the 6.6 percent increase in fresh fruit bunches (FFB) to 368,229 tons in January this year, Astra Agro, controlled by the nation’s largest automotive distributor PT Astra International Tbk (ASII), said in a statement to the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) on Monday.

“Based on FFB composition, during January 2012, the Sumatra region contributed 43.3 percent of AALI’s total FFB production, while the Kalimantan and Sulawesi regions contributed 37.2 and 19.5 percent, respectively,” the statement reads.

Astra Agro targeted a 12.9 percent increase in CPO sales volume from 1.3 million tons last year.

The company’s shares traded at Rp 22,350 before the midday break on Monday, down 1.54 percent from the previous day. Astra Agro, which has Rp 35 trillion in market value, has seen its shares gain 3 percent so far this year, versus the broader stock index’s 4 percent increase. (dic)