/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCRAP_Public/991013.MBX    T R O U B L E D   C O M P A N Y   R E P O R T E R

                          A S I A   P A C I F I C

            Wednesday, October 13, 1999, Vol. 2, No. 199

                                  Headlines


* C H I N A  &  H O N G  K O N G *

GITIC ENTERPRISES: Stock trades again as prices slide


* I N D O N E S I A *

BANK BALI: Gov't ministers questioned on scandal
BULOG: AA audit reveals inefficiency, mismanagement
PERTAMINA: PWC audit reveals inefficiency, mismanagement


* J A P A N *

CREDIT SUISSE: In trouble again, this time overcharging


* K O R E A *

HYUNDAI ELECTRONICS INDUSTRIES: Acquisition enlarges debt


* M A L A Y S I A *

NAUTICALINK BHD: Bank majority rejects debt conversion
UNZA HOLDINGS: Restructuring to be complete 1Q 2000


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

EYCO GROUP: Asks SEC to halt creditor foreclosures


* S I N G A P O R E *

HIND HOTELS INT'L.: 3rd Quarter losses widen
L&M GROUP INVESTMENTS: Major restructuring under way


* T H A I L A N D *

KGI SECURITIES ONE: Disciplined by the SET
KULTHORN KIRBY: Recapitalization going per plan
NOBLE DEVELOPMENT PLC.: Debentures bought as part of rehab
RADANASIN BANK: UOB purchase to be completed in November
SIAM-AGRO INDUSTRY PINEAPPLE: SET suspends stock
WAN KANAI SUGER MILL GROUP: BBL to sign debt rehab agmt.


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

GITIC ENTERPRISES: Stock trades again as prices slide
-----------------------------------------------------
Trading in Gitic Enterprises resumed yesterday after a
lapse of a year. Its shares dropped and continued to slide
until it closed down by 55.8 per cent at 23.4 cents,
becoming the day's top loser in percentage terms.

"This stock is hopeless because it receives no support from
Guangdong municipal government," a broker said. He added
that investors were selling shares since they no longer
cared about this troubled company. Volume was about 3.1
million shares.  "It's only the bankers who care (about
Gitic Enterprises)," he said, adding he expected the share
price would continue to fall sharply in the next few days.

There were other falls in H shares such as Yanzhou Coal and
Yizheng Chemical which also figured among the top 10 loser
stocks.  The share price for Yanzhou Coal fell by 9.2 per
cent and closed at $2.475, with the total volume traded at
about 5.8 million shares.  Shares of Yizheng Chemical also
dropped by 9 per cent and closed at $1.98, with total trade
value of about $19.9 million.

Gitic Enterprises is a listed property and construction
unit controlled by its ultimate parent company Guangdong
International Trust & Investment Corporation, which was
ordered to close in October last year.  The share trading
of the listed company was then suspended in the same month.
Gitic Enterprises said in a statement to its creditors that
it might start winding up proceedings if restructuring did
not take place by the end of this month.  (Hong Kong
Standard  12-Oct-1999)


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

BANK BALI: Gov't ministers questioned on scandal
------------------------------------------------
Police questioned two senior Indonesian ministers on Monday
over the PT Bank Bali Tbk scandal that has engulfed
embattled President B.J. Habibie ahead of an October 20
presidential election.

State Enterprises Minister Tanri Abeng, flanked by several
bodyguards, made no comment as he arrived at the national
police headquarters on Monday morning.

"Tanri is being questioned as part of the bank scandal,"
police spokesman Colonel Saleh Saaf told Reuters by
telephone.

Finance Minister Bambang Subianto arrived later in the day
through a back door, avoiding scores of waiting
journalists.  After questioning, both men said separately
that they were being summoned as witnesses into the case.
They declined to give any further comment. Central bank
governor Syahril Sabirin was due for questioning on
Tuesday, Saaf said.

The scandal involves a multi-million dollar fee paid by
Bank Bali to a firm run by a senior official from President
B.J. Habibie's Golkar party in return for collecting money
owed by the government's bank restructuring agency.
Habibie's political opponents say the money was siphoned
off for his re-election war chest for the election, an
allegation he denies.

The loan recovery fee has been repaid, but the
International Monetary Fund and the World Bank have delayed
loans until the issue is resolved.  (Reuters, NewsHound  
11-Oct-1999)

BULOG: AA audit reveals inefficiency, mismanagement
---------------------------------------------------
State-run Indonesian firm Bulog commodities agency had lost
about $900M over five years in operations and management
inefficiency.  Audit by Arthur Andersen showed that $335M
was lost through trade contracts made on unfavourable
terms, $230M from unfair operating practices, $295M because
of weak supervision, and $40M through inefficient
management of central bank liquidity credits.

PERTAMINA: PWC audit reveals inefficiency, mismanagement
--------------------------------------------------------
State-run Indonesia Oil giant Pertamina lost as much as
$4.7B over two years due to inefficiency, mismanagement and
missed opportunities, the government announced yesterday.  
An official statement said a PricewaterhouseCooper audit
had found that inefficiency cost Pertamina $2B, missed
opportunities up to $2B and future costs from past
inefficient contacts amounting to a further $720M.  Finance
Minister Bambang Subianto would not comment when asked if
Pertamina's inefficiency losses were due to corruption.


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

CREDIT SUISSE: In trouble again, this time overcharging
-------------------------------------------------------
A Japanese unit of Swiss banking giant Credit Suisse
overcharged clients 5.4 billion yen (US$50 million) for the
past three years by loan shuffling, a newspaper said
yesterday. Credit Suisse Trust and Banking allegedly helped
its Japanese clients conceal losses by transferring bad
loans to foreign banks, the Yomiuri Shimbun said, quoting
informed sources.  While receiving regular commissions on
the transfers, the Tokyo-based unit collected kickbacks as
part of other commission fees its clients paid to foreign
banks.

Between April 1996 and January 1999, Credit Suisse Trust
and Banking allegedly collected an extra 5.4 billion yen by
double charging some 60 clients firms on top of 3.3 billion
yen in regular commissions, they said.  (Business Day  12-
Oct-1999)


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

HYUNDAI ELECTRONICS INDUSTRIES: Acquisition enlarges debt
---------------------------------------------------------
When South Korean chipmaker Hyundai Electronics Industries
Co absorbs its affiliate this week, it will be reborn as
the world's biggest DRAM (dynamic random access memory)
maker, along with a massive debt to go along with that
status.

Hyundai Electronics will have more than a 20% share of the
world DRAM market tomorrow after it absorbs Hyundai
Microelectronics Co, which it acquired from LG Group
earlier this year.  In terms of market share, Hyundai
Electronics will outpace Samsung Electronics Co and Micron
Technology Inc, which took 18.5% and 11.7% respectively of
global DRAM sales last year, according to Dataquest, a
market intelligence report on the industry.

The integrated Hyundai firm will likely try to sell shares
or some of its non-core divisions to slash debt. But
cutting debt may become a pre-condition of any capital-
raising exercise.  The absorption would help Hyundai save
more than US$1bil per year in research and development
(R&D) and marketing costs while improving productivity, the
analysts said.

"Bigger scale means smaller production costs, and I think
Hyundai will be able to save some money in R&D cost and
others by absorbing Hyundai Microelectronics," said Jon
Chong-hwa, an analyst at Salomon Smith Barney KEB
Securities.

A Hyundai executive also said recently the integration
would help bring down the company's production cost.
"A key merger benefit to customers is that it gives Hyundai
larger capacity and, therefore, a potentially lower
manufacturing cost base," Mark Ellsberry, a Hyundai
Electronics America vice-president, told the Electronic
News magazine.

But the integration would also add to Hyundai's high debt
burden. The cost of servicing that debt is already more
than wiping out the company's operating income, according
to analysts.

"Hyundai will have interest-bearing debt of some 11.8
trillion won (US$9.8bil) and will have to sell off much of
its assets to pay back debt," Jon said.

ABN Amro Securities analyst Chung Myung-sun said the debt
repayment burden would add pressure on Hyundai, which would
also have to spend money on renovating some of Hyundai
Microelectronics production facilities.  In 1998, Hyundai
Electronics posted a 23.77 billion won of operating profit
but paid 999.54 billion won in interest. Hyundai
Microelectronics paid 586.49 billion won in interest
against 186.9 billion won of operating profit.

Other than semiconductors, Hyundai Electronics also makes
telecommunications equipment and devices, thin-film
transistor liquid crystal display panels and computer
monitors.   After the integration, Hyundai Electronics is
expected to sell or spin off most of its business lines
other than semiconductors, company officials and analysts
say.  (Reuters, Star Online  12-Oct-1999)


===============
M A L A Y S I A
===============

NAUTICALINK BHD: Bank majority rejects debt conversion
------------------------------------------------------
Nauticalink Bhd has decided to abort its debt conversion
proposal as the majority of the financial institutions
involved were not agreeable with the terms of the debt
conversion scheme.  It said in a statement to the KLSE that
consequently, it also had to abort its proposed capital
reduction and acquisition of plantation-based companies.
(Star Online  12-Oct-1999)

UNZA HOLDINGS: Restructuring to be complete 1Q 2000
---------------------------------------------------
Unza Holdings Bhd expects to complete its proposed
restructuring and rationalisation scheme by the first
quarter of next year, and the positive financial impact of
the exercise to be felt a year after that.

Unza managing director Gavin Welman said the group's
turnover could easily double to RM260mil by 2001 from
RM129mil in the financial year ended April 30, 1999, as the
restructuring and rationalisation excersise would integrate
its domestic and international toiletries and fragrance
business.

The second board company had announced last month that it
was planning to acquire the entire equity in its sister
company Berjaya Unza Holdings (BVI) Ltd from Cosway Corp
Bhd and Air Mancur Holdings Ltd for RM75mil via a share
swap

Unza would buy an 80% equity stake in BVI from Cosway for
RM60mil and the remaining 20% from Air Mancur for RM15mil.
Unza would then make a restricted rights issue of 12.9
million shares at RM5.80 each, followed by a one-for-one
bonus issue.  The company also plans a transfer of its
listing to the KLSE main board as well.  Welman said the
proposed acquisition of BVI was a good deal as it would
give Unza greater access to the regional market.

"The Unza toiletries and fragrance market in Malaysia is
rather mature now, with an annual growth rate of between 5%
and 8%. The proposed acquisition will bring benefits to us
as it allows greater growth to be derived from the export
market," he said after the company AGM in Kuala Lumpur
yesterday.  "By integrating BVI into Unza, the group will
gain in terms of a stronger presence in the Asian
countries, especially Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong."  

He said once the acquisition had been completed, 60% of
Unza's revenue would be derived from the export market,
with the rest generated by domestic sales.  Currently, 16%
of the Unza sales are from export sales.  The acquisition
of BVI would bring together under one company Unza's
factories in China, Vietnam and Malaysia.

"We will continue to strategically position the group as a
niche player in the toiletries and fragrance industry.
There will not be any change in the company's core business
after the restructuring exercise," Welman said.

For the financial year ended April 30, 1999 Unza had
recorded a slight drop in pre-tax profit to RM12.0mil, from
RM13.3mil previously. Group turnover was also marginally
lower at RM129mil from RM130.7mil.  (Star Online  12-Oct-
1999)


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

EYCO GROUP: Asks SEC to halt creditor foreclosures
--------------------------------------------------
The debt-laden Eyco Group of Companies asked the Securities
and Exchange Commission (SEC) to stop creditors from
starting foreclosure proceedings against its assets,
pending resolution by the Court of Appeals (CA) of its
petition to reverse the liquidation order earlier issued by
the SEC.

In a motion filed with the SEC yesterday, cash-strapped
Eyco said the Commission en banc's decision to junk the
firm's petition for rehabilitation "has not attained
finality." The SEC en banc is the highest decision-making
body of the SEC.

"Despite the fact that the SEC's decision is not yet final,
creditors have initiated steps to foreclose on mortgaged
properties ... any attempt to foreclose is highly improper
and constitutes brazen contempt for the SEC," Eyco said.

The cash-strapped group's petition before the CA seeks the
reversal of the SEC's order for liquidation and the
issuance of injunctive relief, as "at present, creditor
banks are poised to foreclose on the firms' properties,"
doing injustice to the Eyco group.  Last September 14, the
SEC en banc, after two years of deliberation, declared the
Eyco group "insolvent" and ordered its dissolution,
reversing the hearing panel's earlier approval of the
group's rehabilitation plan prepared by the consultancy
firm Strategies and Alliance Corp. (SAC).

The body also ordered that all committees created pursuant
to the hearing panel's decision be dissolved and discharged
after finding the Yutingco-owned group insolvent with a
capital deficit of more than two billion Philippine pesos
(US$50 million at PhP40.412:US$1).  For its part, the Eyco
group said the SEC's decision on the viability of the SAC
proposal was prematurely reached as the SAC was not given
sufficient time to study the target market of the said
plan.

The SAC plan proposes to settle Eyco's PhP5.2-billion
(US$128 million) debt through the issuance of certificates
by a national housing cooperative pool. The repayment of
principal and interest of the said obligations are
guaranteed to be paid in cash by the government through the
Home Insurance Guaranty Corp. (HIGC).

The SEC earlier ruled that just as the SAC plan is not
feasible considering the instability of the country's real
estate industry, it "believes that the (revised) plan to
concentrate on the core manufacturing business ... is
likewise not feasible and is highly speculative as to its
income generation prospects."

The Yutingco group filed for debt relief in 1997 when it
encountered difficulties in paying debts.  At the time it
first filed for debt relief, Eyco's liabilities were only
over PhP2.08 billion (US$51.5 million), but had since then
more than doubled to some PhP5.2 billion.  The group is
composed of the following subsidiaries: Nikon Industrial
Corp., Nikolite Industrial Corp., 2000 Industries Corp.,
Trade Hope Industrial Corp., First Unibrands Food Corp.,
Integral Steel Corp., Eyco Properties Inc., and Thames
Phils., Inc.   (Business World  12-Oct-1999)


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

HIND HOTELS INT'L.: 3rd Quarter losses widen
-------------------------------------------
Hind Hotels International yesterday released its unaudited
results for the nine months ended Sept 30 to facilitate the
sale of a major stake by its substantial shareholders to
DBS Realty.  Turnover for the period rose from $9.7 million
to $11.3 million while net loss widened to $17.8 million
from $10 million previously.

During the nine months, extraordinary losses came to $23
million, including a $37 million write-down upon the
closure of Imperial hotel.  The extraordinary items bring
its bottomline loss to $41 million, compared to a $6
million gain previously. For the half-year ended June, the
company swung to a loss of $10 million from a $319,000
profit previously.  (Business Times  12-Oct-1999)

L&M GROUP INVESTMENTS: Major restructuring under way
----------------------------------------------------
TO get back to profitability, engineering company L&M Group
Investments is reportedly undergoing a major restructuring
which will involve spinning off one of its divisions as
well as the placement of additional shares as earlier
announced.

The plan, according to a report in Singapore's Business
Times, is for L&M Geotechnic, one of the group's main
operating divisions, to be listed on the main board of the
Stock Exchange of Singapore, while its Indonesian arm L&M
Systems Indonesia will be listed on the Jakarta Stock
Exchange.

The restructuring is expected to see Edward Soeryadjaya, a
member of the Indonesian-Chinese family that already owns
24% of the company, injects S$20mil in new capital via a
placement of 30.7 million new shares at 61.5 cents each to
him.  Edward, the report said, would buy the shares through
Jing Chui Ltd, a company incorporated in the British Virgin
Islands.

Sources were quoted by the newspaper as saying that the
family had apparently obtained a waiver from the Securities
Industry Council from having to make a general offer for
the rest of L&M although the share placement would raise
its stake to 37%, well above the 25% limit under the
Singapore takeover code.

Edward's younger brother Edwin, L&M's current chairman, had
obtained the Soeryadjayas' original 24.9% stake in L&M from
another Indonesian businessman Johannes Kotjo, who had run
into financial difficulties.  With the placement to Edward
and the S$30mil it expects to get from the listing of the
two companies, L&M reportedly hopes to raise its
shareholder funds to over S$88mil from the present
S$39.7mil.  (Star Online  12-Oct-1999)


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

KGI SECURITIES ONE: Disciplined by the SET
------------------------------------------
KGI Securities One Plc was censured and fined yesterday
after the Stock Exchange of Thailand ruled that the company
had failed to properly supervise its staff to perform their
duties in the best interests of the integrity of the
market. Staff were also censured and suspended for
manipulation of the SET index on May 25.

The SET instructed all foreign brokerages that it was
essential for them to ensure that staff were carrying out
their responsibilities with due skill and care.  On May 25,
a foreign institutional client placed orders to sell 27
high market-capitalised stocks in the last few minutes
prior to the market close. The orders were sent to two
brokers; one being a foreign broker with access to the Thai
market through KGI Securities One, the other was a Thai
broker.

The orders caused the index to drop significantly,
prompting the SET to launch an inquiry during which
executives of KGI Securities One were invited to clarify
what had happened.  The exchange last month revised its
stock opening and closing price calculating methods to
better reflect the value of securities, without relying on
the pre-determined time of execution.

Under the new calculation method, the exchange will allow
trading until 4.30 pm, when automatic order matching will
stop. A closing time will then be randomly selected between
4.35 and 4.40, the window in which brokers are allowed to
submit transaction orders.

"The securities firms involved need to be responsible, in
particular those which are also members of the SET. The
Office would like to remind all registered brokers of the
importance of proper controls or guidelines regarding
execution of clients' orders," the SET said.

However, the SET said no evidence was found that would have
indicated the intention to manipulate the prices of stocks
or the index, or to induce others to buy or sell stocks.
The exchange said that although KGI Securities One faced
administrative action from the SET, it was also reprimanded
by the authority for failure to supervise its staff to
perform duties in the best interests of the market.

The SET found that factors which led to a substantial drop
in the index on May 25 included the lack of proper
mechanisms or instruments to assist investors to
economically protect themselves against the exposure on the
Thai equity market. There was also the unpredictable
illiquidity of some large blue chip stocks; a weakness in
the calculation method; and the lack of professional
responsibility on the part of the securities companies.

As a result of a breakdown in communication with regard to
details of the selling instructions between the client and
the foreign broker, as well as between the foreign broker
and KGI Securities One, the foreign broker then placed the
orders with KGI Securities One near the close of the
afternoon session, leaving the securities company little
time to be able to complete the execution.

Due to the securities company's failure to exercise its due
care to evaluate the potential market impact and with thin
trading volume in the market, the index was dragged down by
15 points at the close of May 25.  The Draft Derivatives
Market Act BE, now being considered by the Council of
State, was due to be launched or made available to
investors by the end of next year once it is approved in
principle by the Securities and Exchange Commission. (The
Nation  12-Oct-1999)

KULTHORN KIRBY: Recapitalization going per plan
-----------------------------------------------
Kulthorn Kirby Plc reported that it had already obtained
Bt150 million from the sale of its 15-million capital-
increase shares. The recapitalisation is part of the
company's debt-restructuring plan.  Of the total, 81.3 per-
cent were subscribed by local investors and the rest made
up by foreign investors.  (The Nation  12-Oct-1999)

NOBLE DEVELOPMENT PLC.: Debentures bought as part of rehab
----------------------------------------------------------
One Asset Management Co. Ltd. said it had bought 45,000
units of convertible debentures of Noble Development Plc in
accordance with Noble's debt-restructuring plan.

One Asset Management has also accepted the transfer of 5.57
per cent of Thai Packaging and Printing Plc from other
individuals as a debt repayment.  The asset management
company reported to the Stock Exchange of Thailand that the
45,000 convertible debenture units had been bought on Oct 5
with a conversion ratio of one unit per 30 shares. The
45,000 units are equal to 16.36 per cent of Noble's shares.
The debentures are part of Noble's issuance of not more
than Bt550 million worth of non-guaranteed convertible
debentures in August, when the company raised its
registered capital.

The Bt550 million, or 550,000 debenture units, would be
offered to existing shareholders and creditors.  Each
debenture unit has a face value of Bt1,000 and carries 0
per cent interest rate with a maturity of not more than one
year. (The Nation  12-Oct-1999)

RADANASIN BANK: UOB purchase to be completed in November
--------------------------------------------------------
The Bank of Thailand expects the United Overseas
Bank/Radanasin Bank transaction to be completed next month.

The central bank yesterday gave its official agreement for
the sale of Radanasin Bank to the Stock Exchange of
Thailand. It said its rescue fund, the Financial
Institutions Development Fund (FIDF), had entered into a
share purchase agreement with Singapore-based United
Overseas Bank for the sale of 75.02 per cent of Radanasin
Bank.

The Singapore bank would pay Bt15.089 billion in cash,
according to the agreement. United Overseas has indicated
that after assuming the management of Radanasin, it intends
to reorganise its capital structure to ensure capital
adequacy in relation to Radanasin's total risk assets.
Consequently, the net amount of United Overseas' investment
in Radanasin after the capital re-organisation would be
about Bt6.5 billion. The premium it will pay is about 44.44
per cent per share.

The Bank of Thailand said the delay in approving the "bid
winner" was because it and the FIDF considered the share
purchase agreement should be agreed before the
announcement.  United Overseas Bank is one of the major
four banks in Singapore, with an extensive network of
branches and offices worldwide. As of June 30 this year,
the group had total assets of Bt1.219 billion and
shareholders' funds of Bt145 billion.

United Overseas has a Moody's Investors Service of "B" for
Bank Financial Strength, and "Aa2" and "Prime-1" for long-
term and short-term deposits, respectively.  Merrill Lynch
Phatra Securities Ltd said the recent acquisition is a good
deal for the Singaporean bank.

"We expect the bank to make limited profits in the first
two years and so the return on equity on the capital could
below. Longer term, however, we perceive this as a good
deal for the bank," Merrill Lynch said.

Merrill Lynch said the transfer of about Bt43.3 billion in
non-performing loans to the asset management company, and
accrued interest, would be made without provisions, and
that the new asset management companies would be funded by
loans from Radanasin.  It estimated that under the loss-
sharing arrangement in which losses would be split 85/15
(FIDF/United Overseas) and profits 95/05(FIDF/United
Overseas), the bank could incur losses of another Bt3.9
billion, on the assumption of a 60 per cent loss rate on
the asset management company.  This would push the cost for
United Overseas Bank to Bt10.4 billion, Merrill Lynch said.

"The price tag works out to be 25 per cent of assets. The
price may be reasonable, since United Overseas acquires a
bank with entirely good assets and that is well-
capitalised," it added.

It said that Radanasin may rebuild its capital base by
writing back its entire loan loss provisions of Bt13.6
billion, of which Bt10.6 billion would be immediately
repaid to the FIDF and United Overseas Bank.  Merrill Lynch
also estimated that despite the government getting back
nearly Bt18 billion of the Bt19.8 billion it had injected
when Radanasin was nationalised, the government stood to
lose approximately Bt22 billion on the asset management
company loss-sharing scheme.

It said the franchise premium paid on Radanasin was 10.6
per cent of assets, which was greater than the 6.4 per cent
paid by British bank Standard Chartered for the acquisition
of a 75 per cent stake in Nakornthon Bank early last month.
Merrill Lynch said it would be in the interests of United
Overseas Bank to liquidate the assets as quickly as
possible to repay the low-yield government bonds and to
release the funds to make new loans. The bank would
supervise the asset management company for a fee of 0.1 per
cent of the bad loans.  (The Nation, Reuters  12-Oct-1999)

SIAM-AGRO INDUSTRY PINEAPPLE: SET suspends stock
------------------------------------------------
Shares of Siam-Agro Industry Pineapple were suspended
yesterday by the SET for failure to appoint independent
directors to comply with market regulations.  Failure to
comply with the regulations by January 10 could see the
company delisted.  (Bangkok Post  12-Oct-1999)

WAN KANAI SUGER MILL GROUP: BBL to sign debt rehab agmt.
--------------------------------------------------------
Bangkok Bank (BBL) plans to sign a debt restructuring
agreement worth 7 billion baht with Wan Kanai Sugar Mill
Group on Friday.

Dacha Toolanan, BBL vice president, said that the bank was
prepared to sign the agreement regarding non-performing
loans (NPLs) with the group to restructure debt of 7
billion baht.  In addition, BBL also expected to manage the
group's total NPL value, to the tune of 100 billion baht,
which belong to the group's 11 individual sugar mills.

"The group's restructuring plan will result in a reduction
of the bank's NPLs by 20 to 30 billion baht, which is on
pace with the plan to restructure 100 billion baht of
outstanding debts by the end of this year," said Dacha.

A source at BBL told Business Day that Wan Kanai Group's
debt totalled 12 billion baht in which 7 billion was owed
to BBL.  During the restructuring program the same
executives would continue to manage the mill, but under the
bank's supervision.

Moreover, BBL would financially support the mills by
helping pay outstanding debts to sugar cane farmers, along
with assisting to pay for machine repairs.  A source at BBL
also said under the framework of the restructuring plan,
the bank would extend the payment period and decrease
interest instead of reducing the debt.

BBL felt that while the sugar mills still earned a profit,
a debt reduction would set up a bad example to other ailing
businesses.  Meanwhile, a source at Thai Military Bank
(TMB), said the bank had finalized a deal with two of Wang
Kanai's subsidiaries and reduced the bank's NPLs by 5
billion baht. With the rising prices of sugar on the world
market, the bank didn't anticipate the NPLs being returned
by the mill group.  (Business Day  12-Oct-1999)


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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