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Gold/Mining/Energy : Strictly: Drilling and oil-field services -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Denice who wrote (32711)	12/10/1998 3:22:00 PM
From: Bald Man from Mars	Respond to of 95453

I think the oils will go through the roof ... But hey, I am also the one who shorted AMZN, AOL and YHOO in the 30s ...

To: Denice who wrote (32711)	12/10/1998 3:32:00 PM
From: Crimson Ghost	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 95453

R&B Falcon sees drillers staying in profit HOUSTON, Dec 8 (Reuters) - R&B Falcon Corp, which operates the world's biggest fleet of offshore drilling rigs, said on Tuesday it expected its markets to remain weak in 1999 but that the offshore drilling industry as a whole should remain profitable. R&B Falcon President Steve Webster said reductions in oil companies' exploration budgets as a result of the lowest oil prices in 12 years would hurt drillers. ''Clearly budgets have been cut and we think we're in for a year or so of weakness,'' he told the Arthur Andersen Energy Symposium in Houston. ''However, the industry this time around is in much better shape. We've got a good backlog of business and we as an industry can maintain profitability through all this,'' he said. Webster said recent merger activity in the oil and gas industry could have a negative impact on oil companies' overall expenditure on drilling over a period of 12 to 18 months. ''If you put an Exxon and a Mobil together, one of those drilling budgets has got to suffer severely,'' he said. In the longer term, however, mergers would not affect demand for oil and new wells would have to be drilled to meet that demand and to counteract depletion of existing reserves, he added. Webster said further consolidation of the offshore drilling industry was needed to make prices more resistant to reduced drilling activity. The number of drilling rigs active in the Gulf of Mexico fell by 20 between April and August, triggering a decline in daily rental rates for 300-foot ''jackup'' rigs from $65,000 to $25,000, he said. More Quotes and News: R&B Falcon Corp (NYSE:FLC - news) Related News Categories: US Market News Help Copyright © 1998 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. See our Important Disclaimers and Legal Information. Questions or Comments?