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     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

             Friday, October 27, 2000, Vol. 3, No. 210

                                   Headlines


* A U S T R A L I A *

GOODMAN FIELDER: Yet another restructuring ahead
SURF DIVE N' SKI: Rip Curl snaps up stores


* C H I N A  &  H O N G  K O N G *

GUANGZHOU DISHENG CORP.: Put on debtor black list
NEW WORLD DEVELOPMENT: Red ink flows in
PACIFIC CENTURY CYBERWORKS: To cut network budget
SOUNDWILL HOLDINGS: Issues warrants to clear debt
ZHUHAI HUAXIA INVESTMENT CO.: Put on debtor black list


* I N D O N E S I A *

BAKRIE FINANCE CORP.: Creditors to get Bumi Modern shares BANK ISTIMARAT:
Court asks owner and IBRA to settle
BANK PELITA: Court asks owner and IBRA to settle


* J A P A N *

HIKARI TSUSHIN: Posts 11.3B yen operating loss
NOMURA SECURITIES: 3 of its units sued for fraud
SOGO CO: 9 stores to close in latest rehab plan


* K O R E A *

DAEWOO MOTOR: Unpaid wages now exceed 100B won
DAEWOO MOTOR: Creditors demand unions accept staff cuts
DAEWOO TELECOM: Assets seized for failing to repay notes
HYUNDAI ELECTRONIC INDUS.: Planning restructure measures
KOREAN FRENCH BANKING: To increase capital by W60B


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

REYNOLDS (PHILS.): Facing being kicked out of bourse


* T H A I L A N D *

AIG FINANCE: Records Bt5M Q3 loss
BANGKOK FIRST INVESTMENT & TRUST: Posts Q3 loss
BANGKOK RANCH CO.: Rehab plan submitted
NAVA VICKERS BALLAS: To close 7 branches
THAI IDENTITY SUGAR GROUP: Signs debt pact with banks


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

GOODMAN FIELDER: Yet another restructuring ahead
------------------------------------------------
Goodman Fielder will incur a further $25 million in charges
under a plan to close excess flour mills and mixing plants
in Australia, as it indicated further restructuring was
under review.

The baking and milling company said yesterday it would
close two mills and two mixing plants in NSW and pare
capacity at two mills elsewhere in the country over the
next 18 months, generating cost savings of up to $15
million a year. Analysts had hoped the rationalization
would represent in its entirety the well-flagged
restructuring of Goodman Fielder's Australian assets.

Earlier this year the company completed phase one of its
trans-Tasman flour milling and mixing review with the
closure of three of its five New Zealand mills. However, it
raised the prospect of a third phase which could see
further flour mill closures and potentially construction of
a new flour mill in NSW at a cost, analysts estimated, of
between $80 million and $150 million.

Goodman Fielder, which has 60 per cent of the Australian
flour market, has a poor reputation with investors for
incurring large restructuring costs year after year and the
prospect of additional charges for a new mill sat uneasily
with the analysts. A decision on the third phase of
restructuring is due next year.

"You constantly feel like you are being led up the garden
path. They always say the restructuring is substantially
over and then there are more charges just around the
corner," one analyst said.

Goodman Fielder will spread the $25 million charge across
the 2001 and 2002 financial years as it makes cash payments
for redundancies.  It is expected it will cut about 300
jobs although the restructuring will create upwards of 120
jobs as some mills and other sites are expanded.

The revamp is slated to improve capacity utilisation at its
Australian flour mills by as much as 10 per cent and at its
mixing sites by 20 percent. Analysts briefed by Goodman
Fielder executives said the company was at pains to depict
the restructuring as an exercise to save costs and not an
attempt to boost margins ahead of instigating a fresh price
war with rival George Weston Foods.  Shares in Goodman
Fielder ended unchanged at $1.25. (Sydney Morning Herald
26-Oct-2000)

SURF DIVE N' SKI: Rip Curl snaps up stores
------------------------------------------
Financially troubled Surf Dive n' Ski has been snapped up
by surfing company Rip Curl for an undisclosed amount.

The 13 Surf Dive n' Ski stores in Queensland and Victoria,
bought by Gold Coast businessman Lux Daswani's Ganesh
Australia Pty Ltd in late 1999, were placed in
administration in early October.  Rip Curl would take
control of the business in the next few days to prepare for
the busy summer season and continue to run the stores as a
separate entity, the company said in a statement.

"Rip Curl has supplied these Surf Dive n' Ski shops for
more than 30 years and we believe it is in the best
interests of the Australian surfing industry and its
customers to keep these multi-brand stores in the hands of
people who know and support the surfing lifestyle," it said
in a statement.

The Surf Dive n' Ski stores in New South Wales are not
affected as they are owned and operated separately from the
stores in the other states.  At a creditors meeting earlier
this month Daswani's surf chain was found to owe 150
secured and unsecured creditors around $A15 million
($US7.78 million) including a $A12 million ($US6.22
million) commercial loan from ANZ Banking Group.

Administrators Ferrier Hodgson today said while the
underlying business remained strong there was unlikely to
be any return to unsecured creditors.  A final report to
creditors on the financial position would be made in about
six weeks.

"At this stage it appears that the failure of the company
was due to a number of accounting irregularities and the
activities of the promoters of the Daswani Group," Ferrier
Hodgson said.

Mr Daswani left Australia with his wife and daughter soon
after the financial troubles started to emerge and other
parts of his retail and property businesses were placed
under administration.  Losses from his businesses are
estimated to total around $A50 million ($US25.92 million)
with BankWest owed about $A25 million ($US12.96 million)
from loan facilities. (Asia Pulse  26-Oct-2000)


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

GUANGZHOU DISHENG CORP.: Put on debtor black list
ZHUHAI HUAXIA INVESTMENT CO.: Put on debtor black list
------------------------------------------------------
The Guangdong Bank Association has published a black list
of seven debtor companies which deliberately defaulted on
bank loans in order to alert all financial institutions in
the southern province.

This is the first time that the names of debtors have been
made public in this way in the province.  The seven
companies in the list are in arrears in loans totalling 300
million yuan to banks in Guangdong province, according to a
local media report.

Guangzhou Disheng Corporation was said to be three years or
130 million yuan in arrears on loans to the Guangdong
Branch of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.
Besides Guangzhou Disheng, there are also are three other
Guangzhou companies on the list, two from Zhuhai and one
from the neighboring Huizhou.

Sources from the local bank association said that they
would impose sanctions on the debtors by freezing their
bank accounts and cutting off all further loans..
According to the sources, rampant debt defaults had
threatened the financial safety of Guangdong banks and hurt
the overall market credibility.

One of the debtors on the list, Zhuhai Huaxia Investment
Company, has changed its name three times and moved around
since 1992 to dodge a 50-million-yuan debt it owed to
Guangdong Development Bank. The bank recently filed a
lawsuit against it but discovered that its mortgage could
not recover the debt.

Sources said that the bank association has circulated
internal notices of more than 1,000 default debtor
companies, but it failed to make the companies pay back the
loans.  Publication of defaulting firms has had a greater
effect than internal notices.

According to a bank spokesman of creditor banks, there were
10 companies in the original list but three of them were
removed because they paid up before their names were made
public. (South China Morning Post  26-Oct-2000)

NEW WORLD DEVELOPMENT: Red ink flows in
---------------------------------------
The Cheng family-controlled New World Development (NWD) has
suffered its worst financial performance in 21 years, with
its after-attributable profit diving nearly 84 percent to
HK$215 million for the year ended June 30.

The poor result was not unexpected, given that the
conglomerate reported one-off losses amounting to about
HK$1.57 billion, all of which were announced at the interim
stage. In the first half, the group incurred a net loss of
HK$907.2 million - the first loss since it listed in 1972.
At an operational level, the group was hit during the year
by weaker income from its property and construction
businesses as well as by a substantial increase in interest
expenses on its debt.

Managing director Henry Cheng Kar-shun blamed the downturn
on the exceptional losses booked in the first half.
"Stripping out this item, the company saw profit growth,"
said Mr Cheng.  In the previous year to June, the company
earned an attributable profit of HK$1.26 billion, itself a
40.8 per cent drop on the year before.

The exceptional losses arose from the listing of New World
China Land in June last year after the listing price ended
up lower than NWD's investment cost.  Turnover rose 17.2
per cent to HK$2.05 billion. Directors declared a final
dividend of 10 HK cents, bringing the full-year dividend to
20 HK cents per share, down from 30 HK cents in 1999.

Despite the disappointing results, analysts said the
company has passed the most difficult period and could see
a turnaround this year.  "The group has stopped spilling
money into a different kind of businesses. It is a good
sign," said G K Goh Securities analyst Roger Luk, who said
he would change his recommendation to buy from sell.

NWD, one of Hong Kong's largest property developers, has
been criticised in the market for being over-diversified
and having a high debt level.  As well as its land bank of
14.6 million square feet of gross floor area in Hong Kong,
it has investments in hotels, telecommunications,
construction, ferries and buses. It also has investments in
property and infrastructure projects in China.

Mr Luk said the performance of the group's existing
businesses was expected to bottom out this year, while the
group would continue to realise more cash from the sale of
assets to reduce its debt burden.  As of June 30, the
group's gross debt amounted to HK$27 billion and gearing
was 48 per cent. It plans to cut the gearing to 35 per cent
by the end of this year.

Interest expenses totalled HK$1.48 billion in the full
year, against HK$840 million in 1999.  In July, the group
unveiled plans to raise HK$10 billion by the end of this
year in a bid to ease investor apprehensions about its
outlook.

Mr Cheng said the group had realised almost HK$6 billion
through the sale of Grand Millennium Plaza in Sheung Wan,
its Choi Hung government-subsidised housing project and
Dragon Pride. All were sold after June.  The group will
sell more properties in the near future.

Mr Cheng said he hoped a strategic alliance on its fixed-
line telephone business and consolidation of its mobile
phone business would be finalised either by the year-end or
early next year.  Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel)
was tipped as a potential partner of its fixed-line
business but Mr Cheng declined to comment on it.

Mr Cheng said the group had no financial problems and was
in no rush to sell its telecoms assets.  "I won't sell if
the fixed-line network is valued at below HK$2 billion," he
said.

NWD has HK$6 billion in cash on hand combined with billions
of dollars of undrawn facilities. More cash will be
generated from recurrent income this year.  In the year to
June 2001, Mr Cheng said, the group would see recurrent
earnings before interest, tax and amortisation at HK$4
billion to HK$4.5 billion, arising from its core businesses
- property rentals, infrastructure, services and telecoms.

For the year under review, the telecoms business made a
HK$156.8 million loss, against a HK$607.2 million loss in
1999.  Analysts expected the operation would continue to
improve. NWD shares fell 30 HK cents to HK$9.20. (South
China Morning Post  26-Oct-2000)

PACIFIC CENTURY CYBERWORKS: To cut network budget
-------------------------------------------------
Pacific Century CyberWorks plans to slash spending on its
flagship broadband service, Network of the World (NOW),
after the company's share price hit a year low on Tuesday.
PCCW shares recovered slightly yesterday, closing at $5.90,
2.61 per cent higher than Tuesday's finish of $5.75.

"What we're looking at is cutting our costs back
accordingly to what we can afford here," PCCW group chief
financial officer David Prince told analysts during a
conference meeting on Tuesday night.

But Mr Prince did not specify the amount involved in the
cutbacks. When PCCW merged with Cable & Wireless HKT in
August, it said it planned to spend US$700 million (HK$5.46
billion) on English and Chinese NOW services over 18
months. "We're looking more cautiously and perhaps more
prudently at the rate of expansion into our various net
enterprises in line with the general markets," PCCW deputy chairman Alex
Arena told analysts.

Sanjeet Devgan, an analyst at Prudential Bache Securities,
commented: "It's a question of putting the money in the
right priority."

Another analyst said the cutback was a positive move as the
original investment plan would have placed a heavy burden
on PCCW given its relatively tight cash levels.  He said
PCCW could generate short term returns by investing in
other businesses such as iLink, PCCW's data centre
operations which is seeking a second-board listing.

Danny Chung, head of research with Sassoon Securities, said
there was still some uncertainty about NOW.  "I expect NOW
will continue to incur losses over the next two to three
years. Investors have been skeptical about its Internet
business," he said.

PCCW earlier announced a 50-50 Internet infrastructure
venture with Telstra, Australia's biggest telecommunication
operator. The IP backbone company will operate as a global
carrier of voice and data.  "That's a very solid business
with US$2 billion revenue per annum and about US$500
million Ebita (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation
and amortisation)," Mr Arena said.

Revenue from PCCW's local fixed-line division rose 13 per
cent in the first six months of this year to $5.36 billion,
of $14 billion total revenue. (Hong Kong iMail 26-Oct-2000)

SOUNDWILL HOLDINGS: Issues warrants to clear debt
-------------------------------------------------
Soundwill Holdings Ltd is issuing 184 million warrants to
bank creditors for its $1.84 billion debts. One warrant
will be issued for every $10 of indebtedness.

The exercise commencement date of the warrants will be
January 31, 2002. According to the agreement, if the final
closing price is less than $0.10, a cash payment will be
made to each bank creditor within 14 banking days after
the exercise commencement date to make the return on each
warrant equal to $0.10.  A previous debt restructure
agreement entered with the banks on May 10 is still valid.
(CN-Market News  26-Oct-2000)


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

BAKRIE FINANCE CORP.: Creditors to get Bumi Modern shares
---------------------------------------------------------
Under Bakrie Finance Corp's 2 trilllion rupiah debt-
restructuring program creditors will receive 1.83 billion
shares in Bumi Modern, it was announced at a shareholder's
special meeting.

Bakrie Finance president director Mustafa Jatim said the
total value of the shares are estimated at 915.096 billion
rupiah, using the nominal value of 500 rupiah per share.
Most of Bakrie Finance's assets are in the form of debt
notes with only a small portion in the form of fixed
assets, Jatim said without elaborating.

The company plans to use all of its assets to support the
debt restructuring program under a debt-for-asset
mechanism, Jatim confirmed. The shareholders also agreed to
replace Aburizal Bakrie and install Triana Syam'un as the
company's president commissioner.

BANK ISTIMARAT: Court asks owner and IBRA to settle
BANK PELITA: Court asks owner and IBRA to settle
---------------------------------------------------
The Central Jakarta Commercial Court has asked the
Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) and owners of
the now defunct Bank Istimarat and Bank Pelita to seek an
out-of-court settlement over the agency's charge that the
two banks had misused the government's emergency loan worth
over Rp 3 trillion (US$340 million).

In the first hearing of the case on Tuesday, chief judge
Subardi told IBRA and the owners of the two closed banks to
seek a "win-win" solution rather than proceed with the
legal battle. Warih Sadono and Slamet Riyadi, IBRA's legal
advisors said they agreed with the court's proposal as long
as the deal satisfies their client.

"We will see what's best for the two sides (IBRA and Bank
Istimarat) but what is clear is that the bank must pay,"
Warih told reporters following the hearing.

According to IBRA, Bank Istimarat had misused the
government's emergency loan, or more popularly called
liquidity support, worth Rp 596 billion (about US$79.5
million). IBRA alleged Bank Pelita of misusing some Rp 2.6
trillion of the liquidity support injected into the bank to
keep it afloat during the monetary crisis.

The government, through Bank Indonesia (BI), channeled some
Rp 144.5 trillion in emergency liquidity support to 48
banks between 1998 and 1999 in a bid to safe them from
collapsing amid massive bank runs.  The public's confidence
in the banking industry dropped to its lowest point
following the government's decision, during the economic
crisis in late 1997, to close down 16 private banks.

Some of the banks which received BI's liquidity support had
to be closed down, while others were nationalized and
placed under IBRA.  According to the findings of the
Supreme Audit Agency (BPK), around Rp 138.4 trillion (95
percent) of the emergency loans were either misused or
channeled in violation of banking regulations.

Banks were supposed to use the liquidity support to settle
their obligation. But BPK said the banks used the emergency
loans for other purposes, such as currency speculation,
lending to affiliated business groups and repaying
subordinated loans.

The Rp 144.5 trillion in liquidity support has now become
the government's debt to the central bank, for which the
government planned to issue bonds to repay the debt. Bank
Pelita and Bank Istimarat were among the banks the
government suspected of having misused BI's liquidity
funds.

IBRA took the two banks' board of directors and owners
business tycoon Hashim Djojohadikusumo and his father,
economist Sumitro Djojohadikusumo tocourt for their failure
to repay the liquidity support given to the banks. The
agency demanded Hashim and his father Sumitro be held in
custody if they failed to pay their debts.

Should the court grant IBRA's request, Hashim and his
father might be among the first to fall victim to the
Supreme Court's regulation No.1/2000. The regulation
stipulates that uncooperative debtors with debts of at
least Rp 1 billion, could face imprisonment of between six
months and four years.

However, the two banks' legal advisor Hotman Paris Hutapea
said IBRA had addressed the wrong people as Hashim and
Sumitro were no longer owners of the two banks. He further
said that an out-of-court settlement depended on IBRA
appraising the assets it took over from the two banks.

IBRA, he said, took over banks' assets as part of
recovering their debts to the government. According to him,
without an asset appraisal, IBRA and the two banks would
remain in disagreement over how much the banks had to pay
the agency to cover their debts.  The next hearing between
IBRA and the two banks will be held in two weeks. (The
Jakarta Post  26-Oct-2000)


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

HIKARI TSUSHIN: Posts 11.3B yen operating loss
----------------------------------------------
Hikari Tsushin Inc. recorded a parent-only operating loss
of 11.3 billion yen (US$103.6 million) for the business
year ended Aug. 31. By comparison, the company had posted a
5.5 billion yen profit the year before.

The company attributed the poor results largely on lower-
than-expected cellular phone sales, which left the firm
unable to absorb agent commissions and other costs. Net
profit for the firm dropped 37 percent to 6.2 billion yen
on the recording of an 68.5 billion yen extraordinary loss.

While sales increased 8 percent on the company's share of
revenue from calling charges, an operating loss was
unavoidable due to advance payments of commissions, which
climbed 20 percent to 143.5 billion yen.

NOMURA SECURITIES: 3 of its units sued for fraud
------------------------------------------------
Three units of Nomura Securities Co. Ltd.'s, Japan's
biggest brokerage house, have been accused of defrauding a
New York real estate investment trust out of US$19-million.
Laser Mortgage Management Inc. has filed a lawsuit in a
U.S. federal court claiming it invested in a pool of fixed-
rate mortgages underwritten and sold by Nomura subsidiaries
in December, 1997. The Nomura subsidiaries failed to
disclose that a US$50-million loan that was part of the
pool was very risky, however, the suit alleges. The loan
later went into default.

SOGO CO: 9 stores to close in latest rehab plan
-----------------------------------------------
Nine stores would be closed and 3,100 employees slashed in
a detailed plan of rehabilitation released Wednesday by the
Sogo department store group.

The plan, which was submitted to the Tokyo District Court
on Wednesday as well, represents a trimming of nearly 45
percent of the retailer's stores and over 50 percent of its
workforce. Sogo Co.'s flagship store in Osaka and a
remaining 12 others, including its stores in Yokohama and
Chiba, are to continue operations and merge next February,
creating a new department store carrying the same Sogo
brand name.

If no buyers are found for the nine department stores to be
closed, they will be closed at the end of December after
conducting bargain sales, according to the plan. A buyer
for one of the unlucky nine - Funabashi Sogo in Chiba
Prefecture - is currently being sought.

In addition to discharging some 2,100 employees from the
nine stores earmarked for sale/closure, another 1,000 or so
workers from other Sogo group companies will lose their
jobs as well as part of the group's restructuring efforts.
The plan estimates that the 13 surviving stores will return
a total of 93 billion yen to creditors by borrowing money
from the Industrial Bank of Japan, the group's main
creditor bank. The total debt of the 13 firms is estimated
at 1.58 trillion yen.

As the Sogo group is asking its creditors to forgive most
of its debt, the semigovernmental Deposit Insurance Corp.,
which had to accept the Sogo group's debt after Shinsei
Bank opted not to take it on, will consequently give up 150
billion yen in loans to the retailer, according to Sogo.
Shigeaki Wada, special adviser to Sogo and expected to
become the firm's president, said Wednesday that the
revival plan is necessary to rebuild a new Sogo.

Wada, the former chairman of Seibu Department Stores Ltd.,
also said the Sogo group will seek assistance from Seibu to
make store operations more efficient.  The new Sogo is
expected to earn 481 billion yen in sales and 13.8 billion
yen in operating profit in fiscal 2010.

The Osaka flagship store will be temporarily closed and
will reopen three to four years later as a symbol of the
new Sogo. Workers at the store will be laid off and Sogo's
Kansai head office in Osaka will be integrated into its
Tokyo head office.

The revival plan must be approved by more than half of Sogo
group's creditors and by the Tokyo District Court as Sogo
and its group firms filed for court-mandated corporate
rehabilitation on July 12.  Failed department store chain
Sogo Co. lost 27.4 billion yen between 1992 and 1994 in
dubious transactions in furs, handbags and other
accessories in a bid to show higher sales, industry sources
said Wednesday.

These items were sold to retailers and after the sales were
recorded, Sogo repurchased them and built up an inventory
estimated at 16 billion yen, with most of the goods
remaining unsold, the sources said.  Sogo conducted an
internal investigation into the case from the autumn of
1994 and wrote off the 27.4 billion yen in the business
year that ended on Feb. 28, 1995, they said.

In the spring of 1995, two board members resigned to take
responsibility for the loss.  The current Sogo management
team has decided not to file a damages suit over the losses
because the officials in charge at the time have resigned,
the sources said.

Sogo's wholesale division started importing furs and
accessories from around 1983 for sale to retailers, but
around 10 of the buyers were unable to meet payments as
their sales went down along with falling personal
consumption in the 1990s after the collapse of the bubble
economy, the sources said.  Sogo then started relaxing
payment terms by extending the periods of bills issued by
retailers and repurchasing sold goods to provide working
capital to these retailers.

In some cases, Sogo even turned its credit into loans if
the buyers could not meet the repayment terms, they said.
While these measures appear to have been taken in a bid to
save the retailers, Sogo officials were also keen to boost
the company's sales figures, as the bills were logged in
Sogo's sales records, the sources said.

The 10 retailers all eventually collapsed and the inventory
was passed on to a Sogo affiliate in Tokyo that went
bankrupt in July.  The Sogo group, with debts of 1.87
trillion yen, filed for protection from creditors with the
Tokyo District Court in July and has been scaling back
operations in Japan and abroad. (Japan Times Online 26-Oct-
2000)


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

DAEWOO MOTOR: Unpaid wages now exceed 100B won
----------------------------------------------
Daewoo Motor's unpaid employee wages now exceed 100 billion
won ($89.3 million), with creditors refusing to provide
additional operating capital amid restructuring disputes
with labor.

According to Daewoo officials, the company failed to pay
its 5,000 white-collar workers October salary, worth 17
billion won and due yesterday, citing depleted company
coffers.  October's bonus payments to blue-collar workers
and low-echelon white-collar workers, valued at 22 billion
won, may not be dispensed either. Should the bonus payments
due Oct. 31 go unpaid, total employee wages in arrears will
amount to 101 billion won, they noted.

Other overdue pay included August's bonus payments (22
billion won), September's salary for white-collar workers
(21 billion won) and October's salary for 1,300 blue-collar
workers (19 billion won). Daewoo's high-echelon white-
collar workers are on an annual salary contract and do not
receive monthly bonus pays.

They added that many employee salary payments at Daewoo
Motor's overseas plants and research centers are also being
delayed, triggering a serious labor problem in the host
countries.  Amid the deepening financial crisis, Daewoo
Motor yesterday unveiled a new restructuring measure,
pledging to cut its 135 executive level officials by 30
percent and 54 executive-led departments by 30 percent.

As a result, the number of vice president-level executives
will be reduced from 41 to 22 persons, while director-level
officials will shrink from 94 to 73 persons. "Daewoo will
map out stronger business and manpower restructuring
centering on cost-cutting by the end of this month for
implementation from early next month," said company
spokesman Lee Chang-won.

But the latest executive post cuts may fail to satisfy
creditors, as they have set "impressive and painful" self-
rescue efforts as a precondition for further extension of
loans. Indeed, the creditors, reconfirming their previous
position, said that they are determined not to extend
additional loans unless labor also endures restructuring,
such as layoffs, overall pay cuts and the closure of
inefficient assembly lines.

Daewoo management is currently asking for 450 billion won
in emergency operating funds.  In the first nine months of
the year, about 2,089 Daewoo employees, mostly white-collar
workers, left company, up sharply from last year's total of
854 departures. But, as labor and management reached an
agreement in August to abstain from any forcible dismissals
for a period of five years, dismissal of unionized labor
remains a problem.

Industry observers, meanwhile, said that Daewoo Motor
falling into a "comatose" status, due to a serious shortage
of operating funds.

"Unless creditors provide at least 150 billion won ($134
million) in emergency capital by the end of this month,
Daewoo's passenger-car plants in Kunsan and Changwon should
come to a halt early next month," said an observer.

Without extra loans, Daewoo's entire domestic operations
are forecast to come to a complete halt next month, which
would put them at a disadvantage in their sales
negotiations with General Motors, they cautioned.

"Daewoo's worsening crisis will devastate its sales talks
with GM, Daewoo's parts suppliers and Korea's entire
automotive industry," the Korea Automobile Manufacturers
Association said in a statement, calling for immediate
resumption of capital supplies. "At least 900 billion won
will be needed until early next year. Debt-for-equity swaps
should also be implemented for Daewoo's overseas
operations," the KAMA statement insisted. (Korea Herald 26-
Oct-2000)

DAEWOO MOTOR: Creditors demand unions accept staff cuts
-------------------------------------------------------
The creditors of the insolvent Daewoo Motor, which has
failed to pay wages to the tune of 60 billion won, are
demanding a major concession by its unions, a step that is
speculated to be part of effort to make the Korean
automaker more attractive to its perspective buyer, General
Motors of the United States.

According to officials of the creditor banks yesterday, the
Daewoo Motor unions need to undergo a major manpower
rationalization involving a reduction of workforce, cut in
wages and closure of unproductive production lines. In
return, the government and creditors will likely resume the
provision of 100 billion won in fresh funds per month
through the utilization of an arrangement between the Korea
Development Bank, state-controled main creditor, and the
Korea Asset Management Corp. (KAMCO), also state-operated
handler of bad loans.

The creditors have stopped funding in September for the
apparent fear that new funds might end up not being
retrievable.  "Unless the employees belonging to the Daewoo
Motor unions make a written promise to cooperate with the
necessary restructuring steps certainly involving manpower
rationalization, the creditors couldn't provide a red cent
more," a creditor bank's senior official said.

The official also confirmed that the demand has been
delivered to the Daewoo Motor unions through the KDB,
adding that the creditors would not accept a repeat of the
previous self-rescue plans that were heavy in rhetoric but
light in substance.  The creditors so far have conditioned
their resumption of fresh funds on a self-rescue plan that
is expected to be submitted to the creditors by the end of
the month.

However, this is arguably the first time that the creditors
have voiced its demand directed at the workers.  It is
widely speculated that the demand has been made in line
with the ongoing negotiations with GM for the possible
purchase of the ailing carmaker.

"What has been coming has finally arrived," an industry
watcher observed. By his reasoning, GM was said to have
looked at the strong labor in Korea as one of key
impediments to doing business in Korea.

Even though it can't be confirmed whether or not the demand
was made in consultation with GM, one certain thing is that
Daewoo Motor would be made more attractive, once the unions
accept a call for major manpower reduction.  Right now,
Daewoo Motor wants to get 450 billion won in emergency
funds but its demand is falling on the deaf ear of the
creditors concerned about lessening prospects of retrieving
the loans.

Financial institutions are reluctant to open letters of
credit, causing hiccups in buying supplies. Its vendors are
also getting a credit crunch as the banks are shunning
Daewoo Motor-issued promissory notes.  Daewoo Motor and
creditor bank officials said that about 60 billion won in
wages has not been paid since August _ 40 billion won in
bonus in August and wages in September for white collar
employees and 20 billion won in wages for September for
blue collar workers.

Daewoo is expected to fail to pay 17 billion won in white
collar wages due on Oct. 31.  Should Daewoo fail to pay
bonuses due for October, the back wages are projected to
surpass 100 billion won. And Daewoo workers are leaving
their company in droves.

Those who departed the company numbered 48 in August,
jumped to 95 in September and October is expected to see
more than 100 workers leave the company, averaging more
than five per day.  Last year, 854 including 231 early
retirees left the company. This year, about 2,089 have left
the firm so far. Among 135 executives who tendered
resignation, about 40 or 30 percent would end up leaving
the firm, the company officials said. (Digital Chosun  26-
Oct-2000)

DAEWOO TELECOM: Assets seized for failing to repay notes
--------------------------------------------------------
Daewoo Heavy Industries Co Ltd and Kyobo Life Insurance Co
have seized assets of Daewoo Telecom Co Ltd after the
latter refused to repay 30-40 billion won in promissory
notes, a key creditor, Hanvit Bank, said.

It is thought that the asset seizure will delay Daewoo
Telecom's transfer of its information and communications
operations to a consortium led by Citibank Venture Capital
in what was to be the first sale of a unit of the insolvent
Daewoo Group to a foreign investor.

In early October, Daewoo Heavy requested Daewoo Telecom to
repay 1.2 billion won in promissory notes but the telecom
company refused to pay, a Hanvit Bank spokesman said.
Separately, Kyobo Life, which bought 30-40 billion won in
promissory notes of Daewoo Telecom from Daewoo Heavy at a
discount, requested Daewoo Telecom to repay the notes but
had its request rejected, the spokesman said.

"After (having their requests) rejected, Kyobo and Daewoo
Heavy jointly seized assets of Daewoo Telecom (via a court
order) on October 17," the official said.

The Hanvit official said Daewoo Telecom refused to repay
the notes because it has bills receivable from Daewoo
Heavy. "Creditors are mediating to resolve the issue
between the parties concerned," the official said.

The issue has to be resolved by the end of the month if
Daewoo Telecom's information and communications operations
are to be transferred to the CVC-led consortium. "The deal
has been almost completed with the approval by the
shareholders meeting yesterday, and we are supposed to
receive the first of the installment payments at the end of
this month from the consortium," a Daewoo Telecom spokesman
said.  "However, without the transfer of ownership, the
launch of the new company, named Mercury, will have to be
postponed until the issue gets settled."

Daewoo Telecom agreed to sell its communications operations
to the CVC-led consortium for a sum of between 340 and 370
bln won.  The price can be adjusted down to a minimum of
340 bln won, depending on the new company's business
performance next year after the takeover.  (AFX News
Limited  26-Oct-2000)

HYUNDAI ELECTRONIC INDUS.: Planning restructure measures
--------------------------------------------------------
Hyundai Electronic Industries is set to separate its liquid
crystal display (LCD) and telecommunications units to focus
more on its core competence _ semiconductors.
According to company officials, the basic strategy is to
transform HEI into a semiconductor specialist with improved
profitability by letting go of the loss-making business
units.

"We are determined to concentrate only on semiconductors
and this will entail the separation of the LCD and
telecommunications units by the beginning of next year,"
one HEI official said.

He went on to say that HEI will be adopting advanced
accounting systems used in the United States to ensure
investors and shareholders of its corporate transparency.
"Through these measures, HEI hopes to list its shares on
the New York Stock Exchange before the end of next year,"
the official said.

As for rumors in the market that HEI was suffering from
cash flow problems, he said the company is planning to
attract foreign equity and sell some of its stockholding.
The official said HEI is currently pursuing the issuance of
corporate bonds worth 500 billion won to 1 trillion won in
the U.S. market and that its credit-rating is hoped to be
upgraded from the current BBB-, which basically means not
suitable for investment.

As part of efforts to secure improved cash flow, HEI is
reportedly planning to dispose of its shares in companies
like hard disc drive producer Maxtor and ChipPac, a
specialist in semiconductor packaging.  HEI currently has
36 percent in Maxtor, which is estimated to be worth around
$2 billion, and 10 percent or 5.5 million shares in ChipPac
whose shares are trading at $15.

"HEI's ultimate objective is to emerge as a semiconductor
specialist with a strong presence in a wide spectrum of
product lines. By 2002, our dependence on dynamic random
access memory (DRAM) chips will be reduced to 70 percent,"
the official said.

Along this line, HEI will be striving to increase the
production of flash memory and static RAM while increasing
the proportion of the foundry business, the company
official explained.  The plans for corporate restructuring
come amid announcements of third quarter business results
which were not as good as expected. HEI did post a profit
for the quarter but still suffered from accumulated losses
for the year.

Against these plans, market analysts said it made sense for
the HEI to separate the business units which are eating
away at its profits to build them p as independent
companies with foreign equity.  "HEI has in the past
recognized the need to restructure but failed to do so
because of the obvious determination of management, that is
the Hyundai family, to keep diversifying," one analyst
said.

The news of HEI's restructuring - that is to sell portions
of the company to foreigners - actually came on Tuesday and
foreign investors immediately reacted, sending HEI's share
prices to the daily limit.

"This may be the last opportunity for HEI to sustain its
competitiveness and retain its market position as the
largest DRAM producer in the world, especially since the
market is projected to be headed for a downturn through the
beginning of next year," he said.

Rumors of financial difficulties at HEI have been flying
around the market for quite some time now with the
management holding back from making aggressive investments
in facilities like other chipmakers. (Korea Times  25-Oct-
2000)

KOREAN FRENCH BANKING: To increase capital by W60B
--------------------------------------------------
Troubled merchant bank Korean French Banking Corp. plans to
increase its capital by an additional 60 billion won by the
end of the year, utilizing a rights offering and a
subordinated bond issue.

Hanjin Group and Societe Generale, large shareholders of
the merchant bank, have agreed to make the capital increase
in a bid to help it turn around, according to a company
official. Korean French Banking will make a rights offering
worth 40 billion won, as well as issue subordinated bonds
worth 20 billion won. The French bank will buy the entire
subordinated debt issue, the official added. The increase
in capital is calculated to give the firm fresh momentum to
for transforming it into an investment bank, in addition to
bolstering its corporate financing business.


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

REYNOLDS (PHILS.): Facing being kicked out of bourse
----------------------------------------------------
Serious in its policing of stock market activity, the
Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) is set to crack down on
both Reynolds Philippines Corp.(RPC) and the brokers
involved in anomalous trading of the aluminum sheet maker.

BusinessWorld learned that the PSE board, the policy-
setting body of the exchange, is now thinking of possibly
suspending the trading of the listed company and worse,
delisting or stopping the company's shares from being
traded at the bourse.

The brokers also face sanctions for their involvement. But
as of press time, sources said the PSE board has passed the
torch to management to decide the fate of the beleaguered
firm and the brokers allegedly involved in jacking up
Reynolds shares.

At present, the PSE management has yet to ready its
decision on the case. The PSE board also considered
suspending the brokers involved in the issue but this too
will be forwarded to management to decide on. Sources said
the brokers were charged with kiting and wash sales,
practices used to manipulate stock prices. (Business World
27-Oct-2000)


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

AIG FINANCE: Records Bt5M Q3 loss
---------------------------------
AIG Finance (Thailand) recorded an unaudited third-quarter
net loss of Bt5 million, or Bt0.12 per share. That was
substantially down from a Bt28.9 million net loss, or
Bt2.20 per share, reported for the same period the prior
year.  For the first nine months of its fiscal year, AIG
Finance posted net losses of Bt583 million, up from Bt214
million for the same period a year ago.

BANGKOK FIRST INVESTMENT & TRUST: Posts Q3 loss
-----------------------------------------------
Bangkok First Investment & Trust recorded a net loss of
Bt37.91 million in the third quarter. By comparison, the
firm recorded a loss of Bt69.57 million for the same period
the year prior.  Bangkok First further reported to the
Stock Exchange of Thailand that its net loss for the first
nine months of the year increased to Bt22.08 million from
Bt10.15 million over the same period last year.

BANGKOK RANCH CO.: Rehab plan submitted
---------------------------------------
Bangkok Ranch Co Ltd's planning company yesterday submitted
a restructuring plan for the debt-ridden firm, one of the
world's largest vertically integrated duck operations, to
the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET).

The plan to turn around the company centres round a Bt828-
million capital increase, and the issuance of 2.8 million
3.5-year warrants to creditors who agree to restructure the
company's debts.  In the filing, the planning company said
creditors approved the rehabilitation plan on August 10,
and the Central Bankruptcy Court followed suit a week
later.

Through the capital increase, existing shareholders would
see their holdings diluted by 90 per cent.  Registered
capital would be increased from Bt34 million to Bt862
million through the issuance of 82.8 million ordinary
shares with a par value of Bt10 each. The shares would be
allocated through private placement to Navis Group, through
its subsidiary Navis Asia Fund or its designees.

Navis Asia Fund is managed by Navis Investment Partners
(Asia) Ltd, a fund management company focussing on
Southeast Asia.  Navis Investment Partners' major
shareholders include HAL Holding NV, with 25 per cent. A
subsidiary of Amsterdam-listed HAL Trust, HAL Holding has a
diverse range of global investments.

The planning company said proceeds from the recapitaliza-
tion would be used to make cash settlements with some
creditors, as detailed in the debt agreement.  Bangkok
Ranch also would issue 2.82 million 3.5-year warrants to
creditors who agreed to reschedule debt payments.

One warrant would be given for every Bt1,000 in debt that
is restructured. The warrants will include an exercise
price of Bt10 a share. The exercise period is quarterly for
three consecutive quarters effective from the third
anniversary of the date of issue.

The planning company noted that Navis Group has agreed to
subscribe to all 80 million shares. The number of warrants
for creditors would be calculated according to principal as
identified in the debt-restructuring plan. (The Nation  26-
Oct-2000)

NAVA VICKERS BALLAS: To close 7 branches
----------------------------------------
As the cut-throat competition between brokerage companies
heats up, Nava Vickers Ballas has announced the closure of
seven branches to reduce expenses.

A source at Nava Vickers Ballas said that the company will
close down the seven branches in the middle of November,
while maintaining the operations of those offices where
business is profitable.  The branches to be closed down are
located at: Central Lad Phrao, The Emporium, Central Rama
III, Imperial Samrong, Nakhon Ratchasima, Had Yai and Surat
Thani.  Branches in Chonburi, Ubon Ratchathani, Pata
Pinkhlao and The Mall Bangkapi will remain operational.

Employees of provincial branches due for closure will have
to seek employment with other brokerages, while those who
work at branches in Bangkok will be transferred to the
company's headquarters.  The source said that the company
had decided to close down the branches because it forecasts
stiffer competition among brokerages, especially through
commission reductions.

Nava Vickers Ballas is not willing to take any risks, and
will revamp its strategy to operate only in the areas where
it is competitive and can make profit, said the source.

"We all agreed that we want to be in the business for a
long time. The only way to survive is to reduce our losses
and stay on the sidelines. The 1.5 billion baht capital
that we have should allow us to remain in business for some
time. Once this period of cut-throat competition is behind
us, we will be back in the ball game," the source said.

The company plans to hold a press conference to formally
announce the closure of seven branches today.  The source
pointed out that the closures are a sign of more to come in
the competitive Thai brokerage business. Many more,
especially those with low capital levels, will be forced to
close by operational problems and losses. (Business Day
26-Oct-2000)

THAI IDENTITY SUGAR GROUP: Signs debt pact with banks
-----------------------------------------------------
Thailand's biggest sugar producer, Thai Identity Sugar
Group, has reached a debt restructuring agreement with two
of its creditors, Thai Farmers Bank (TFB) and Bangkok Bank
(BBL).

The group is negotiating separately with individual banks
that may need differing amounts of time to conclude
discussions.  Thai Identity, the parent company of Kaset
Thai Sugar and Ruampol Enterprise, has negotiated for a new
timetable for repaying its debts of three billion and two
billion baht, owed to TFB and BBL respectively, and is
expected to sign an agreement with both banks today.

In the proposal submitted to creditor banks, Thai Identity
requested a rescheduling of debt payments with creditors
holding an undisclosed amount of the group's shares as
collateral.  According to the debt plan, approved by the
central bank's Corporate Debt Restructuring Advisory
Committee, there is no debt-to-equity conversion, however,
because the group desires to maintain full ownership.

But creditor banks are allowed to send their representa-
tives to supervise the group's business operations. The
deal also includes some 'haircutting', or lowering the
value of the loans, said an executive at BBL. The sugar
group's financial woes hit international headlines in March
this year when a motorcycle gunman shot and killed
Australian auditor Michael Wansley as he approached the
gates of Thai Identity's factory in central Thailand.
(Business Day  26-Oct-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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