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To: DJBEINO who wrote (4488)	1/12/1999 10:41:00 AM
From: DJBEINO	Respond to of 9582

Winbond Sees Higher 1998 Loss; 1999 Sales May Double Bloomberg News January 12, 1999, 1:32 a.m. PT Hsinchu, Taiwan, Jan. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Winbond Electronics Corp., a computer memory chips maker, said its 1998 loss will likely widen to NT$1.99 billion ($61.8 million) as global slumps in chip prices and a stronger Taiwanese currency ate into earnings. Winbond said loss before tax for 1998 will be more than doubled its earlier target of NT$978 million loss. That translates into a net loss of NT$364 million, against an earlier projected net profit of NT$247 million. ''The financial turmoil across Asia triggered a worldwide downturn, sending chips prices into a tailspin,'' Winbond said in a statement. Some chips prices tumbled as much as 70 percent last year on excess supply and slow demand. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the world's No. 1 chipsmaker to customer orders, said Friday that 1998 preliminary net profit slumped to NT$15.34 billion from NT$17.96 billion a year ago. A stronger Taiwan dollar also led Winbond to set a provision of NT$690 million for foreign exchange losses, against an earlier projected NT$370 million gain in forex income, said Hander Chang, assistant vice president of the company. In the past year, the Taiwan dollar rose 7.1 percent against the U.S. dollar, making Taiwanese-made products less competitive on world markets. Higher 1999 Sales For 1999, Winbond expected sales to double from last year's NT$15.56 billion, citing increase in dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips output. ''We're optimistic about the prospect of DRAM,'' Chang said. ''We plan to raise our output to 15,000 chips a month at the year- end from 13,500 last December,'' Chang said. DRAM chips account for about 40 percent of Winbond's sales, he said. Investors seemed to agree. Winbond share surged 51 percent since mid-November, against a 6.8 percent-drop in the benchmark index. During the same period, the Boise, Idaho-based Micron Technology Inc., one of the world's largest DRAM makers, surged 51 percent to 67 1/4, its highest in more than three years. ''A DRAM recovery is sure under way,'' said Albert Ko, who manages NT$4.3 billion for Grand Pacific Securities Investment Trust Co. ''We believe it's time to buy or add DRAM stocks.'' Meantime, Winbond plans to raise $150 million by selling 150 million new shares in the form of global depositary receipts, Winbond's first such sale, Chang said. ABN AMRO Holding NV and Lehman Brothers Holding Inc. will lead manage the sale. A roadshow is scheduled for next month, he said. No more details were available. Today, Winbond rose NT$1.30 to NT$41.90 and was the most actively traded share by value.