Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Microcap & Penny Stocks : Globalstar Telecommunications Limited GSAT -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: djane who wrote (5892)	7/21/1999 1:51:00 AM
From: djane	Respond to of 29987

China Telecom Seeks to Buy More Mobile Phone Networks By Biddy Chan at Bloomberg News 19 July 1999 China Telecom (Hong Kong) Ltd., which owns mobile phone networks in three of China's richest provinces, said it's negotiating to buy networks in three other provinces, potentially expanding its subscriber base by more than a third. Though the acquisitions would boost the company's earnings, its shares today lost 6.3%, their biggest fall since December 1998. The decline reflected the company's simultaneous announcement that it will allow 12 strategic investors to sell their remaining shares three months ahead of the deadline set out in an earlier "lock-up" agreement. Some analysts believed the news of the possible acquisitions was meant to offset potential damage to China Telecom's share price from the end of the lock-up agreement, originally scheduled for October 23. By freeing the strategic investors to sell now, China Telecom may be able to overcome any negative impact on its share price before the proposed listing of main rival China Unicom, the nation's second-largest telecommunications carrier. Investors could be tempted to get out of Telecom and into Unicom when the latter lists in Hong Kong and on Nasdaq by October. With the end of the lock-up agreement, China Telecom said its market liquidity could increase by 580 million shares, or 5 percent of total shares outstanding. Shares in China Telecom, the third-biggest public company in Hong Kong by market capitalization, have gained 65% this year. The stock hit an all-time high of HK$26.20 ($3.39) last week on anticipation that it would announce major investments in mainland China. Today, the shares fell HK$1.50 to HK$22.15, accounting for almost all the 98-point decline in the benchmark Hang Seng Index. "It's mainly because of the possible sale of China Telecom shares by the strategic investors," said NiQ Lai, an analyst at Credit Suisse First Boston. China Telecom said it began "preliminary discussions" with the Ministry of Information Industry last week to acquire mobile phone networks in the southern Chinese provinces of Henan, Fujian and Hainan. The move would be funded by selling shares or borrowing, the company said, without providing more details. Market rumors have the company attempting to raise as much as US$1 billion in bonds to help fund the transaction. China Telecom made its first asset acquisition in June 1998, paying $2.9 billion for the mobile phone network in the eastern Chinese province of Jiangsu. At that time, it already owned networks in Guangdong and Zhejiang provinces. The company didn't provide details on the mobile networks in Henan, Fujian and Hainan. Lai of CSFB said the three provinces had a combined 2.8 million mobile subscribers at the end of 1998. China Telecom said it had 8.42 million subscribers in May, up 30 percent since the end of last year. The firm could pay as much as 60 billion yuan ($7.2 billion) for its acquisitions, the Hong Kong Economic Times said, without naming sources. It now has about 19 billion yuan in cash. Before China Telecom started trading in Hong Kong on October 23, 1997, it sold 1.16 billion shares or 9.9% of itself to 12 Hong Kong and Chinese companies, including Cheung Kong (Holdings) Ltd., China Everbright Ltd. and New World Development Co. Under the two-year lock-up agreement, the strategic investors were barred from selling any shares in the first year and allowed to sell no more than 50% of their holdings in the second. Last year, China Everbright said it sold 57.25 million China Telecom shares, or a third of its holdings. No other strategic investors have reported selling down their stakes. China Telecom's unlisted parent company owns 76.5% of the company. The Hong Kong government became its second biggest shareholder when it bought 4.1% of the firm last August. The company reported a net profit of 6.90 billion yuan in 1998, up 39% from a year earlier. Copyright 1999, Bloomberg L.P. All Rights

To: djane who wrote (5892)	7/21/1999 2:32:00 AM
From: gdichaz	Respond to of 29987

djane. Chuckle. The U.S. State Department standardized on Wang just at the point Wang and all other "word processors" were heading down due to the wave of PCs coming on. A contrarian indicator. The U.S. Gov't and especially the State Dept can be relied upon to be consistently slow on adopting appropriate technology - and often simply wrong. So, not a major buy sign to go out and get new Iridium shares. If past is prolog, a signal to sell IRID. Just wry observation on my part. Chaz