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To: Joseph G. who wrote (2397)	6/18/1998 1:30:00 PM
From: HH	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 86076

More yesterdays news . Atlanta, June 16 (Bloomberg) -- Coca-Cola Co.'s profits from East Asia will be reduced even further in 1998 and next year by a strong U.S. dollar, partly the result of economic turmoil in Japan, the Philippines and Indonesia, an analyst said. The world's largest soda maker gets 17 percent of its profit from Japan, and in the past three months the dollar has gained 11 percent against the yen to 143.58. The dollar's strength reduces revenue from overseas as local currencies translate into fewer dollars. Coca-Cola gets 70 percent of its sales and nearly 80 percent of its profit from international operations. Merrill Lynch is now forecasting that the dollar will gain against the yen to 160 by the end of 1998. A 20 percent devaluation in the yen costs about 5 cents a share to Coca-Cola's bottom line, estimated Merrill Lynch analyst Douglas Lane. We just lowered estimates on Coke because of Asia, slowing economies and the recession in Japan,'' Lane said. Lane trimmed his earnings estimates for Coca-Cola to $1.60 a share from $1.62 for 1998 and to a range of $1.80 to $1.85 from $1.90 for 1999. The Atlanta-based company is focusing on international markets where it believes soda sales can grow faster than in the U.S. Coca-Cola's shares fell 5/16 to 79. It had been as low as 77 3/4 earlier in the day.