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Non-Tech : GM - General Motors -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: porcupine --''''> who wrote (203)	2/25/1999 2:03:00 AM
From: porcupine --''''>	Respond to of 543

RESEARCH ALERT-Goldman Sachs restarts GM DETROIT, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Goldman, Sachs & Co. said on Monday that it restarted coverage on General Motors Corp. with a market outperformer rating. --Goldman Sachs analyst James Irwin in a report forecast earnings for the world's largest automaker to rise to $9.00 per share in 1999 and $9.25 per share in 2000 from $5.32 in 1998. --Analysts surveyed by First Call expect GM earnings of $8.79 per share in 1999 and $9.20 per share in 2000. --Irwin said GM will benefit from cost reduction efforts, the launch of the new Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups, and rising profits in Europe from the new Astra small car and Zafira small van. --Although GM should have an outstanding first half to 1999, auto sales across the industry will weaken in the second half of the year, he said. --In addition, Toyota Motor Corp <7203.T> and Honda Motor Co Ltd <7267.T> will put more pressure on U.S. automakers with new capacity and GM's marketing incentives are likely to rise as the automaker attempts to boost its market share, he said. --"In the near term, we believe that GM will deliver strong results...In the second half, however, we believe that GM's performance will flatten out," Irwin wrote.

To: porcupine --''''> who wrote (203)	2/25/1999 2:18:00 AM
From: porcupine --''''>	Respond to of 543

GM, steelmakers reach four-year purchasing deal DETROIT, Feb 22 (Reuters) - General Motors Corp. , the single largest customer of the U.S. steel industry, said on Tuesday it has agreed to buy 18 million metric tons of steel worth $11.7 billion over four years from 40 global steelmakers. The world's largest automaker, which began negotiations with steelmakers on the pact last March, said the long-term agreement will cut costs, add more predictability to pricing and guarantee better quality. GM currently buys steel on a regional basis under one- or two-year contracts. "The length of the contracts and volume of steel they include account for more than 90 percent of our steel needs through the year 2002," said John Stiles, executive director, GM Worldwide Purchasing-Metallic. GM declined to identify the steelmakers in the agreement, but said nearly three-quarters of the steel will be purchased from U.S.-based producers. Major U.S. steelmakers that currently supply GM, including LTV Corp. , Bethlehem Steel Corp. and USX-US Steel Group , all had no comment when contacted by Reuters. GM buys about 6 million metric tons of steel annually, most of it flat-rolled steel that is used in vehicle bodies. Stiles said GM is continuing discussions with a number of steel suppliers for contracts of up to 10 years, which would further stabilize pricing, quality and availability. GM has made similar deals with other metal manufacturers. In November, the Detroit automaker reached a 10-year, multibillion-dollar deal with Alcan Aluminum Ltd. to supply aluminum and co-develop new products using the lightweight metal. Despite the increasing use of aluminum, steel's lower price and higher strength make it the dominant material in vehicles. GM planned to hold a conference call at 1100 EST (1600 GMT) on Tuesday to release further details on the steel agreement. ((Detroit newsroom, 313-870-0200))