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Pastimes : The Justa & Lars Honors Bob Brinker Investment Club -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Justa Werkenstiff who wrote (10318)	12/7/1999 6:47:00 PM
From: marc ultra	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 15132

Justa re<<<Marc: I hear FMKT was repriced today to the low 40s. Amazing.>>>> I wonder if that's good or bad that the company and GS is trying to scrape out every dollar they can get, sounds awfully aggressive. Actually I'm praying to pick up another one that's pricing tonight and doesn't use a Windows, Macintosh or Unix operating system<g> I might chase FMKT a little but with the quiet period I can't figure out if GM's big deal with CMRC is going to hurt them significantly and my developing B2B portfolio seems to be growing as the prices explode anyway Marc

To: Justa Werkenstiff who wrote (10318)	12/7/1999 8:18:00 PM
From: Math Junkie	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 15132

Now that the Nazdaq has turned in yet another record close, I find myself wondering if the present rally is not being driven by investors' expectations of a Y2K relief rally in January. If that is what everyone is expecting, we may see some serious profit taking next month. Another factor supporting that scenario, which someone already mentioned, is the number of people who don't want to incur tax on their gains for this year.

To: Justa Werkenstiff who wrote (10318)	12/7/1999 9:08:00 PM
From: Justa Werkenstiff	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 15132

Crude Oil Falls as US Energy Secretary Says Prices Too High New York, Dec. 7 (Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell almost 2 percent after U.S. Energy Secretary Bill Richardson said current prices were too high, fueling speculation that the U.S. might take steps to bring prices down. ''It plays on the bulls' fear that somebody will come along and spoil their party,'' said Tim Evans, senior energy analyst at Pegasus Econometric Group in New York. That could happen if the U.S. sold oil from its Strategic Petroleum Reserve or convinced producers to raise output, he said. Richardson discussed world oil prices with the Mexican and Venezuelan oil ministers at an energy conference but did not say whether he asked them to reconsider their output cuts. Oil prices have more than doubled this year as producers, including Mexico and Venezuela, agreed to keep output low to eliminate a global surplus. Crude oil for January delivery fell 44 cents, or 1.7 percent, to $26.22 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices had rallied 8 percent this month as Iraq kept its oil off the market in a dispute with the United Nations. ''At $26 or $27 a barrel, naturally we think that's a little high,'' said Richardson, who will meet with Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi in Washington on Thursday. In London, Brent crude oil for January settlement fell 39 cents, or 1.5 percent, to $25.40 a barrel on the International Petroleum Exchange. Headed higher While prices declined today, the markets could be headed higher tomorrow, especially if a report from the American Petroleum Institute shows that U.S. inventories fell, as analysts expect. ''Richardson's just trying to talk prices down,'' said Victor Yu, an analyst at Refco Inc. in New York. Prices would have to go a lot higher for the administration to seriously consider tapping oil reserves and unleashing the political battles between consuming and producing states that would probably ensue, Yu said. Also, Iraq's withdrawal from world markets, combined with OPEC members' compliance with promised output cuts, mean ''it will be tough for the market to sell off,'' said Yu. Crude should trade in the mid $27 range by the end of the week, he said. Iraq stopped its daily exports of about 2 million barrels a day on Nov. 24, an amount equal to about 3 percent of world supply. U.S. oil inventories are down about 11 percent since world producers agreed in March to keep output low. ''With Iraq not shipping, barrels normally going to the U.S. may be getting diverted to Europe or Japan,'' said Tom Blakeslee, an oil and gas trader at Eildon Marketing LLC in White Marsh, Maryland. Blakeslee said U.S. inventories probably fell 2.5 million barrels last week to 300.8 million. U.S. Inventories U.S. supplies have fallen three straight weeks to 303.3 million barrels, about 1 percent above a two-year low of 300.34 million reached Oct. 8, according to an American Petroleum Institute report last week. Ten analysts surveyed by Bloomberg expect this week's report, due later today, to show a drop of between 2.1 million and 3.1 million barrels. The UN program that allows Iraq to export oil is an exception to economic sanctions imposed after Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait. Baghdad objected to the Security Council's decision to temporarily extend a previous six-month sales program rather than renewing it for another six months. Iraq's deputy prime minister, Tariq Aziz, said the country is prepared to resume oil exports under a six-month plan that includes improvements requested by Iraq, including quicker approval of contracts for the purchase of spare-parts. But there is little sign of the U.S. and U.K. backing off demands that link renewed oil sales to resumption of UN arms inspections in Iraq, inspections Iraq has fiercely resisted. Petroleum products were mixed. Heating oil for January delivery fell 1.53 cents, or 2.3 percent, to 65.7 cents a gallon on the Nymex. Gasoline for January delivery rose 0.28 cent, or 0.4 percent, to 72.82 cents a gallon. Prices for both commodities have about doubled this year. Dec/07/1999