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To: Little Joe who wrote (30003)	3/14/1999 12:30:00 PM
From: goldsnow	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 116762

Little Joe, although I would not use WB as an indicator of the future market direction (He is not God) I would submit that Oil/Gold will move 4-6 month before Inflation will arrive...The bottom that both have clearly found let me to believe that deflation/depression tsunami is now moved from off-shore away into the open ocean

To: Little Joe who wrote (30003)	3/14/1999 12:34:00 PM
From: goldsnow	Respond to of 116762

did you trade your Suburban for Electric Car? If not think again with all this mergers, cut-backs in production and re-inflating efforts..:) SKorea refiners SK,Ssangyong well matched-analysts 02:46 a.m. Mar 14, 1999 Eastern By Jean Yoon SEOUL, March 14 (Reuters) - An impending marriage of top South Korean oil refiners SK Corp and Ssangyong Oil Refining Co will likely be a good match with the power to control the industry, analysts said. Cash-strapped Ssangyong Group announced last week it would sell its oil subsidiary to SK Group, owner of the country's largest refiner. The contract would be signed after Ssangyong consulted with Saudi Aramco, its partner in Ssangyong Oil. Aramco said on Sunday it had not yet approved the deal and would only do so ''if its concerns can be satisfactorily resolved.'' ''SK's takeover of Ssangyong Oil is a win-win deal that will benefit both,'' said Lee Sung-won, LG Securities energy analyst. ''There is more to gain than lose from the deal.'' Analysts said the tie-up would yield a refinery giant with a combined capacity of 1.34 million barrels per day (bpd) and nearly half of the domestic market share. Ssangyong, Korea's third largest oil refiner, has a capacity of 525,000 bpd and a 13 percent market share, while SK has 810,000 bpd capacity and a 34 percent share. ''The combined 50 percent market share will create a bully that can dictate domestic prices,'' said Harrison Hwang, an energy analyst at SG Securities. ''This would allow SK to maintain stable operating profits.'' Unlisted LG-Caltex Corp, with a 32 percent market share, is the country's second largest refiner. LG-Caltex is a joint venture between LG Group and Caltex Petroleum Corp, itself a joint venture between U.S. oil giants Texaco Inc and Chevron Corp. The SK takeover of Ssangyong also could rule out future price wars that cut into refiners' margins. Ssangyong Oil had frequently led price battles to raise its market share. Ssangyong has been the country's most aggressive exporter due to its lack of domestic market share. SK, which has focused on profitable domestic markets, can sell Ssangyong's exports locally at a better margin. Analysts said the deal would also benefit Aramco, which holds a 35 percent stake in Ssangyong Oil. ''Aramco can expand crude supply to SK, which has the country's largest capacity,'' said Lee of LG. ''It is also good for SK for a securing stable crude supplier.'' Aramco described its concerns over the deal as ''serious'' but did not elaborate. Despite its merits, the deal would go against SK's ambition to slash its debt by one trillion won ($813 million) this year. ''SK will have to carry an extra financial burden at a time when it is aiming to improve its finances,'' said SG's Hwang. Ssangyong Group's 28.4 percent stake, which is currently held by its flagship firm Ssangyong Cement Industrial Co, has been valued by some analysts at around $500 million. Local papers said Ssangyong was asking for one trillion won. ''SK is also under pressure from the government to meet the government's 200 percent debt-to-equity ratio target by the end of this year,'' said Kim Sang-bae, an energy analyst at Jardine Fleming Securities. SK carried 7.9 trillion won debt on a debt-to-equity ratio of 230 percent at the end-1998, while Ssangyong had 3.43 trillion won debt on a 215 percent ratio. Some analysts cautioned the merger might produce a big, bloated refiner that lacked both efficiency and competitiveness. ''The two companies have done nothing to restructure at the time of financial crisis,'' said George Goundry, an energy analyst at ABN-Amro Securities. ''I don't think they'll change.'' ($1 - 1,230 won) Copyright 1999 Reuters Limited.