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U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer Nigel
today repeated that he was satisfied with the current level of
sterling, both against the dollar and the West German mark.
Lawson said in a television interview that he did not
regard the pound's present exchange rate was uncomfortably
high.
"I think it is round about right," he said.
"I think there was a time that they (British manufacturers)
thought the (exchange) rate was uncomfortably high. But I think
they are very satisfied with the present level."
"But I have made it absolutely clear that I don't want to
see the pound go through the roof," he added.
Reuter
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Shr profit nil vs loss one ct
Net profit 1,136 vs loss 42,840
Revs 1,490,718 vs 1,151,176
Nine mths
Shr profit three cts vs profit five cts
Net profit 89,900 vs profit 150,523
Revs 4,520,393 vs 4,078,441
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FCS Laboratories said its
investment banker, Butcher and Singer Inc, received a
preliminary merger proposal from another company in the
healthcare field.
FCS said that if various aspects of the proposal are better
defined, its board may consider it. FCS said merger
negotiations with this other company have been continuing since
late August.
Reuter
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Shr profit 58 cts vs loss 11 cts
Net profit 726,000 vs loss 145,000
Sales 4,958,000 vs 2,783,000
Nine Mths
Shr profit 1.08 dlrs vs loss 80 cts
Net profit 1,359,000 vs loss 1,013,000
Sales 12.6 mln vs 7,145,000
NOTE: Fiscal 1987 net profit includes tax credits of
372,000 dlrs in the quarter and 643,000 dlrs in the nine
months.
Periods end February 28, 1987 and 1986, respectively.
Art's-Way Manufacturing Co Inc is full name of company.
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Shr loss 18 cts vs profit 11 cts
Net loss 1.5 mln vs profit 868,000
Revs 29.3 mln vs 41.1 mln
Year
Shr loss 41 cts vs profit five cts
Net loss 3.1 mln vs profit 409,000
Revs 99.2 mln vs 231.7 mln
Reuter
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Shr 12.84 dlrs vs 3.07 dlrs
Net 46,054,000 vs 11,026,000
Revs 491.1 mln vs 473.9 mln
NOTE: Current net includes gain of 8.51 dlrs a share on
disposal of assets.
M.W. Ward holds 62 pct voting interest.
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Sea Containers Ltd predicted
its first quarter fiscal 1987 net earnings would improve by 10
mln dlrs over the same period a year ago.
The company said 1987 got off on a much better footing than
fiscal 1986, from which the company recorded a loss of 67.6 mln
dlrs, or 6.28 dlrs per share, on revenues of 641.4 mln dlrs.
James Sherwood, president of the company, said he expects
to record a loss of approximately 12 mln dlrs for the first
quarter, compared to losses of approximately 22 mln dlrs for
first quarter fiscal 1986.
The company emphasized the first quarter is a traditionally
slow period for the ferry industry, which is part of Sea
Containers' business.
Sherwoood said the company's losses were largely
attributable to non-recurring events and provisions. He cited
the default of 15 container leasees and ship charterers,
costing the company approximately 25 mln dlrs.
He also cited a 23 mln dlr cost as a result of a closing
two of its subsidiary's ferry services, and a 10.3 mln dlr
provision to cover losses on the sale of container assets and
severance pay costs.
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First Interstate Bancorp said its
1987 pre-tax income could be reduced by about 33.5 mln dlrs if
it decides to reclassify its 339 mln dlrs in medium- to
long-term loans to Brazil as nonperforming.
But the company stressed in a filing with the Securities
and Exchange Commission that it believes it is too soon to
reclassify the debt, despite Brazil's Feb 20 suspension of
direct interest payments on medium- and long-term loans.
"The corporation believes that it is premature to make a
decsion to classify such medium- and long-term debt as
nonperforming at this time," First Interstate said.
But First Interstate said that if Brazil's suspension of
interest payments continues, it may have to reclassify its
loans as nonperforming and place them on non-accrual, meaning
that interest previously accrued but not paid would be deducted
from net income and interest would no longer be accrued.
Besides its medium- and long-term debt, First Interstate
said it also has 165 mln dlrs in short-term loans or trade
lines in Brazil.
As of Dec 31, 1986, nonperforming Brazilian outstandings
were about 4.1 mln dlrs, it said.
Reuter
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Shr profit 15 cts vs profit 15 cts
Net profit 1,025,000 vs profit 969,000
Revs 10.9 mln vs 7.8 mln
12 mths
Shr profit 33 cts vs loss one cts
Net profit 2,375,000 vs profit 90,000
Revs 38.2 mln vs 20.3 mln
NOTE: Revenues figure shows contract revenue, not gross
contracts written.
Fourth quarter and full year 1986 includes extraordinary
gain of 501,000 dlrs and 1,040,000 dlrs, respectively, from tax
loss carryforwards.
Per share figures come after preferred dividend
requirements.
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Shr loss 17 cts vs loss 19 cts
Net loss 213,000 vs loss 217,000
Sales 6,788,000 vs 6,254,000
Year
Shr loss 22 cts vs loss five cts
Net loss 270,000 vs loss 61,000
Sales 27.0 mln vs 27.0 mln
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Tri-Star Pictures Inc said it agreed
to acquire the Roosevelt Field Century Theatre from Canada's
Cineplex Odeon Corp's RKO Century Warner Theatres Inc for 17
mln dlrs.
The recently refurbished and expanded theater is located in
Garden City, N.Y..
Reuter
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Oper shr loss 30 cts vs loss 25 cts
Oper net loss 2,138,000 vs loss 2,312,000
Revs 99.3 mln vs 89.4 mln
Year
Oper shr loss 40 cts vs profit 47 cts
Oper net profit 4,294,000 vs profit 8,793,000
Revs 390.9 mln vs 360.5 mln
NOTE: Excludes discontinued operations loss of 1.33 dlrs a
share vs 5.35 dlrs a share in the quarter, and loss 1.52 dlrs a
share vs loss 13.64 dlrs in the full year.
Fourth quarter 1986 includes reserve of nine mln dlrs for
operations company plans to sell.
Per share figures come after preferred dividend
requirements.
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Shr 1.09 dlrs vs 1.20 dlrs
Net 1,193,000 vs 1,361,000
Revs 18.7 mln vs 17.3 mln
Year
Shr 1.19 dlrs vs 1.52 dlrs
Net 1,300,000 vs 1,831,000
Revs 50.6 mln vs 48.8 mln
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The Singapore International
Monetary Exchange Ltd, SIMEX, said it would launch at least two
options on futures contracts this year.
SIMEX said in a press release that the options contracts
would be based on the currency and interest rate futures
currently traded on the exchange and be started "toward the
third quarter."
SIMEX, which is linked to the Chicago Mercantile Exchange,
currently trades three currency futures -- on Deutsche marks,
Japanese yen and British pounds -- and two interest rate
futures -- on U.S. Treasury-bonds and three-month Eurodollars.
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Shr loss 1.55 dlrs vs loss 52 cts
Net loss 13,191,000 vs loss 2,254,000
Revs 1,179,000 vs 2,003,000
Avg shrs 8,520,000 vs 4,330,000
Note: Current year loss includes 11.8 mln dlr writedown of
oil and gas properties under full cost accounting method.
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Dorsey Corp said it
completed the sale of substantially all its Dorsey Trailers Inc
subsidiary assets to <Trailer Acquisition Corp>, whose
stockholders include a former Dorsey vice president and several
executives of the Dorsey Trailers management team.
Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
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Oper shr 38 cts vs 5.62 dlrs
Oper net 400,000 vs 6,173,000
Revs 1,195,000 vs 392,000
Year
Oper shr 94 cts vs 5.65 dlrs
Oper net 1,006,000 vs 6,257,000
Revs 2,432,000 vs 1,121,000
NOTE: 1986 operating net for the quarter and year excludes
a loss on the disposal of certain businesses of 2.15 mln dlrs
and a loss from discontinued operations of 297,000 dlrs in the
quarter and 469,000 dlrs in the year.
1985 operating net for the quarter and year includes a
pretax gain of nine mln dlrs from the sale of two divisions and
a loss from discontinued operations of 2.85 mn dlrs in the
quarter and 3.7 mln dlrs in the year.
Napco International Inc is full name of company.
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Oper shr loss 1.02 dlr
Oper loss 631,000 dlrs
NOTE: Prior year results are not available as company
completed its public offering in April 1986.
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Shr loss seven cts vs loss 19 cts
Net loss 497,452 vs loss 1,306,875
Revs 10.6 mln vs 9.6 mln
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New York investor George Soros, and
an investment fund he controls, said they raised their stake in
King World Productions Inc to 2,485,510 shares, or 8.1 pct of
the total outstanding, from 1,986,710 shares, or 6.5 pct.
In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission,
Soros said his group bought a net 498,800 King World common
shares between Jan 8 and March 6 at prices ranging fropm 18.924
to 21.203 dlrs a share.
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<Cineplex Odeon Corp> said it agreed in
principle to acquire the Walter Reade Organization Inc New York
cinema chain from Coca-Cola Co's Entertainment Holdings Inc
unit for 32.5 mln U.S. dlrs.
Cineplex said the purchase price consisted of 22.5 mln dlrs
cash and 652,742 Cineplex common shares. The transaction is
subject to fulfilment of certain unspecified conditions and
regulatory and board approvals.
Walter Reade operates 11 screens in eight Manhattan
locations.
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Secretary of State George Shultz has
decided not to oppose any U.S. wheat subsidy offer to the
Soviet Union and has left the final decision on whether to sell
subsidized wheat to Moscow up to President Reagan and the
Agriculture Department, a State Department official said.
"Shultz feels like he fought the battle against a subsidy
last summer, and he's not going to the mat again. It's now
basically the USDA who has to make their decisions as to what
they want to do," the official said.
If USDA decides to go ahead with a subsidy offer to the
Soviet Union, he said, "Shultz will not wage a vigorous
campaign against it. He might not come out in favor of it, but
he won't go to the President and voice his objections."
In an official statement clarifying Shultz's remarks
yesterday to leaders of the National Association of Wheat
Growers, the State Department said, "Secretary Shultz expressed
his belief that whenever possible, U.S. grain should be
competitive on world markets, including the Soviet Union.
The Agriculture Department is in the best position to
determine whether consideration should be given at this time to
extending to the Soviets a subsidy under the Export Enhancement
Program."
Although Shultz will not oppose a wheat subsidy to the
Soviets, there remain obstacles to another subsidy offer to
Moscow, the State Department official said.
"Everyone in the government agrees that if there is a
subsidy to be offered, we would not offer it unless we had a
firm commitment from the Soviets that they would buy."
USDA does not want a repetition of last summer when the
USSR baulked at its offer of four mln tonnes of subsidized
wheat, the official, who asked not to be identified, said.
The Soviets rejected the U.S. offer then on the grounds
that the 13 dlr per tonne subsidy was insufficient to bring
U.S. prices down to competitive levels.
The Soviets want a higher subsidy offer this time, the
State Department source said.
"What the Soviets want is something equivalent to the
lowest price being paid by anyone in the world," he said.
The Soviets argue that they are the best customer of the
U.S. and that they are entitled to the best price, he said.
Government and commodity sources also said there are
elements in the USDA, most notably undersecretary Daniel
Amstutz, who remain opposed to a wheat subsidy to the Soviets.
"Subsidized wheat to the Soviet Union is still not a
foregone conclusion," the State Department official said.
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Shr not given
Net 540,000 vs 1,890,000
Revs 4.9 mln vs 7.1 mln
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Qtly div 19 cts vs 19 cts prior
Pay April 15
Record April three
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Clorox Co said <Henkel KGaA> of
Dusseldorf, West Germany, agreed to increase its holdings in
Clorox to 30 pct from the current level of 23 pct.
Henkel, which also holds a subordinated note convertible
into another 1.7 pct of the company's stock, intends to acquire
the additional shares in the open market over an extended
period of time, Clorox said.
It also said that, for the foreseeable future, Henkel does
not intend to increase its participation in Clorox above the 30
pct level.
Reuter
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Shr 17 cts vs five cts
Net 1,442,000 vs 393,000
Revs 9,771,000 vs 8,052,000
Year
Shr 74 cts vs 23 cts
Net 6,076,000 vs 1,875,000
Revs 34.9 mln vs 30.3 mln
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Sir Roy Denman, Head of the EC
Delegation in Washington, said pending U.S. trade legislation
is a misguided attempt to deal with the nation's trade deficit
and will spark retaliation if passed in its present form.
"To think that you can deal with a trade deficit by
legislation is a mistake," he told the Foreign Trade
Association here.
Denman told reporters that possible retaliation, which he
warned of in a letter to House Ways and Means Committee
Chairman Dan Rostenkowski, would not necessarily be on a
product-for-product basis.
"Retaliation does not have to be matched product to
product," Denman said.
He said in the case of textiles import restrictions,
however, retaliation would be against U.S. textile exports.
"Certainly, if restrictions were imposed on European
exports of textiles to the U.S., the Community would be likely
to retaliate with restrictions on U.S. textile exports to
Europe," Denman said.
He also took exception to U.S. proposals to require
countries with large current account surpluses with the U.S. to
cut those surpluses or face special tariffs.
"This would conflict with international obligations, throw
a large wrench into the current round of trade negotiations and
could easily boomerang," he warned of the tariff proposals.
Denman also took exception to U.S. efforts to seek
reciprocity in specific trade sectors.
"Forcing reciprocity in one sector by imposing barriers
would simply lead to retaliation from the other party," he
said, adding that overall reciprocity can only be achieved by
trading off disadvantages in one sector for advantages in
another.
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Frank B. Hall and Co Inc
said its independent accountants will issue a qualified report
on its financial statements.
The company said the opinion is the result of ongoing
litigation over its discontinued operations. Earlier it said it
lost 2.1 mln dlrs in the fourth quarter against a loss of 2.3
mln dlrs a year ago before discontinued operations.
It also said it decided to sell its claims adjusting and
admininistrative operations and its automobile dealer insurance
unit, creating a reserve of about nine mln dlrs in the fourth
quarter 1986 for the sale.
The company said it will vigorously defend the litigation
arising from the discontinued units.
It also said it will concentrate on its direct brokerage
and service business.
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Intermark Inc, which together with
one of its subsidiaries already holds a 43.4 pct stake in Pier
1 Imports Inc, told the Securities and Exchange Commission it
plans to acquire a majority of the company's voting stock.
Intermark said it already holds 6,839,827 Pier 1 common
shares, or 35.66 pct, and its Pier 1 Holdings Inc holds
1,484,516 shares, or 7.74 pct.
Intermark said it also has 341,991 shares of Pier 1
preferred stock, or 35.2 pct of the outstanding, while Pier 1
Holdings has 74,225 shares, or 7.6 pct.
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Shr loss 15 cts vs nil
Net loss 877,000 vs profit 22,000
Sales 13.5 mln vs 18.0 mln
Nine mths
Shr loss 35 cts vs profit 20 cts
Net loss 2,098,000 vs profit 1,184,000
Sales 43.5 mln vs 55.9 mln
(Electro Scientific Industries)
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Josten's Corp said it agreed
to sell its proprietary school business to CareerCom Corp, for
20 mln dlrs in cash and about 1.7 mln CareerCom common shares.
Upon completion of the proposed transaction, Josten's will
own 20 pct of CareerCom's stock, which it intends to hold for
investment purposes, it said.
Proprietary school sales totaled about 56 mln dlrs and
accounted for less than 10 pct of Josten's total revenue, it
added.
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Qtly cash distribution five cts vs five cts prior
Pay April 15
Record March 31
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Qtly cash distribution 30.5 cts vs 18.4 cts prior
Pay May 15
Record March 31
Note: Prior-quarter dividend was an initial payout based on
operations for a partial fourth quarter in 1986.
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A group led by Halcyon Investments,
a New York securities and risk arbitrage partnership, said it
has acquired 486,400 shares of Atlantic Research Corp, or 6.4
pct of the total outstanding common stock.
In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission,
the Halcyon group said it bought the stake for 15.6 mln dlrs
for no specific purpose.
The group said it has no plans to seek control of Atlantic
Research, which has been sought by Clabir Corp <CLG>, but said
it may buy more stock or sell some or all of what it has.
Reuter
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Shr 26 cts vs 18 cts
Net 2,102,000 vs 1,415,000
Revs 44.1 mln vs 42.2 mln
Year
Shr 21 cts vs 91 cts
Net 1,678,000 vs 7,105,000
Revs 155.1 mln vs 149.2 mln
Note: Current year figures include 10.1 mln dlr writedown
of costs and investments associated with ethanol refinery
project.
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An investor group told the
Securities and Exchange Commission it plans to cut its stake in
Valero Energy Corp to 402,925 shares, or 1.6 pct of the total
outstanding, from 1,522,850 shares, or 6.0 pct.
The group, led by TAG Group S.A. of Luxembourg, said it
filed with the SEC on Feb 20 a notice that it proposes to sell
1,119,925 shares of Valero Energy common stock.
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Oper shr 31 cts vs 34 cts
Oper net 3,005,000 vs 2,835,000
Revs 13.1 mln vs 9,478,000
Year
Oper shr 1.49 dlrs vs 1.15 dlrs
Oper net 28.7 mln vs 16.9 mln
Revs 47.8 mln vs 32.0 mln
Note: Oper net excludes loss from discontinued operations
of 726,000 dlrs vs gain of 737,000 dlrs for qtr and gain of
581,000 dlrs vs gain of 2,350,000 dlrs for year.
Note: Full name is Western Tele-Communications Inc.
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The Andean Development Corp (CAF) said
today it is lending 11.7 mln dlrs to Ecuador to help repair 25
miles of oil pipeline destroyed by an earthquake earlier this
month.
the loan was signed here today in the offices of the
caracas based caf by the corporation's president, galo montano
perez and ecuadorean ambassador antonio parra gil.
the loan had originally been intended to finance an
expansion of the pipeline, but following the earthquake the
ecuadorean government asked for the terms to be changed so as
to permit their use in reconstruction.
Ecuador expects oil production to be suspended for four
months as a result of the damage, and has asked Venezuela to
help by supplying 50,000 barrels per day while the pipeline is
repaired.
The OPEC member has a production quota of 210,000 bpd but
has asked the organization to allow it to produce 310,000 bpd
once the repairs are completed so as to compensate the loss.
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Harmon Industries Inc said it
signed a letter of intent to acquire for about 3.5 mln dlrs, a
majority of the stock of SNP Inc, a Portland, Oregon-based
company which has patents to reprocess used railroad ties into
new ties for resale.
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Qtly cash distribution 72 cts vs 72 cts prior
Pay May 15
Record March 31
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Latest Federal Reserve data suggest
that the U.S. banking system is flush with reserves going into
a period of traditional tightness and that overall monetary
policy is on hold, economists said.
"There is ample liquidity.... The Fed is not going to shift
gears at the present time or for at least another month," said
Maria Ramirez of Drexel Burnham Lambert Inc.
"Technical and seasonal considerations aside, there is
nothing for the (credit) market to get excited about," added
Robert di Clemente of Salomon Brothers Inc.
Adjusted bank borrowings from the Fed's discount window
averaged only 228 mln dlrs a day in the first week of the bank
statement period ending next Wednesday, compared with 233 mln
and 451 mln in the first weeks of the previous two periods.
Another sign of abundant liquidity was the upward revision
in banks' net free reserves in the two-week period to March 11
to a daily average of 759 mln dlrs from an estimated 660 mln.
Finally, a Fed spokesman told a press briefing that the 14
money center banks were absent from the Fed's discount window
for the third week running, with the latest week's borrowing
split between the large regional and the smaller banks.
While modest open market intervention was apparently enough
to defuse any funding pressures in the first week of the latest
statement period, economists predicted that the Fed would have
to be more aggressive in coming weeks.
The Fed injected temporary reserves directly and indirectly
on four of the five trading days via system and customer
repurchase agreements.
"Fed funds will be coming under relatively intense
pressure," said Salomon's di Clemente, noting the approaching
month- and quarter-end and the round of holidays and tax dates
in April.
"The Fed is faced with a large seasonal adding
requirement," said Ward McCarthy of Merrill Lynch and Co Inc,
who expects a permanent bill purchase next week and a coupon
purchase in early April.
Economists were also heartened by further signs of a
deceleration in money supply growth, not only in the largely
discredited M-1 gauge but also in the more closely watched M-2
and M-3 aggregates.
M-1 grew a mere 500 mln dlrs in the week to March nine,
compared with private forecasts of a 2.3 mln dlr rise. Weekly
M-2 and M-3 components also hinted at slower overall growth.
"The M-1 increase was surprisingly modest and I suspect we
are on our way to another moderate set of M-2 and M-3 figures
for March," said Salomon's di Clemente. Merrill's McCarthy said
they could even come in below the bottom of their respective
target ranges.
In February, M-2 was 18.2 billion dlrs below its upper
limit and M-3 was 20.8 billion beneath.
Noting Fed Vice Chairman Johnson's encouraging remarks on
inflation today and recent interest rate cuts overseas, some
economists suggested this slowing in monetary growth could lend
support to calls for further accommodation here.
"Our belief is that we could still get a move downwards in
rates before anything else," said Salomon's di Clemente, adding
that the key swing factor will continue to be the strength of
the U.S. economy.
Jeffrey Leeds of Chemical Bank agreed that the economy's
health would remain the main influence on policy but, contrary
to di Clemente, he said that recent signs of faster growth and
inflation could lead to higher rates first.
Drexel's Ramirez did not commit herself either way, adding
that the next major move may have to wait until April 14 when
February's U.S. trade data are due for release.
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A U.S. Navy battle group led by the
U.S. aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk is in the northern Arabian Sea
amid renewed concern about the safety of shipping off the coast
of Iran, U.S. officials said today.
But Pentagon spokesman Fred Hoffmann said that reports the
naval strike force was in the region did not mean the United
States was sending a new warning to Iran against escalating
attacks on shipping in the Persian Gulf.
"Nothing like that has happened," he said. "No signal is being
sent."
He said that the Kitty Hawk is operating in an area where
it usually does. "It's normal. It's in the waters where it's
supposed to be. It's been there for over a month."
The Kitty Hawk and its force of warplanes is the mainstay
of the U.S. Indian Ocean Battle Group which patrols a vast area
extending from the Indian subcontinent through the Arabian Sea.
With the Kitty Hawk and its group in the Arabian Sea to the
south and the U.S. Mideast Task Force in the Persian Gulf to
the north, the United States has 10 warships on either end of
the strategic Straits of Hormuz.
The Pentagon, as is its custom, declined to confirm the
exact whereabouts of the ships or what they were up to.
State Department officials cited concern about the safety
of ships passing through the Straits on the vital oil supply
run to the Gulf.
Iran has conducted repeated attacks on shipping in the Gulf
and U.S. officials have said that Teheran has recently equipped
itself with powerful Chinese and Italian-made anti-ship
missiles, posing a greater threat.
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<Bayou International Ltd> said it
purchased one-third of the outstanding stock of Solmecs Corp
N.V., a Netherlands Antilles corporation, for 1,750,000 dlrs.
Bayou said it will also receive two seats on Solmecs'
board.
Bayou Ltd is 55.2 pct owned by Australia Wide Industries
Ltd.
Solmecs develops technology relating to energy conversion.
Reuter
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Quarter ended Feb 28
Shr four cts vs seven cts
Net 500,000 vs 900,000
Revs 9,200,000 vs 10,500,000
Year
Shr four cts vs 12 cts
Net 600,000 vs 1,500,000
Revs 17.6 mln vs 20.8 mln
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Net 41,724 vs 120,329
Revs 1,194,556 vs 1,504,702
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Laser Corp said that costs associated
with its defense of two shareholder lawsuits could result in a
net loss for 1987.
Although Laser expects to post earnings from operations for
the year, a spokesman said they might be wiped out by legal
costs, depending on the length of litigation.
In addition, the company said it will ask shareholders to
approve proposals to merge the company into its main
subsidiary, reincorporate in Delaware and change the company's
name.
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Shr profit two cts vs profit two cts
Net profit 216,000 vs 265,000
Revs 1.7 mln vs 1.4 mln
Year
Shr profit four cts vs loss two cts
Net profit 528,000 vs loss 290,000
Revs 5.9 mln vs 5.5 mln
NOTE:1986 net includes realized investment gains of 3,000
dlrs in year. 1985 4th qtr and year includes realized
investment gains of 16,000 and 35,000 dlr respectively.
Reuter
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Qtly div 44 cts vs 44 cts
Pay April 30
Record April 4
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Qtly div 57 cts vs 57 cts
Pay April 30
Record April 3
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Qtly div nine cts vs nine cts
Pay May 21
Record May 1
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Qtly div 12 cts vs 12 cts
Pay April 8
Record April 1
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The U.S. Senate has unanimously
called for President Reagan immediately to force Japan to live
up to a pledge to stop dumping its microchips and open its
markets to U.S. Chipmakers.
The Senate voted 93 to 0 to urge Reagan to impose penalties
on Japanese high-technology products containing semiconductors
in retaliation for what it sees as Japan's violations of the
semiconductor pact.
While the measure does not bind Reagan to any action,
Senate leaders said its adoption would warn Japan stiffer
legislation would be considered if the violations continue.
"We want to send a message to Japan to let it know how the
Senate feels about this matter," Senate Democratic Leader Robert
Byrd told the Senate.
Senate Finance Committee chairman Lloyd Bentsen told the
Senate the measure was not aimed at retaliation but at
correcting Japan's unfair trade practices.
A key House trade lawmaker, Representative Richard Gephardt
also announced he would seek to force Japan and other countries
with huge trade surpluses to slash their surplus by 10 pct a
year for three years.
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President Reagan said the United
States must do more to lessen its reliance on imported oil.
President Reagan said during a nationally televised news
conference that the rising U.S. reliance on foreign oil is a
problem that the administration is studying.
"We have to study this more," Reagan said. "This is why we
increased the Strategic (Petroleum) Reserve, but we have to do
more," he said.
Reagan said his administration has already proposed
deregulating natural gas and eliminating the windfall profits
tax on crude oil production.
However, he complained that Congress had not yet approved
those measures.
The Department of Energy earlier this week released a
report that warned of rising U.S. reliance on foreign oil
imports at a time when domestic production is declining. It
suggested options for the administration to consider, but made
no specific recommendations.
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Export orders for Taiwanese products
fell 1.37 pct to 3.58 billion U.S. Dlrs in February from 3.63
billion in January, but rose nearly 43 pct from 2.51 billion a
year earlier, an Economic Ministry official said.
He attributed the fall to the rising Taiwan dollar.
February orders for electric and electronic goods were 619
mln U.S. Dlrs, up from 574 mln in January and 370 mln in
February 1986. Garment orders were 324 mln dlrs against 383 mln
and 283 mln while footwear orders were 297 mln compared with
333 mln and 200 mln.
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The Chinese port of Ningbo is
working well below capacity despite being only 130 miles from
Shanghai, which is seriously congested, a port official said.
Jiang Feng Xiang said the port -- the deepest in China --
handled 17.95 mln tonnes of cargo last year, up from 10.44 mln
in 1985, but well below its potential capacity of 32 mln
tonnes. Shanghai handled 100 mln tonnes of cargo in 1986.
Jiang said Ningbo is under-utilised because of its
inadequate facilities, including a single track rail line
linking it to Hangzhou, where it joins the national network.
Ningbo handles crude oil exports and transhipments of coal
from north to south China and imports include fertiliser and
soda ash and iron ore from Brazil and Australia. The docks can
handle ships of up to 150,000 tonnes and oil tankers of up to
200,000 tonnes can load and unload in the harbour.
Most of Ningbo's port infrastructure has been built since
1979, official publications show. A container berth and two
timber and three general cargo berths will be added during the
current 1986-90 five-year plan, Jiang said.
"The rail line to Hangzhou will be double tracked by 1995.
By 2000, maybe, we will overtake Shanghai," he added.
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Federal Reserve Board
Chairman Paul Volcker said the U.S. Trade deficit is a
challenge for the U.S. Equal to the Soviet Union launching of
Sputnik.
"The international challenge implicit in our huge trade
deficit has become the 1980s equivalent to the launch of
Sputnik by the Russians in the 1950s, when we suddenly feared
we were to be left in the wake of Soviet technological
achievement," he said in an address to Florida educators.
He said the trade problem underscored the need to reform
the U.S. Educational system to improve economic performance.
The Commerce Department reported last week that the
nation's trade gap, calculated on a balance-of-payments basis,
swelled to a record 38.37 billion dlrs in the fourth quarter,
bringing the 1986 deficit to a record 147.71 billion dlrs.
Volcker called on educators to stress the development of
basic reading, writing and mathematics skills and urged them to
help students adapt to the fast-changing economic climate.
Volcker said the challenge was greatest in the education of
low-income minority groups such as blacks and Hispanics.
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Japanese short-term interest rates,
buoyed recently by seasonal factors, are likely to fall from
the beginning of April when the new financial year begins,
money traders said.
The Bank of Japan is expected to encourage the trend
following its attempts to pressure rates to enhance its
discount rate cut on February 23, they said.
The Bank cut the rate to 2.5 pct from three, and began
actively injecting funds into the money market to offset rate
rises resulting from the end-of-fiscal-year surge in demand for
funds from financial institutions.
Despite its attempts to dampen rates with measures such as
aggressive commercial bill purchases, the central bank has
failed to remove all upward pressure, money traders said.
Attractive interest rates offered by domestic banks to
compete for time deposits of more than 600 mln yen has
underpinned short-term rates, they said.
Interest rates on time deposits of more than 600 mln yen
were decontrolled by the Finance Ministry last September.
This resulted in such deposits with domestic banks rising
to 17,830 billion yen by the end-December, a three-fold
increase on end-December 1985 levels, bankers said.
On March 31, the money market expects to see a 2,000
billion yen surplus resulting from government payment of fiscal
funds, money traders said.
From April 1, they predict the unconditional call rate will
fall to 3.5000 pct from 3.7500 pct today and the one-month
commercial bill discount rate to drop to 3.7500 pct from 4.0635
pct.
They predict the three-month bill discount rate to slip to
3.875 pct from 4.0000 today and the three-month certificate of
deposit rate to slide to 4.10/4.15 from 4.35/25.
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The state-owned Krung Thai Bank Ltd
will start taking over state-owned Sayam Bank Ltd and complete
the process in a year, Finance Minister Suthee Singhasaneh told
a press conference.
He said the takeover decision was made this week to stem
the current heavy losses of Sayam and to avoid competition
between the two state-owned institutions.
The minister said some of the existing 30 Sayam Bank
branches will be merged with their Krung Thai counterparts,
while others will continue operating but under Krung Thai's
name.
Sayam Bank has existed since August 1984 when the Finance
Ministry took over and re-named the Asia Trust Bank Ltd.
Sayam president Waree Havanonda told reporters last month
her bank posted a loss of more than 400 mln baht in 1986. At
the end of 1985 the bank, with 13.8 billion baht of assets, was
ranked 12th among Thailand's 16 local commercial banks.
Waree said Sayam Bank was trying to recall about six to
seven billion baht of loans extended by its previous private
management and was taking legal action to collect another four
to five billion baht of doubtful debts.
Krung Thai is Thailand's third largest bank.
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Group shr 17.68 yen vs 26.49
Net 14.70 billion vs 21.92 billion
Pretax 35.76 billion vs 48.85 billion
Operating 32.88 billion vs 51.90 billion
Sales 788.73 billion vs 796.24 billion
NOTE - Company forecast for current year is group net
15.50 billion on sales of 800 billion.
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South Korea's current account surplus
narrowed to 419 mln dlrs in February from 679 mln in January
compared with a deficit of 112 mln dlrs in February last year,
provisional Bank of Korea figures show.
The current account in the two months of January and
February swung to a surplus of 1.1 billion dlrs from a deficit
of 494 mln dlrs in the same 1986 period.
The February trade surplus narrowed to 235 mln dlrs from
582 mln in January compared with a deficit of 98 mln dlrs a
year ago.
The overall balance of payments surplus rose to 840 mln
dlrs in February from 716 mln in January and 76 mln in February
1986.
Exports were 2.86 billion dlrs in February against 2.83
billion in January and 2.23 billion in February last year.
Imports were 2.63 billion against 2.25 billion and 2.32
billion.
The February invisible trade surplus rose to 109 mln dlrs
from 24 mln in January and compared with a deficit of 74 mln a
year ago.
The transfer payments surplus widened to 75 mln dlrs in
February from 73 mln in January and 60 mln a year ago.
The long-term capital account surplus was 198 mln dlrs in
February against 211 mln in January and 55 mln in February last
year. The short-term capital account surplus was 87 mln dlrs
against 46 mln and 158 mln.
The errors and omissions account left a surplus of 840 mln
dlrs in February against deficits of 220 mln in January and 25
mln in February 1986.
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Parent shr 37.12 yen vs 34.97
Div 9.50 yen vs 7.50
Net 33.34 billion vs 31.05 billion
Current 79.30 billion vs 73.32 billion
Operating 72.13 billion vs 65.53 billion
Sales 1,222 billion vs 1,211 billion
Outstanding shrs 897.96 mln vs 887.76 mln
NOTE - 1986/87 dividend included two yen bonus dividend to
mark 80th anniversary. Company forecast for current year is
parent shr 37.86 yen, div 7.50 yen, net 34 billion, current 81
billion and sales 1,250 billion.
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Three geographically diverse droughts
in Asia are being linked by some scientists to a
reintensification of the complex and little-understood El Nino
weather pattern, <Accu-Weather Inc>, a commercial weather
forecasting service, said.
Rice and wheat farmers in China, wheat and sugarcane
growers in Australia and tea planters in Sri Lanka all face
serious losses to their respective harvests unless rains arrive
in time to break the droughts, offical reports, government
officials and meteorologists said.
Wen Wei Po, a Hong Kong daily with close Peking links, said
the drought is the worst in over 20 years and some provinces
have been without adequate rainfall for more than seven months.
Rice planting is threatened in eight provinces, it added.
Rainfall in the key farming provinces of Henan and Sichuan
was 70 pct below average during February, the lowest figure for
over 20 years, the paper said.
The dry weather has cut stored water volumes by over 20 pct
compared with last March and lowered the water levels of many
rivers, it added.
This has resulted in reduced hydro-electric power, causing
shortages to industry and households. The upper reaches of the
Yangtze are at their lowest levels in a century, causing many
ships to run aground, Wen Wei Po said.
Unusually high temperatures have also been reported across
China, media reports said. The People's Daily said Sichuan has
recorded temperatures three degrees Celsius higher than average
since early February.
The New China News Agency said the average December
temperature in Harbin in the northeast was six degrees higher
than last December and 14 degrees higher than December 1984.
Severe drought is affecting about one-third of Sri Lanka
and threatens to reduce the country's tea crop, Ministry of
Plantation Industries officials told Reuters
In Australia, concern is growing about below-average
rainfall levels in parts of the sugarcane belt along the
Queensland coast and in Western Australia's wheat belt, local
Meteorological Bureau officials said.
For many farmers and government officials the fear is that
while the present low rainfall does not yet pose a major
threat, the prospect of a dry autumn/winter season when the
wheat crop is in its early stages certainly does, they added.
Concern is heightened by the memory of the 1982/83 drought
which devastated the wheat crop and coincided with the
occurrence of the barely understood weather phenomenon known as
El Nino, they said.
Although meteorologists are cautious about linking the
Asia-Pacific region's disrupted weather patterns to any single
cause, El Nino's role is being closely studied, they said.
Accu-Weather Inc, which specialises in providing data for
agriculture and shipping interests, said each El Nino 'event'
was unique.
The El Nino does not always produce the same effects and
the present occurrence is much less pronounced than the last
major event in 1982/83, it said.
El Nino, Spanish for "Christ Child" because it appears around
Christmas, is formed by the action of warm air, bearing clouds
and rain, shifting from the Indonesian archipelago to the coast
of Peru, where it mingles with the cold waters associated with
the Peru current and returns across the Pacific as the trade
winds, meteorologists said.
The winds, strengthened by El Nino's "pump" effect, raise the
sea level off Australia and Indonesia, they said.
When the winds drop, the ocean, seeking equilibrium, sends
a surge of warmer water back across the Pacific where it
collides with the cold seas off Peru, they said.
One effect of this heat exchange is to deflect the
rain-bearing clouds away from Australia and Indonesia into the
Pacific, where they further disrupt other weather patterns.
The prospects for an end to the droughts vary, Accu-Weather
said.
China, where the affected areas have received between 40
and 75 pct of normal rainfall, will have to wait for the
May-September rains, it said.
The May-September rains normally provide the
drought-striken areas with 80 pct of annual rainfall.
In Australia, areas of Queensland's coastal strip have
received less than half the normal rainfall during the current
wet season, but prospects for increased rains are diminishing
as the rainy season draws to an end.
In Sri Lanka, the drought has come when rainfall should be
at its maximum for the year. The year's secondary rains usually
occur between April and June, although it is not possible at
this stage to forecast whether they will arrive as usual.
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New Zealand investment companies
<Rainbow Corp Ltd> and <Equiticorp Holdings Ltd> have placed
the majority of their joint shareholding in oil and gas
conglomerate Ultramar PLC <UMAR.L> at prices up to 2.20 stg per
share, the companies said in a statement.
The companies said they had bought their 4.9 pct stake in
Ultramar for a total of 50 mln N.Z. Dlrs through a joint
venture company formed for that purpose in October.
They said the joint venture made a profit of 15 mln N.Z.
Dlrs on the deal, but they did say how many shares they had
sold. No further details of the sale were available.
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Guinness Plc <GUIN.L> said it has
started court proceedings against former chairman and chief
executive Ernest Saunders and non-executive director Thomas
Ward for recovery of 5.2 mln stg.
The money was paid to Ward via Marketing and Acquisition
Consultants Ltd in Jersey.
Guinness said earlier it would propose a resolution at the
annual meeting in May to remove Saunders and Ward as directors
of the company. Earlier this month, lawyers for Ward told a
Jersey court that Ward saw the payment as his reward for
services in last year's takeover battle for <Distillers Co
Plc>.
Guinness has said that both men breached their fiduciary
duty in authorising the payment.
Saunders resigned from his executive positions at Guinness
in January in the aftermath of a government enquiry into share
dealings during the battle for Distillers but retained his
position on the board.
No spokesman for Guinness was immediately available for
comment on the statement.
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The Dutch Central Bank said it has
accepted bids totalling 4.00 billion guilders at tender this
morning for new five-day special advances at 5.3 pct for the
period March 20 to 25.
Subscriptions to 250 mln guilders were fully met, amounts
above 250 mln at 30 pct.
The new facility replaces old 11-day advances totalling 6.5
billion guilders at the same rate.
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The Bank of England said it had invited
an early round of bill offers from the discount houses after
forecasting a shortage of around 950 mln stg in the money
market today.
Among the main factors affecting liquidity, bills maturing
in official hands and the take-up of treasury bills will drain
around 572 mln stg while a rise in note circulation wil take
out some 280 mlns stg.
In addition, exchequer transactions and bankers' balances
below target will remove some 85 mln stg and 15 mln stg for the
system respectively.
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Rain and floods in India last year
damaged about 69,000 tonnes of grain intended for human
consumption during storage and transportation, food and civil
supplies minister H. K. L. Bhagat told Parliament.
He did not give comparative figures and said the
government-owned Food Corporation of India (FCI) had not yet
decided whether these grains could be used as cattle feed.
Bhagat said the FCI had a total of 16.43 mln tonnes of food
grains in its warehouses at the end of 1986. It had asked state
governments to build more warehouses to avoid damage to grains.
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The Bank of Finland called a news
conference at 1200 GMT to announce new measures for the
"development of the system of monetary control."
A spokesman for the Bank declined to give further details.
Banking sources said they expected the bank to announce it
will actively take part in the interbank market and buy and
sell certificates of deposit.
The state treasury issues government paper with a maturity
of up to one year. The central bank has so far not issued its
own paper, the sources said.
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The placement of the German federal
government's 25.6 pct stake in utility Veba AG <VEBG.F> would
probably take place early next week, banking sources said.
Share dealers said speculation had arisen in the early
pre-bourse market that the Veba announcement could come as
early as today. But one banking source, though confirming that
most of the details had been worked out, said the chances of an
announcement today were about nil. He had no price details.
The 10 mln shares on offer are expected to bring a cash
call in Germany for well over two billion marks. The share was
around 253 marks today after a 6.50 drop to 252 yesterday.
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The Bank of England said it had provided
the money market with 728 mln stg assistance in response to an
early round of bill offers from the discount houses.
Earlier, the Bank had estimated the shortage in the system
today at 950 mln stg.
The central bank purchased 625 mln stg of bills for resale
to the market on April 7 at rates of interest between 9-15/16
pct and 10 pct.
It also bought 103 mln stg bank bills outright comprising
65 mln stg in band one at 9-7/8 pct and 38 mln stg in band two
at 9-13/16 pct.
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Standard Bank Investment Corp Ltd
(SPRJ.J) chairman Henri de Villiers said he could not predict
profits for the bank this year because of South Africa's
continuing political unrest.
De Villiers also warned in the annual report that "failing
prompt and decisive political action, South Africa faces a
future of violent deadlock between different racial and
political groupings."
He said South Africa's future economic prospects are
"clouded by political and social issues and in the absence of
evidence that these are being positively addressed I am unable
to offer an earnings forecast for 1987."
Standard Bank, 39 pct owned by Standard Chartered PLC
<STCH.L>, London, previously reported that 1986 net income
rose by 13.8 pct to 209.0 mln rand.
The bank said its bad debt losses should begin to decline
this year "although it may take some time before they return to
accepted industry norms."
The annual report showed that the bank's charge for bad and
doubtful debts rose in 1986 to 187.6 mln rand from 162.1 mln
rand in the prior year.
The bank said net income of its Standard Bank of South
Africa subsidiary declined 8.2 pct in 1986 to 112.3 mln rand in
a difficult banking environment caused mainly by low credit
demand.
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The European Community authorised the
export of 25,000 tonnes of barley yesterday, bringing the
cumulative total at weekly tenders since the series started
last June to 3.33 mln tonnes, close to the 3.37 mln under
licence in the same year ago period, traders said.
All bids for wheat were rejected. However, the total to
date of 5.06 mln tonnes is still substantially more than the
3.03 mln under licence a year ago. The 80,000 tonnes of French
maize granted for export moved the total to 135,000 tonnes
since the tender opened in February this year. There were no
facilities for maize in the previous weekly grain export
series.
REUTER
| [
0,
0,
0,
0,
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
The Bank of Spain suspended its daily
money market assistance and offered to drain funds with three-
and seven-day repurchase agreements at 12-1/2 pct, money market
sources said.
The sources said the measures were a further attempt to
rein in money supply and were likely to force some institutions
to scramble for funds before the 10-day accounting period for
reserve requirements closes on Monday.
The bank, which raised its rate for ordinary overnight
assistance to 13-3/4 from 13-1/2 pct on Wednesday, opened its
special borrowing facility for overnight funds at 14-1/2 pct.
Money market sources said institutions in need of funds
were likely to have to return to the bank tomorrow for further
assistance.
The bank rarely invites applications for ordinary
assistance on a Saturday and the sources said it was more
likely to open its special borrowing facility again.
REUTER
| [
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
1,
1,
0,
0,
0
] |
KLM Royal Dutch Airways <KLM.AS> said
it agreed to take full control of a partially owned Dutch-based
parcel delivery service and will offer a minority stake in it
to British and Commonwealth Shipping Plc <BCOM.L>
KLM, seeking to strengthen its market position in the fast
growing door-to-door delivery market, said it agreed with Dutch
retailer Vendex International <VENN.AS> to take over Vendex's
50-pct in their jointly-owned courier, <XP System VOF>.
Ownership of XP will now be brought into the talks started
by KLM last week with British and Commonwealth for a one-third
stake in the latter's <IML Air Services Group Ltd> courier.
When announcing the negotiations with British and
Commonwealth last week, KLM said buying a minority stake in IML
could involve a convertible loan issue.
A KLM spokeswoman said the Dutch flag carrier would now
offer a minority stake in XP to British and Commonwealth in the
negotiations on IML, but declined to elaborate on financial
aspects of the talks.
She said KLM would like the two courier services to
cooperate in future and did not exclude a future merger between
them to combine IML's strong world-wide network with XP's
mainly European activities.
XP System is based in the southern Dutch airport of
Maastricht and has an annual turnover of 100 mln guilders.
KLM, which is also negotiating with British and
Commonwealth for a 15-pct stake in the latter's regional
airline <Air U.K. Ltd>, says door-to-door delivery courier
services are seeing substantially faster growth than
traditional cargo activities.
REUTER
| [
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
<Rainbow Corp Ltd> said <Brierley
Investments Ltd> (BIL) is trying to disrupt Rainbow's planned
merger with <Progressive Enterprises Ltd>.
Rainbow chairman Allan Hawkins said in a statement, "In our
opinion BIL have deliberately tried to create anomalies in the
market prices of Rainbow and Progressive shares since the
merger was announced."
The merger, announced in February, involves the formation
of a new company, <Astral Pacific Corp Ltd>, which Rainbow and
Progressive shareholders will enter into on a one-for-one share
basis. Both boards have approved the merger.
BIL has said it was the mystery bidder behind a recent
stand in the market for three mln Progressive shares.
"We simply regard Progressive Enterprises shares to be worth
approximately twice as much as Rainbow shares and do not think
the merger, as proposed, is soundly based," BIL chief executive
Paul Collins said in an interview in the weekly National
Business Review newspaper published today.
Collins was not immediately available to respond directly
to Hawkins' statement.
Hawkins said the merger has been assessed by independent
consultants and declared fair in all respects, with benefits to
all shareholders.
"We are not going to stand by while other parties distort
the picture for their own strategic purposes and distract the
market away from the real benefits of the merger," he said.
"In our opinion, BIL's actions are clearly not designed to
be in the long term interests of either Progressive or Rainbow
shareholders," Hawkins said.
Reuter
| [
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
The Bank of England said it gave the
money market another 31 mln stg in assistance in the morning
session.
This brings the Bank's total help today to 759 mln stg and
compares with its estimate of a 1.05 billion stg money market
shortage which it earlier revised up from 950 mln stg.
The central bank bought 31 mln stg of bank bills outright
in band two at 9-13/16 pct.
REUTER
| [
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
1,
1,
0,
0,
0
] |
Taiwan's leading industrial organisation
said it will send its first buying mission to the U.S. Later
this year in an effort to reduce the country's trade surplus
with Washington.
A spokesman for the Chinese National Federation of
Industries told Reuters the mission was part of a broader plan
to switch large purchases to the U.S. From Japan.
The Federation groups all of Taiwan's major industrial
associations. Last year its members purchased about 4.5 billion
U.S. Dlrs worth of industrial products from Japan and about 1.8
billion from the U.S.
The spokesman said Federation members were now discussing
the volume of business they could transfer to America.
He said they had drawn up a list of about 80 industrial
products they would be shopping for in the U.S. During the
buying mission in September, but he could give no figure on how
much would be spent.
A Board of Foreign Trade official told Reuters the
government would send two buying missions to America between
June and July this year and might send others later.
Taiwan's trade surplus with the U.S. Rose to a record 13.6
billion dlrs last year from 10.2 billion in 1985.
REUTER
| [
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
1,
0
] |
<Newman Industries Plc> said it was
discussing the possible merger of its electric motor operations
with Hawker Siddeley Group Plc's <HSID.L> <Brook Crompton
Parkinson Motors Ltd> unit.
Newman has electric motor operations in the U.K. And
Australia. The company gave no further details but said a
further statement would be made shortly.
Newman shares eased one penny on the announcement to 43p
while Hawker was unchanged at 528p, three pence higher on last
night's close.
REUTER
| [
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
Dutch chemical group Akzo
N.V. <AKZO.AS> said it agreed to take over household product
subsidiaries of French group Rhone-Poulenc <RHON.PA> for an
undisclosed sum.
Under the agreement, Akzo will acquire the household
product activities of the Lyons-based <Rhodic> and
Remalard-based <Buhler-Fontaine> units of Rhone Poulenc.
Together, these activities account for over 180 mln French
francs in annual sales and employ 170, Akzo said.
Akzo will integrate the firms, to be partially joined with
its own French activities, in its consumer products division.
REUTER
| [
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
A top Swiss banker called for an
obligatory, continuous rating for all Swiss franc bonds and
said he believed anyone buying more than five pct of a company
should be made to declare their share.
In comments at a news conference of <Vontobel Holding AG>,
chairman Hans Vontobel said he believed it was up to the banks'
own self-regulating bodies, such as the Swiss Admissions Board,
to take such action before governmental bodies stepped in.
A decline in the average quality of borrowers on the Swiss
franc market and a debate on the use of registered shares to
prevent takeovers have made both major issues among bankers.
Vontobel noted that many borrowers already came to the
market with ratings from the major U.S. Agencies, which were
readily available to professionals through specialised
information systems.
"We should make this classification obligatory and publish
it in places that are easily accessible to lay people," he said.
The quick changing nature of the financial market meant these
ratings should also be continually updated, he said.
Vontobel also noted that recent years had seen companies,
worried about takeovers, increasingly issuing registered shares
and participation certificates rather than bearer shares.
However, both types of issue had a drawback, he said. The
recent attempt by Jacobs Suchard AG <JACZ.Z> to take over Hero
Conserven Lenzburg <HERZ.Z> had shown the limits of a 1961
pledge by the banks not to sell registered shares to someone
who was not eligible according to the company's statutes.
Excessive issue of participation certificates, which do not
carry voting rights, would also be contrary to the principle of
greater democracy in the new share law before Parliament.
"People buying, for example, more than five pct of a
company's shares should be made to declare their purchase," he
said.
REUTER
| [
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
<Berliner Bank AG> has suffered
losses of between 10 and 100 mln marks through credits granted
by its Stuttgart branch by officials there exceeding their
powers, a bank spokesman said in answer to queries.
The spokesman declined to say exactly how large the losses
were. Berliner Bank has suspended the three managers of its
Stuttgart branch and is continuing an investigation into the
case, in which state prosecutors are also participating.
The fact that powers had been exceeded emerged in a routine
check at the branch. The City of West Berlin owns 74 pct of
Berliner Bank and the rest is held by small shareholders.
REUTER
| [
0,
0,
0,
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
President Reagan said the United
States must do more to lessen its reliance on imported oil.
President Reagan said during a nationally televised news
conference that the rising U.S. reliance on foreign oil is a
problem that the administration is studying.
"We have to study this more," Reagan said. "This is why we
increased the Strategic (Petroleum) Reserve, but we have to do
more," he said.
Reagan said his administration has already proposed
deregulating natural gas and eliminating the windfall profits
tax on crude oil production.
However, he complained that Congress had not yet approved
those measures.
The Department of Energy earlier this week released a
report that warned of rising U.S. reliance on foreign oil
imports at a time when domestic production is declining. It
suggested options for the administration to consider, but made
no specific recommendations.
Reuter
| [
0,
0,
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
The Bank of Spain suspended its daily
money market assistance and offered to drain funds with three-
and seven-day repurchase agreements at 12-1/2 pct, money market
sources said.
The sources said the measures were a further attempt to
rein in money supply and were likely to force some institutions
to scramble for funds before the 10-day accounting period for
reserve requirements closes on Monday.
The bank, which raised its rate for ordinary overnight
assistance to 13-3/4 from 13-1/2 pct on Wednesday, opened its
special borrowing facility for overnight funds at 14-1/2 pct.
Money market sources said institutions in need of funds
were likely to have to return to the bank tomorrow for further
assistance.
The bank rarely invites applications for ordinary
assistance on a Saturday and the sources said it was more
likely to open its special borrowing facility again.
REUTER
| [
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
1,
1,
0,
0,
0
] |
Trico Industries Inc said it has
received a six mln dlr contract to supply hydraulic lift
equipment for heavy crude oil production for the Chinese
Ministry of Petroleum Industry.
The company said the equipment is for use in the Laiohe
oilfield 350 miles northeast of Peking and will equip a
140-well program.
Reuter
| [
0,
0,
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
Shr loss 46 cts vs loss 51 cts
Net loss 10.9 mln vs loss 9,782,818
Revs 20.1 mln vs 9,437,270
Avg shrs 23.5 mln vs 19.3 mln
1st half
Shr loss 90 cts vs loss 1.11 dlrs
Net loss 20.6 mln vs 21.4 mln
Revs 38.9 mln vs 14.5 mln
Avg shrs 22.8 mln vs 19.2 mln
Reuter
| [
0,
0,
0,
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
Shr loss seven cts vs loss 23 cts
Net loss 381,000 vs loss 1,071,000
Sales 4,531,000 vs 4,409,000
Year
Shr loss 21 cts vs loss 98 cts
Net loss 1,098,000 vs loss 4,658,000
Sales 17.8 mln vs 17.3 mln
Reuter
| [
0,
0,
0,
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
Qtly div 30 cts vs 30 cts prior
Pay April 16
Record April Three
Reuter
| [
0,
0,
0,
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
The U.S. Senate has unanimously
called for President Reagan immediately to force Japan to live
up to a pledge to stop dumping its microchips and open its
markets to U.S. Chipmakers.
The Senate voted 93 to 0 to urge Reagan to impose penalties
on Japanese high-technology products containing semiconductors
in retaliation for what it sees as Japan's violations of the
semiconductor pact.
While the measure does not bind Reagan to any action,
Senate leaders said its adoption would warn Japan stiffer
legislation would be considered if the violations continue.
"We want to send a message to Japan to let it know how the
Senate feels about this matter," Senate Democratic Leader Robert
Byrd told the Senate.
Senate Finance Committee chairman Lloyd Bentsen told the
Senate the measure was not aimed at retaliation but at
correcting Japan's unfair trade practices.
A key House trade lawmaker, Representative Richard Gephardt
also announced he would seek to force Japan and other countries
with huge trade surpluses to slash their surplus by 10 pct a
year for three years.
REUTER
| [
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
1,
0
] |
Fleet Financial Group said it might
have to sell its First Connecticut Corp subsidiary as a result
of its proposed 1.3 billion dlr acquisition of Norstar Bancorp
<NOR>.
Under Connecticut banking law, New England based bank
holding companies such as Fleet are not allowed to operate
Connecticut banks if they merge with companies from outside the
region. Norstar is based in Albany, N.Y.
First Connecticut has assets of about two billion dlrs.
Fleet has total assets of about 21 billion dlrs.
Fleet said it will seek to have the Connecticut law amended
to allow it to retain First Connecticut, which is based in
Hartford.
Fleet's acquisition of Norstar is now expected to be
completed around July 1, 1988, when a change in laws in Fleet's
home state of Rhode Island allowing interstate banking outside
New England will go into effect.
Reuter
| [
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
Japan's economic policies face fierce
international attack as hopes fade of a substantial drop in its
trade surplus, international monetary sources said.
At a meeting this week in Paris, senior government
officials from major nations are considering an Organisation
for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) staff report
that forecasts a continuing large Japanese trade surplus, they
said.
Though Japanese exports have become more expensive with the
yen's sharp rise against the dollar, they still tend to surge
when growth picks up, according to the OECD.
As a solution, the OECD staff has urged Japan to redirect
its export-driven economy, boosting domestic demand and imports
by adopting a more flexible fiscal policy, they said.
That recommendation echoes calls made recently at secret
meetings of the International Monetary Fund's executive board.
The monetary sources said Japan's policy was criticized
when the board met to consider the country's economy under the
annual consultations it holds with each of its members.
The United States, which until recently has been reluctant
to criticize Japan's fiscal stance, joined in the attack, he
said.
The IMF staff has also cast doubt on the Japanese
government's forecast of 3.5 pct economic growth in the fiscal
year beginning April 1. Most independent forecasters, including
the IMF, believe that growth in calendar 1987 will be below
three pct, monetary sources said.
The Finance Ministry has been particularly sensitive to
such criticism because it is already under mounting domestic
pressure to boost an economy hard-hit by the yen's rise. The
yen's climb has lost exporters sales and profits in the huge
American market.
Tokyo is also eager to avoid any suggestion that a further
yen rise might be needed to cut its trade surplus, which last
year amounted to a record 93 billion dlrs.
Japan cannot tolerate a further rise of the yen, Foreign
Minister Tadashi Kuranari said recently. The yen closed here
today at 151.53 to the dollar. Most Japanese politicians,
including Finance Minister Kiichi Miyazawa, are clearly hoping
the yen will weaken, government officials said.
At a meeting in Paris last month, Britain, Canada, France,
Japan, the United States and West Germany, agreed to cooperate
to hold currencies at around current levels.
Officials said that wording represented a compromise.
Miyazawa hopes the agreement will hold the yen stable for a few
months, before it weakens later in the year.
Japan wanted the Paris communique to imply a higher value
for the dollar, perhaps by substituting the word "recent" for
"current," while the United States wanted it to more clearly
point to the dollar's weaker levels now, perhaps by use of the
word "present," they said.
In the months leading up the February 22 agreement, the
dollar dropped some 10 yen.
The officials also sought to discredit suggestions in the
market that recent U.S. Action to prevent the dollar from
rising above 1.87 marks pointed to a 153 to 155 yen ceiling for
the U.S. Currency.
Japan has also attacked OECD forecasts, which it says do
not take account of the structural changes in the Japanese
economy that will be triggered by the strong yen.
Officials said there are already signs of that. More and
more companies have announced plans to move production
facilities offshore to take advantage of cheaper costs abroad,
they said.
REUTER
| [
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
1,
0,
1,
0
] |
M.D.C. Asset Investors Inc, which
recently went public, said its board declared an initial
quarterly dividend of 45 cts per share, payable April 15 to
holders of record April One.
Reuter
| [
0,
0,
0,
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
Japanese Agriculture Ministry officials
said a study of agriculture subsidies by the Organisation for
Economic Cooperation and Development, OECD, is still under way
and will be completed sometime next month.
The officials said the study has been inaccurate so far,
and they said Japan would comment on the final results.
A Reuter report from Washington yesterday said the study
has found that Japan has the highest agriculture subsidies in
the world and that dairy farmers benefit more than any other
commodity producers from subsidies. The study has not been
officially released due to objections from some countries.
Japan has withdrawn its objection and decided to accept the
release of the study, the agriculture ministry officials said.
OECD directors are expected to approve the release at a meeting
in mid-May.
One agriculture ministry source said the study so far was
based on the years 1979-81. Japanese subsidies have dropped
sharply since then, partly because of tight budgetary policy,
and foreign currency factors have also changed, he said.
"The study is ... Unfair and unacceptable because it does
not take account of various differences in farming conditions
in each country, such as geography," the source said.
He said it is highly likely that the final study will show
Japan has the highest farm subsidies in the world.
"This would increase foreign pressure to open Japan's farm
market further, but this would have little impact on Japan's
agriculture policy," he said, without giving further details.
A main purpose of the study is to clarify export subsidies
by major exporting nations like the United States and the
European Community, but Japan is a major importer, he said.
Reuter
| [
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
1,
0
] |
Federal Reserve Board
Chairman Paul Volcker said the U.S. Trade deficit is a
challenge for the U.S. Equal to the Soviet Union launching of
Sputnik.
"The international challenge implicit in our huge trade
deficit has become the 1980s equivalent to the launch of
Sputnik by the Russians in the 1950s, when we suddenly feared
we were to be left in the wake of Soviet technological
achievement," he said in an address to Florida educators.
He said the trade problem underscored the need to reform
the U.S. Educational system to improve economic performance.
The Commerce Department reported last week that the
nation's trade gap, calculated on a balance-of-payments basis,
swelled to a record 38.37 billion dlrs in the fourth quarter,
bringing the 1986 deficit to a record 147.71 billion dlrs.
Volcker called on educators to stress the development of
basic reading, writing and mathematics skills and urged them to
help students adapt to the fast-changing economic climate.
Volcker said the challenge was greatest in the education of
low-income minority groups such as blacks and Hispanics.
Reuter
| [
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
1,
0
] |
2nd qtr
Shr four cts vs seven cts
Net 500,000 vs 900,000
Revs 9,200,000 vs 10.5 mln
1st half
Shr four cts vs 12 cts
Net 600,000 vs 1,500,000
Revs 17.6 mln vs 20.8 mln
NOTE: Period ended February 28.
Company corrects period in March 19 item
Reuter
| [
0,
0,
0,
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
C.O.M.B. Co said its board has
approved a proposal to acquire the 50 pct of Cable Value
Network held by its cable television industry partners in
exchange for warrants for C.O.M.B. common.
The company, which already owns the other 50 pct of CVN,
said it plans to change its name to CVN.
C.O.M.B. said the proposal calls for its cable partners to
receive about eight mln five year warrants in exchange for
their 50 pct interest in CVN and commit to a long-term
affiliation agreement to carry CVN programming.
C.O.M.B. said the proposed warrants would carry an exercise
price of 18.125 dlrs a share.
It said the 7,869,353 warrants originally offered to cable
partners will continue to vest on the pre-agreed schedule. The
company now has about 18.1 mln shares outstanding.
C.O.M.B. said the transaction is subject to the parties
entering into an agreement which would be subject to approval
by its shareholders and regulatory agencies.
Reuter
| [
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
Home Savings and Loan Association
Inc of Durham, N.C., said its board declared a 20 pct stock
dividend, payable April 28 to holders of record April Three.
Reuter
| [
0,
0,
0,
1,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
0
] |
[
1,
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0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
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0,
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] |
|
[
0,
0,
0,
0,
0,
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0,
0,
0,
0
] |
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