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Strategies & Market Trends : Telebras (TBH) & Brazil -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Bob Howarth who wrote (11839)	1/15/1999 2:32:00 PM
From: Steve Fancy	Respond to of 22640

Good to hear ya smilin again Bob. Wirelines will be the place to be. I still think TNE has far greater short term potential than TSP. UBB second, TSP third, TCS forth, EMT unknown, probably somewhere inbetween. Cellulars I won't venture a guess, but still keeping an eye on TCP. sf

To: Bob Howarth who wrote (11839)	1/15/1999 2:35:00 PM
From: Steve Fancy	Respond to of 22640

TBH may actually challenge TBR's old record volume of around 11.5 million shares. I don't think it's traded more than 3.5-4 million shares since the spin-offs. Definitely some short covering going on here. sf

To: Bob Howarth who wrote (11839)	1/15/1999 2:37:00 PM
From: Steve Fancy	Respond to of 22640

Brazil gets vote of confidence from intl phone cos Reuters, Friday, January 15, 1999 at 13:34 SAO PAULO, Jan 15 (Reuters) - Brazil got a vote of confidence Friday from multinational telephone companies when they announced big investment plans in the country even as its currency plunged another 12 percent Friday against the dollar. Britain's National Grid (ISEL:NGG) led a group including Sprint Corp. (NYSE:FON) and France Telecom (SBF:FTE) that bought a concession to operate a long-distance telephone network in Brazil for 55 million reais. At midday Friday, the volatile Brazilan currency was trading around 1.50 the dollar. Giant U.S. long-distance operator Sprint said that the group also plans invest another "multi-billion dollar" amount to develop the network. "These investments are a demonstration of our confidence in the future of Brazil," John Berndt, president of Sprint's international unit, told reporters after the company bought the concession. Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) do Brasil, Bell Canada International (TSE:BI), and Brazilian industrial group Vicunha bought a concession for 60 million reais Friday to operate a fixed-line service that will compete with Tele Norte Leste (SAO:TNLP4). The wireless communications giant denied any concern over a sharp accumulated currency devaluation of around 20 percent in the last three days. "We are absolutely confident, we are certain that this problem will pass," said Almeida Rodrigues, president of Qualcomm do Brasil who announced initial investments of more than 1 billion to set up the fixed-line network. "Those who invest in telecommunications aren't thinking in the short term, they're thinking over the next 15 or 20 years," he said. Anatel telecommunications watchdog agency said the two groups will invest more than 3 billion reais over the next three years. Brazil hopes to sell two more licenses in March to operate fixed-line "mirror" telephone companies that will also compete with former Telebras units that were privatized last July. shasta.darlington@reuters.com)) -- Copyright 1999, Reuters News Service

To: Bob Howarth who wrote (11839)	1/15/1999 2:39:00 PM
From: Steve Fancy	Respond to of 22640

Now that the mirror licenses are out of the way for TNE and EMT, I bet we hear plans next week from BNDES on selling off the remaining stake of TNE. This will likely really move the stock. This stock should outperform the rest for a while yet. sf

To: Bob Howarth who wrote (11839)	1/15/1999 2:42:00 PM
From: Steve Fancy	Read Replies (5) \| Respond to of 22640

(UPDATE) Despite Financial Turbulence, Brazil Awards 2 More Telecom Licenses Dow Jones Online News, Friday, January 15, 1999 at 14:28 NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- Although Brazil faces daunting financial challenges after allowing its currency to float, the government Friday completed an auction of two telecommunications licenses. The licenses, aimed at establishing competitors for units of the former Telecomunicacoes Brasileiras SA, or Telebras, were awarded to separate consortiums led by Canadian company BCE Inc.'s Bell Canada International Inc. unit and Britain's National Grid PLC. The response was underwhelming for the "mirror" concessions. The low-key bidding stands in sharp contrast to the wildly successful, $19 billion auction of Telebras's assets last summer. Brazil granted the National Grid group, which also includes Sprint Corp. and France Telecom SA, a concession to operate a long-distance service provider. It will go up against Embratel Participacoes SA (EMT), owned by MCI Worldcom Inc. (WCOM). The government awarded a license to the BCE group, which also includes Qualcomm Inc. (QCOM) and local firms, to provide local service to 16 Brazilian states. This new company, named Canbra, will compete with the Tele Norte Leste Participacoes SA (TNL), which was bought last summer by a group headed by Brazilian construction company Andrade Gutierrez. Only three groups submitted proposals to participate in the auction by the Dec. 11 deadline. Officials had expected at least six bidders. No proposals were submitted to compete against Telesp Participacoes SA, the wireline unit purchased by Spain's Telefonica SA. The concession should have been attractive to bidders, as the company serves Sao Paulo, Brazil's most populous and wealthiest state. There were also no bidders for the mirror concession to compete against Tele Centro Sul Participacoes SA (TCS), which serves the prosperous southern states of the country and was acquired in July by Telecom Italia SpA. While the slim turnout is a letdown, analysts said local markets are looking for any positive piece of news after a week of turmoil in financial markets. The nation set no minimum prices for the mirror companies, saying this would "guarantee a wider coverage and a better quality of the services." Bell Canda said its winning bid was valued at about 62 million Canadian dollars (US$40.6 million). Bell Canada owns a 34.4% interest in the consortium and is joined by WLL International Inc. with 34.4%, Qualcomm (QCOM) with 16.2%, the Liberman Group of Argentina with 12.5%, and the Vicunha Group of Brazil with 2.5%. The consortium plans to invest $1 billion in developing the lines. The National Grid-led consortium agreed to pay 55 million reals (US$36.7 million) for its concession. Investors world-wide have been fleeing emerging markets, and Brazil has been caught in the crosscurrents. Brazil's current account deficit hovers at nearly 4% of gross domestic product. The country's failure to cut government operating expenses, particularly civil service costs, has put the country in a difficult position. Still, many phone companies covet the Brazilian market. BellSouth Corp. (BLS), the Atlanta-based Baby Bell phone company, leads a group of companies that bid more than $3 billion in 1997 to win coveted licenses to operate cellular-phone networks in Sao Paulo and a six-state region in northeast Brazil. Brazil offers a large population that is highly concentrated in urban areas, making it an ideal operating field for cellular and other types of telephone services. Many telecom firms view wireless communications as a way for underdeveloped countries to leapfrog past the need to build costly wired systems. Copyright (c) 1999 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.