/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCRAP_Public/020418.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

            Thursday, April 18, 2002, Vol. 5, No. 76

                         Headlines

A U S T R A L I A

ANSET AUSTRALIA: CBD Assets Up for Sale
HAZELTON AIRLINES: Administrator Dismisses Potential Buyers
ONE.TEL: Court Tells Ex-directors to Pay Bills
PACIFIC DUNLOP: Will Cut U.S. Plants to Boost Capital
TRANSURBAN GROUP: Mulls A$1.7B Debt Refinancing


C H I N A   &   H O N G  K O N G

ASIA GLOBAL: Awaits Hutchison Whampoa Bid
BESTUP LIMITED: Faces Winding-Up Petition
CIL HOLDINGS: Narrows First-Half Loss to HK$4.9M
HUBEI LANTIAN: May Post Loss in 2001
PROFIT SUPER: Court Sets July Winding-Up Hearing

WING WAH LTD: Winding Up Petition Hearing Set for Next Week


I N D O N E S I A

BANK NIAGA: IBRA Names Bidders for 51% Stake
HOLDIKO PERKASA: Will Sell 47.5% Stake in Metropolitan Kentjana


J A P A N

DAI-ICHI KATEI: Files for Court Rehabilitation
DAIWA BANK: Shareholders File Suit Over Losses
FURUKAWA ELECTRIC: Sets Up Manufacturing Firm in China
HITACHI LTD: Enters Storage Alliance With IBM
HITACHI LTD: Proclaims EMC Allegations as Without Merit

HITACHI LTD: Abandons Work-Share Scheme
MYCAL CORP: Court Receives Plea to Alter Revival Plan
NIPPON TELEGRAPH: Norio Wada Promotion Scheduled for June
SEKISUI CHEMICAL: Moody's Reviews L-T Rating
SOFTBANK CORP: Sells Yahoo Stake for $171M to Cut Debt


K O R E A

DAEWOO MOTOR: Final GM Contract Signing Planned for April 23
HYNIX SEMICONDUCTOR: Records 1Q02 Recurring Profit
HYNIX SEMICON: Plans to Hire 100 New Workers, Begins Recovery


M A L A Y S I A

CHG INDUSTRIES: Proposes Restructuring Plan Implementation
DEWINA BERHAD: Announces Rights Issue Agreement
EMICO HOLDINGS: Awaits Proposal Approval From KLSE
HO WAH: KLSE Grants Share Listing on Friday
INSAS BERHAD: Files for De-registration of Dormant Unit

KIARA EMAS: Secures Extension Approval Arrives From KLSE
MGR CORPORATION: KLSE Sets Regularization Deadline
OLYMPIA INDUSTRIES: Court Delays Winding-up Hearing
RHB CAPITAL: Appoints Liquidator for RHS Unit
TECHNOLOGY RESOURCES: Pays RM1.87B to Bondholders

TENCO BERHAD: Default Payment Status Pending
UNIPHOENIX CORPORATION: MITI Approves Restructuring Scheme
UNIPHOENIX CORPORATION: Seeks Restraining Order Extension


P H I L I P P I N E S

PHILIPPINE LONG: Signs MOU With Micros-Fidelio
SOLID GROUP: Seeks Buyer for Unit Over Losses


S I N G A P O R E

FHTK HOLDINGS: Posts Notice of Shareholder's Interest
KLW HOLDINGS: Auditors Report on FY01 Financial Results
TEAMSPHERE LTD: Extends Fine Components Group Agreement
THAKRAL CORP: Seeks Shareholders Capital Reduction Approval


T H A I L A N D

TPI POLENE: SCCC Proposed Takeover Unstable

     -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -

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


ANSET AUSTRALIA: CBD Assets Up for Sale
---------------------------------------
The Ansett administrator Andersen has put the former airline's
Melbourne CBD real estate on the market, the Age newspaper
reported.

Market analysts say the headquarters tower at 501 Swanston
Street and three adjoining buildings, valued at $30 million,
will interest those looking to consolidate and redevelop the
7626 total square meter sites.

The four properties will be sold as one, or individually via an
international marketing campaign through Knight Frank and
Colliers International. Tender offers will close May 17.


HAZELTON AIRLINES: Administrator Dismisses Potential Buyers
-----------------------------------------------------------
Hazelton Airlines' administrator has dismissed the Company's
potential buyers, Inland Marketing Corporation and a syndicate
of former Ansett staff, saying neither of the two expressions of
interest in the former Ansett subsidiary are financially secure
in their present form.

According to a report from ABC News, the sale of both Kendell
and Hazelton airlines has been delayed because the
administrators are not satisfied with the bids.

Hazelton administrator, Michael Humphris, says funding must be
secure.

"We're not able to move forward with any party with funding
conditional to finance in respect to their expression of
interest," he said.


ONE.TEL: Court Tells Ex-directors to Pay Bills
----------------------------------------------
The NSW Supreme Court dismissed Monday an application by former
One.Tel directors, Mark Silbermann and Kevin Beck, seeking to
take further legal action over their debts.

According to a report from the Australian, Silbermann and Beck
will have to pay up to $800,000 in credit card bills accrued at
the failed discount telco.

Silbermann accumulated bills of nearly $400,000 on his American
Express card and almost $125,000 on his Diners Club card. Beck
owed almost $200,000 on his American Express card and more than
$90,000 on his Dinners Club card.

Both directors wanted to take their former employer to the
Industrial Relations Commission to argue that the debts should
be canceled or paid by One.Tel liquidator, Ferrier Hodgson,
since the credit cards were used to pay business expenses,
including European hotel rooms and advertising costs.

They were appealing against a Supreme Court ruling in October
refusing them permission to continue proceedings against One.Tel
in the IRC.

Justice Ian Gzell ruled early this week there was "insufficient
reason to require the liquidator to spend time and money better
directed towards the creditors of One.Tel."


PACIFIC DUNLOP: Will Cut U.S. Plants to Boost Capital
-----------------------------------------------------
Healthcare products manufacturer Pacific Dunlop expects to
reduce its plants in the United States from 18 to 12 as part of
the Company's drive to boost capital, the Herald Sun reports,
citing chairman Dr Ed Tweddell.

Dr Tweddell said closure costs would be around $US15 million,
close to the book value of the assets.

Pacific Dunlop announced a week ago the results of its strategic
review of its core Ansell rubber gloves and condoms business,
Operation Full Potential.


TRANSURBAN GROUP: Mulls A$1.7B Debt Refinancing
-----------------------------------------------
Australian toll road operator Transurban Group plans to
refinance A$1.7 billion of debt originally raised to fund the
City Link project in Melbourne, Dow Jones Newswires reports.

Transurban's plans came amid expectations of a rise in private
investment in public infrastructure and associated debt
issuance.

The Transurban refinancing will consist of senior secured debt
raised both from banks and in the capital markets, finance
director Geoff Phillips told Dow Jones.

Transurban will run until 2034 the City Link toll road, which
has only been open in its entirety for just over a year.

At the end of 2001, Transurban Group had negative working
capital, as current liabilities were A$217.26 million while
total current assets were only A$126.40 million.


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


ASIA GLOBAL: Awaits Hutchison Whampoa Bid
-----------------------------------------
Hutchison Whampoa is adopting a wait-and-see attitude on its  
possible bid for Asia Global Crossing, South China Morning Post
reported.

According to Managing Director, Canning Fok Kin-ning, Hutchison
Whampoa has reservations about making a bid for Asia Global
Crossing due to the difficulty in assigning a value to the
Company. He added the extent of the Company's liabilities is
also unclear.

Asia Global Crossing sought a month's delay on the payment of
interest to the holders of its US$408 million bonds. It plans to
use the 30-day grace period to discuss a comprehensive plan to
restructure its high yield debt with key bondholders.

Asia Global Crossing previously disclosed debts of US$1.1
billion, of which 750 million was non-recourse. The Company had
US$351 million cash at the end of the first quarter.


BESTUP LIMITED: Faces Winding-Up Petition
-----------------------------------------
The petition to wind up Bestup Limited is set for hearing before
the High Court of Hong Kong on July 03, 2002 at 11:00 am.

Tung Shun Hing Company Limited, whose registered office is at
Room 104, 1st Floor, Fu Hing Building, 11 Jubilee Street,
Central, Hong Kong, filed the petition with the court on March
26, 2002.


CIL HOLDINGS: Narrows First-Half Loss to HK$4.9M
------------------------------------------------
CIL Holdings Ltd revealed a loss of HK$4.957 million in the six
months to December, compared with a loss of 30.074 million in
the previous corresponding period, the AFX Asia reported.

The Company's multi-media and digital communications division
recorded a loss of HK$2.7 million mainly due to the sluggish
economy and abundant supply of multi-media and digital
communications products in China.

In a statement, the Company said it amortized goodwill of HK$2
million during the period, after the company acquired Goldhill
Merchandising Inc. A goodwill of HK$40 million arose from the
acquisition and it will be amortized over 10 years.

CIL Holdings is still in talks with creditors over a settlement
proposal. The company, which at the end of 2001 has net current
liabilities of about HK$153 million, will liquidate unsound
investments in Hong Kong.


HUBEI LANTIAN: May Post Loss in 2001
------------------------------------
Hubei Lantian, target of a whistle-blowing campaign by an
academic, expects to post a big loss for last year, the South
China Morning Post reports.

Without giving figures, Lantian, producer of fish and Chinese
delicacy lotus root, said a loss was likely when it released its
annual report on April 25.

Analysts said the expected loss came as no surprise and
investors had largely lost interest in the company's shares
except as a speculative vehicle amid rumors of restructuring or
a buy-out by another company.

Last year, researcher Kiu Shuwei of the prestigious Central
University of Finance and Economics questioned the financial
health of Lantian, which is under investigation by regulators
for falsifying financial statements. Analysts said the results
of the investigation were expected this year.


PROFIT SUPER: Court Sets July Winding-Up Hearing
------------------------------------------------
The petition to wind up Profit Super Industries Limited is set
for hearing before the High Court of Hong Kong on July 03, 2002
at 10:00 am.

Sonic Printing and Carton Company Limited of Unit 12, 3rd Floor,
Hung Tai Industrial Building, 37-39 Hung To Road, Kwun Tong,
Kowloon, Hong Kong, filed the petition with the Hong Kong court
on March 18, 2002.


WING WAH LTD: Winding Up Petition Hearing Set for Next Week
-----------------------------------------------------------
Sunlink Limited is seeking for the winding up of Wing Wah
(China) Tennis Court & Track Builders Company Limited.

The petition is set for hearing at the High Court of Hong Kong
on April 24, 2002 at 9:30 am.

Sunlink Limited holds its office at 16th Floor, Podium Plaza, 5
Hanoi Road, Tsimshatsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong.


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


BANK NIAGA: IBRA Names Bidders for 51% Stake
--------------------------------------------
The Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) on Tuesday
shortlisted Australia & New Zealand (ANZ) Banking Group Ltd.,
Malaysian financial group Commerce Asset-Holdings Berhad, Bank
Victoria International and Batavia Investment Fund for a 51
percent stake in mid-sized Bank Niaga.

The agency did not provide details on other members of investors
in each consortium.

IBRA will now provide time for the four bidders to carry out due
diligence on the bank before submitting their final binding bid.
The agency has targeted June for completion of the sale process.

The government, via IBRA, holds a 97.15 percent stake in the
publicly listed bank.

PT Trimegah Securities, Kartini Mulyadi and Partners are acting
as the respective financial and legal advisors in the Bank Niaga
sale.


HOLDIKO PERKASA: Will Sell 47.5% Stake in Metropolitan Kentjana
---------------------------------------------------------------
Jakarta's PT Holdiko Perkasa plans to sell a 47.5 percent stake
in property development PT Metropolitan Kentjana, the AFX Asia
reports.

PT Holdiko Perkasa's team was formed in the 2H of 1999 with the
objective of selling all of Holdiko's assets to fulfill its
obligations to Indonesia Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) by 4
November 2002, the date when the Salim Group's settlement
payment to IBRA is due. As this time approaches, the Company is
confident that it will be able to meet this objective.

To date, Holdiko - http://www.holdiko.com/- has conducted 33  
transactions selling 76 companies and raising Rp16.2 trillion.
The Company this year expects to conduct 19 more transactions to
sell the remaining 32 companies. By the end of the year, expect
the overall proceeds to be within PricewaterhouseCooper's
valuation of all the Company's assets completed in early 2000,
which was in the range of Rp12 to 20 trillion.

IBRA's Consultant Management Unit (CMU) has appointed advisors
to assist Holdiko in conducting its 2002 disposals:

  * PT Metropolitan Kentjana: PT PricewaterhouseCoopers FAS
  * PT Alam Indah Bintan: JP Morgan, Jones Lang LaSalle, Procon
    Indah
  * SKMP Resort Development : JP Morgan, Jones Lang LaSalle,
    Procon Indah
  * Edible Oils and Fats Group : Odigo Management Group
  * PT Indomarco Adi Prima : PT Ernst & Young Consulting
  * Indogift Chuenher Indah : PT Siddharta Consulting / KPMG


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


DAI-ICHI KATEI: Files for Court Rehabilitation
----------------------------------------------
Electronics retailer, Dai-Ichi Katei Denki Company, has filed
for court-led rehabilitation under Japan's corporate revival law
with the Tokyo District Court, leaving behind debts totaling
Y33.9 billion, Kyodo News reported Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Dow Jones said that the Company posted a pretax loss
of Y1.99 billion for the fourth straight year, with sales of
Y27.60 billion.

The Tokyo bourse will delist the Company's shares on July 17,
2002.


DAIWA BANK: Shareholders File Suit Over Losses
----------------------------------------------
Two shareholders of Daiwa Bank Holdings Inc. have filed a suit
with the Osaka District Court demanding its executives to pay
the bank Y326 billion in compensation for huge losses incurred
by unauthorized bond deals at former Daiwa Bank's New York
branch, Kyodo News and Dow Jones reported Monday.

The names of the shareholders were not disclosed in the report.

According to the suit, the two plaintiffs, former shareholders
of Asahi Bank, became shareholders of Daiwa Bank Holdings after
Asahi joined the financial group in March.

Daiwa Bank Holdings refused to comment on the suit issue. The
Company incurred the losses from unauthorized trades of U.S.
Treasury notes by a trader at the bank's New York branch for 11
years from 1984.


FURUKAWA ELECTRIC: Sets Up Manufacturing Firm in China
------------------------------------------------------
The Furukawa Electric Co. said Tuesday it has established a
subsidiary in Chiangsu Province, China that will produce and
sell copper strips used in connectors for IT-related electrical
equipment to Furukawa Electric's customers who have moved
manufacturing facilities to China.

The new Company, Furukawa Metal (Wuxi), was officially
registered at the end of March. The Company will set up a coil
center and begin sales in the summer of 2002.

By August 2003, the unit will have developed an integrated
manufacturing system for all stages of the manufacturing chain,
from casting to producing finished goods. Trials will be
completed by August 2003 and the subsidiary will start
operations in January 2004.

The Company will have production capacity of roughly 1,000 tons
a month and will produce mainly phosphorous blue and plated
copper strips used in connectors for IT-related equipment.
Making optimal use of the developmental know-how and expertise
in manufacturing technology Furukawa Electric has obtained over
the years, the new Company will also feature an integrated
quality control system as part of its manufacturing setup.

The Furukawa Metal Company develops, manufactures and sells
high-quality copper strips. With the downturn in demand for
information technology goods and services, many of its customers
have started to shift manufacturing operations to China. As a
result, demand for electronic components on the Chinese mainland
has increased, leading to Furukawa Electric's decision to
establish a manufacturing subsidiary in China.

Japanese companies moving to China to gain new profits from the
predicted continued expansion of the Chinese IT industry will be
the Company's main customers.

The Japanese copper strips market has been stagnant in recent
years, with only high-quality strips used in IT-related
equipment posting sales growth.

Furukawa Electric will continue to serve its existing customer
base in Japan through its two existing operating bases: the Mie
Copper Strip Plant in Kameyama, Mie, which caters largely to
customers in the Chukyo Region, and the Nikko Copper Strip Plant
in Nikko, Tochigi, which delivers products to customers in other
areas of Japan.

Outline of the New Company

Name:                    Furukawa Metals (Wuxi) Co., Ltd.
Representative:          Shintaro Koizumi (Senior Director of
Furukawa Electric; Head of Metal Company)
Location:                Wuxi, Chiangsu Province, China
Capital:                 3.5 billion yen (provided entirely by
Furukawa Electric)
Date of Establishment:   Capital provided on December 31, 2001;
Official establishment in March 2002
Total Site Area:         200,000 m2
Total Area of Buildings: 26,000 m2
Sales Target:            Approximately 7.5 billion yen in 2006
Personnel:               Approximately 200 during full-scale
operations

Furukawa Electric Company Limited carries out operations through
the following divisions; INFORMATION & COMMUNICATION:
Manufacture and sale of information equipment; electronic
components, various plastic products and shape memory alloys;
ENERGY-RELATED PRODUCT: Manufacture and sale of bare wire,
aluminum wire, insulated wire & cable, magnet wire, power cable,
telecommunications cable, wire attached parts and construction;
MATERIALS: Copper alloy sheets, bars, aluminum sheets, plates
and extruded products; OTHERS: Manufacture and sale of lead,
alkaline and nickel batteries. Materials accounted for 37
percent of fiscal 2001 revenues; energy-related products, 24
percent; information and communication, 24 percent and others,
15 percent. For further information, please visit the Furukawa
Electric Co.Ltd. home page at
www.furukawa.co.jp/english/index.htm

For more information, please contact Osamu Suzuki, General
Affairs Department, at telephone +81 3 3286 3050

TCR-AP reported earlier that The Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd.
acquired OFS, the optical fiber cable division of the US Company
Lucent Technologies, Inc., in November 2001, at a total cost of
$2.3 billion. OFS's performance has been worse than was
originally expected, however, so there are now growing concerns
that it could become a heavy burden on the Company's
consolidated operations in the future. As a result, R&I is
placing the ratings on the Rating Monitor scheme, with a view to
downgrading them.

Rating and Investment Information, Inc. (R&I) on March 14 has
downgraded the Senior Long-term Credit Rating for Furukawa
Electric from A+ to A on December 26, 2001, in recognition of
the slump in earnings following the acquisition of OFS and the
deterioration in consolidated financial structure, but the
earnings environment facing OFS has become even more severe than
what was envisioned at that time.


HITACHI LTD: Enters Storage Alliance With IBM
---------------------------------------------
Hitachi, Ltd. and IBM announced Tuesday plans to form a
strategic business alliance designed to accelerate the delivery
of advanced storage technologies and products to market.

Under the terms of the preliminary agreement, the companies plan
a multi-year alliance to research and develop new open
standards-based technologies for next- generation storage
networks, systems and solutions.

In addition to, and separate from, the systems alliance, the two
companies intend to combine various hard-disk drive (HDD)
operations into a new standalone, joint venture Company,
integrating their world-class research, development and
manufacturing operations, as well as related sales and marketing
teams. Upon completion of negotiations, Hitachi is expected to
hold 70 percent of the joint venture and make a payment to IBM
for its HDD assets.

"Strong hardware is essential to our Company-wide efforts to
enhance solutions operations," said Yoshiro Kuwata, executive
vice President and director, Hitachi, Ltd. "Now, with the top-
quality hard-disk drive and RAID hardware made possible through
this alliance with IBM, we will strive to be a world leader in
this increasingly competitive industry. Use of HDDs is
expanding, not only in PCs, servers and RAID systems, but also
in a wide range of emerging digital appliances. As such, it is a
critical component in a broad range of important current and
next-generation Hitachi products."

"Our two companies believe that the evolving nature of the
storage industry is creating tremendous opportunity," said
Nicholas Donofrio, IBM senior vice President, corporate
technology and manufacturing. "On the high end, customers of
storage systems are increasingly demanding interoperability,
ease of storage management, and better cost/performance. Our
commitment to promote open standards will speed the pace of
innovation and each Company's ability to deliver powerful, cost-
effective storage systems and networking technology to the
enterprise. Vendors that stay on the proprietary path risk being
left behind.

"On the other hand, the disk drive industry is extremely
competitive and coping with many issues," said Donofrio. "There,
the winners will be companies that can combine true technical
leadership with global economies of scale. That's what this
joint venture is intended to accomplish."

Central to the storage systems alliance, the two companies plan
a common approach to virtualization, based on IBM technology,
that will allow users to more easily manage all their networked
storage systems as a single resource. In addition, Hitachi and
IBM intend to jointly develop high-performance technologies and
functionality for next-generation high-end storage systems and
solutions.

Hitachi and IBM will continue to drive interoperability and open
standards for the management of multi-vendor networks. In
conjunction with existing standards body initiatives, the
companies intend to deploy the emerging Common Information Model
(CIM) standard for better storage management.

Separately, and subject to the successful completion of
negotiations and applicable regulatory processes, the joint
venture will combine selected Hitachi and IBM disk drive assets,
including employees, facilities and intellectual property. Both
Hitachi and IBM expect to source a major portion of their HDD
supply from the joint venture. The joint venture will be based
in San Jose, California. The new Company's management team is
expected to include executives from both companies.

"By bringing together the world-class HDD research and
development capabilities of Hitachi and IBM, the joint venture
should expand the market for new digital appliances and more
quickly bring to market advanced product offerings," said Mr.
Kuwata. "We also expect customers will benefit from the improved
efficiencies of our combined business operations."

Hitachi and IBM expect to announce further details of the
alliance at a later date.

Hitachi and IBM have an established history of business
cooperation. Most recently, the two companies have conducted
joint development and manufacturing activities in server
operations.

Contact Tsuyoshi Miyata or Hirotaka Ohno of Hitachi, Ltd in
Japan at telephone +81-3-3258-2057 or via email at
tsuyoshi_miyata@hdq.hitachi.co.jp /
hirotaka_ohn@hdq.hitachi.co.jp for further information. In
Singapore, on may contact Yuji Hoshino of Hitachi Asia Ltd. at
telephone +65-231-2522 or via email at
yhoshino@has.hitachi.com.sg

US:  Masahiro Takahashi
Hitachi America, Ltd.
Tel:  +1-650-244-7902
masahiro.takahashi@hal.hitachi.com
UK:  Kantaro Tan
Hitachi Europe Ltd.
Tel:  +44-1628-585379
kantaro.tanii@hitachi-eu.com


HITACHI LTD: Proclaims EMC Allegations as Without Merit
-------------------------------------------------------
Apparently unwilling to compete head-to-head in the market
place, on April 11, EMC filed infringement litigation against
Hitachi, Ltd. and Hitachi Data Systems Corp. at the U.S.
International Trade Commission in Washington and in U.S.
District Court in Massachusetts, alleging that Hitachi's data
storage products infringe 6 EMC patents. Hitachi believes EMC's
allegations are without merit and will vigorously defend its
products.

Hitachi has long been a leader in the information technology
and, since 1967, Hitachi has been a major contributor to the
development of data storage. Its products are widely accepted in
a variety of manufacturing, service and financial industries,
with thousands of customers in the U.S. and worldwide.
Consistent with its leadership position, since 1993, Hitachi has
supplied leading-edge products and services in the disk array
field -- its customers have enjoyed generations of successful
Hitachi products for their business benefits in this free and
fair competition market.

Hitachi's leadership in innovation also has been well
recognized. Its investment in one of the world's largest R&D
programs has been rewarded by the issuance of more than 1,200
U.S. patents in the field of data storage. As the owner of such
a significant patent portfolio, the Company has always respected
the legitimate intellectual property of others -- it believes it
has done so here and that EMC's actions serve only to hinder
fair competition in the market and harm the interests of
consumers.

Isao Ono, Senior Corporate Officer and Senior Group Executive,
Information Business Group of Hitachi, Ltd., stated, "Hitachi's
first priority is to defend the interests of its customers. It
is consumers who benefit from fair competition, and Hitachi is
committed to providing that competition to the marketplace with
best of breed superior products and services while continuing to
respect the intellectual property of all competitors." He
continued, "It is unfortunate that EMC has chosen to compete in
the courtroom rather than in the marketplace."

Hitachi, Ltd., head-quartered in Tokyo, Japan, is one of the
world's leading global electronics companies, with fiscal 2000
(ended March 31, 2001) consolidated sales of 8,417 billion yen
($67.9 billion (1)). The Company manufactures and markets a wide
range of products, including computers, semiconductors, consumer
products and power and industrial equipment. For more
information on Hitachi, Ltd., please visit Hitachi's Web site at
http://global.hitachi.com.

Contact Matt Takahashi of Hitachi America, Ltd. at telephone
650-244-7902 or email at masahiro.takahashi@hal.hitachi.com for
more information.


HITACHI LTD: Abandons Work-Share Scheme
---------------------------------------
Hitachi Ltd. will stop its work-sharing program between April 8
and April 14 at its three big domestic semiconductor plants
namely Naka in Ibaraki Prefecture, Takasaki in Gunma Prefecture,
and Kofu in Yamanashi Prefecture, Asahi Shimbun reported
Wednesday.

Despite the work-sharing program, Hitachi aims to slash 4,000 of
its 25,000 personnel in the semiconductor division in the year
ended March 31. But the semiconductor industry apparently
bottomed out during February and March this year.

Hitachi has returned to the original four-group shifts. Side
jobs are again prohibited.

Hitachi still plans to operate its plants through the Golden
Week holidays from late April to early May. Hitachi closed its
Takasaki plant for three days during the Golden Week in 2001.


MYCAL CORP: Court Receives Plea to Alter Revival Plan
-----------------------------------------------------
Failed retailer Mycal Corp is requesting the Tokyo District
Court to order its unit Mycal Kyushu to change its
rehabilitation plan based on the Civil Corporate Revival Law,
Kyodo News said Wednesday.

Mycal Kyushu owes Y31.8 billion to its parent, Mycal, which owns
99 percent of Mycal Kyushu.

On September 14, 2001, debt-saddled retailer Mycal Corp filed
for court protection from creditors under the Civil
Rehabilitation Law. Six of its group firms, such as DacVivre
Co., based in Sendai (Miyagi Prefecture), and Mycal Kyushu Co.,
based in Fukuoka, also filed for bankruptcy protection under the
same law.


NIPPON TELEGRAPH: Norio Wada Promotion Scheduled for June
---------------------------------------------------------
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp (NTT) will promote senior
Executive Vice President Norio Wada as its new President in
June, Reuters reported Tuesday.

Current President Junichiro Miyazu will move to an advisory role
but will remain on the board. NTT refused to comment on the
report.

Appraisal losses on overseas investments made by units NTT
Communications and DoCoMo, as well as restructuring charges,
will force NTT to post the biggest corporate loss ever for a
non-financial firm in Japan in the just-ended business year.

NTT will expect to post a special charge of Y2.1 trillion ($16
billion) and a group net loss of Y865 billion for 2001/02 to
March 31.


SEKISUI CHEMICAL: Moody's Reviews L-T Rating
--------------------------------------------
Moody's Investors Service on Tuesday has placed Sekisui Chemical
Co., Ltd.'s (Sekisui Chemical) Baa2 senior unsecured long-term
debt ratings and its (P) Baa2 Japanese shelf registration rating
under review for possible downgrade.

The rating action reflects Moody's growing concern that Sekisui
Chemical's earnings and cash flow may continue to face severe
pressure over the medium term in an increasingly difficult
market environment.

In the review, Moody's will assess how effectively the Company
can reverse this trend under its revised business plan that
starts from April 2002.

Sekisui Chemical has been making efforts to restructure its core
housing business as well as other business segments over the
last three years. However, the results have been below the
Company's initial expectations. Under its revised business plan,
Sekisui Chemical will make additional efforts to increase its
market competitiveness and restore the cost structure of its
housing business. Moody's will focus on how the Company can
recover market share and achieve acceptable returns.

In addition to the housing business, Sekisui Chemical is
accelerating the restructuring of its urban infrastructure and
environmental products and other business sectors. In the
review, Moody's will also focus on how effectively the Company
can improve cash flow by maximizing the Company's resources over
the medium term.

Sekisui Chemical Co., Ltd., head-quartered in Osaka, is a
leading prefabricated housing maker as well as a leading
midstream chemical manufacturer in Japan.


SOFTBANK CORP: Sells Yahoo Stake for $171M to Cut Debt
------------------------------------------------------
Internet investor firm Softbank Corp. has sold 11.5 million
shares of Yahoo Inc. to U.S. phone-service provider SBC
Communications for $171 million to lessen its interest-bearing
debt, Dow Jones reported Tuesday.

The Company has been hurt by investment losses on its global
share holdings since the downturn in the technology sector in
2001.

The sale will pour about Y15.7 billion ($118.9 million) in
special profit into Softbank. The move means the earnings of the
Sunnyvale, California based Internet portal site will be
excluded from Softbank's consolidated balance sheet, although
Softbank remains Yahoo's top shareholder.


UFJ BANK: President Ogasawara to Resign as President
----------------------------------------------------
UFJ Bank Vice President, Takeshi Sugihara, is expected to
succeed Ogasawara, who will leave his post as its President in
order to take responsibility for the bank's weakening earnings,
Nikkei reported Wednesday.

The Company posted a net loss of Y1.2 trillion in the year ended
March 31. It incurred about Y2 trillion in losses due to the
disposal of loans to major borrowers such as Daiei Inc.


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


DAEWOO MOTOR: Final GM Contract Signing Planned for April 23
------------------------------------------------------------
Creditors of Daewoo Motor Co (DM) and General Motors Corp (GM)
plans to sign a final takeover contract on Daewoo Motor's core
assets on April 23, the Hankyoreh newspaper and AFX News
reported Tuesday, citing an unidentified Daewoo Motor official.

TCR-AP reported last week that Governor Jung Keun-yong of Korea
Development Bank (KDB) held a press conference on April 10 to
update the public on the details of the long-awaited conclusion
of Daewoo-GM deal.

Governor Jung said that the Korean creditors of Daewoo Motor and
General Motors have resolved all major differences on the
acquisition of the ailing Korean automaker and stand ready to
sign the final contract by the end of April.


HYNIX SEMICONDUCTOR: Records 1Q02 Recurring Profit
--------------------------------------------------
Hynix Semiconductor Inc. announced on April 15 that it posted a
recurring profit for the first quarter of 2002 as a result of a
rise in DRAM prices and improved competitiveness.

The Company's first quarter consolidated revenue is W869 billion
(parent base 823 billion won), up 34 percent from the fourth
quarter of 2001.

Consolidated net income for the first quarter is 35 billion won
(parent base W3 billion) and consolidated operating profit is
145 billion won (parent base 109 billion won).

The improved financial results are attributable to the DRAM
market recovery since the mid-fourth quarter of 2001 and
increased demand from major PC OEM.

Hynix expects to raise its profitability in the second half of
2002, as the market maintains its upward trend throughout the
year despite some short-term corrections in the second quarter.

In particular, Hynix has adopted conservative accounting
criteria of U.S. GAAP in its Q1 2002 results, such as writing
off development costs once they incurred, to ensure its
accounting transparency and financial soundness.

To maintain its price competitiveness, Hynix completed its 'Blue
Chip' technology project, which enables ultra-fine geometry with
less than one-third the investment normally required to develop
this class of technology. Hynix also plans to develop 0.13
micron 'Prime Chip' and 0.11 micron 'Golden Chip' through its
Blue Chip project to ensure a continuous technology platform and
efficiency in investment and production.

In addition to maintain its market share of major OEM customers,
Hynix aggressively penetrated emerging markets, where the
Company now holds unmatched market dominance. Hynix also
launched volume production for DDR memory chips, producing more
than 10 million units per month for its major customers.

With continuous cost-cutting efforts and technology innovation,
Hynix will maximize its profit in the improved 2002
semiconductor market.

DebtTraders reports that Hyundai Semiconductor's 8.625% bond due
in 2007 (HYUS07KRA1) trades between 76 and 79. For real-time
bond pricing, go to
http://www.debttraders.com/price.cfm?dt_sec_ticker=HYUS07KRA1


HYNIX SEMICON: Plans to Hire 100 New Workers, Begins Recovery
-------------------------------------------------------------
Hynix Semiconductor Inc is planning to hire 100 new employees in
such areas as research and development, sales, material
procurement and office work, amid growing signs of recovery,
Reuters reported Wednesday.

The chipmaker has seen earnings turn positive in the first
quarter on the back of an average 130 percent rise in chip
prices from the fourth quarter.

The Company, which is saddled with huge debts, is in talks with
U.S. firm Micron Technology Inc on selling core assets after
suffering a record $3.85 billion loss in 2001. Micron is
interested in buying Hynix' entire memory operations and a stake
in the non-memory operations for $4 billion.


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


CHG INDUSTRIES: Proposes Restructuring Plan Implementation
----------------------------------------------------------
CHG Industries Berhad has announced the proposed reduction of
the issues and paid-up share capital of the company from
RM47,850,002 comprising 47,850,002 ordinary shares of RM1.00
each in CHG to RM 23,925,001 comprising 47,850,002 ordinary
shares of RM0.50 each, by canceling RM0.50 from every existing
share in CHG and the consolidation of two resultant shares of
RM0.50 each into one new shares.

The Company also announced the proposed issue of up to RM84
million nominal value of six-year 3.5 percent redeemable
unsecured loan stock at an issue price of approximately 83.33
percent of its nominal value as settlement for up to RM70
million bank borrowings of CHG and its subsidiaries.

Furthermore, CHG revealed the proposed issue of up to RM80
million nominal value irredeemable convertible unsecured loan
stock at an issue price of 100% of its nominal value, as
settlement for up to RM80 million bank borrowings of the CHG
Group.

CHG's proposed renounceable two-call rights issue, of up to
47,850,002 new shares, together with 23,925,001 rights warrants
at an issue price of RM1.00 per rights share, on the basis of
two rights shares together with one rights warrant for every to
existing shares held prior to the proposed capital reduction,
will occur on a date to be determined and announced later.

The Company also revealed the proposed establishment of an
employees' share option scheme, the proposed increase in the
authorized share capital of CHG from RM100 million comprising
500 million shares, and the proposed amendments to the
memorandum and articles of association of CHG to facilitate the
proposed capital increase.

1. INTRODUCTION

On behalf of the Board of Directors of CHG, Commerce
International Merchant Bankers Berhad (CIMB) is pleased to
announce that the Company wishes to implement the Proposals.

2. DETAILS OF THE PROPOSALS

2.1 Proposed Capital Reduction
The Proposed Capital Reduction shall involve the following:-
(a) The reduction in the issued and paid-up share capital of CHG
from RM47,850,002 comprising 47,850,002 Shares to RM23,925,001
comprising 47,850,002 ordinary shares of RM0.50 each, by
cancelling RM0.50 from every existing Share; and

(b) Upon (a) above taking effect, the issued and paid-up share
capital of CHG of 47,850,002 ordinary shares of RM0.50 each will
be consolidated into 23,925,001 Shares to be credited as fully
paid-up, by consolidating two (2) ordinary shares of RM0.50 each
into one (1) new Share.

The reduction of RM0.50 from every existing Share would give
rise to a credit of approximately RM23,925,001, which would be
utilised to reduce the latest audited accumulated losses of the
Company. As at 31 December 2000, the audited accumulated losses
of the Company is approximately RM113,555,000.

The effects of the Proposed Capital Reduction are illustrated as
follows:

The High Court of Malaya's sanction for the Proposed Capital
Reduction, pursuant to Section 64 of the Companies Act, 1965
would be sought after the receipt of the approval from the
shareholders of CHG for the Proposals.

2.2 Proposed RULS Issue
CHG proposes to issue up to RM84,000,000 nominal value RULS at
an issue price of approximately 83.33% of its nominal value to
the lender banks of the CHG Group to be identified later, as
settlement of RM70,000,000 bank borrowings due from the CHG
Group.

The principal indicative terms of the RULS are set out in
Section 2.8 of this announcement.

2.3 Proposed ICULS Issue

In conjunction with the Proposed RULS Issue, CHG will issue up
to RM80,000,000 nominal value ICULS at an issue price of 100% of
its nominal value to the Participating Banks, as part settlement
for up to RM80,000,000 bank borrowings of the CHG Group.

The principal indicative terms of the ICULS are set out in
Section 2.8 of this announcement.

2.4 Proposed Rights Issue

(i) Introduction
In connection with the Proposed Capital Reduction, CHG proposes
a renounceable two (2)-call rights issue of 47,850,002 Rights
Shares together with 23,925,001 Rights Warrants at an issue
price of RM1.00 per Rights Share, on the basis of two (2) Rights
Shares together with one (1) Rights Warrant for every two (2)
existing Shares held prior to the Proposed Capital Reduction on
a date to be determined and announced later. The Rights Warrants
will be issued without charge.

The two (2)-call rights issue will have a first call price which
is fixed at RM0.40 per Rights Share, or a total of approximately
RM19,140,001, which is payable in cash by the subscribers
immediately upon acceptance, whilst the second call price for
the remaining RM0.60 per Rights Share, or a total of
approximately RM28,710,001 will be capitalized from the share
premium account.

(ii) Pricing of the Rights Shares with Rights Warrants
The issue price of RM1.00 per Rights Share is at a premium of
122.2% to the theoretical ex-all price of RM0.45 per Share after
the Proposed Capital Reduction and Proposed Rights Issue
computed based on the five (5)-day weighted average market price
of the Shares until and including 9 April 2002 (being the latest
practicable date on which such price could be calculated prior
to the announcement of the Proposals) of RM0.28 per Share.
The first cash call price of RM0.40 per Rights Share represents
a discount of approximately 11.1% to the theoretical ex-all
price of RM0.45 per Share after the Proposed Capital Reduction
and the Proposed Rights Issue computed based on the five (5)-day
weighted average market price of the Shares until and including
9 April 2002 (being the latest practicable date on which such
price could be calculated prior to the announcement of the
Proposals) of RM0.28 per Share.

(iii) Ranking of the Rights Shares
The Rights Shares shall, upon allotment and issue, rank pari
passu in all respects with the existing Shares except that they
shall not be entitled to any dividends, rights, allocations
and/or distributions unless the allotment of the Rights Shares
were made on or prior to the Entitlement Date (being a date at
the close of business on which shareholders must be registered
in order to be entitled to any dividends, rights, allotments
and/or other distributions).

(iv) Minimum Subscription
Although the Proposed Rights Issue will raise a maximum gross
proceeds of approximately RM19.140 million, only a minimum level
of underwriting and/or undertaking of RM10.527 million would be
required to be secured. Accordingly, the gross proceeds to be
raised from the Proposed Rights Issue would range between
RM10.527 million and RM19.140 million.

The minimum level of underwriting and/or undertaking amount of
RM10.527 million is determined after taking into consideration
the funding requirements for the proposed acquisition of a piece
of land and the proposed acquisition of 40% equity interest in
Astro Nation Sdn. Bhd., general working capital requirements of
the CHG Group and the expenses arising from the Proposals. Any
proceeds raised from the Proposed Rights Issue in excess of the
minimum level will be used to finance the working capital
requirements of the CHG Group. Details of the Proposed
Acquisition of Land and Proposed Acquisition of Astro Nation are
set out in Section 2.4(vi) of this announcement.

A minimum number of 26,317,501 Rights Shares with 13,158,751
Rights Warrants will be required to be subscribed to meet the
minimum level of subscription. In this regard, the two (2)
principal shareholders of CHG, namely Mr. Francis Foo See Yuan
and Mr. Lum Weng Loy, will give their irrevocable undertakings
to subscribe for such number of Rights Shares in order to
achieve the minimum level of subscription (refer to Section 7 of
this announcement for further details).

(v) The Proposed Acquisition of Land and the Proposed
Acquisition of Astro Nation

CHG has been manufacturing and exporting timber based building
materials and housing components to the European and Japanese
markets since 1996. As a catalyst to promote the growth and
usage of CHG's range of timber base housing materials and
components to the Malaysian market, CHG will participate in a
housing project designed by Professor Jimmy Lim Cheok Siang, the
principal shareholder of Astro Nation. Extensive use of timber
components, both structural as well as decorative (aesthetic) is
incorporated in the design including the use of engineered wood
products produced by CHG.

In line with the said strategy, CHG had on 10 April 2002 signed
a Memorandum of Understanding with Dato Lee Kam Sun for the
proposed purchase of a piece of land located at Hutan Simpan
Bukit Cherakah at Kompartmen 35, Mukim Bukit Raja, Daerah
Petaling, Selangor covering an area of approximately 20.24
hectares (i.e. 50.0 acres) for this purpose i.e. Proposed
Acquisition of Land". The land acquisition will provide a
controllable conduit into the domestic market to launch the said
housing programme. The salient terms of the Memorandum of
Understanding are as follows:

(i) Dato' Lee Kam Sun is the beneficial owner of a parcel of
development land located at Hutan Simpan Bukit Cherakah at
Kompartmen 35, Mukim Bukit Raja, Daerah Petaling, Selangor Darul
Ehsan covering an area of approximately 20.24 hectares (or 50.0
acres);

(ii) The gross purchase consideration for the Land is expected
to range between RM20,000,000 to RM30,000,000 on the basis that
the Land is to be acquired free from all encumbrances with valid
development order; and

(iii) The purchase consideration will be based on the market
value of the Land to be determined with reference to an
independent valuation by a registered professional valuer and
will be satisfied by a combination of cash payment and issue of
new Shares.

Upon the completion of the Proposed Acquisition of Land, Dato'
Lee Kam Sun, will develop the housing project. CHG's primary
role in this project will be to manufacture and maintain the
continuity of supply of a range of housing materials and
components that will be extensively used in the development.

CHG has also agreed in principle, subject to entering into a
formal agreement to be announced on a later date, to acquire up
to 40% equity interest in Astro Nation (i.e. Proposed
Acquisition of Astro Nation. Astro Nation is principally engaged
in the research and development of housing designs and system
building methodology, which extensively uses timber in its
architectural designs.

Further information on the above proposed acquisitions will be
announced upon the Company entering into formal sale and
purchase agreements.

2.5 Proposed ESOS
The Proposed ESOS will allow CHG to establish an employees'
share option scheme that involves the granting of options to
eligible employees of the CHG Group to subscribe for such number
of new Shares constituting up to ten percent (10%) of the issued
and paid-up share capital of CHG at any one point in time during
the existence of the scheme.

The new Shares to be issued pursuant to the exercise of the ESOS
Options, in accordance with terms of the by-laws of the Proposed
ESOS, shall, upon allotment and issue, rank pari passu in all
respects with the existing Shares save and except that they
shall not be entitled to any dividends, rights, allotments
and/or other distributions unless the allotment of the Shares
were made on or prior to the Entitlement Date.

2.6 Proposed Capital Increase
The Proposed Capital Increase involves the increase in the
authorized share capital of CHG from RM100,000,000 comprising
100,000,000 Shares to RM500,000,000 comprising 500,000,000
Shares through the creation of an additional 400,000,000 Shares.
The Proposed Capital Increase is necessary for the
implementation of the Proposals as the enlarged issued and paid-
up share capital of CHG will exceed the existing authorized
share capital, and to accommodate any future increase in
capital.

2.7 Proposed M&A Amendments
The Proposed M&A Amendments involves the amendments to the
Memorandum and Articles of Association of the Company in order
to facilitate the Proposed Capital Increase.

2.8 Proposed Utilization of Proceeds
CHG will not receive cash consideration for the Proposed RULS
Issue and Proposed ICULS Issue. Instead, the RULS and ICULS
issued pursuant to the Proposed RULS Issue and Proposed ICULS
Issue respectively will be used to settle in full or in part the
bank borrowings of the CHG Group which are due to the
Participating Banks.

The proceeds to be raised from the exercise of the Rights
Warrants will be used to redeem the RULS.
3. RATIONALE FOR THE PROPOSALS

Consequent to the recent economic downturn, the Group suffered
major losses that resulted in the significant deterioration of
the Group net assets value. The management of the Company has
proposed to, inter-alia, restructure the Group to become
financially stronger and to reduce its level of financial
leverage.

3.1 Proposed Capital Reduction
Pursuant to the Proposed Capital Reduction which forms an
integral part of the entire Proposals that aims to address the
CHG Group's gearing level as well as its financing needs, the
equity shareholders are required to give up 50% value of their
share capital. Although the capital reduction will reduce the
number of Shares held by the shareholders of CHG, their equity
interests in CHG remain unchanged. In addition, the Proposed
Rights Issue will make up part of the decrease in the number of
Shares held by provisionally allotting two (2) Rights Shares
together with one (1) Rights Warrant for every two (2) existing
Shares held prior to the Proposed Capital Reduction.

3.2 Proposed RULS Issue and Proposed ICULS Issue
The Proposed RULS Issue and the Proposed ICULS Issue, which will
result in the issuance of the RULS and ICULS that has coupon
rates of 3.5% and 4.0% per annum respectively, will alleviate
the CHG Group from the burden of servicing its bank borrowings,
which are at a much higher rate.

3.3 Proposed Rights Issue
The Proposed Rights Issue will raise funds for the Group to part
finance the Proposed Acquisition of Land, the Proposed
Acquisition of Astro Nation, the general working capital
requirement of the CHG Group and the expenses arising from the
Proposals.

To ensure the successful implementation of the Proposed Rights
Issue, the two (2) principal shareholders of CHG, namely Mr.
Francis Foo See Yuan and Mr. Lum Weng Loy, will give their
irrevocable undertakings to subscribe for the Rights Shares not
taken up by the shareholders of CHG and/or their renouncees
and/or underwriters for the Proposed Rights Issue to ensure that
the minimum level of subscription as set out in Section 2.4 of
this announcement is achieved.

3.4 Proposed ESOS
The objectives for the Proposed ESOS are as follows:

(i) To enable eligible employees to participate in the future
growth of the CHG Group as shareholders of CHG;

(ii) To increase the level of dedication and loyalty of eligible
employees of CHG Group;

(iii) To attract, reward and retain eligible employees whose
services are vital to the operations and continued growth of the
CHG Group;

(iv) To instill in the eligible employees a greater sense of
belonging so that they would be motivated to be more productive;
and

(v) To attract quality perspective employees to join the CHG
group.

3.5 Proposed Capital Increase
The proposed increase in the authorized share capital of the
Company is to accommodate the increase in the issued and paid-up
share capital of CHG pursuant to the Proposals and will also
provide for any future corporate exercise it may undertake.

3.6 Proposed M&A Amendments
The Proposed M&A Amendments will facilitate the increase in the
issued and paid-up share capital of the Company pursuant to the
Proposed Capital Increase.

4. FINANCIAL EFFECTS OF THE PROPOSALS

4.1 Earnings
The Proposals is not expected to affect the earnings of the
Group for the financial year ending 31 December 2002 as the
Proposals are expected to be implemented in the middle of
calender year 2003. However, the Proposals are expected to
enhance the earnings per Share of the Group for the financial
year ending 31 December 2003 and thereafter through the
reduction of interest expenses arising from the settlement of
bank borrowings of the CHG Group as well as from the expected
profits to be derived from the proposed development of the
housing project.

5. CONDITIONS OF THE PROPOSALS
The Proposals are subject to the approvals from the following:

(a) The Securities Commission (SC) for the Proposals, save and
except for the Proposed Capital Increase and Proposed M&A
Amendments, and the Proposed Waivers (refer to Section 7 below
for details). In addition, the approval of the SC would also
have to be obtained for the Proposed Acquisition of Land and the
Proposed Acquisition of Astro Nation;

(b) The KLSE for the admission into the Official List of the
KLSE, the listing of and quotation for the Rights Warrants and
the listing of and quotation for the Rights Shares, the new
Shares to be issued pursuant to the conversion of the ICULS, the
exercise of the Rights Warrants and the exercise of the ESOS
Options and the new Shares that may be issued pursuant to the
Proposed Acquisition of Land;

(c) The requisite approvals from the Participating Banks in
respect of the Proposed RULS Issue and the Proposed ICULS Issue;

(d) The shareholders of CHG for the Proposals, the Proposed
Acquisition of Land and the Proposed Acquisition of Astro Nation
in an extraordinary general meeting ("EGM") to be convened at a
later date. The Proposed Capital Increase and the Proposed M&A
Amendments require the approval of 75% of the shareholders of
CHG who are present and are eligible to vote at the EGM;

(e) The High Court of Malaya for the Proposed Capital Reduction;
and

(f) Any other authorities and/or parties.

Save and except for the Proposed ESOS, all the other proposals
comprised in the Proposals, the Proposed Acquisition of Land,
the Proposed Acquisition of Astro Nation and the Proposed
Waivers are inter-conditional to one another and all but not
part shall be implemented.

6. DIRECTORS' AND SUBSTANTIAL SHAREHOLDERS' INTEREST

Save as disclosed below, none of the Directors and substantial
shareholders of CHG and persons connected to the Directors and
substantial shareholders of CHG have any interest, direct or
indirect, in the Proposals.

Mr. Francis Foo See Yuan, Mr. Foo Ser Keong @ Fu Su Shun, Mr.
Foo Ser Chong @ See Fu Chong are Executive Directors of CHG and
are therefore deemed interested in the Proposed ESOS.
Accordingly, the aforesaid Executive Directors have abstained
and will continue to abstain from any deliberation of their
respective entitlements under the Proposed ESOS at the Board
meetings of CHG and the aforesaid Executive Directors and
persons connected to them, where applicable, will abstain from
voting in the EGM in respect of their entitlements under
Proposed ESOS.

7. UNDERTAKING ARRANGEMENT

Mr. Francis Foo See Yuan and Mr. Lum Weng Loy, being the two (2)
principal shareholders of CHG with shareholdings of 7,490,664
Shares and 2,154,000 Shares as at 28 February 2002, representing
approximately 15.65% and 4.50% of the issued and paid-up share
capital of CHG respectively will give their irrevocable
undertaking to subscribe for such number of Rights Shares which
are not subscribed by the shareholders of CHG and/or their
renouncees and/or underwriters for the Proposed Rights Issue in
order to achieve the minimum level of subscription. The said
undertakings will include the subscription for their respective
entitlements to the Rights Shares.

Based on the minimum level of subscription of approximately
RM10.527 million and assuming that all the Rights Shares are not
subscribed by the other entitled shareholders and/or their
renouncees. A maximum of 26,317,501 Rights Shares would have to
be subscribed by Mr. Francis Foo See Yuan and Mr. Lum Weng Loy
in equal proportions. Consequently, the equity interest of Mr.
Francis Foo See Yuan in CHG may increase from 15.65% to 33.64%,
whilst the equity interest of Mr. Lum Weng Loy in CHG may
increase from 4.50% to 28.33%. The cumulative shareholdings of
Mr. Francis Foo See Yuan together with Mr. Lum Weng Loy in CHG
will increase from 20.15% to 61.97%.

Pursuant to the Malaysian Code on Take-Overs and Mergers, 1998,
Mr Francis Foo See Yuan on his own and together with Mr. Lum
Weng Loy will be obliged to extend a mandatory offer to acquire
all the remaining Shares not already owned by Mr. Francis Foo
See Yuan on his own and together with Mr. Lum Weng Loy. As such,
Mr. Francis Foo See Yuan, Mr. Lum Weng Loy and parties deemed
acting-in-concert with them, individually and/or collectively as
a Group and/or subgroup will apply to the SC for a waiver from
having to undertake a mandatory offer pursuant to Practice Note
2.9.1 of the Code.
8. STATEMENT BY THE DIRECTORS

The Board of Directors of CHG is of the opinion that the
Proposals are in the best interest of CHG.
9. ADVISER

CIMB has been appointed as the adviser for the Proposals.
10. ESTIMATED TIME FRAME FOR THE COMPLETION OF THE TRANSACTION

Barring any unforeseen circumstances and subject to all the
required approvals, the entire Proposals together with the
Proposed Acquisition of Land and Proposed Acquisition of Astro
Nation will be completed in the middle of calendar year 2003.

11. DEPARTURE FROM THE POLICIES AND GUIDELINES ON ISSUE/OFFER OF
SECURITIES OF THE SC

The Proposed Acquisition of Land and the Proposed Acquisition of
Astro Nation may not, amongst others, provide immediate and
strong contributions to the CHG Group's profit and cashflow. As
such, the Company may have to seek a waiver from the SC in
respect of Chapter 18 of the Policies and Guidelines on
Issue/Offer of Securities in order to allow the Company to
undertake the Proposed Acquisition of Land and the Proposed
Acquisition of Astro Nation.
12. SUBMISSION TO THE SC

A submission to the SC will be made within six months from April
12.


DEWINA BERHAD: Announces Rights Issue Agreement
-----------------------------------------------
Dewina Berhad announced Tuesday a renounceable rights issue of
38 million new ordinary shares of RM1.00 each, together with
28.5 million detachable warrants 2002/2007 at an issue price of
RM1.01 per rights share with rights warrant on the basis of four
rights shares, together with three rights warrants attached
thereto for every two existing ordinary shares of RM1.00 each
held.

Period of interest payment : to
For year ending/Period     :
ending/ended
Share transfer book &      : to
register of members will
be closed from (both
dates inclusive) for the
purpose of determining
the entitlements
Registrar's name, address, : M & C Services Sdn Bhd
Telephone number             20th Floor, Plaza Permata
                             Jalan Kampar, Off Jalan Tun Razak
                             50400 Kuala Lumpur
                             Tel: 03 - 4041 2188
                             Fax: 03 - 4043 9233

Payment date
a) Securities transferred    07/05/2002
into the Depositor's
Securities Account before
12:30 pm in respect of
ordinary transfers

b) Securities deposited
into the Depositor's
Securities Account before
12:30 pm in respect of
securities exempted from
mandatory deposit

c) Securities bought on
KLSE on a cum entitlement
basis according to the
Rules of the KLSE

Number of new shares/securities : 38,000,000
issued (units) (If applicable)
Entitlement indicator           : Ratio
Ratio                           : 4 : 2
Rights Issues/Offer Price       : 1.01

The underwriting agreement for the above mentioned Rights Issue
with Warrants has been entered into on 16 April 2002.

The Rights Issue with Warrants is on the basis of four Rights
Shares together with three Rights Warrants attached thereto for
every two existing ordinary shares of RM1.00 each held. The
28,500,000 Rights Warrants to be issued together with the
38,000,000 Rights Shares will be detached and traded separately
from the Rights Shares upon issuance.

An abridged prospectus in relation to the Rights Issue with
Warrants will be issued within five market days after the
Entitlement Date.

Dewina is involved in the manufacturing of food products and in
the industrial catering/food services sector. It is an OEM of
sauces for Sainsburys, a UK supermarket chain. Dewina currently
provides catering services to University Putra Malaysia and five
military cook houses of the Malaysian Armed Forces. The Group
has also been awarded several food and beverage concessions at
KLIA.

In accordance with Practice Note 4/2001 of KLSE Listing
Requirements, the Company is an affected listed issuer, and is
required to undertake a restructuring. As such, on 3 April 2001,
a MOU was entered into by the Company, a Director and
substantial shareholder of the Company, Hj Ibrahim bin Hj Ahmad,
and MTD Capital Sdn Bhd (MTDC).


EMICO HOLDINGS: Awaits Proposal Approval From KLSE
--------------------------------------------------
Emico Holdings Berhad refers to the announcements dated 8 August
2001, 23 August 2001, 14 December 2001 and 28 February 2002
pertaining to the debt restructuring scheme proposal, two-call
rights issue, employee share option scheme and increase in
authorized share capital.

The Company also wishes to draw attention to Section 5 of the
Practice Note 4 (P/N 4) of the Listing Requirements of the Kuala
Lumpur Stock Exchange (KLSE), which stipulated that the affected
listed issuer has to obtain all approvals necessary within four
months from the date of the submission.

The Board of Directors of Emico wishes to announce that to date,
the approvals from all the authorities are still pending. The
Company had made an application to the KLSE for an extension of
time of additional two months from 14 April 2002 to 13 June 2002
to secure the necessary approvals from the relevant authorities.

The KLSE has yet to decide on the matter. A further announcement  
shall be made in due course.


HO WAH: KLSE Grants Share Listing on Friday
-------------------------------------------
Ho Wah Genting Berhad said Tuesday that its additional 2,500,000
ordinary shares of RM1.00 each arising from the conversion of RM
3.75 million nominal amount of 2 percent to 5 percent redeemable
convertible unsecured loan stocks 2000/2005 into 2.5 million
ordinary shares and 156,000 new ordinary shares of RM1.00 each
issued pursuant to the employees' share option scheme will be
granted listing and quotation at the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange
with effect from 9.00 a.m., Friday, 19 April 2002.


INSAS BERHAD: Files for De-registration of Dormant Unit
------------------------------------------------------
The Board of Directors of Insas Berhad wishes to inform that one
of its indirect wholly owned subsidiary company, Knowledge
Systems Pte Ltd (KSPL), a dormant company incorporated in
Singapore had applied to the Singapore Companies Registry for
de-registration under Section 344(2) of the Singapore Companies
Act. The Companies Registry had confirmed that a notice dated 15
March 2002 had been published in the Government Gazette and at
the expiration of three months thereof, the name of KSPL will be
struck off from the register and accordingly KSPL will be
dissolved.

The de-registration of the subsidiary company does not have any
effect on the earnings and net tangible assets of Insas for the
financial year ended 30 June 2002.


KIARA EMAS: Secures Extension Approval Arrives From KLSE
--------------------------------------------------------
On 21 March 2002, Arab-Malaysian Merchant Bank Berhad, on behalf
of Kiara Emas Asia Industries Berhad, had announced on April 12
that an application had been submitted to the Kuala Lumpur Stock
Exchange (KLSE) on 20 March 2002 for an extension of time to
enable Kiara Emas to submit its plans to regularize its
financial condition to the relevant authorities for approval,
including the Securities Commission, for a further period of
three months from the expiry of two months from the date of the
Requisite Announcement.

On behalf of Kiara Emas, Arab-Malaysian wishes to announce that
the KLSE, by its letter dated 11 April 2002, approved the
extension of time for three (3) months from 18 March 2002 to 17
June 2002 to enable the Company to make a submission of its
plans to regularize its financial condition to the relevant
authorities for approval.


MGR CORPORATION: KLSE Sets Regularization Deadline
--------------------------------------------------
The Special Administrators of MGR Corporation Berhad, Mr Kevin
How, Mr Adam Primus Varghese Bin Abdullah and Ms Wong Lai Wah of
Messrs Ernst & Young, said Monday that the Kuala Lumpur Stock
Exchange (KLSE) has rejected the Company's application for a
further extension of three months, from 1 March 2002 until 1
June 2002, to submit its plan to regularize the financial
condition of the Company to the relevant authorities.

Nevertheless, as advised by the KLSE, the Company has until 31
December 2002 to regularize its financial condition in
accordance with the requirements of paragraph 8.14 of the KLSE's
Listing Requirements and PN 4/2001, failing which the Company
may be delisted from the Official List of the KLSE pursuant to
paragraph 16.09 of the KLSE Listing Requirements.

Notwithstanding the above, as announced on 5 March 2002, the SA
on behalf of MGR, had on 4 March 2002 entered into a conditional
Principal Agreement with Crest Builders Sdn Bhd (CBSB) and the
shareholders of CBSB, namely Yong Soon Chow, Koh Hua Lan,
Pertiwi Positif Sdn Bhd, Takrif Jaya Sdn Bhd and Capai Hasil Sdn
Bhd for the purpose of implementing a restructuring scheme for
MGR and its subsidiaries.

An appropriate announcement on the final terms and the financial
effects of the Proposed Restructuring Scheme will be announced
in due course.


OLYMPIA INDUSTRIES: Court Delays Winding-up Hearing
---------------------------------------------------
Olympia Industries Berhad refers to the last announcement dated
13 March 2002 in relation to the winding-up petition filed by
Tanjung Teras Sdn Bhd against Mascon Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of
Olympia Industries Berhad.

OIB wishes to inform that the hearing has now been adjourned to
23 April 2002 pending further negotiation between both parties
to settle the matter.

On 30 April 1999, Pengurusan Danaharta Bhd appointed Special
Administrators (SAs) over Jupiter Securities to assume control
of the assets and affairs of the company. The SAs have prepared
a workout proposal, which was subsequently accepted by secured
creditors on 11 October 99. The workout proposal has been
approved by all relevant authorities, except the SC, where a
conditional approval was received on 14 August 2000. Pursuant to
the conditional approval, the SAs' appointment will be extended
until such time when the SC is satisfied with the implementation
of the plans.

The workout proposal involves a capital injection, the novation
of certain loans of Jupiter Securities to Olympia, the
settlement of the secured creditors holding pledged quoted
securities, the conversion of secured creditors with third party
charges to restructured term loans and the conversion of
unsecured creditors to redeemable convertible cumulative
preference shares.

Subsequently, on 8 May 2000, the Company and certain of its
subsidiaries, Jupiter Capital Sdn Bhd, Dairy Maid Resort &
Recreation Sdn Bhd, Olympia Plaza Sdn Bhd, Olympia Land Bhd, and
Mascon Sdn Bhd, and sub-subsidiaries LC (BVI) Ltd and Olympia
Travels and Tours Sdn Bhd, entered into a restructuring and
standstill agreement with financial institution creditors to
undertake a proposed debt and corporate restructuring entailing
a proposed capital reduction and consolidation, reduction of
share premium account, rights issue with detachable warrants,
special issue, debt novation, debt restructuring, acquisition of
property companies and land, disposal of property companies,
inter-company settlement between the Company and substantial
shareholder Mycom Bhd and an offer for sale.

The proposals are inter-conditional upon a scheme that Mycom is
undertaking. The scheme was submitted to the SC on 16 August
2000. Save for FIC, the scheme is pending approval from the SC,
MITI, KLSE, shareholders and creditors. On 26 February 2001, the
Company received a request from the SC for further input, in
order to arrive at a more comprehensive restructuring exercise
for its consideration.


RHB CAPITAL: Appoints Liquidator for RHS Unit
---------------------------------------------
Further to the announcement dated 11 July 2001 in relation to
the cessation of the stockbroking operations of PT RHS that took
effect from 31 July 2001, RHB Capital wishes to announce that
its wholly owned subsidiary, RHB Capital (Jersey) Limited had on
15 April 2002 appointed PT PricewaterhouseCoopers FAS, Jakarta,
as the liquidator of PT RHS, a subsidiary of RHB Capital
(Jersey) Limited based in Jakarta, Indonesia.

The net book value of the affected assets as at 31 July 2001 was
IDR6.37 billion.

The appointment of the liquidator is not expected to have any
operational impact on the RHB Capital Group nor is it expected
to have any material impact on the consolidated earnings or
financial position of the RHB Capital Group for the current
financial year ending 30 June 2002.


TECHNOLOGY RESOURCES: Pays RM1.87B to Bondholders
-------------------------------------------------
The Board of Directors of Technology Resources Industries Berhad
is pleased to announce that the Company has today, successfully
completed an early redemption of its Euroconvertible Bonds with
the release of an interest and principal payment sum of
RM1,876,295,600 (US$4493,762,000) to the paying agents of the
bond holders.

Simultaneously, Celcom (Malaysia) Berhad, the wholly owned
subsidiary of the Company had also released the amounts of
RM968,710,507 and RM507,536,708 for its multi structure facility
and Capex facilities respectively.

The payments mark the successful completion of the two major
components of TRI's recapitalization program, leaving the final
step of a capital repayment by TRI to its shareholders. This
will be done by way of cancellation of the issued and paid up
capital of TRI and distribution of the issued and paid up
ordinary shares of Celcom held by TRI to TRI shareholders on the
basis of one Celcom share for every one TRI share.

Celcom will subsequently assume the listing status of TRI and
become the new holding company.

Technology Resources expects to complete the internal
restructuring by July 2002.


TENCO BERHAD: Default Payment Status Pending
--------------------------------------------
Tenco Berhad wishes to inform that there is no material
development to the status of the default payment to Lenders as
announced previously on 22 March 2002.

Tenco is a manufacturer and supplier of industrial gases and
industrial chemicals and adhesives, which are widely used, in
the manufacturing sector. It also markets a wide range of
building products for the building and construction industry.
Tenco's operations are based mainly in Malaysia, with sales
offices in Singapore and Canada.

In July 2001, the Company announced that it had defaulted on
interest payments due on 30 June 2001 in respect of a debt
restructuring agreement dated 31 January 2000. The Group has
appointed Ernst & Young as its financial adviser to
embark on a financial restructuring exercise for a review and
re-schedule of the interest repayment.


UNIPHOENIX CORPORATION: MITI Approves Restructuring Scheme
----------------------------------------------------------
Uniphoenix Corporation Berhad refers to the announcements made
on 31 December 2001 and 31 January 2002 in relation to the
Proposed Restructuring Scheme.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of UCB, Southern Investment
Bank Berhad is pleased to announce that the Ministry of
International Trade and Industry (MITI) has, via its letter
dated 15 April 2002 approved the Proposed Restructuring Scheme.

The approval from MITI is subject to the Proposed Restructuring
Scheme being approved by the Securities Commission and the
Foreign Investment Committee (FIC).

As announced on 31 January 2002, the approval from the FIC was
obtained on 22 January 2002.

It is also stated in the MITI's approval letter that Syarikat
Rubfil Sdn Bhd and Dancomair Sdn Bhd, being subsidiaries of UCB
which hold manufacturing licenses, are required to fulfill the
equity condition as stated in the Manufacturing Licenses within
three years after the completion of the Proposed Restructuring
Scheme.

The Group unveiled its restructuring scheme in November 1998
comprising a comprehensive equity and debt restructuring,
injections of property development projects and fund raising
exercise. Since its submission to the SC in July 1999, the
Company has received approvals from the FIC and MITI. The scheme
was however aborted in December 2000.

In January 2001, the Company entered into two separate
agreements to acquire four property-related companies and one
construction-based company. The acquisition forms a part of the
Group's restructuring scheme involving capital and debt
reconstruction, share exchange and capital exercises.

The new assets, which complement the Group's property
development arm, will enable Uniphoenix to derive synergistic
benefits. In view of its focus on property development,
Uniphoenix had in December 2000 entered into an agreement to
dispose of its entire 60.7% interest in Sam Long Chemicals
Industries (Malaysia), one of its manufacturing concerns.


UNIPHOENIX CORPORATION: Seeks Restraining Order Extension
---------------------------------------------------------
Uniphoenix Corporation Berhad refers to the announcements made
on 18 July 2001, 23 October 2001 and 16 January 2002 in relation
to the granting of a restraining order by the High Court of
Malaya (Court) on 17 July 2001, to restrain all further
proceedings in any action or proceeding whatsoever and howsoever
against UCB, which expires on 16 April 2002.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of UCB, Southern Investment
Bank Berhad wishes to announce that the Company had on 11 April
2002, filed an application for the extension of the restraining
order for a further three months from 17 April 2002. The Court
has fixed the hearing for the said application on 22 April 2002.
The announcement on the Court's decision in relation to the
application will be made in due course.


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


PHILIPPINE LONG: Signs MOU With Micros-Fidelio
----------------------------------------------
Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) signed a
memorandum of understanding (MOU) with system software provider
Micros-Fidelio Software (Philippines) Inc. for a possible
combining of their services for hotels, leisure clubs and
resorts, Dow Jones reported Tuesday.

PLDT expects the joint venture to provide it a larger window to
the growing networking and software needs of the hospitality
sector.

Moody's Investors Service on Friday assigned a Ba3 rating to
Philippine Long Distance Company's (PLDT) proposed $350 million
bond, due 2007 and 2012. At the same time Moody's continued its
review for possible downgrade of PLDT's ratings. The ratings
will be confirmed, with a stable outlook, if PLDT is successful
with the bond issues at the proposed level of $350 million, as
this will materially reduce refinancing pressures the Company
faces.


SOLID GROUP: Seeks Buyer for Unit Over Losses
---------------------------------------------
Solid Group Inc is seeking a buyer for its unit Kita Corp, which
suspended manufacturing operations in April 2001 due to the loss
of orders from its major customer, Aiwa Co Ltd., AFX News
reported.

Transaction details were not mentioned in the report.

Kita Corp's posted a net loss of P648.034 million in 2001
compared to a net loss of P182.796 million a year earlier. This
resulted in Solid incurring a net loss of P811.953 million in
2001 compared to a profit of P118.533 million in 2000.

Another unit Clark Plastics Manufacturing Corp, which
manufactures and supplies components for Kita, simultaneously
suspended operations of its styropor division.

Solid Group Inc's principal activities are manufacturing and
selling of consumer electronic products. Major brand names
include Sony and Aiwa. Television accounted for 71 percent of
2000 revenues; audio products, 22 percent; videocassette
recorders, 3 percent and others, 4 percent.


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


FHTK HOLDINGS: Posts Notice of Shareholder's Interest
-----------------------------------------------------
FHTK Holdings Ltd posted a notice of changes in substantial
shareholder Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Ltd's interest:

Date of notice to Company: 15 Apr 2002
Date of change of interest: 11 Apr 2002
Name of registered holder: Oversea-Chinese Bank Nominees Private
Limited
Circumstance giving rise to the change: Sales in open market at
own discretion

Shares held in the name of registered holder
No. of shares of the change: 50,000
Percentage of issued share capital: 0
Amount of consideration per share excluding brokerage,GST,stamp
duties,clearing fee: S$0.105
No. of shares held before change: 2,350,109
Percentage of issued share capital: 0.18
No. of shares held after change: 2,300,109
Percentage of issued share capital: 0.18

Holdings of Substantial Shareholder including direct and deemed
interest
                                      Deemed   Direct
No. of shares held before change:        0     191,825,959
Percentage of issued share capital:      0     15.58
No. of shares held after change:         0     191,775,959
Percentage of issued share capital:      0     15.58
Total shares:                            0     191,775,959

Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited direct interest
under registered holder UOB Kay Hian Private Limited is
189,475,850 (15.40 percent) and under registered holder Oversea-
Chinese Bank Nominees Private Limited is 2,300,109 (0.18
percent). Total interest after change is 15.58 percent.


KLW HOLDINGS: Auditors Report on FY01 Financial Results
-------------------------------------------------------
Auditors Wong-Yeo and Siew Eng have audited the accompanying
financial statements of KLW Holdings Limited and the
consolidated financial statements of the group as at December
31, 2001. These financial statements are the responsibility of
the Company's directors. Their responsibility is to express an
opinion on these financial statements based on their audit as
follows:

We conducted our audit in accordance with Singapore Standards on
Auditing. Those Standards require that we plan and perform the
audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial
statements are free of material misstatement. An audit includes
examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and
disclosures in the financial statements. An audit also includes
assessing the accounting principles used and significant
estimates made by the directors, as well as evaluating the
overall financial statements presentation. We believe that our
audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.

As at December 31, 2001, the group's current liabilities
exceeded its current assets by $4,461,501
(2000: $2,455,565). In forming our unqualified audit opinion, we
have considered the adequacy of the disclosures made in Note 35
to the financial statements concerning the group's dependence on
financial support of banks which have provided credit
facilities, negotiation with banks to restructure credit
facilities and the intent to raise additional funds through the
issuance of new shares by the Company.

The group's continuation as a going concern is dependent on the
successful conclusion of ongoing negotiations with banks to
restructure its credit facilities and the successful placements
of new shares by the Company.

At the date of this report, the directors of the Company are not
aware of any development which indicates that the group will not
be able to reach a satisfactory arrangement with banks in
respect of credit facilities of the group; or any development
which indicates that the Company will not be able to raise
additional funds through future placement of new shares of the
Company.

The validity of the going concern assumption on which the
financial statements are prepared depends on the successful
conclusion of these matters. If the going concern assumption is
inappropriate, adjustments may have to be made to reflect the
situation that assets may need to be realized for amounts other
than those at which they are currently recorded in the balance
sheets. In addition, the Company and the group may have to
provide for further liabilities that may arise, and to
reclassify non-current assets and liabilities as current assets
and liabilities.

In our opinion:

a) The accompanying financial statements and consolidated
financial statements are properly drawn up in accordance with
the provisions of the Singapore Companies Act and Singapore
Statements of Accounting Standard and so as to give a true and
fair view of:

i) The state of affairs of the Company and of the group as at
December 31, 2001, and of the results, changes in equity of the
Company and of the group and cash flows of the group for the
year then ended; and

ii) The other matters required by Section 201 of the Act to be
dealt with in the financial statements and consolidated
financial statements;

b) The accounting and other records and the registers required
by the Act to be kept by the Company and by the subsidiaries
incorporated in Singapore of which we are the auditors have been
properly kept in accordance with the provisions of the Act.

We have considered the financial statements and auditors'
reports of the subsidiaries of which we have not acted as
auditors, being financial statements included in the
consolidated financial statements. The names of the subsidiaries
are indicated in Note 7 to the financial statements.

We are satisfied that the financial statements of the
subsidiaries that are consolidated with the financial statements
of the Company are in form and content appropriate and proper
for the purposes of the preparation of the consolidated
financial statements, and we have received satisfactory
information and explanations as required by us for those
purposes.

The auditors' reports on the financial statements of the
subsidiaries were not subject to any qualification and in
respect of the subsidiaries incorporated in Singapore did not
include any comment under Section 207(3) of the Act.

PREPARATION OF FINANCIAL STATEMENTS ON THE ASSUMPTION OF A GOING
CONCERN

The group incurred a net loss of $7,222,253 for the financial
year ended December 31, 2001 and as of that date, the current
liabilities exceeded its current assets by $4,461,501. Certain
financial covenants imposed on two subsidiaries by banks have
not been complied with.

The directors of the Company are negotiating with banks to
restructure credit facilities of the group. The directors of the
Company intend to raise additional funds within the second
quarter of this financial year through placement of new shares
of the Company. On April 4, 2002, the Company secured
approximately $2 million (net of estimated expenses) from the
placement of 17,818,675 new shares of $0.10 each at a
subscription price of $0.115 per share.

The group's continuation as a going concern is dependent on the
successful conclusion of negotiations with banks and the
intended placement of new shares. At the date of this report,
the directors of the Company are not aware of any development
which indicates that the group will be unable to reach a
satisfactory arrangement with banks in respect of credit
facilities of the group; or any development which indicates that
the Company will not be able to raise additional funds through
future placements of new shares of the Company.

The financial statements have been prepared assuming that the
group will continue as a going concern. In the event that the
group is unable to obtain sufficient funds for working capital,
adjustments may have to be made to reflect the situation that
assets may need to be realized for amounts other than those at
which they are currently recorded in the balance sheet. In
addition, the group may have to provide for further liabilities
that may arise, and to reclassify non-current assets and
liabilities as current assets and liabilities.

TEAMSPHERE LTD: Extends Fine Components Group Agreement
-------------------------------------------------------
Teamsphere Limited on Tuesday in reference to the announcements
of 11 December 2001 and 21 February 2002 relating to the
restructuring of Fine Components Group.

By mutual consent of the parties in writing, the period for
Teamsphere Limited to obtain the approval of its shareholders
for the First and Second Agreements is extended to 15 May 2002,
or any further extension of time as the parties may agree in
writing.


THAKRAL CORP: Seeks Shareholders Capital Reduction Approval
------------------------------------------------------------
The announcement issued by Thakral Corporation Ltd on 2 April
2002 was a proforma based on un-audited accounts as at 28
February 2002 adjusted for the effects of the Company's scheme
of arrangement (which came into effect on 27 March 2002).

The Company will also be issuing a shareholders' circular to
seek shareholders' approval for a second capital reduction
whereby the accumulated losses will be offset against the share
premium account. As the 2 April 2002 Announcement did not
include the penalty interest reversal and certain other
accounting adjustments, the Company would, therefore, like to
advise as follows: S$ Million

I. Accumulated Losses  

a) Proforma accumulated losses in 2 April 2002 Announcement
(165.250)
b) Reversal of penalty interest* 16.357
c) Restructuring charges (8.080)
d) Difference in gains** (4.555)
Proforma accumulated losses in proposed Circular (161.528)
  
II. Share Premium Account  

a) Proforma share premium account in 2 April 2002 Announcement
177.884
b) Difference in gains** 4.555
c) Issue of new subscription shares - revised premium 8.314
Proforma share premium account in proposed Circular 190.753

* The Company had provided in its books the payment of penalty
interest to its bank lenders pursuant to the terms and
conditions of the original Syndicated Loan Agreement of 28 April
1997. It was provided under the terms of the Scheme that upon
the Scheme coming into effect, this penalty interest would be
waived.

** Difference in gains arising from using S$0.115 per share
(last quoted price preceding Effective Date of the Scheme) as
the reference closing price (instead of using S$0.11 per share)
for the purpose of computation of gains arising from the issue
of new shares. Fuller explanation provided in the 2 April 2002
Announcement.


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


TPI POLENE: SCCC Proposed Takeover Unstable
-------------------------------------------
A plan by Siam City Cement Plc (SCCC) to take a 77 percent stake
in Bangkok's TPI Polene appears likely to collapse, the Bangkok
Post reports.

Bangkok Bank, a leading creditor of the ailing petrochemical
firm, is opposed to the sale of TPI Polene's petrochemical units
to founder and CEO Prachai Leophairatana.

A creditor source said SCCC, a member of the Holcim group of
Switzerland, wanted to take over only the cement operations of
TPI Polene.

The source said Holcim did not want the petrochemical operation,
as it was not a core business of Siam City Cement. It proposed
to sell the operation to Mr Prachai because he had expertise in
the field and helped establish the country's petrochemical
industry.

Siam City Cement had a binding agreement with Mr Prachai for the
firm to take 77 percent stake in TPI Polene by investing US$375
million (16.5 billion baht) to buy 1,707.5 million new shares in
the firm.

However, the deal with Siam City Cement is subject to approval
by TPI Polene's creditors, accounting for at least 95% of the
total debt. Bangkok Bank is owed about 20%.

Another creditor source said Bangkok Bank also required Mr
Prachai to maintain his personal guarantee of various loans
taken out by the company. Holcim would only allow Mr Prachai to
withdraw the guarantee if the deal with Siam City Cement went
ahead.

Mr Prachai conceded that Holcim's proposal was likely to be
rejected as Bangkok Bank was expected to vote against it. "I
feel the bank is attempting to force me to negotiate with
Ciments Francais. The French cement firm is a major shareholder
of Asia Cement in which the Sophonpanich family still has
significant interests," he said.

Bangkok Bank President Chartsiri Sophonpanich rejected Mr
Prachai's claim, saying creditors were only looking at Holcim's
proposal.



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

Troubled Company Reporter -- Asia Pacific is a daily newsletter
co-published by Bankruptcy Creditors' Service, Inc., Trenton, NJ
USA, and Beard Group, Inc., Washington, DC USA. Lyndsey Resnick,
Maria Vyrna Nineza-Merlin, Maria Cristina Pernites-Lao, Editors.

Copyright 2002.  All rights reserved.  ISSN: 1520-9482.

This material is copyrighted and any commercial use, resale or
publication in any form (including e-mail forwarding, electronic
re-mailing and photocopying) is strictly prohibited without
prior written permission of the publishers.  Information
contained herein is obtained from sources believed to be
reliable, but is not guaranteed.

The TCR -- Asia Pacific subscription rate is $575 for 6 months
delivered via e-mail. Additional e-mail subscriptions for
members of the same firm for the term of the initial
subscription or balance thereof are $25 each.  For subscription
information, contact Christopher Beard at 240/629-3300.

                 *** End of Transmission ***