European Business News (96-06-17)

European Business News (EBN) Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: The European Business News Server at <http://www.ebn.co.uk/>

Page last updated June 17 11:00 CET

CONTENTS

[01] Russian share prices jump as investors bet on Yeltsin

[02] German M3 growth doesn't pose inflation threat, says Bundesbank

[03] US and China push anti-piracy talks to the brink of sanctions

[04] UK supermarket forges alliance with British Airways

[05] German upper house blocks telecoms bill

[06] BA and American Airlines link faces scrutiny

[07] UK Serious Fraud Office investigates losses at Sumitomo

[08] Finnair's profit jumps 27% to 533m markkaa

[01] Russian share prices jump as investors bet on Yeltsin

Traders said blue chip stocks, which are expected to benefit from any future buying by western fund managers, were posting the biggest gains.

AO Lukoil, the country's largest oil company, was trading at $9.33, compared to $8.73 at the close of trading Friday.

Mosenergo, a favorite of western managers, traded at $0.87, compared to $0.78 late Friday. Irkutskenergo, was at $0.78, compared to $0.67 on Friday.

Though he apparently got a halfhearted endorsement from voters Sunday, Yeltsin was immediately at work Monday to win over a key ally for a climactic showdown - a two-man runoff against his Communist rival for Russia's presidency.

With 82% of the vote counted, 35% of voters were backing Yeltsin, whose political and economic reforms have also spawned crime and corruption. Zyuganov, who promises a return to the global might and controlled economy of the Soviet era, had 32%, the Central Election Commission reported.

[02] German M3 growth doesn't pose inflation threat, says Bundesbank

And despite the high rates of growth in M3 thus far in 1996, the Bundesbank stresses that 'the liquidity situation in the economy is in no way exceptionally high.'

Indeed, 'from the monetary side, there isn't any threat at this time of inflationary pressures,' the Bundesbank said.

1996 budget deficit projections by the Bundesbank are more negative than the government's forecasts.

In its June monthly report published Monday, the German central bank projected that the country's budget deficit would near 4% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 1996, well beyond a requirement that a nation's deficit-to- GDP ratio be 3% or less for entry into the planned 1999 European currency union.

[03] US and China push anti-piracy talks to the brink of sanctions

An agreement was likely, the official Xinhua News Agency reported shortly after a noon (0400 GMT) deadline imposed by Washington. Progress has been made during the past two days of talks, it said.

Acting U.S. Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky went to meet with Vice Premier Li Lanqing in the early afternoon, said a U.S. official who declined to be identified.

Barshefsky earlier told reporters she planned to meet with Li. A state department official said such a meeting would be a strong indication an agreement had been reached.

Negotiators worked until 2:30 a.m. (1830 GMT) and then resumed the talks later Monday morning.

[04] UK supermarket forges alliance with British Airways

The 'Reward Card' is seen as a defense against a loyalty card launched June 3 by Tesco PLC, another food retailer, that functions like a cash card and pays 5% interest on unspent balances. That card was launched in alliance with National Westminster Bank.

[05] German upper house blocks telecoms bill

The bill, passed late Thursday by the law-making lower house, the Bundestag, now goes to a mediating committee, expected to meet June 20.

A lengthy delay could cause problems for Deutsche Telekom, which plans to begin selling shares in November in Germany's biggest ever privatization.

[06] BA and American Airlines link faces scrutiny

Previously, industry observers had believed that no U.K. regulatory body had the authority to approve or reject the proposed agreement between the airlines to coordinate passenger and cargo activity between the U.S. and Europe.

[07] UK Serious Fraud Office investigates losses at Sumitomo

Late Thursday, Sumitomo said it might have to absorb losses of $1.8 billion because of unauthorized trading in the U.K. and the U.S. over a 10-year period by its former head of copper trading.

'Following contact with the SIB, the SFO has taken up an investigation in conjunction with the City of London police,' the spokeswoman said.

[08] Finnair's profit jumps 27% to 533m markkaa

The company said that the main reasons for the increase in the fiscal year that ended in March were a 10-percent increase in passenger traffic, to 6 million people, and a 5-percent increase in cargo transport.

The profits came on revenues of 7.18 billion markkaa (dlrs 1.52 billion), up from 6.65 billion markkaa (dlrs 1.41 billion).

From the European Business News (EBN) Server at http://www.ebn.co.uk/

European Business News (EBN) Directory - Previous Article - Next Article