To: PuddleGlum  who wrote (301 ) 7/26/2000 9:03:23 AM From: Aggie  Read Replies (2)  | Respond to    Hi Puddleglum,slb.com  HOUSTON, July 26 (Reuters via energy24.com) - The oil industry's upstream capital spending fell 5 percent in 1999 despite increased revenues and profits caused by strong oil and gas prices, according to an annual Arthur Andersen survey.  Combined revenues from oil and gas production of the 163 publicly traded companies covered rose 25 percent to $149 billion in 1999 after a 24 percent drop to $119.2 billion in 1998, according to the Global Exploration & Production Trends survey. Combined upstream profits jumped to $33.2 billion from $4.5 billion in 1998 when global oil prices slumped.  Within the overall amount for capital spending, exploration and development spending fell 22 percent to $61.6 billion from $79.4 billion.