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To: Cynic 2005 who wrote (4003)	8/18/1998 4:25:00 PM
From: yard_man	Respond to of 86076

Must have CSCO puts. Pretty frustrating, huh? <g> In a fit of dumb I bought puts on LU, but it's not October yet either. A lot can happen in a couple of months.

To: Cynic 2005 who wrote (4003)	8/18/1998 7:22:00 PM
From: Joseph G.	Respond to of 86076

<< WASHINGTON, Aug 18 (Reuters) - The U.S. trade deficit narrowed in June from a record high in May, but bilateral gaps with recession-racked Asian nations kept growing and showed no signs the worst was over, the Commerce Department said on Tuesday. The overall monthly deficit was down 8.9 percent to $14.15 billion from an all-time peak of $15.54 billion in May, but the improvement stemmed mainly from of cheaper imports, like oil, as exports dropped for a third month in a row. Analysts said the report highlighted the contrast between stagnation in Asia, which accounts for about one-third of U.S. sales, and a vibrant domestic economy beginning to feel the drag from rapidly fading foreign markets. << The gap in goods and services trade during the April-June second quarter soared to a record $44 billion, overtaking the previous quarterly record deficit of $38.8 billion set more than a decade ago in the final three months of 1987. ''We should expect continued deterioration in our trade with Asia,'' cautioned Commerce Department chief economist Lee Price, noting that exports to South Korea, Indonesia, Thailand and Hong Kong have plummeted this year. Asia's woes have cheapened imports, in part because the U.S. dollar has appreciated in value against other currencies but also because demand for products like oil has fallen overseas. ... Howard Lewis, an economist with the National Association of Manufacturers, said U.S. companies that account for about 60 percent of total U.S. exports ''are taking a hit'' through falling sales and warned the economy will pay a price. ''In the long run, growth here at home is dependent on economic growth abroad,'' Lewis said. ''Today's figures indicate that noninflationary growth, albeit at a slower pace, is the best prognosis for the rest of 1998.'' White House economist Janet Yellen estimated deteriorating trade has subtracted about 2 percent from the U.S. rate of economic expansion in the first half of 1998 -- billions of dollars worth -- and put the onus on Japan to to be a spark plug for Asian revival. ''Asia's recovery will ... require the prompt adoption of economic reforms in Japan and the continued implementation of structural measures in the crisis countries,'' Yellen said, along with more money for the International Monetary Fund to back its bailout efforts. During June, exports weakened 0.5 percent from May to $76.17 billion -- the lowest since $75.1 billion in February 1997 -- but imports dropped more sharply by 2 percent to $90.32 billion. A big reason for the import decline was a drop in world oil prices to $11.23 a barrel, the lowest cost since $11.08 in September 1986, which shrank the U.S. oil import bill in June by 5 percent to $4.2 billion. But economists said the oil-price benefit might be short-lived. Producing countries in the Middle East are trying to cooperate in halting the slide, especially as importers start building up heating-oil inventories in the fall. ''Oil prices were the culprit (in June),'' said Philip Braverman, an economist at DKB Securities Corp. in New York. ''I think we are not going to see a lot more of the declines as OPEC attempts ... to try and keep oil prices from continuing their fall.'' The monthly shortfall with newly industrialized countries, including Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan, shot up 49.6 percent in June to $2.41 billion -- the highest in more than 8-1/2 years. The June deficit with Japan climbed 6 percent to $5.25 billion while the gap with China increased 1.6 percent to an eight-month high of $4.71 billion. But the monthly deficit with oil-producing OPEC countries dropped 39.1 percent in June to $666 million, reflecting cheaper oil prices. >>