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                          A S I A   P A C I F I C

              Monday, March 13, 2000, Vol. 3, No. 50

                                 Headlines


* A U S T R A L I A *

AMP: Rejects NAB's takeover offer
AUSTAR UNITED COMMOS.: Posts annual loss
BRIMSTONE COLLIERY: Closure has miners on alert
BRONZEWING GOLD NL: Reaches deal on debt retirement
HERON RESOURCES NL: Centaur Nickel makes takeover offer
TELSTRA: Investors remain wary despite recent profit


* C H I N A  &  H O N G  K O N G *

INT'L BANK OF ASIA: S&P warns of possible downgrade
INT'L BANK OF ASIA: Increases debt provisions
WING ON INT'L: To be delisted, go private


* I N D O N E S I A *

TEXMACO GROUP: Loans to be transferred to IBRA


* J A P A N *

DAICEL CHEMICAL INDUS.: Faces special loss from US fine
ITOCHU CORP.: Forecasts smaller annual losses
NIPPON CREDIT BANK: Repays 6.5B Yen to Daiichi Mutual
NIPPON SYNTH.CHEM.INDUS.: Faces special loss from US fine
NIPPON TEL.AND TEL.: 2001 pension shortfall to hit 320B Yen
NTN CORP.: Early write-off of pension shortfall
OILES CORP.: To pool group funds to cut debt
TOKYO STEEL MFG.: To post 13.5B Yen net loss for FY99
YASUNAGA CORP.: Changes forecast to FY99 loss


* K O R E A *

DAEWOO GROUP: Loses U.S. iMac copy suit
DAEWOO GROUP: Minority shareholders to reject workouts
HANBO STEEL: Nabors Takes over for US$480 Mil.


* P H I L I P P I N E S *

FORTUNE TOBACCO CORP.: Solgen backs DOJ in tax case
PHILIPPINE NAT.BANK: Tan willing to sell PNB stake
PILIPINO TEL.CORP.: Debt talks facing delay
WESTMONT INVEST.CORP.: Settlement plan readied on loans


* S I N G A P O R E *

BRIERLEY INVESTMENTS: Loss-maker's CEO sees brighter future
CLOB INT'L: Surprise 10% exit tax waiver for Clob


* T H A I L A N D *

ABICO HOLDING: Suspension sign posted by the SET
BANGKOK STEEL INDUSTRY: Tax and debts delay merger
CEMENT THAI STEEL: Tax and debts delay merger
EMC: Asks SET for delay in submitting rehab plan
KRUNG THAI BANK: Govt puts off decision on bad loans
MEDIA OF MEDIAS: Suspension sign posted by the SET
NTS STEEL: Tax and debts delay merger
PROPERTY PERFECT: Suspension sign posted by the SET
ROYAL CERAMIC INDUSTRY: Suspension sign lifted by SET
ROYAL CERAMIC INDUSTRY: Hearing date set for rehab plan
THAI HEAT EXCHANGE: Suspension sign posted by the SET
THAI OLEFINS CO: $328m plan wins unanimous support
THAI PETROCHEM.INDUS.: Conspiracy to sell assets denied
THAI PETROCHEM.INDUS.: Suspension sign posted by the SET
THAI PETROCHEM.INDUS.: TPI to block vote on planner
THANA FINANCE AND TRUST: FRA to auction off rare paintings
UNION BANK: Fraud raid nabs ex-loan officer
UOB RADANASIN BANK: Suspension sign posted by the SET
WONGPAITOON GROUP: Suspension sign posted by the SET


=================
A U S T R A L I A
=================

AMP: Rejects NAB's takeover offer
---------------------------------
AMP has admitted it rejected a$20 billion-plus takeover
offer from National Australia Bank, with chairman Mr Ian
Burgess stating that it was going through a "temporary
crisis" and would not be for sale for three years.

The admission yesterday came as AMP shares soared almost 4
per cent to close at $16.35 on speculation that the company
would be the next target in any shake-up in the financial
services sector following the Commonwealth Bank's bid for
Colonial, the details of which are expected today.  Mr
Burgess said he was sure all the major banks had considered
bidding for AMP.

"We, the board, are not going to think kindly of anything
other than a very, very high [takeover] offer because AMP
is going through a sort of temporary crisis," he said in an
interview with The Australian Financial Review.  "And in
the shareholders' long-term interest, we have to see it
through and it [AMP] could well be available in three
years' time."

There has been speculation since late last year that AMP
had been approached by NAB. And CBA sources said it had
considered moving on AMP but decided Colonial represented
better value.  When asked if NAB had offered $21 a share,
Mr Burgess said: "They certainly didn't offer a sort of
definitive $21 price."

It is understood that NAB went to AMP around last September
with the offer, which at the time represented a 25 per cent
premium to AMP's share price.  After AMP rejected the
approach, AMP chief executive Mr Paul Batchelor conducted
several investor briefings in Australia and Europe seeking
to promote AMP's strategy following the exit of Mr George
Trumbull.

AMP's shares were weak around the time of the NAB approach
because of investor anger about the GIO takeover debacle
and concerns about its UK strategy.  But AMP's share price
continued to fall. It was less than $14 just three weeks
ago, but has jumped this week after Commonwealth Bank's
move on Colonial.  Mr Burgess was adamant that AMP had the
right strategic direction, despite a division among fund
managers about its underlying valuation.

" I think Batchelor is just the man for the task. He's a
clinically effective and efficient man; very bright with
his eye on the board. He's got a very good team now. I
think he's just the man to carry AMP forward now."

A takeover by NAB would realise some cost savings, but more
importantly it would give Australia's biggest bank the
large funds management business it has been seeking. NAB
will come under some pressure to launch a counter bid for
Colonial. But sources said it was more likely to try to
entice AMP into a deal again.

It is understood that CBA declined to move on AMP for
reasons that included the life group's low-growth UK
assets.  A NAB spokesman said the bank was not under
pressure to get into an auction over Colonial. But
shareholders disagreed, dumping NAB. It closed down 3.6 per
cent at $20.08. (The Australian Financial Review  10-March-
2000)

AUSTAR UNITED COMMOS.: Posts annual loss
----------------------------------------
Austar United Communications Ltd., a pay television and
telecommunication concern, reported a net loss of A$109.8
million (US$66.3 million) for the year ended Dec. 31.

The company, which is 75%-owned by UnitedGlobalCom, was
listed on the Australian Stock Exchange in July and didn't
provide corresponding figures for 1998.  But it noted that
in the fourth quarter of 1999 the business achieved
positive earnings before interest, tax depreciation and
amortization of A$100,000, swinging from a loss of A$21.3
million a year earlier.

Austar still incurred a loss before interest and tax in the
fourth quarter of A$52 million, narrowing from a loss of
A$55.4 million a year earlier.  Core pay television, voice,
data and programming businesses all grew during 1999, and
the company is performing to expectations, said Chief
Executive John Porter. (The Asian Wall Street Journal  09-
March-2000)

BRIMSTONE COLLIERY: Closure has miners on alert
-----------------------------------------------
Coalminers are demanding payment of their full entitlements
after the man at the centre of last year's Oakdale colliery
closure decided to close a second mine.

Mr Max Dunbier, whose Oakdale workforce lost $6.2 million
in entitlements, has announced the closure of the nearby
Brimstone colliery because of price reductions for export
coal and other difficulties.  About 25 Brimstone miners
will lose their jobs and another 25 are expected to also
lose theirs with the closure of the Wollondilly coal
washery, also owned by Mr Dunbier.

The Brimstone colliery had been the last surviving coal
mine in the Burragorang Valley, near Camden, and its
closure brings an end to the traditions of a once thriving
local mining community.

The Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU)
claimed yesterday that it had a written agreement with Mr
Dunbier guaranteeing that Brimstone miners would receive
their entitlements because they were to be placed at the
top of a list of secured creditors.

But the CFMEU's district secretary, Mr Graham White, said
miners were determined not to put their entitlements at
risk.  If there was any possibility that $1 million in
entitlements would not be paid, the miners would block the
removal of mine equipment that is to be auctioned, he said.

About 125 miners from Mr Dunbier's Oakdale colliery lost
$6.2 million a year ago when insufficient funds were
available to cover outstanding redundancy pay, annual leave
and other entitlements owed by the insolvent company.

After a strong public campaign, the Federal Government
agreed to guarantee full payment to the Oakdale miners by
drawing funds from a special coal industry long-service
leave fund.  The Oakdale miners' case drew into sharp focus
the plight of many thousands of workers each year denied
entitlements when their companies become insolvent,
prompting the Government to investigate setting up a
universal scheme to protect all workers' entitlements.

So far the Minister for Workplace Relations, Mr Reith, has
introduced a "safety net" scheme allowing workers up to a
maximum $20,000. Despite other prominent company
insolvencies, such as National Textiles, the Government has
made little headway on the issue of a universal protection
scheme.  Mr Dunbier was not available for comment yesterday
but a statement he issued attributed the Brimstone closure
in part to unprofitability following a fall in steaming
coal prices during coal industry negotiations with Japanese
power utilities.

The Herald reported on Tuesday that Australian coal
producers, led by MIM and Rio Tinto, accepted a 4 per cent
reduction in the coal price during annual negotiations in
Tokyo, cutting the price by $US1.20 a tonne to $US28.75
($A46.9).  Miners at Brimstone have already started
bringing equipment to the mine surface for intended sale
before the colliery's official closure in three months.

The Wollondilly coal washery, which had relied on Brimstone
for its survival, may continue operating until September
provided enough coal stock is available for processing.
The CFMEU had demanded that coal producers refuse a further
round of price reductions. The union is now considering a
campaign of non-co-operation as a protest against what it
claims is easy capitulation to Japanese pressure. (Sydney
Morning Herald  10-March-2000)

BRONZEWING GOLD NL: Reaches deal on debt retirement
---------------------------------------------------
The Directors of West Australian Metals NL ("WME"), through
L A Colless, director/secretary, advise that the Company
has reached agreement with AI Engineering Corporation
Limited ("AIE") to retire the debt of $550,367 owed to AIE
by the Company's wholly owned subsidiary, Bronzewing Gold
NL ("BGNL").

The settlement of the debt would be achieved as follows:
a) The exercise of AIE's existing holding of 1,600,000
options (currently under escrow) at 20 cents each, which
will retire an amount of $320,000. The shares issued on
exercise of the options will be subject to escrow for the
remainder of the escrow period.

b) Subject to WME shareholder approval, the issue to AIE of
shares to the value of $230,367 at a minimum price of 20
cents per share, or at the average market price over the 5
trading days preceding the day of issue, whichever is the
greater.

As the issue of Shares to AIE, referred to in paragraph b)
above, requires the prior approval of shareholder's of WME,
a Notice of General Meeting and Information Memorandum will
be forwarded to shareholders of the company in the near
future.  (The Sydney Morning Herald  11-March-2000)

HERON RESOURCES NL: Centaur Nickel makes takeover offer
-------------------------------------------------------
Were Stockbroking Limited, trading as J B Were & Son, a
member
corporation of Australian Stock Exchange Limited announces
on behalf of Centaur Nickel Investments Pty Ltd (a wholly
owned subsidiary of Centaur Mining & Exploration Limited;
"Centaur Nickel") that the Takeover Announcement made by J
B Were & Son on behalf of Centaur Nickel on 8 February 2000
to acquire all of the fully paid ordinary shares of HERON
RESOURCES N.L. ACN 068 263 098 then on issue at a cash
price of thirty (30) cents per share is hereby varied in
accordance with section 681(3)(a) of the Corporations Law
by extending the offer period for one (1) month so that the
offer period will remain open until the close of trading on
26 April 2000.

(Chapter 6 of the Corporations Law as in force immediately
before the commencement of Schedule 1 to the Corporations
Law Economic Reform Program Act 1999 continues to apply to
the Takeover Announcement pursuant to section 1483 of the
Corporations Law.)  (Sydney Morning Herald  10-March-2000)

TELSTRA: Investors remain wary despite recent profit
----------------------------------------------------
Investors remain unconvinced of Telstra Corp's ability to
re-engineer itself into an industry leader in the new
economy, yesterday selling down the telecom's stock despite
this week's record $2.09 billion net profit.

Analysts yesterday expressed a mixed reaction to Telstra's
result for the December half, unwilling to embrace its
shares ahead of news of any decision by the group's board
concerning its future structure, which will be presented to
directors in the coming weeks.

As chief executive Dr Ziggy Switkowski faced hostile
members of parliament in Canberra where he was grilled on
details of the company's decision to shed 16,300 staff
within two years and cut $650 million in costs, Telstra
ordinary shares fell another 13› to $8.07.  The decline was
double that of the wider market, while the company's
instalment receipts fell 12›, or 2.3 per cent, to $5.11.

Dr Switkowski will embark on a series of meetings in
Melbourne today with his institutional investors, and in
Sydney next week to sell his commitment to re-engineering
Australia's industry incumbent into a company on the
cutting edge of internet and wireless communications.

Salomon Smith Barney's Mr Dan Segal, who has an outperform
call on the stock, said he would consider ugrading his
recommendation to a buy when issues concerning several
strategic initiatives had been clarified.

Warburg Dillon Read analyst Mr Stephen Wood, who sees
Telstra as a buy, said the result was ahead of expectations
and increased his forecast for Telstra's full year pre-
abnormal profit by 2.2 per cent to $3.96 billion.

"The lack of growth in operating cashflow and decline in
free cashflow were, we believe, the negatives in this
result," he told clients.  "However Telstra is in a
transition and the rollout of the new services ... has
stunted cashflow."

JB Were's Mr Craig Connelly retained his buy recommendation
on the stock, but told clients the result was slightly
below expectations and slightly downgraded his expectations
for Telstra's full-year operating profit. The bottom line
will be marginally boosted by the $134 million accounting
benefit in the company's mobile division revealed in the
year.

ANZ Funds Management's Mr David McDonald said the result
revealed Telstra still had a strong competitive advantage,
adding he was surprised by the negative reaction to the
result. (The Australian Financial Review  10-March-2000)


==============================
C H I N A  &  H O N G  K O N G
==============================

INT'L BANK OF ASIA: S&P warns of possible downgrade
---------------------------------------------------
Ratings agency Standard & Poor's has placed the credit
ratings of International Bank of Asia (IBA) under review
for possible downgrade after the bank posted a sharp drop
in last year's earnings.

On Wednesday, IBA reported a 70.9 per cent decline in net
profit to HK$23.83 million, due chiefly to an increase in
provisions for non-performing loans made to mainland
borrowers.  The result stunned the market, which was
expecting a 63 per cent profit increase on the strength of
lower provisioning charges.

S&P yesterday said it had placed IBA's BBB long-term and A-
3 short-term, counter-party ratings, as well as its BBB
rating on the bank's floating-rate certificate of deposit
programme on credit watch "with negative implications".

"The credit watch action reflects ongoing concerns about
IBA's exposure to borrowers from mainland China, given the
financial difficulties that many of them are experiencing,"
said S&P.  "Relative to many of its peers in Hong Kong, IBA
has a higher level of direct and indirect exposure to such
borrowers. In light of this, it is necessary to determine
likely future provisioning and write-off levels for the
bank."

S&P added, however, that these concerns were to a certain
extent mitigated by IBA's "ample liquidity and strong
capital position".

It expected to complete the review by the first week of
May.  IBA spokesman Steven Thompson said the bank was
confident the review would reaffirm its sound fundamentals
and existing ratings.  "We have taken steps to put the
issue of China loans behind us, reducing exposure by over
US$160 million, or more than half of total PRC loans in the
past 18 months," he said.

In addition, the bank had accelerated its provisionings, he
said, in order to present a clean slate in 2000 "so that we
can concentrate on business expansion." (South China
Morning Post  11-March-2000)

INT'L BANK OF ASIA: Increases debt provisions
---------------------------------------------
International Bank of Asia Ltd. made bad-debt provisions of
HK$373.8 million (US$48 million) in 1999, up 10% from
HK$339.4 million in 1998.

The bank posted a 71% drop in 1999 net earnings to HK$23.8
million on Wednesday, from HK$81.8 million in 1998. The
small Hong Kong-listed bank said the provisions it made for
bad loans, similar in size to its operating profit before
provisions, led to the steep drop in earnings. Operating
profit before provisions fell 12% to HK$395.7 million from
HK$450.7 million the year before, due largely to a 9.8%
drop in operating income to HK$782.5 million.

Of that total, noninterest operating income fell 52% to
HK$40.7 million from last year's HK$84.6 million, on a drop
in trade finance, loan fees and credit card receivables.
Mike Murad, IBA's chief executive officer, told reporters
the bank had HK$750 million in nonperforming loans at the
end of 1999, of which 78% was covered by collateral and
provisioning, compared with HK$779 million last year, of which
97% was covered.

Nonperforming loans to China stood at HK$277 million in 1999,
of which 48% was covered, compared with HK$161 million by
the end of 1998, of which 100% was covered. Nonperforming
loans to Hong Kong stood at HK$473 million in 1999, of which
96% was covered, compared with HK$618 million by end 1998,
of which 96% was covered. Bad loans made up 5.3% of the total
loan porfolio in 1999. (The Asian Wall Street Journal  09-March-
2000)

WING ON INT'L: To be delisted, go private
-----------------------------------------
Wing On International is to be delisted at the end of this
month.

Nearly all shareholders agreed to the privatisation plan
yesterday at a special general meeting.  Wing On plans to
repurchase shares equivalent to 16.29 per cent of its total
issued shares from minority shareholders.  A repurchase
price of $16 is a 117.6 per cent premium on the counter's
last traded price of $7.35 on December 2.  It is the
highest price the share was traded at during the past five
years.

However, it represented a discount of 48.2 per cent to the
company's per share net asset value of $30.90.  Independent
non-executive director Ignatius Wong Wan-chiu said the
share repurchase allowed minority shareholders to cash out
on their holding. (South China Morning Post  11-March-2000)


=================
I N D O N E S I A
=================

TEXMACO GROUP: Loans to be transferred to IBRA
----------------------------------------------
Bank Indonesia Governor Sjahril Sabirin said on Friday that
Texmaco Group's bad loans owed to the state-owned Bank
Negara Indonesia (BNI) would be "immediately" transferred
to the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA).

Sjahril said that the transfer of the category five bad
loans was part of the requirements of the government bank
recapitalization program.  "They will be transferred
immediately," he told reporters following Friday prayers.

The newly independent central bank is supervising the
country's banks until the government forms a special
supervisory body for financial institutions within the next
year.  Sjahril declined to mention the exact date of the
transfer and the size of Texmaco's loans.  "You can come
again to me next week to check," he said.

The transfer of the Texmaco loans from BNI to IBRA became a
controversy last year not only because the group was
accused of using its connections with former president
Soeharto to get a huge Rp 9.6 trillion (US$1.29 billion)
loan from BNI, but also because there was speculation that
the group was trying to prevent the loan transfer.

Bad loans transferred to IBRA would have to be either
restructured under the agency's tough terms or risk
litigation measures.  Texmaco is the country's largest
integrated textile group. It also owns large stakes in the
truck, tractor and engineering goods industries.

Then BNI president Widigdo Sukarman said in November 1999
that the Texmaco loans were category four or substandard
loans. It is not clear how many of the loans have since
been classified as category five bad loans.  Banks joining
the government recapitalization program must transfer all
of their category five loans as well as loans with
provisions of more than 50 percent to IBRA.

BNI is one of the state banks to be recapitalized this year
that has boosted its capital adequacy ratio (CAR) to beyond
the 4 percent minimum level.  The bank needs around Rp 52.8
trillion in recapitalization funds. It launched a rights
issue last year to facilitate the recapitalization program,
but it only managed to raise around Rp 238 billion from
public shareholders, leaving the government to purchase the
remainder.

In a January letter of intent to the International Monetary
Fund, the government said it planned to recapitalize BNI by
Feb. 29.  Asked about the delay, Sjahril said, "It's only
because of a technical problem." He declined to elaborate.

Meanwhile, Sjahril also said that Bank Indonesia would
continue its efforts to divest its 100 percent ownership of
the Amsterdam-based Indover Bank.  Bank Indonesia has to
divest its ownership in the bank because it has become an
independent central bank focusing on monetary policy.

"We expect the divestment program to be completed this
year," he said.

Sjahril said that Bank Indonesia had nearly completed a
deal with a buyer in 1998, but it was dropped following the
financial crisis in the region.  Indover has also
operations in Hongkong. (The Jakarta Post  11-March-2000)


=========
J A P A N
=========

DAICEL CHEMICAL INDUS.: Faces special loss from US fine
NIPPON SYNTH.CHEM.INDUS.: Faces special loss from US fine
---------------------------------------------------------
Nippon Synthetic Chemical Industry Co. (4201) and Daicel
Chemical Industries Ltd. (4202) said Friday that they will
take special losses for the current fiscal year ending
March 31, as they settle a class-action lawsuit in the U.S.
for alleged price fixing of food preservatives.

For Nippon Synthetic Chemical, a manufacturer of polyvinyl
alcohol, the U.S. fine totaling $12.7 million will show up
as a lump sum special loss of around 1.4 billion yen this
fiscal year.

As a result, the company now estimates a consolidated net
loss of 1.2 billion yen and a parent net loss of 1.4
billion yen, revised from a profit of 800 million yen and
600 million yen, respectively. The company posted a group
net loss of 1.00 billion yen and parent net profit of 516
million yen in the prior fiscal year ended March 1999.

Separately, Daicel Chemical, a maker of organic chemicals,
said it will suffer a special loss of about 3 billion yen
due to a fine $27 million. But the company will generate
profits from sales of securities and other asset holdings
to offset the special loss.  It has kept intact its prior
earnings outlook for the fiscal year. (Nikkei  10-March-
2000)

ITOCHU CORP.: Forecasts smaller annual losses
---------------------------------------------
Itochu Corp. said it now sees smaller group and parent net
losses for the year ending March 31 due to the sale of some
of its shareholdings.

The general trading house now expects to post group net
loss of 85 billion yen ($800.6 million) for the year,
better than the 110 billion loss yen previously projected.
Itochu also expects to post parent net loss of 173 billion
yen, an improvement from the 183 billion yen loss
previously expected.

The company said it sold 399,600 shares in Itochu Techno-
Science Corp., a computer systems developer and integrator
also known as CTC, for a 38.75 billion yen special profit
Tuesday. After the share sale, the parent company's stake
in CTC stands at 58.1%, Itochu said. (The Asian Wall Street
Journal  09-March-2000)

NIPPON CREDIT BANK: Repays 6.5B Yen to Daiichi Mutual
-----------------------------------------------------
Daiichi Mutual Fire and Marine Insurance Co. has been
compensated for some 6.5 billion yen worth of losses
incurred from buying new shares in the failed Nippon Credit
Bank, The Nihon Keizai Shimbun has learned.

In spring 1997, under the bailout plan led by the Finance
Ministry, the long-term credit bank that is now under
temporary state control issued a total of 290 billion yen
in new shares in private placements to some 30 financial
institutions such as commercial banks, insurance companies
and the Bank of Japan.

Except for Daiichi Mutual, however, no other financial
institutions have been compensated for their losses by the
failed bank.  Both Daiichi Mutual and Nippon Credit Bank
declined to comment on the matter.

"A contract protecting against risks from share price
fluctuations is a common commercial practice," said a
Financial Reconstruction Commission official. (Nikkei  10-
March-2000)

NIPPON TEL.AND TEL.: 2001 pension shortfall to hit 320B Yen
-----------------------------------------------------------
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. (9432) estimates that
the unfunded pension and severance liabilities of the old
NTT will reach around 320 billion yen as of April 2001.

This marks the first time that NTT has provided a full
picture of its overall retirement liabilities on a pre-
reorganization basis. The telecommunications giant was
split into a holding company and three core operating units
last year.

The projected shortfall is based on a discount rate of 3%
and covers only the holding company and the three main
units: Nippon Telegraph and Telephone East Corp., Nippon
Telegraph and Telephone West Corp., and NTT Communications
Corp.

NTT announced last November that it would take a 720
billion yen extraordinary charge in fiscal 1999 to plug the
gap between its lump-sum severance liabilities and the
allowances taken to cover those future benefits. But the
company did not disclose its pension fund shortfall at that
time.

The projection represents the total shortfall that would
remain, even after the extraordinary charge, between
pension and severance liabilities on the one hand and
pension-fund assets and severance allowances on the other.
Less than 15 billion yen of the total shortfall belongs to
NTT itself, with the rest divided between the operating
units. (Nikkei  10-March-2000)

NTN CORP.: Early write-off of pension shortfall
-----------------------------------------------
NTN Corp. (6472), a major manufacturer of bearings, will
write off much of its unfunded pension and retirement
allowances ahead of schedule during the current fiscal year
through March 31, company sources said Thursday.

The company expects the shortfalls to total 59 billion yen
at the end of fiscal 1999. It plans to book 45 billion yen
of this as an extraordinary loss in fiscal 1999 accounts.
The remaining 14 billion yen will be written off in the
following term, the sources said.

The shortfall is calculated by subtracting retirement
allowance reserves and pension assets from the 159 billion
yen worth of debts in its schemes for retired employees.
NTN also plans to post a 3 billion yen extraordinary loss
from writing off unsold inventory and idle facilities
during the current term.

As a result, the company expects to see a net consolidated
loss of some 25 billion yen, compared with an earlier
estimate of 2.6 billion yen in net profit. This comes
despite the use of deferred tax accounting from this year.
But consolidated sales are seen rising to 325 billion yen,
up slightly from an earlier estimate of 321 billion yen,
thanks to recovering sales of automobile bearings. (Nikkei
09-March-2000)

OILES CORP.: To pool group funds to cut debt
--------------------------------------------
Oiles Corp. (6282) plans to unify funding for its 10 group
firms in Japan, and the company is also considering
implementing a pooling system that would consolidate the
management of the companies' bank accounts.

By balancing the excess cash of some companies against the
needs of others, Oiles hopes to shrink its liquidity on a
consolidated basis. It plans to use this shrinkage to
reduce its interest-bearing liabilities.

Oiles reported group interest-bearing liabilities of 7.2
billion yen as of March 31, 1999, including discounted
notes. The company hopes to reduce this figure to 3-4
billion yen in two years.  Each of the company's domestic
group firms has relationships with an average of three
banks. But under a new system, the group firms' banking
activity will be handled through the parent, which will
mainly deal with Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi (8315) and
Industrial Bank of Japan (8302). (Nikkei  10-March-2000)

TOKYO STEEL MFG.: To post 13.5B Yen net loss for FY99
-----------------------------------------------------
Tokyo Steel Mfg. Co. (5423) said Friday it expects to post
a net loss of 13.5 billion yen in the current year through
March 31, compared with a loss of 11.7 billion yen the
previous year. In October 1999, the company had projected a
net loss of 7.5 billion yen.

Extraordinary losses will total 6 billion yen, including
3.3 billion yen to cover shortfalls in retirement allowance
reserves. Previously, it only set aside 40% of its
retirement allowance needs into reserves, but this will be
raised to 100% from the current year. The move comes ahead
of new accounting standards to be implemented in fiscal
2000.

"There will be no retirement reserve shortfalls under the
new accounting standards," said Yoshihiro Iketani, a
director.

The company expects an extraordinary loss of about 1
billion yen to book evaluation losses on stockholdings and
to set aside loan loss reserves for subsidiaries. Sales are
expected to decline 14%. Sales of steel bar products have
been sluggish. A fall in prices of steel products was
another negative factor.

The company expects to post 9 billion yen in operating
loss, due to a rise in scrap iron prices. Pretax loss is
seen at 7.5 billion yen, an improvement from the 8.3
billion yen loss in fiscal 1998. (Nikkei  10-March-2000)

YASUNAGA CORP.: Changes forecast to FY99 loss
---------------------------------------------
Yasunaga Corp. (7271) said Thursday that it has lowered its
earnings projection for the fiscal year ending March 31 to
a net loss of 360 million yen, down from its earlier
forecast of a net profit of 400 million yen.

The engine-parts maker expects to record an extraordinary
loss of 1.15 billion yen on the sale of its stake in a U.S.
affiliate. The company acquired 45% of the U.S. firm in
1989 for 2.59 billion yen, but it now feels that holding
onto the shares is an ineffective allocation of its
resources.

Yasunaga sees sales shrinking 3.1% from a year ago to 23.6
billion yen, down from its earlier forecast of 24 billion
yen. It expects pretax profit to decline 13.7% to 670
million yen. (Nikkei  10-March-2000)


=========
K O R E A
=========

DAEWOO GROUP: Loses U.S. iMac copy suit
---------------------------------------
Daewoo suffered a major defeat at the hands of U.S. courts
Thursday (local time), which ruled in favor of Apple in a
suit filed against the Korean firm for manufacturing and
marketing a computer which copies the design of Apple's hit
iMac computer.

According to press release issued by Apple, the U.S.
computer giant secured a worldwide injunction preventing
Daewoo from manufacturing, distributing, selling or
promoting its E-Power computer. In addition, the U.S.
Federal Court in San Jose, California granted an injunction
forbidding Daewoo's local partner Future Power from
distributing or selling the computer.

The same court also placed an identical injunction the same
day on Japanese firm eMachines, which had also been
marketing its own copy of the iMac. (Digital Chosun  10-
March-2000)

DAEWOO GROUP: Minority shareholders to reject workouts
------------------------------------------------------
Minor shareholders of major Daewoo subsidiaries that have
been going through workout programs have been moving ahead
to resort to collective action in annual shareholders'
meetings scheduled this month.

Under current business laws, major decisions such as spin-
offs and capital reduction must be approved by 2/3 of those
in attendance at shareholders' meetings meeting a 50%
quorum. Accordingly, the workout programs themselves stand
to be nullified if minority shareholders band together to
oppose them, as they collectively own a 45% portion of
Daewoo Heavy Industries, 93% of Daewoo Corp., 95% of Daewoo
Electronics and 70% of Daewoo Telecom.

The government's Corporate Restructuring Coordination
Committee (CRCC) and Daewoo's creditor banks maintain that
they will respect the rights of minority shareholders in
principle. One high-ranking CRCC official pointed out that
the whole point of the workout programs has been to
alleviate financial difficulties of the firms and that
minority shareholders stand to loose if they reject the
workouts. (Digital Chosun  08-March-2000)

HANBO STEEL: Nabors Takes over for US$480 Mil.
----------------------------------------------
Hanbo Steel said Wednesday that it signed a contract with
Nabors Consortium of the United States that same day which
will see the U.S. firm taking over all assets of the Korean
steelmaker.

Hanbo had chosen the consortium, which is led by a number
of U.S. investment firms, as its preferred takeover party
back in July 1999. In its disclosure to the Korea Stock
Exchange issued Wednesday, Hanbo said it would turnover all
tangible and intangible assets to Nabors for US$480 million
cash after local courts approve the takeover and Nabors
finishes setting up a local firm, which is likely to take
about 3-4 months.

According to Hanbo, the new firm established by Nabors will
be entirely responsible for operating Hanbo and will also
retain all existing employees of the steelmaker. (Digital
Chosun  08-March-2000)


=====================
P H I L I P P I N E S
=====================

FORTUNE TOBACCO CORP.: Solgen backs DOJ in tax case
---------------------------------------------------
The office of the Solicitor General has sided with the
Department of Justice in pursuing the controversial P25.27-
billion tax evasion case against presidential friend Lucio
Tan.

The DOJ stand on the case was reportedly one of the reasons
which prompted the President to fire former Justice
SSecretary Serafin Cuevas.  Solicitor General Ricardo
Galvez filed the 40-page memorandum against Tan with the
Court of Appeals, as early as Jan. 25 this year.

Disregarding Malaca¤ang's earlier position on the matter,
Galvez asked the Court of Appeals to reinstate the nine
counts of tax evasion filed against Tan by the DOJ in
December 1998 with the Marikina Metropolitan Trial Court
Branch 75.

At least 10 officers of Fortune Tobacco Corp. and 57
executives of the nine firms which Tan had used as conduits
to evade paying the correct ad valorem, income and value-
added taxes from 1990 to 1992, were also charged in the
same court.  Galvez said Marikina MTC Judge Alex Ruiz
"erred" when he dismissed the case based on the new
position of the BIR, particularly by its previous
commissioner Beethoven Rualo ruling in favor and Tan.

The Solicitor General said Ruiz also erred when he reversed
former BIR commissioner Liwayway Vinzons Chato's findings
against Tan. It was Chato who filed the tax evasion case
against the cigarette and beer tycoon.  Galvez said the
filing of the cases had the "prior approval" of the BIR
when Chato referred the cases in September 1993 to the DOJ
for the prosecution of Tan and other officials of Fortune
Tobacco.

"In the instant cases, the preliminary investigation was
conducted by the DOJ State Prosecutor upon the
recommendation of the BIR commissioner," he said.

Galvez explained that the approval for the filing of the
cases must come from the Chief State Prosecutor of the DOJ,
and not from the BIR commissioner.

"It will be absurd and irregular to insist that the State
Prosecutors of the DOJ shall be subject to the control of
the BIR commissioner in the performance of their duties,"
he said in the 40-page memorandum.

Galvez said that as of Jan. 1, 1998, when the Tax Reform
Act of 1997 took effect, the BIR had already endorsed to
the DOJ the cases of tax evasion against Tan and his
conduit firms for preliminary investigation, and for the
filing of the charges in court.  He said Section 220 of the
Tax Reform Act, which was used by Rualo in seeking the
withdrawal of the tax cases against Tan, was "not intended"
to be based upon the whims of whoever was the appointed BIR
commissioner.

"Section 220 is not intended to vest upon the BIR
commissioner a whimsical authority to stop the filing of
cases in court after taxing the government prosecutors with
the burden of conducting the preliminary investigation,"
Galvez explained.  "The BIR commissioner's referral of the
cases is taken to mean the 'approval' contemplated in
Section 220 for purposes of filing criminal cases and
pursuing the same in court," he said.

Ruiz dismissed the cases on March 22, 1999 for lack of
probable cause, citing the motion to withdraw the tax
evasion cases filed by BIR Commissioner Rualo. Echoing the
position of Cuevas, Galvez said the BIR was reduced to a
"mere witness for the state" in the cases. The Solicitor
General said criminal cases, once filed in court, were
already in the supervision of the public prosecutors.

He said the signature of the BIR commissioner was not
necessary in the charge sheets or criminal information
filed in court.

"The DOJ new panel already filed nine counts of tax evasion
against Fortune in court. Hence, the BIR, on its own,
cannot withdraw the criminal complaints without the prior
approval and conformity of the public prosecutors," Galvez
said. "Granting that the BIR did not want to pursue the
cases, it should have executed an affidavit of desistance
with the conformity of the new DOJ panel."

Galvez also explained that Tan and the other respondents
had never been arraigned before Ruiz's court.  He said that
when the lawyers of the respondents appeared in court, it
was only to file their urgent opposition to the issuance of
the warrants of arrest against Tan and the others accused
in the case.

"The opposition of respondents to the issuance of warrants
of arrest is a clear and unequivocal manifestation that
they did not want and were not willing to submit themselves
to the jurisdiction of the court, thus negating the essence
of voluntary appearance," he said.

Galvez explained that the court could dismiss the cases
without arraignment only if a motion to quash was filed by
the respondents. But Tan and the other accused did not file
the motion.

"Clearly, Judge Ruiz acted with grave abuse of discretion
amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction when he ordered
the dismissal of the subject cases," he said.

Galvez said Marikina Regional Trial Court Judge Olga
Palanca Enriquez had also erred when she dismissed the
petition for certiorari filed by the DOJ, on the basis that
it was filed 11 days late.  The DOJ filed the petition on
July 14, 1999, questioning the May 17, 1999 decision of
Judge Ruiz who dismissed the motion for reconsideration
filed by the DOJ for his earlier March 22, 1999 decision.

Enriquez said the deadline for the filing of the petition
for certiorari based on Section 4 Rule 65 of the 1997 Rules
of Civil Procedure was on July 3, 1999, and not July 17,
1999 as contended by the DOJ panel.  Galvez said the delay
in the filing of the petition was "not fatal and may be
negligible."

"The late filing of the petition before the RTC should not
deprive the petitioner of its right to appeal based on a
mere technicality," he said.  "Even assuming that the
instant petition was filed 11 days late, where strong
considerations of substantial justice are manifest in the
petition, the Court may relax the stringent application of
technical rules in the exercise of equity jurisdiction."

Galvez stressed that the delay could not be considered a
"serious procedural lapse as to deprive the State of its
right to prosecute tax evasion cases involving billions of
pesos."

Even after Cuevas filed the cases in December 1998, he
hinted that this action might later result in his being
fired.

"What can we do. The DOJ is under the direct control and
supervision of the President. If Justice Cuevas says this,
can it prevail against the desire of the President.
Certainly it cannot. Even if I wanted to (pursue the case),
but I am no longer the secretary of justice, I cannot do
anything," Cuevas said in a press briefing with reporters
on Dec. 14, 1998. (Philippine Daily Inquirer   10-March-
2000)

PHILIPPINE NAT.BANK: Tan willing to sell PNB stake
--------------------------------------------------
Philippine National Bank controlling shareholder Lucio Tan
said yesterday he is willing to sell his stake in the
partly state-owned bank together with the government's 30
percent, a move that may make it easier to find a buyer for
the beleaguered bank.

Tan is thought to control around 45 percent of PNB's
shares.  The central bank wants Tan to join forces with the
government in selling their respective shares as a block to
get the best possible price for a controlling stake in the
bank.  Asked if he was willing to do this, Tan told Dow
Jones Newswires: "Yes . . . at about P160 a share."

Tan said this was what it cost to acquire his stake in PNB
late last year.  If Tan is able to sell the block at this
price, he will realize about 14.84 billion.  This is a
hefty premium over PNB's current share price of P69 and
higher than the premium paid in recent acquisitions of more
profitable banks.  Under loan agreements with multilateral
banks, the government must divest its stake in PNB by June.

The government wants to bundle its 30-percent stake in PNB
with Tan's 45 percent and Hong Kong-based Templeton Asset
Management Corp.'s 12.9 percent to sell a combined stake in
the bank of close to 88 percent. But finding a buyer has
not been easy.  PNB is saddled with the heaviest ratio of
non-performing loans in the country's commercial banking
sector.

PNB has said the ratio in December was 29 percent of total
outstanding loans, but some analysts believe it may be far
higher, compared with an average of 12.34 percent for the
country's 52 commercial banks.  This is partly a legacy of
PNB's long-term ties with the government and loans to
unprofitable state agencies such as National Steel Corp.
The bank is also the biggest local creditor of debt-laden
Philippine Airlines Inc., whose controlling shareholder is
Tan.

On the plus side, PNB has substantial assets and a big
slice of the lucrative remittance business of Filipinos
working overseas.  Tan's participation in PNB has been
regarded by many analysts as a major hurdle to finding a
buyer for the government's stake. Even with the Templeton
holding, a buyer still would not have a controlling holding
in the bank.

However, Tan's statement that he is willing to join forces
with the government could push along the privatization.
"If he is really willing to sell, it will help the
government," said Bangko Sentral Governor Rafael
Buenaventura. "We'll be able to sell it at a better price."

Buenaventura said the central bank and the government have
been in talks with Tan on joining forces, but have so far
received no commitment from Tan to do this.  Buenaventura
estimates that Tan acquired his stake in PNB for around
P140 a share--somewhat less than Tan's statement that it
cost him around P160 per share. But, added Buenaventura,
"maybe that includes interest costs."  (Philippine Daily
Inquirer  10-March-2000)

PILIPINO TEL.CORP.: Debt talks facing delay
-------------------------------------------
The negotiations between financially troubled Pilipino
Telephone Corp. and Marubeni Corp. of Japan over the
restructuring of a $279-million debt may have to be
postponed until the cellular phone company finalizes an
agreement with its creditor-banks by the end of this month.

Piltel president Napoleon Nazareno yesterday said Marubeni
was still insisting on payment terms that would be
better than the terms that would be agreed upon by the firm
and the creditor banks. A memorandum of understanding
outlining the terms of the final agreement was signed last
year by Piltel and the banks.

"There is still no development with Marubeni. Even though
we already agreed on the substance of the agreement with
the banks, Marubeni wants to see the final form of our
agreement with the banks first," he said.

Piltel is negotiating with creditors for the restructuring
of some P34.9 billion in liabilities. About a third of the
amount is owed to Marubeni, another third to creditor banks
and the rest to bondholders.  Nazareno said all the
creditors must be treated equally and that one set of
creditors should not have any advantage over the other.

"Once we sign an agreement with the banks hopefully within
this month, we will proceed with the bondholders and then
Marubeni," he said. "Marubeni will eventually have no
choice but to accept the terms that will be agreed upon by
Piltel and the banks."

The company aims to conclude all the agreements with its
creditors before the end of the year.  In previous
negotiations, Marubeni presented two debt restructuring
schemes.  The first, which was similar to the proposed
arrangement with the banks, calls for the conversion of
half of the loans into peso-denominated Piltel convertible
preferred stock and the restructuring of the other half
that would allow a 10- to 15-year repayment period.

The other scheme would involve the use of the Miyazawa
fund, which is a $30-billion package which aims to help
five Asian countries overcome their economic difficulties.
The Philippines has so far availed itself of $1.4 billion
of the fund.

Meanwhile, Nazareno said he was still preparing a strategy
for the integration of Piltel's operations with that of
Smart Communications Inc., which will soon become a
subsidiary of Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co.
Nazareno is concurrently president of Smart.

Last year, PLDT entered into an agreement with NTT Corp. of
Japan for the infusion of some P14.7 billion in fund in
exchange for a 15-percent stake in PLDT.  First Pacific Co.
Ltd. of Hong Kong, which is the controlling stakeholder of
PLDT, and NTT own part of Smart.  Nazareno said that Smart
and Piltel would focus on different market segments based
on the lifestyles of consumers. However, he refused to
elaborate since the plans are still being finalized.

Meantime, Nazareno said the PLDT group wanted to have two
options available for the third generation technology
standards, which will eventually allow wireless Internet
and video through mobile phones. Piltel uses the code
division multiple access technology while Smart uses the
global system for mobile communications. There are two
groups worldwide undertaking studies and developing 3G
technology based on CDMA and GSM.  (Philippine Daily
Inquirer  10-March-2000)

WESTMONT INVEST.CORP.: Settlement plan readied on loans
-------------------------------------------------------
Clients of Westmont Investment Corporation (Wincorp) are
now trying to arrive at a mutually acceptable, out-of-court
settlement for the 7.1-billion Philippine peso ($0.173-
billion at PhP40.957=$1) debt incurred by the 20 borrowers
from 1,300 financiers, said Florencio B. Orendain, the
financial adviser of both Wincorp creditors and investors.

Under the proposed "friendly and fair mode of settlement,"
financiers have two options of recovering their
investments: they could accept properties as payment or
agree to a loan restructuring.  Mr. Orendain said the
repayment schedule will range from six months to two years
at most.

Interest will be eight percent per annum, payable monthly.
He said borrowers will be asked to convey assets worth 2.5
times their outstanding obligations within 30 days. These
will form part of a pool and will be indentured with a
trustee bank.

"The assets shall come in the form of real property, the
values of which shall be equivalent to 250% of outstanding
obligations. It is hoped that this would amply provide for
any fluctuations in the value of the assets pledged by the
borrowers and, thus, raise the comfort level of the
investors," Wincorp said in a statement.

If a borrower fails to pay interest for three consecutive
months, it will be considered in default, making its entire
obligation due and demandable.  In this case, the trustee
bank will be authorized to sell the borrower's collateral
in the open market, Mr. Orendain said.

Accounts of borrowers will be separated into 20 different
"asset pools" so that borrowers and investors of a specific
undertaking are identified, modes of settlement properly
documented and accountabilities and enforcement more
clearly established, he said.

Wincorp president Antonio Ong said a committee will "govern
and arbitrate all issues relating to the asset pool" in the
interest of transparency.  The group will be composed of
Mr. Orendain and a representative each of the trustee bank,
the borrowers and the investors.  As this developed,
Wincorp stockholders agreed to provide additional
protection to creditors.

Former Finance Secretary Edgardo B. Espiritu told reporters
yesterday that stockholders of the investment house will
increase their asset cover to 250%.  "To me it's a moral
obligation...paying for the debts. Shareholders agreed when
I talked with them," he said.

While stressing he is no longer connected with the
investment house, he said he used his "moral influence" to
convince the stockholders to provide additional protection
to creditors.  Mr. Espiritu was a Wincorp director before
he resigned two years ago to assume the Finance post in
President Estrada's Cabinet.  He divested of his shares
from the firm a year before his resignation.

"They agreed when I talked to them. The way I see it, they
are committed to settling their obligation. Nobody has done
that, increasing to 250% the asset cover," he said.

He said he recommended the use of Wincorp assets as
collateral if the scheme was still not sufficient to meet
maturing investments.  Based on unaudited figures, Wincorp
lent PhP7.1 billion ($0.173 billion) worth of funds pooled
from 1,300 investors to 20 companies, Mr. Orendain said.
Of these, PhP6.9 billion ($0.168 billion) was funded by
1,200 individual investors while PhP200 million ($4.88
million) was funded by 100 corporate investors.  The
investments have fixed yields ranging from 10% to 14%
yearly, with varying maturities of seven up to 42 days, he
said.

"The servicing of investments have been kept current until
February 23. Thereafter, only interests are being paid with
a request for investors to forebear until a new mode of
settlement is being forged," Mr. Orendain said. "The
existing servicing arrangement for investments cannot be
sustained unless a new arrangement is forged before the
problem becomes more serious," he added.

Meanwhile, Mr. Orendain said Planters Development Bank
(Plantersbank) has been appointed as trustee bank.
But when sought for confirmation, Plantersbank officials
said that while the bank was "invited" to be the trustee
bank, "there is no final agreement yet."

Plantersbank is currently the trustee bank of Sta. Lucia
Realty Development Corp., one of the borrowers and also a
shareholder of listed firm Unioil Resources Holdings Co.,
Inc., which owns 100% of Wincorp.

In another statement, Wincorp said British bank HSBC has
been appointed as trustee bank.  Again, HSBC admitted it
was "invited" but it chose not to accept the offer.
Based on unaudited reports, one of the biggest borrowers is
Luis Juan Virata's Power Merge, which has PhP2.5 billion
($0.061 billion) in debts.

In a statement, Mr.Virata said the loan of Power Merge was
originally a Hottick Holdings loan that was guaranteed by
Tan Sri Halim Saad, chairman of the Renong Corp. Mr. Virata
stressed that he has no personal liability and was acting
as an attorney-in-fact.  He added the fund was used for the
acquisition of National Steel Corp. in 1996.

Borrowers who are also founders or indirectly related to
the founders of Wincorp include Exequiel Robles' Sta. Lucia
Realty Development Corp.; EBE Capital; the Cua family's ACL
Development Corp.; EBE Development; Zipporah Realty; Golden
Era, which is substantially-owned by Alfonso R. Reyno, Jr.;
Manuel Tan's Pearlbank Securities, Inc.; listed firm Unioil
Resources; Philippine Racing Club (PRC); and Manila Jockey
Club (MJC).

Other borrowers are Straight Line; Chevy Chase; and West
Mamburao.  In a statement, Mr. Reyno clarified that his
stake in Golden Era is only 40%.

"Golden Era obtained loans from Wincorp solely for the
purpose of funding (the company's) increased equity
investments in Westmont Bank, in compliance with the
capital build-up program for banks imposed by the Bangko
Sentral (Central Bank)...My family and I have no other
unsettled obligations with Wincorp," Mr. Reyno said.

Sources said National Steel Properties Corp. has assigned
60% of its real estate assets to Wincorp while Hottick
Holdings Corp., which has a PhP1.5-billion ($0.037-billion)
loan, has PhP1 million ($0.024 million) in daily proceeds
from toll fees which could be possibly used for payment.

Wincorp was founded in 1995 by Santiago S. Cua, Jr., 25%;
Mr. Tan, 25%; Mr. Robles, 25%; Mr. Espiritu, 10%; Mr.
Reyno, 10%; and EBECOM, Inc., 5%.  It has an original
capital of PhP816.5 million ($19.94 million) and is now
100% owned by Unioil Resources and Holdings Co., Inc.
Wincorp is engaged in two types of business, namely:
investment banking and treasury operations.

Investment banking activities include loan syndication,
underwriting, financial planning, project management and
mergers and acquisitions.  Treasury operations, meanwhile,
include direct matching between investors and borrowers;
providing agent services like documentation assistance,
appraisals, custodial functions and collection; and payment
services on a no-recourse basis against Wincorp, real or
contingent.

The investment house has investors from Manila, Cebu
(Central Visayas), Iloilo (Western Visayas), Cotabato
(Central Mindnao), as well as Davao and General Santos
cities (both in Southern Mindanao), Mr. Orendain said.
It recently suffered liquidity problems after UOB
Philippines, Inc. (formerly Westmont Bank) cut off an
existing credit line to the investment house. (Business
World  10-March-2000)


=================
S I N G A P O R E
=================

BRIERLEY INVESTMENTS: Loss-maker's CEO sees brighter future
-----------------------------------------------------------
The new chief executive of Brierley Investments Ltd. said
the once highflying company can again become a "pre-
eminent" Asian investment company by investing in
technology, changing its corporate culture and injecting
discipline so that "no more good money (is throw) after
bad."

Gregory Terry, who joined the company reported a net loss
of NZ83.3 millio (US$40.3 million) for the six months ended
Dec. 31, compared with a net loss of NZ$151.3 million a
year earlier.  Among the steps taken to improve the
company's value, Brierley wrote off its NZ$407 million
investment in an Indonesian geothermal power plant, made
through a 75%-owned unit called Asia Power.

Brierley, which has listings in Wellington, Sydney and
London, was founded in 1961 by Sir Ronald Brierley, who
remains a nonexecutive director. In the mid-1980s its
market capitalization made it the second largest listed
company in Australia after Broken Hill Proprietary Co. But
from the late 1980s, Brierley' fortunes declined and some
investments lost money.

Its core assets are a 47% stake in Air New Zealand, 46%
stake in London-based Thirstle Hotels and ownership of 29%
of James Hardie Industries, an Australian producer of
fiber-cement products. Other investments include property
projects in Chengdu, China, and on the Hawaiian island of
Molokai. Brierley also holds a 9% stake in PBOC Holdings
Inc. of the U.S., which operates the People's Bank of
California.

Mr. Terry, previously a managing director of Credit Suisse
First Boston, brought in a new management team, which he
said will promote "discipline with entrepreneurial flair."
He has repeatedly said a priority will be investing in
Asia. On Thursday, he said the company's main targets are
Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Malaysia.

He ruled out new investments, he said the company needs to
do "clever things" with its core assets. But he said that
doesn't mean there are plans to sell any of the three core
holdings, which he called "seriously good assets."

Brierley said it intends to both "resolve problem
investments" and make new investments, especially in
technology. Mr. Terry said the company has created a new
division that has commitments of $100 million to invest in
internet businesses in the Asian_Pacific region. Late last
year, Brierley invested $20 million in the Madrona Venture
Fund, which the company said will form an "integral
component" of a new division.

Mr. Terry also said Brierley has begun accumulating shares
in a big Southeast Asian listed company, which he refused
to identify.  Some analysts have speculated that Mr. Terry
may seek to sell the company's stake in Air New Zealand,
which last year increased its ownership of Ansett Australia
to 100%. He declined to disclose plans for Air New Zealand,
though he said it may be best served to have an "industry
partner" rather than Brierley.

Whatever investments Brierley hold or makers, it will be an
active stakeholder, Mr. Terry said. Most boards of
directors are "immensely passive," he said, adding that he
would work "rigorously" to increase shareholder value in
companies in which he invests.

Among Brierley's shareholders are Camerin Group Bhd., a
Malaysian firm formed in the 1990s by several prominent
Southeast Asian businesses, including Hong Leong Group and
Salim Group. Asked about Camerlin's possible role, Mr.
Terry said that previously Brierley didn't make "much of an
attempt to leverage" its network of relationships, but now
the participants in Camerlin "help me open doors." (The
Asian Wall Street Journal  10-March-2000)

CLOB INT'L: Surprise 10% exit tax waiver for Clob
-------------------------------------------------
The Malaysian central bank has agreed to waive the exit tax
of 10 per cent for Clob shareholders, according to
Effective Capital.

In a surprise announcement late yesterday, Effective said
"it is pleased to confirm that further to its application
to Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), BNM has confirmed that all
funds arising from the sale of Clob securities, by the
original non-resident holders of the Clob securities, can
be repatriated without paying the exit levy".

This means that Clob shareholders stand to save up to one
billion Malaysian ringgit (S$450 million) from the exit
levy (calculated at 10 per cent of capital gains), assuming
that the shares have doubled in price in the last 18 months
to their current valuation of about M$20 billion.

In its statement last night, Effective quoted its CEO
Mohamed Moiz as saying that "this was indeed good news for
Clob securities owners and puts to rest their concerns
regarding the exit tax payable on the repatriation of funds
received from the sale of their Clob securities when the
staggered release is effected from July 1, 2000".

The proposal by Effective calls for the staggered release
of the Clob securities over a 13-month period after an
initial set-up period of three months starting March 31. It
will charge a fee of 1.5 per cent (based on the Feb 15
prices of the shares) for its services. The offer closes on
March 31.

Meanwhile, the Singapore's Central Depository Pte Ltd
(CDP), brokers and Effective have called on Clob
shareholders who want to accept Effective's offer to act
fast to get acceptances processed in time.

Brokers contacted by BT said that they had set a March 22
deadline for the processing of applications. "There are
only about 20 days to go (to March 31) and we don't want
everyone piling into our office during the final few days,"
said the executive director of one local broking firm. "We
need a few days to get everything in order before sending
it to CDP."

This is five days, or three working days, before the March
27 deadline set by the CDP for the receipt of acceptances.
The CDP has to process all the acceptances by March 31,
following which Effective will transfer all the Clob
securities to the shareholders' accounts with the Malaysian
Central Depository (MCD) within 13 weeks (that is, by June
30).

Non-share securities (warrants, etc) will be unfrozen in
batches of 50 units over the following 16 weeks, while
shares will be released in batches of 50 units over 56
weeks. Brokers say they expect over 90 per cent of the
172,000 Clob shareholders to accept the migration deal,
also known as Scheme A.

Those not opting for Scheme A can choose Scheme B, which
was worked out between CDP and Malaysia's Securities
Clearing Automated Network Services (Scans). This scheme
allows investors to trade their shares after Jan 1, 2003,
at the earliest, for an "administrative" fee of one per
cent.

For Scheme A, the easiest and most convenient way of
registering acceptances is for Clob shareholders to submit
their Irrevocable Request & Authority (IRA) forms, together
with their Forms of Acceptance and Authorisation (FAA) and
personal cheques for the 1.5 per cent fees to their
brokers.

The brokers will then set up sub-accounts within their
nominee MCD accounts for clients and issue "global drafts"
for the total amount of transfer fees payable by their
clients. All this will be sent to the CDP by March 27.
Some local broking houses, including GK Goh Holdings and
Vickers Ballas, have decided to waive the $5 processing
fee. The two stockbroking firms, which will be merged
during the second half of this year, calculate it would
cost them about $200,000 in total fees foregone.

"We are waiving the fee as a goodwill gesture," said GK
Goh's managing director, Goh Yew Lin. "Clob investors have
suffered enough."

But Clob shareholders with MCD accounts -- and who do not
want to be registered under their brokers' nominee accounts
-- can go to the PricewaterhouseCoopers advisory centres to
submit their acceptance forms. A PwC spokesperson said that
they could verify the IRA forms and process the
acceptances.  Those opting for this route have to submit
their transfer fees via bank drafts drawn in favour of
Raffles Nominees (IRA) Scheme Account.

Meanwhile, CDP officials revealed yesterday that they had
already received about 40 acceptances from Clob
shareholders, but added that none of the applications could
be processed due to errors and shortfalls.  Some had filled
out the IRA and FAA forms wrongly, others had not enclosed
all the documentation, while some had not enclosed their
bank drafts for the transfer fees payable to Effective
Capital.

CDP officials are bracing for a last-minute stampede.
"There are only 17 days between now and March 27, which
means we could see at least 10,000 people a day even if
there is a smooth daily flow," said a CDP source.
(Singapore Business Times  11-March-2000)


===============
T H A I L A N D
===============

ABICO HOLDING: Suspension sign posted by the SET
MEDIA OF MEDIAS: Suspension sign posted by the SET
PROPERTY PERFECT: Suspension sign posted by the SET
THAI HEAT EXCHANGE: Suspension sign posted by the SET
THAI PETROCHEM.INDUS.: Suspension sign posted by the SET
UOB RADANASIN BANK: Suspension sign posted by the SET
WONGPAITOON GROUP: Suspension sign posted by the SET
--------------------------------------------------------
The Stock Exchange of Thailand has posted the "SP"
(suspension) sign today on the following listed firms for
failing to submit their financial statements for year
ending Dec 31, 1999 within 5 working days: UOB Radanasin
Bank (UOBR), the Wongpaitoon Group (WFC), Property Perfect
(PERFEC), Thai Petrochemical Industry (TPI), Media of
Medias (MEDIAS), Thai Heat Exchange (THECO) and ABICO
Holding (ABICO).  The SET first posted the NP (notice
pending) sign against their shares on Mar 1, 2000.  (The
Nation  09-March-2000)

BANGKOK STEEL INDUSTRY: Tax and debts delay merger
CEMENT THAI STEEL: Tax and debts delay merger
NTS STEEL: Tax and debts delay merger
--------------------------------------------------
The merger of leading steel producers is unlikely until
problems of asset transfer tax, restrictions in the Trade
Competition Law, and huge debts with creditors are
resolved.

The three steel makers that have made a preliminary
agreement to merge are Cement Thai Steel, NTS Steel and
Bangkok Steel Industry. Chakramon Phasukvanich, deputy
secretary-general of the Board of Investment (BoI), said
Finance Minister Tarrin Nimmanahaeminda would support
waiving the asset transfer tax for business mergers
including the steel firms, but some obstacles remain as
operating staff at the Finance Ministry oppose the tax
waiver. The matter is now pending final approval from the
government.

The historic merger of the three steel firms has been
widely criticised as it would create a monopoly and be
against the Trade Competition Law. The Commerce Ministry is
concerned about this issue and is studying whether the
steel merger challenges the law.  However, the Industry
Ministry has encouraged debt-ridden industrial companies to
merge with each other to survive the recession, with the
government providing some assistance such as tax
incentives. The steel sector in 1998 had total debts of
65.3 billion baht, higher than total assets of 58.9 billion
baht.

Mr Chakramon said there were 16 steel-rod producers with a
combined capacity of 5.2 million tons. They were suffering
the most and so far only Sahaviriya Steel had restructured
its massive debt. Observers said some steel mills could not
merge with the others because they use different production
technology.

Although three leading steel-rod producers had shown strong
intentions to merge their operations, the remaining 13
would not make decisions yet as they wanted to ask
permission from their creditors, the observers said. Mr
Chakramon said that many steel firms were competing heavily
by dropping their prices to attract customers. "This will
destroy the market and they will not survive in the long
run." A merger does not mean each company will be
dissolved. Sometimes it means co-ordination and sharing to
produce and sell.

Although the Thai economy shows some early signs of
recovery, the steel business is still far from attractive
and market improvements are in little evidence. No more
mega-projects have begun construction except the subway
system. The demand for steel therefore remains unchanged.
Mr Chakramon said there was no merging among steel rod
producers because of their different production
technologies. Some companies, such as Sahaviriya Steel,
have already had their debts restructured.

Soonthorn Worasak, director of the Investment Promotion
Department, said he could not see much development of
Thailand's steel industry in the near future because it has
no upstream industry or iron-smelting works, the heart of a
strong steel industry. There are now six hot-rolled steel
producers, using four kinds of technologies, and six cold-
rolled steel producers, using two different technologies.

There are 16 producers of steel rods for construction. Ten
of them own their blast furnaces with a total capacity of
three million tons a year, while the six without blast
furnaces have a total capacity of 2.2 million tons.

All 28 steel producers have a total annual capacity of 16.9
million tonsThe shrinking construction industry has
severely affected the steel industry. The peak of steel
consumption was nine million tons in 1995 and it dropped to
the lowest point of 4.9 million tons in 1998 or only 18% of
total capacity. The steel industry saw the light at the end
of the tunnel last year when the production capacity in the
first six months was 24.38% of total capacity, more than
the BoI's estimate 21.4% for the whole of 1999. The worst
year for the steel industry was 1997, when it had assets of
200 billion baht. At the same time it had debts of 178
billion baht, while the sales revenue was 40.6 billion
baht.

The hot-rolled steel segment had total assets of 48.3
billion baht and debts of 32.5 billion baht. Sales were 8.1
billion baht, while 16.3% of total sales went in interest.
The steel rod segment had assets of 59 billion baht and
debts of 65.4 billion. Its sales were 21 billion baht, of
which 37.5% went in interest.  (Bangkok Post  09-March-
2000)

EMC: Asks SET for delay in submitting rehab plan
------------------------------------------------
EMC has asked the Stock Exchange of Thailand for permission
to delay submitting its rehabilitation plan to the
company's shareholders for four months as of March 3, 2000.

It informed the SET that its debt restructuring process had
been slower than stipulated earlier due to lengthy
negotiations and the huge amount of detail involved which
resulted in delaying the completion of the restructuring
plan. (The Nation  09-March-2000)

KRUNG THAI BANK: Govt puts off decision on bad loans
----------------------------------------------------
Thailand's central bank yesterday delayed a decision until
March 16 on how to manage most of the bad loans at the
state-owned Krung Thai Bank Pcl as it needs time to study
various proposals.

"We need additional time before coming up with a
comprehensive measure that effectively solves the bad loan
problem at Krung Thai," said Supparat Kavattakul, a senior
official at the finance ministry. (Singapore Business Times
09-March-2000)

ROYAL CERAMIC INDUSTRY: Suspension sign lifted by SET
-----------------------------------------------------
The SET lifted the "SP" sign from Royal Ceramic Industry's
stocks yesterday after the firm said that a board
resolution on Mar 6 confirmed that it and Thai Farmers Bank
will file an English language version of its rehabilitation
petition at the Central Bankruptcy Court. (The Nation  09-
March-2000)

ROYAL CERAMIC INDUSTRY: Hearing date set for rehab plan
-------------------------------------------------------
The Central Bankruptcy Court has accepted a request to
rehabilitate the business of Royal Ceramic Industry Plc,
which owes 1.73 billion baht to 60 creditors.

The request was jointly filed by the company and Thai
Farmers Bank, one of its creditors.  In accepting the case,
the bankruptcy court said Royal Ceramic Industry was one of
nine local ceramic manufacturers whose products were
recognised in both local and foreign markets.

The company's financial problems were due mainly to the
economic crisis, and could be rehabilitated if it
restructured its management and debts, the court said. A
hearing was scheduled for April 4. (Bangkok Post  08-March-
2000)

THAI OLEFINS CO: $328m plan wins unanimous support
--------------------------------------------------
Creditors of Thai Olefins Co (TOC) have unanimously
endorsed the petrochemical operator's US$328-million debt
restructuring programme.

Creditors led by Bangkok Bank and the Industrial Bank of
Japan on Wednesday approved the term sheet proposed by the
company, TOC chairman Gen Yutthasak Sasiprapa said. He said
the only unresolved tasks were the final preparation of
documents on the accord and the signing of the agreement.

The approved term sheet is in line with the proposal by the
board of the Petroleum Authority of Thailand (PTT), the
largest shareholder of TOC (49%), which was endorsed on Dec
22.  Creditors agreed to roll over the repayment of the
$328 million baht outstanding debt by 2.5 years to early
2007. Repayment of principal has also been eased with TOC
to return $8 million plus $30 million in interest this
year, with the amount of principal and interest being
raised gradually in subsequent years.

The previous terms had called for TOC to pay $52 million in
principal and $30 million in interest each year.  As part
of the terms, creditors require TOC shareholders to set
aside $50 million as "cash deficiency support" in case the
company was not able to pay principal and interest.

Gen Yutthasak said the new terms would significantly
enhance the way the company did business, reducing the
principal repayment burden by $122 million in the next four
years when petrochemical product prices are forecast to
rise steadily.  TOC will also be able to raise ethylene
production capacity at its Rayong plant by 300,000 tonnes a
year, to 700,000 tonnes in 2003. (Bangkok Post  10-March-
2000)

THAI PETROCHEM.INDUS.: Conspiracy to sell assets denied
-------------------------------------------------------
Ferrier Hodgson, a key player in assisting local and
foreign banks in the Thai Petrochemical Industry
restructuring plan, insists that key assets will not be
sold as claimed by the firm.

TPI officials claim that creditors are intent on
dismantling the industrial conglomerate, with assets sold
to benefit local and foreign banks.  The company has
objected to the appointment of Effective Planner, a
subsidiary of Ferrier Hodgson, as planner for TPI.

The restructuring plan also allowed creditors to raise
their stake from 30% to 75% through the conversion of debt
instruments, giving them complete control of the firm, TPI
charges.  But executives of Ferrier insist that the only
asset sales would be those already detailed in the
rehabilitation plan, and under the direction of the Central
Bankruptcy Court.

The only assets sold would be non-core assets, such as
undeveloped land, properties, port facilities, petrol
stations and tank farms, said Anthony Norman, managing
director of Ferrier Hodgson.

"If there are any sales of core assets, TPI executives
would have to be consulted and the process would require
the approval of the court," he said.

Mr Norman denied allegations raised by TPI executives last
week that Ferrier Hodgson had implemented a restructuring
plan in Hong Kong and engineered the sale of assets of one
firm to companies held by creditors.  No customers held
shares in the Australian-based firm, he said.

Mr Norman said the overall financial structure of TPI was
skewed, with overinvestment and diversification into
different business lines creating little value for the
firm.  If approved, some 50 outside foreign experts would
be brought in to help Ferrier Hodgson implement the TPI
rehabilitation plan, by far the company's biggest advisory
case.

The company is advising 17 restructuring cases in Thailand,
with total debt amounting to $8 billion, or nearly 12% of
the total bad loans held in the banking system. (Bangkok
Post  08-March-2000)

THAI PETROCHEM.INDUS.: TPI to block vote on planner
---------------------------------------------------
Thai Petrochemical Industry executives opened a new front
in its war with creditors yesterday, claiming it has enough
support from banks to block a vote on the selection of a
planner for the firm's rehabilitation plan.

Wachirapunthu Promprasert, TPI chief financial officer,
said the five main creditors-Bangkok Bank, International
Finance Corporation, Citibank, US Export-Import Bank and
Bank of America-held around $1.59 billion in loans to the
firm, or 35% of total loans.

Under the law, a vote for a planner requires approval from
creditors holding 66% of total debt.  Mr Wachirapunthu said
banks supporting TPI included Bank of Ayudhya, which had
agreed to extend seven billion baht in credit facilities to
the firm.  Issarachai Dechakrit, TPI vice president, said
other banks, which the firm had stated in court as
supporting the firm included Thai Military Bank, DBS Thai
Danu, Standard Chartered and Chase Manhattan.

He said he was confident that these banks were willing to
support TPI, given that they were genuine in their desire
to rehabilitate the petrochemical giant, and not liquidate
assets.  The Central Bankruptcy Court will rule on
Wednesday whether TPI is insolvent and should enter
rehabilitation.  Assuming the court rules that
rehabilitation is needed, the next step would be to appoint
a planner to implement the plan.

TPI testified to the court that it objected to the
nomination of Effective Planner, a company owned by
consulting firm Ferrier Hodgson, as planner for the
rehabilitation.  Effective Planner was actually intent on
selling off company assets to benefit major creditors,
including Bangkok Bank, TPI charged in court.

Ferrier Hodgson and other banks have denied the
allegations, saying that TPI was intent on launching a
smear campaign to avoid having to enter business
rehabilitation.  But Mr Wachirapunthu said yesterday that
the $1 billion in non-core assets scheduled to be sold off
by Effective Planner, such as the firm's tank farm, port
facilities and gasoline refinery, were actually crucial for
the firm's operations.

"Effective Planner has no understanding of our business at
all. These assets aren't non-core, but rather supporting
facilities. The gas refinery alone is responsible for 50%
of the group's revenue," he said.

Effective Planner wanted to take advantage of the 3% fee it
would gain on asset sales, Mr Wachirapunthu said. Bangkok
Bank, with outstanding loans of around $920 million, would
not lose regardless of how the court ruled, since all loans
were backed by collateral.  Mr Wachirapunthu said this was
the main factor behind Bangkok Bank's resistance to further
negotiations, since its own position was covered.

Out of TPI's total $3.5 billion in debt, some $1.2 billion
was covered by collateral.  A Krung Thai Bank executive
noted that the five major creditors were able to draw other
creditors to their side.

"But its true that each bank has different views, depending
on their own position, regarding collateral for their
loans," he said.

Anthony Norman, managing director of Ferrier Hodgson,
denied that there was any split among creditors.

"There is no prospect of a breakdown in the solidarity of
the petitioners and steering committee," he said. "It is
numerically not possible and it is fiction for TPI to
engineer a revolt within that."Mr Wachirapunthu admitted
that in the end, TPI would lose out to creditors in the
battle for control.  We know that we can't win. But we have
to fight, since this is the last chance under the law. At
the very least, we want the five core banks to understand
that there are a lot of other creditors who don't agree
with their position," he said. (Bangkok Post  10-March-
2000)

THANA FINANCE AND TRUST: FRA to auction off rare paintings
----------------------------------------------------------
An auction of 66 rare paintings by such famous Thai artists
as Thawan Duchanee, Hem Wechakorn, Chuang Mulpinit, Damrong
Wong-upraraj and Pichai Niran will be held on March 18. The
paintings are expected to fetch at least Bt8 million.

The works of art belong to Thana Finance and Trust Plc, one
of the defunct finance companies which was closed down by
the government in 1997. Thana Finance and Trust is now
under the supervision of the Financial Sector Restructuring
Authority (FRA).  Christie's Auction (Thailand) Co, a
subsidiary of Christie's of New York, is to conduct the
auction which starts at 10 am.

Paintings by other well-known artists, including Sompong
Aulsarphan, Kid Kosalavat, Suchao Sitkhanate and Somnuk
Phemthongkham, will be offered.  The value of these
artworks range from Bt12,000 to Bt550,000, said Phanom
Phalasak, who is authorised by the authority to manage
Thana Finance and Trust.

Thana Finance and Trust took the paintings after two of its
clients, Thamnoon Ingkhuthanont and Chachaval
Boonyarangsarit, failed to repay their loans. Thamnoon
placed 10 paintings as collateral, and Chachaval provided
56.  One of the outstanding paintings is "Back to the
Village" by artist Damrong, who has been named "National
Artist". Its starting price will be Bt400,000.

The auction will also include 2,151 rare banknotes worth
about Bt4.39 million.  The artworks will be exhibited
between Wednesday and Friday on the ground floor of the
Sindhorn Building.  Bidders must register at the counter in
front of the auction room on the second floor of the
building an hour before the auction opens on March 18, and
bring their ID card and Bt5,000 as a security deposit.

Pitak Wisuth-umporn, general manage of the Rama IV Art
Museum Foundation, who is organising the exhibition,
expressed his confidence that many of the art works will be
sold at double their starting price.  As of December, the
FRA has sold seized assets originally valued at Bt670
billion for 186.54 billion, or a recovery ratio of 27.84
per cent. There are about Bt180 billion of assets that the
FRA has not yet sold. The total seized assets are worth of
Bt851 billion. (The Nation  10-March-2000)

UNION BANK: Fraud raid nabs ex-loan officer
-------------------------------------------
A suspect in the embezzlement of 40 million baht from Union
Bank, now part of Bankthai, was arrested in Phra Pradaeng,
Samut Prakan, yesterday.

Vithaya Prasert, 43, was charged with conspiring with Tanan
Sirivejjapan, a former manager of the ban's Sri Nakharin
branch, and using fake documents to borrow 2.55 million
baht.  Police said Sub-Lt Tanan had approved loan requests
for his five gang members during September and October
1996. He had also borrowed 16.75 million baht from his own
branch with fake documents, they said. (Bangkok Post  08-
March-2000)


S U B S C R I P T I O N  I N F O R M A T I O N

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