en-ner-conll-2003/test-A/in.tsv

SOCCER - JAPAN GET LUCKY WIN , CHINA IN SURPRISE DEFEAT . Nadim Ladki AL-AIN , United Arab Emirates 1996-12-06 Japan began the defence of their Asian Cup title with a lucky 2-1 win against Syria in a Group C championship match on Friday . But China saw their luck desert them in the second match of the group , crashing to a surprise 2-0 defeat to newcomers Uzbekistan . China controlled most of the match and saw several chances missed until the 78th minute when Uzbek striker Igor Shkvyrin took advantage of a misdirected defensive header to lob the ball over the advancing Chinese keeper and into an empty net . Oleg Shatskiku made sure of the win in injury time , hitting an unstoppable left foot shot from just outside the area . The former Soviet republic was playing in an Asian Cup finals tie for the first time . Despite winning the Asian Games title two years ago , Uzbekistan are in the finals as outsiders . Two goals from defensive errors in the last six minutes allowed Japan to come from behind and collect all three points from their opening meeting against Syria . Takuya Takagi scored the winner in the 88th minute , rising to head a Hiroshige Yanagimoto cross towards the Syrian goal which goalkeeper Salem Bitar appeared to have covered but then allowed to slip into the net . It was the second costly blunder by Syria in four minutes . Defender Hassan Abbas rose to intercept a long ball into the area in the 84th minute but only managed to divert it into the top corner of Bitar 's goal . Nader Jokhadar had given Syria the lead with a well-struck header in the seventh minute . Japan then laid siege to the Syrian penalty area for most of the game but rarely breached the Syrian defence . Bitar pulled off fine saves whenever they did . Japan coach Shu Kamo said : ' ' The Syrian own goal proved lucky for us . The Syrians scored early and then played defensively and adopted long balls which made it hard for us . ' ' Japan , co-hosts of the World Cup in 2002 and ranked 20th in the world by FIFA , are favourites to regain their title here . Hosts UAE play Kuwait and South Korea take on Indonesia on Saturday in Group A matches . All four teams are level with one point each from one game .
RUGBY UNION - CUTTITTA BACK FOR ITALY AFTER A YEAR . ROME 1996-12-06 Italy recalled Marcello Cuttitta on Friday for their friendly against Scotland at Murrayfield more than a year after the 30-year-old wing announced he was retiring following differences over selection . Cuttitta , who trainer George Coste said was certain to play on Saturday week , was named in a 21-man squad lacking only two of the team beaten 54-21 by England at Twickenham last month . Stefano Bordon is out through illness and Coste said he had dropped back row Corrado Covi , who had been recalled for the England game after five years out of the national team . Cuttitta announced his retirement after the 1995 World Cup , where he took issue with being dropped from the Italy side that faced England in the pool stages . Coste said he had approached the player two months ago about a comeback . " He ended the World Cup on the wrong note , " Coste said . " I thought it would be useful to have him back and he said he would be available . I think now is the right time for him to return . " Squad : Javier Pertile , Paolo Vaccari , Marcello Cuttitta , Ivan Francescato , Leandro Manteri , Diego Dominguez , Francesco Mazzariol , Alessandro Troncon , Orazio Arancio , Andrea Sgorlon , Massimo Giovanelli , Carlo Checchinato , Walter Cristofoletto , Franco Properzi Curti , Carlo Orlandi , Massimo Cuttitta , Giambatista Croci , Gianluca Guidi , Nicola Mazzucato , Alessandro Moscardi , Andrea Castellani .
SOCCER - LATE GOALS GIVE JAPAN WIN OVER SYRIA . AL-AIN , United Arab Emirates 1996-12-06 Two goals in the last six minutes gave holders Japan an uninspiring 2-1 Asian Cup victory over Syria on Friday . Takuya Takagi headed the winner in the 88th minute of the group C game after goalkeeper Salem Bitar spoiled a mistake-free display by allowing the ball to slip under his body . It was the second Syrian defensive blunder in four minutes . Defender Hassan Abbas rose to intercept a long ball into the area in the 84th minute but only managed to divert it into the top corner of Bitar 's goal . Syria had taken the lead from their first serious attack in the seventh minute . Nader Jokhadar headed a cross from the right by Ammar Awad into the top right corner of Kenichi Shimokawa 's goal . Japan then laid siege to the Syrian penalty area and had a goal disallowed for offside in the 16th minute . A minute later , Bitar produced a good double save , first from Kazuyoshi Miura 's header and then blocked a Takagi follow-up shot . Bitar saved well again from Miura in the 37th minute , parrying away his header from a corner . Japan started the second half brightly but Bitar denied them an equaliser when he dived to his right to save Naoki Soma 's low drive in the 53rd minute . Japan : 19 - Kenichi Shimokawa , 2 - Hiroshige Yanagimoto , 3 - Naoki Soma , 4 - Masami Ihara , 5 - Norio Omura , 6 - Motohiro Yamaguchi , 8 - Masakiyo Maezono ( 7 - Yasuto Honda 71 ) , 9 - Takuya Takagi , 10 - Hiroshi Nanami , 11 - Kazuyoshi Miura , 15 - Hiroaki Morishima ( 14 - Masayuki Okano 75 ) . Syria : 24 - Salem Bitar , 3 - Bachar Srour ; 4 - Hassan Abbas , 5 - Tarek Jabban , 6 - Ammar Awad ( 9 - Louay Taleb 69 ) , 8 - Nihad al-Boushi , 10 - Mohammed Afash , 12 - Ali Dib , 13 - Abdul Latif Helou ( 17 - Ammar Rihawiy 46 ) , 14 - Khaled Zaher ; 16 - Nader Jokhadar .
FREESTYLE SKIING-WORLD CUP MOGUL RESULTS . TIGNES , France 1996-12-06 Results of the World Cup freestyle skiing moguls competition on Friday : Men 1. Jesper Ronnback ( Sweden ) 25.76 points 2. Andrei Ivanov ( Russia ) 24.88 3. Ryan Johnson ( Canada ) 24.57 4. Jean-Luc Brassard ( Canada ) 24.40 5. Korneilus Hole ( Norway ) 23.92 6. Jeremie Collomb-Patton ( France ) 23.87 7. Jim Moran ( U.S. ) 23.25 8. Dominick Gauthier ( Canada ) 22.73 9. Johann Gregoire ( France ) 22.58 10. Troy Benson ( U.S. ) 22.56 Women 1. Tatjana Mittermayer ( Germany ) 24.32 2. Candice Gilg ( France ) 24.31 3. Minna Karhu ( Finland ) 24.05 4. Tae Satoya ( Japan ) 23.75 5. Ann Battellle ( U.S. ) 23.56 6. Donna Weinbrecht ( U.S. ) 22.48 7. Liz McIntyre ( U.S. ) 22.00 8. Elena Koroleva ( Russia ) 21.77 9. Ljudmila Dymchenko ( Russia ) 21.59 10. Katleen Allais ( France ) 21.58
SOCCER - ASIAN CUP GROUP C RESULTS . AL-AIN , United Arab Emirates 1996-12-06 Results of Asian Cup group C matches played on Friday : Japan 2 Syria 1 ( halftime 0-1 ) Scorers : Japan - Hassan Abbas 84 own goal , Takuya Takagi 88 . Syria - Nader Jokhadar 7 Attendance : 10,000 . China 0 Uzbekistan 2 ( halftime 0-0 ) Scorers : Shkvyrin Igor 78 , Shatskikh Oleg 90 Attendence : 3,000 Standings ( tabulate under played , won , drawn , lost , goals for , goals against , points ) : Uzbekistan 1 1 0 0 2 0 3 Japan 1 1 0 0 2 1 3 Syria 1 0 0 1 1 2 0 China 1 0 0 1 0 2 0
CRICKET - PAKISTAN V NEW ZEALAND ONE-DAY SCOREBOARD . [ CORRECTED 14:06 GMT ] SIALKOT , Pakistan 1996-12-06 Scoreboard in the second one-day cricket international between Pakistan and New Zealand on Friday : Pakistan Saeed Anwar run out 91 ( corrects from 90 ) Zahoor Elahi b Cairns 86 ( corrects from 87 ) Ijaz Ahmad c Spearman b Vaughan 59 Inzamamul Haq st Germon b Astle 2 Wasim Akram b Harris 4 Shahid Afridi b Harris 2 Moin Khan c Astle b Harris 1 Waqar Younis st Germon b Harris 0 Saqlain Mushtaq b Harris 2 Mushtaq Ahmad not out 5 Salim Malik not out 1 Extras ( lb-8 nb-2 w-14 ) 24 Total ( for 9 wickets in 47 overs ) 277 Fall of wicket : 1-177 ( corrects from 1-178 ) 2-225 3-240 4-247 5-252 6-260 7-261 8-269 9-276 Bowling : Doull 8-1-60-0 ( w-3 ) , Kennedy 3-0-24-0 ( w-7 nb-1 ) , Cairns 8-1-35-1 ( w-2 ) , Vaughan 9-1-55-1 , Harris 10-0-42-5 ( w-1 ) , Astle 9-0-53-1 ( w-1 nb-1 ) New Zealand innings B. Young c Moin Khan b Waqar 5 C. Spearman c Moin Khan b Wasim 0 A. Parore c Ijaz Ahmad b Saqlain 37 S. Fleming c and b Afridi 88 C. Cairns b Saqlain 10 N. Astle c Ijaz Ahmad b Salim Malik 20 C. Harris lbw b Wasim 22 L. Germon lbw b Afridi 2 J. Vaughan c Moin Khan b Wasim 13 S. Doull c subs ( M. Wasim ) b Waqar 1 R. Kennedy not out 7 Extras ( b-9 lb-3 w-12 nb-2 ) 26 Total ( all out in 42.1 overs ) 231 Fall of wickets : 1-3 2-7 3-125 4-146 5-170 6-190 7-195 8-213 9-216 . Bowling : Wasim Akram 8.1-0-43-3 ( 9w , 1nb ) , Waqar Younis 6-0-32-2 ( 2w , 1nb ) , Saqlain Mushtaq 8-0-54-2 , Mushtaq Ahmad 10-0-42-0 ( 1w ) , Shahid Afridi 7-0-40-2 , Salim Malik 2.5-0-8-1 , Ijaz Ahmad 0.1-0-0-0 . Result : Pakistan won by 46 runs . Third one-day match : December 8 , in Karachi .
SOCCER - ENGLISH F.A. CUP SECOND ROUND RESULT . LONDON 1996-12-06 Result of an English F.A. Challenge Cup second round match on Friday : Plymouth 4 Exeter 1
SOCCER - BLINKER BAN LIFTED . LONDON 1996-12-06 Dutch forward Reggie Blinker had his indefinite suspension lifted by FIFA on Friday and was set to make his Sheffield Wednesday comeback against Liverpool on Saturday . Blinker missed his club 's last two games after FIFA slapped a worldwide ban on him for appearing to sign contracts for both Wednesday and Udinese while he was playing for Feyenoord . FIFA 's players ' status committee , meeting in Barcelona , decided that although the Udinese document was basically valid , it could not be legally protected . The committee said the Italian club had violated regulations by failing to inform Feyenoord , with whom the player was under contract . Blinker was fined 75,000 Swiss francs ( $ 57,600 ) for failing to inform the Engllsh club of his previous commitment to Udinese .
SOCCER - LEEDS ' BOWYER FINED FOR PART IN FAST-FOOD FRACAS . LONDON 1996-12-06 Leeds ' England under-21 striker Lee Bowyer was fined 4,500 pounds ( $ 7,400 ) on Friday for hurling chairs at restaurant staff during a disturbance at a McDonald 's fast-food restaurant . Bowyer , 19 , who was caught in the act by security cameras , pleaded guilty to a charge of affray at a court in London . He was fined and ordered to pay a total of 175 pounds to two members of staff injured in the fracas in an east London restaurant in October . Leeds had already fined Bowyer 4,000 pounds ( $ 6,600 ) and warned him a repeat of his criminal behaviour could cost him his place in the side . Bowyer , who moved to the Yorkshire club in August for 3.5 million pounds ( $ 5.8 million ) , was expected to play against Middlesbrough on Saturday .
BASKETBALL - EUROLEAGUE STANDINGS . LONDON 1996-12-06 Standings in the men 's EuroLeague basketball championship after Thursday 's matches ( tabulate under played , won , lost , points ) : Group A CSKA Moscow ( Russia 9 6 3 15 Stefanel Milan ( Italy ) 9 6 3 15 Maccabi Tel Aviv ( Israel ) 9 5 4 14 Ulker Spor ( Turkey ) 9 4 5 13 Limoges ( France ) 9 3 6 12 Panionios ( Greece ) 9 3 6 12 Group B Teamsystem Bologna ( Italy ) 9 7 2 16 Olympiakos ( Greece ) 9 5 4 14 Cibona Zagreb ( Croatia ) 9 5 4 14 Alba Berlin ( Germany ) 9 5 4 14 Estudiantes Madrid ( Spain ) 9 5 4 14 Charleroi ( Belgium ) 9 0 9 9 Group C Panathinaikos ( Greece ) 9 7 2 16 Ljubljana ( Slovenia ) 9 6 3 15 Villeurbanne ( France ) 9 6 3 15 Barcelona ( Spain ) 9 4 5 13 Split ( Croatia ) 9 4 5 13 Bayer Leverkusen ( Germany ) 9 0 9 9 Group D Efes Pilsen ( Turkey ) 9 7 2 16 Pau-Orthez ( France ) 9 5 4 14 Partizan Belgrade ( Yugoslavia ) 9 5 4 14 Kinder Bologna ( Italy ) 9 4 5 13 Sevilla ( Spain ) 9 4 5 13 Dynamo Moscow ( Russia ) 9 2 7 11
RUGBY UNION - LITTLE TO MISS CAMPESE FAREWELL . Robert Kitson LONDON 1996-12-06 Centre Jason Little will miss Australia 's end-of-tour fixture against the Barbarians at Twickenham on Saturday . Little has opted not to risk aggravating the knee injury which ruled him out of a large chunk of the tour and is replaced by fellow Queenslander Daniel Herbert . Owen Finegan has recovered from the knocks he took in last weekend 's test against Wales and retains his place in the back-row ahead of Daniel Manu . The Wallabies have their sights set on a 13th successive victory to end their European tour with a 100 percent record but also want to turn on the style and provide David Campese with a fitting send-off in his final match in Australian colours . The Wallabies currently have no plans to make any special presentation to the 34-year-old winger but a full house of 75,000 spectators will still gather in the hope of witnessing one last moment of magic . Campese will be up against a familiar foe in the shape of Barbarians captain Rob Andrew , the man who kicked Australia to defeat with a last-ditch drop-goal in the World Cup quarter-final in Cape Town . " Campo has a massive following in this country and has had the public with him ever since he first played here in 1984 , " said Andrew , also likely to be making his final Twickenham appearance . On tour , Australia have won all four tests against Italy , Scotland , Ireland and Wales , and scored 414 points at an average of almost 35 points a game . League duties restricted the Barbarians ' selectorial options but they still boast 13 internationals including England full-back Tim Stimpson and recalled wing Tony Underwood , plus All Black forwards Ian Jones and Norm Hewitt . Teams : Barbarians - 15 - Tim Stimpson ( England ) ; 14 - Nigel Walker ( Wales ) , 13 - Allan Bateman ( Wales ) , 12 - Gregor Townsend ( Scotland ) , 11 - Tony Underwood ( England ) ; 10 - Rob Andrew ( England ) , 9 - Rob Howley ( Wales ) ; 8 - Scott Quinnell ( Wales ) , 7 - Neil Back ( England ) , 6 - Dale McIntosh ( Pontypridd ) , 5 - Ian Jones ( New Zealand ) , 4 - Craig Quinnell ( Wales ) , 3 - Darren Garforth ( Leicester ) , 2 - Norm Hewitt ( New Zealand ) , 1 - Nick Popplewell ( Ireland ) . Australia - 15 - Matthew Burke ; 14 - Joe Roff , 13 - Daniel Herbert , 12 - Tim Horan ( captain ) , 11 - David Campese ; 10 - Pat Howard , 9 - Sam Payne ; 8 - Michael Brial , 7 - David Wilson , 6 - Owen Finegan , 5 - David Giffin , 4 - Tim Gavin , 3 - Andrew Blades , 2 - Marco Caputo , 1 - Dan Crowley .
GOLF - ZIMBABWE OPEN SECOND ROUND SCORES . HARARE 1996-12-06 Leading second round scores in the Zimbabwe Open at the par-72 Chapman Golf Club on Friday ( South African unless stated ) : 132 Des Terblanche 65 67 133 Mark McNulty ( Zimbabwe ) 72 61 134 Steve van Vuuren 65 69 136 Nick Price ( Zimbabwe ) 68 68 , Justin Hobday 71 65 , Andrew Pitts ( U.S. ) 69 67 138 Mark Cayeux ( Zimbabwe ) 69 69 , Mark Murless 71 67 139 Hennie Swart 75 64 , Andrew Park 72 67 140 Schalk van der Merwe ( Namibia ) 67 73 , Desvonde Botes 72 68 , Greg Reid 72 68 , Clinton Whitelaw 70 70 , Brett Liddle 75 65 , Hugh Baiocchi 73 67 141 Adilson da Silva ( Brazil ) 72 69 , Sammy Daniels 73 68 , Trevor Dodds ( Namibia ) 72 69 142 Don Robertson ( U.S. ) 73 69 , Dion Fourie 69 73 , Steve Waltman 72 70 , Ian Dougan 73 69
SOCCER - UNCAPPED PLAYERS CALLED TO FACE MACEDONIA . BUCHAREST 1996-12-06 Romania trainer Anghel Iordanescu called up three uncapped players on Friday in his squad to face Macedonia next week in a World Cup qualifier . Midfielder Valentin Stefan and striker Viorel Ion of Otelul Galati and defender Liviu Ciobotariu of National Bucharest are the newcomers for the European group eight clash in Macedonia on December 14 . Iordanescu said he had picked them because of their good performances in the domestic championship in which National Bucharest are top and Otelul Galati third . " I think it 's fair to give them a chance , " he told reporters . League title-holders Steaua Bucharest , who finished bottom of their Champions ' League group in the European Cup , have only two players in the squad . Attacking midfielder Adrian Ilie , who recently moved from Steaua to Turkish club Galatasaray , is ruled out after two yellow-card offences . Squad : Goalkeepers - Bogdan Stelea , Florin Prunea . Defenders - Dan Petrescu , Daniel Prodan , Anton Dobos , Cornel Papura , Liviu Ciobotariu , Tibor Selymess , Iulian Filipescu . Midfielders - Gheorghe Hagi , Gheorghe Popescu , Constantin Galca , Valentin Stefan , Basarab Panduru , Dorinel Munteanu , Ovidiu Stinga . Forwards - Ioan Vladoiu , Gheorghe Craioveanu , Ionel Danciulescu , Viorel Ion . REUTER
SOCCER - BRAZILIAN CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS . RIO DE JANEIRO 1996-12-05 Results of Brazilian soccer championship semifinal , first leg matches on Thursday . Goias 1 Gremio 3 Portuguesa 1 Atletico Mineiro 0
CRICKET - LARA ENDURES ANOTHER MISERABLE DAY . Robert Galvin MELBOURNE 1996-12-06 Australia gave Brian Lara another reason to be miserable when they beat West Indies by five wickets in the opening World Series limited overs match on Friday . Lara , disciplined for misconduct on Wednesday , was dismissed for five to extend a disappointing run of form on tour . Australia , who hold a 2-0 lead in the five-match test series , overhauled West Indies ' total of 172 all out with eight balls to spare to end a run of six successive one-day defeats . All-rounder Greg Blewett steered his side to a comfortable victory with an unbeaten 57 in 90 balls to the delight of the 42,442 crowd . Man-of-the match Blewett came to the wicket with the total on 70 for two and hit three fours during an untroubled innings lasting 129 minutes . His crucial fifth-wicket partnership with fellow all-rounder Stuart Law , who scored 21 , added 71 off 85 balls . Lara looked out of touch during his brief stay at the crease before chipping a simple catch to Shane Warne at mid-wicket . West Indies tour manager Clive Lloyd has apologised for Lara 's behaviour on Tuesday . He ( Lara ) had told Australia coach Geoff Marsh that wicketkeeper Ian Healy was unwelcome in the visitors ' dressing room . The Melbourne crowd were clearly angered by the incident , loudly jeering the West Indies vice-captain as he walked to the middle . It was left to fellow left-hander Shivnarine Chanderpaul to hold the innings together with a gritty 54 despite the handicap of an injured groin . Chanderpaul was forced to rely on a runner for most of his innings after hurting himself as he scurried back to his crease to avoid being run out . Pakistan , who arrive in Australia later this month , are the other team competing in the World Series tournament .
CRICKET - AUSTRALIA V WEST INDIES WORLD SERIES SCOREBOARD . MELBOURNE 1996-12-06 Scoreboard in the World Series limited overs match between Australia and West Indies on Friday : West Indies S. Campbell c Healy b Gillespie 31 R. Samuels c M. Waugh b Gillespie 7 B. Lara c Warne b Moody 5 S. Chanderpaul c Healy b Blewett 54 C. Hooper run out 7 J. Adams lbw b Moody 5 J. Murray c Blewett b Warne 24 N. McLean c and b M. Waugh 7 K. Benjamin b Warne 8 C. Ambrose run out 2 C. Walsh not out 8 Extras ( lb-10 w-1 nb-3 ) 14 Total ( 49.2 overs ) 172 Fall of wickets : 1-11 2-38 3-64 4-73 5-81 6-120 7-135 8-150 9-153 . Bowling : Reiffel 10-2-26-0 ( nb-3 ) , Gillespie 10-0-39-2 , Moody 10-1-25-2 , Blewett 6.2-0-27-1 , Warne 10-0-34-2 ( w-1 ) , M. Waugh 3-0-11-1 . Australia M. Taylor b McLean 29 M. Waugh c Murray b Benjamin 27 R. Ponting lbw McLean 5 G. Blewett not out 57 M. Bevan st Murray b Hooper 3 S. Law b Hooper 21 T. Moody not out 3 Extras ( lb-17 nb-8 w-3 ) 28 Total ( for five wickets , 48.4 overs ) 173 Fall of wickets : 1-59 2-70 3-78 4-90 5-160 . Did not bat : I. Healy , P. Reiffel , S. Warne , J. Gillespie . Bowling : Ambrose 10-3-19-0 ( 2nb 1w ) , Walsh 9-0-34-0 ( 4nb ) , Benjamin 9.4-0-43-1 ( 1nb 1w ) , Hooper 10-0-27-2 ( 1nb ) , McLean 10-1-33-2 ( 1w ) . Result : Australia won by five wickets .
CRICKET - AUSTRALIA BEAT WEST INDIES BY FIVE WICKETS . MELBOURNE 1996-12-06 Australia beat West Indies by five wickets in a World Series limited overs match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday . Scores : West Indies 172 all out in 49.2 overs ( Shivnarine Chanderpaul 54 ) ; Australia 173-5 in 48.4 overs ( Greg Blewett 57 not out ) .
CRICKET - WEST INDIES 172 ALL OUT IN 49.2 OVERS V AUSTRALIA . MELBOURNE 1996-12-06 West Indies were all out for 172 off 49.2 overs in the World Series limited overs match against Australia on Friday .
CRICKET - SHEFFIELD SHIELD SCORE . HOBART , Australia 1996-12-06 Score on the first day of the four-day Sheffield Shield match between Tasmania and Victoria at Bellerive Oval on Friday : Tasmania 352 for three ( David Boon 106 not out , Shaun Young 86 not out , Michael DiVenuto 119 ) v Victoria .
CRICKET - LARA SUFFERS MORE AUSTRALIAN TOUR MISERY . MELBOURNE 1996-12-06 West Indies batsman Brian Lara suffered another blow to his Australian tour , after already being disciplined for misconduct , when he was dismissed cheaply in the first limited overs match against Australia on Friday . Lara , who earned a stern rebuke from his own tour management after an angry outburst against Australia wicketkeeper Ian Healy , scored five to prolong a run of poor form with the bat . The West Indies vice-captain struggled for timing during his 36-minute stay at the crease before chipping a ball from medium pacer Tom Moody straight to Shane Warne at mid-wicket . West Indies were 53 for two in 15 overs when rain stopped play at the Melbourne Cricket Ground after captain Courtney Walsh won the toss and elected to bat . Lara 's outburst three days ago has clearly turned some of the Australian public against him . As he walked to the wicket he was greeted by loud jeers from sections of the crowd . On several occasions during his innings , the crowd joined together in a series of obscene chants against him . Tour manager Clive Lloyd on Wednesday apologised for Lara 's behaviour in confronting Australia coach Geoff Marsh in the opposition dressing room to protest against his dismissal in the second test on Tuesday . Lloyd did not say what form the discipline would take . Lara , who holds the record for the highest score in test and first-class cricket , was unhappy about Healy 's role in the incident and questioned whether the ball had carried to the Australia keeper . Australia went on to win the match at the Sydney Cricket Ground by 124 runs to take a two-nil lead in the five-test series after Lara failed in both innings . Lara has yet to score a century since West Indies arrived in Australia five weeks ago . Both West Indies and Australia team management have played down the incident , stressing that relations between the two sides have not been adversely affected . Pakistan , who arrive next week , are the third team in the triangular World Series tournament .
CRICKET - WEST INDIES TO BAT AFTER WINNING THE TOSS . MELBOURNE 1996-12-06 West Indies captain Courtney Walsh elected to bat after winning the toss in the first match in the World Series limited overs competition against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday . Teams : Australia - Mark Taylor ( captain ) , Mark Waugh , Ricky Ponting , Greg Blewett , Michael Bevan , Stuart Law , Tom Moody , Ian Healy , Paul Reiffel , Shane Warne , Jason Gillespie , Glenn McGrath 12th man . West Indies - Sherwin Campbell , Robert Samuels , Brian Lara , Shivnarine Chanderpaul , Carl Hooper , Jimmy Adams , Junior Murray , Nixon McLean , Kenneth Benjamin , Curtly Ambrose , Courtney Walsh ( captain ) , Roland Holder 12th man .
BADMINTON - WORLD GRAND PRIX RESULTS . BALI 1996-12-06 Results in last of the group matches at the World Grand Prix badminton finals on Friday : Men 's singles Group B Chen Gang ( China ) beat Martin Londgaard Hansen ( Denmark ) 15-12 15-6 Dong Jiong ( China ) beat Thomas Stuer-Lauridsen ( Denmark ) 15-10 15-6 Indra Wijaya ( Indonesia ) beat Ong Ewe Hock ( Malaysia ) 5-15 15-11 15-11 Group C Sun Jun ( China ) beat Rashid Sidek ( Malaysia ) 15-12 17-14 Hermawan Susanto ( Indonesia ) beat Soren B. Nielsen ( Denmark ) 15-8 15-2 Group D Allan Budi Kuksuma ( Indonesia ) beat Poul-Erik Hoyer-Larsen ( Denmark ) 15-7 15-4 Budi Santoso ( Indonesia ) beat Hu Zhilan ( China ) 15-4 15-5 Semifinals ( on Saturday ) : Fung Permadi ( Taiwan ) v Indra Wijaya ( Indonesia ) ; Sun Jun ( China ) v Allan Budi Kusuma ( Indonesia ) Women 's singles Group A Gong Zhichao ( China ) beat Mia Audina ( Indonesia ) 11-2 12-10 Group B Ye Zhaoying ( China ) beat Meiluawati ( Indonesia ) 11-6 12-10 Group C Camilla Martin ( Denmark ) beat Wang Chen ( China ) 11-0 12-10 Group D Susi Susanti ( Indonesia ) beat Han Jingna ( China ) 11-5 11-4 . Semifinals ( on Saturday ) : Susi Susanti ( Indonesia ) v Camilla Martin ( Denmark ) ; Ye Zhaoying ( China ) v Gong Zichao ( China ) .
SOCCER - ARAB CONTRACTORS WIN AFRICAN CUP WINNERS ' CUP . CAIRO 1996-12-06 Result of the second leg of the African Cup Winners ' Cup final at the National stadium on Friday : Arab Contractors ( Egypt ) 4 Sodigraf ( Zaire ) 0 ( halftime 2-0 ) Scorers : Aly Ashour 7 , 56 penalty , Mohamed Ouda 24 , 73 Contractors won 4-0 on aggregate .
NHL ICE HOCKEY - STANDINGS AFTER THURSDAY 'S GAMES . NEW YORK 1996-12-06 Standings of National Hockey League teams after games played on Thursday ( tabulate under won , lost , tied , goals for , goals against , points ) : EASTERN CONFERENCE NORTHEAST DIVISION W L T GF GA PTS HARTFORD 12 7 6 77 76 30 BUFFALO 13 12 1 77 76 27 BOSTON 10 11 4 74 84 24 MONTREAL 10 14 4 96 103 24 PITTSBURGH 9 13 3 81 91 21 OTTAWA 7 11 6 62 72 20 ATLANTIC DIVISION W L T GF GA PTS FLORIDA 17 4 6 83 53 40 PHILADELPHIA 14 12 2 75 75 30 NEW JERSEY 14 10 1 61 61 29 WASHINGTON 13 12 1 69 66 27 NY RANGERS 10 13 5 91 81 25 NY ISLANDERS 7 11 8 65 72 22 TAMPA BAY 8 15 2 69 81 18 WESTERN CONFERENCE CENTRAL DIVISION W L T GF GA PTS DETROIT 15 9 4 81 53 34 DALLAS 16 9 1 74 60 33 CHICAGO 12 12 3 71 67 27 ST LOUIS 13 14 0 78 81 26 TORONTO 11 15 0 76 89 22 PHOENIX 9 13 4 61 74 22 PACIFIC DIVISION W L T GF GA PTS COLORADO 17 6 4 97 56 38 VANCOUVER 14 11 1 84 83 29 EDMONTON 13 14 1 94 88 27 LOS ANGELES 11 13 3 72 83 25 SAN JOSE 10 13 4 69 87 24 CALGARY 10 16 2 65 77 22 ANAHEIM 9 14 4 73 86 22 FRIDAY , DECEMBER 6 ANAHEIM AT BUFFALO TORONTO AT NY RANGERS PITTSBURGH AT WASHINGTON MONTREAL AT CHICAGO PHILADELPHIA AT DALLAS ST LOUIS AT COLORADO OTTAWA AT EDMONTON
NHL ICE HOCKEY - THURSDAY 'S RESULTS . [ CORRECTED 08:40 GMT ] NEW YORK 1996-12-06 ( Corrects headline from NBA to NHL and corrects team name in second result from La Clippers to Ny Islanders . ) Results of National Hockey League games on Thursday ( home team in CAPS ) : Hartford 4 BOSTON 2 FLORIDA 4 Ny Islanders 2 NEW JERSEY 2 Calgary 1 Phoenix 3 ST LOUIS 0 Tampa Bay 2 LOS ANGELES 1
NFL AMERICAN FOOTBALL-COLTS CLOBBER EAGLES TO STAY IN PLAYOFF HUNT . INDIANAPOLIS 1996-12-06 The injury-plagued Indianapolis Colts lost another quarterback on Thursday but last year 's AFC finalists rallied together to shoot down the Philadelphia Eagles 37-10 in a showdown of playoff contenders . Marshall Faulk rushed for 101 yards and two touchdowns and Jason Belser returned an interception 44 yards for a score as the Colts improved to 8-6 , the same mark as the Eagles , who lost for the fourth time in five games . Paul Justin , starting for the sidelined Jim Harbaugh , was 14-of-23 for 144 yards and a touchdown for the the Colts , who played their last home game of the season . Indianapolis closes with games at Kansas City and Cincinnati . The Eagles were held without a touchdown until the final five seconds . Philadelphia , which fell from an NFC East tie with the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Redskins , go on the road against the New York Jets and then entertain Arizona . The loss by Philadelphia allowed the idle Green Bay Packers ( 10-3 ) to clinch the first NFC playoff berth . The Colts won despite the absence of injured starting defensive tackle Tony Siragusa , cornerback Ray Buchanan and linebacker Quentin Coryatt . Faulk carried 16 times , including a 13-yard TD run in the first quarter and a seven-yard score early in the final period . Justin made his second straight start for Harbaugh , who has a knee injury . Justin suffered a sprained right shoulder in the third quarter and did not return . Third-stringer Kerwin Bell , a 1988 draft choice of the Miami Dolphins , made his NFL debut and was 5-of-5 for 75 yards , including a 20-yard scoring strike to Marvin Harrison in the third period . A 39-yard interference penalty against Philadelphia 's Troy Vincent set up Faulk 's first score around left end that capped an 80-yard march 5:17 into the game and the rout was on . Eagles quarterback Ty Detmer was 17-of-34 for 182 yards before he was benched . Ricky Watters , who leads the NFC in rushing , left the game after getting kneed to the helmet after gaining 33 yards on seven carries .
NBA BASKETBALL - STANDINGS AFTER THURSDAY 'S GAMES . NEW YORK 1996-12-06 Standings of National Basketball Association teams after games played on Thursday ( tabulate under won , lost , percentage , games behind ) : EASTERN CONFERENCE ATLANTIC DIVISION W L PCT GB MIAMI 14 4 .778 - NEW YORK 10 6 .625 3 ORLANDO 8 6 .571 4 WASHINGTON 7 9 .438 6 PHILADELPHIA 7 10 .412 6 1/2 BOSTON 4 12 .250 9 NEW JERSEY 3 10 .231 8 1/2 CENTRAL DIVISION W L PCT GB CHICAGO 17 1 .944 - DETROIT 13 3 .813 3 CLEVELAND 11 5 .688 5 ATLANTA 10 8 .556 7 CHARLOTTE 8 8 .500 8 MILWAUKEE 8 8 .500 8 INDIANA 7 8 .467 8 1/2 TORONTO 6 11 .353 10 1/2 WESTERN CONFERENCE MIDWEST DIVISION W L PCT GB HOUSTON 16 2 .889 - UTAH 14 2 .875 1 MINNESOTA 7 10 .412 8 1/2 DALLAS 6 11 .353 9 1/2 DENVER 5 14 .263 11 1/2 SAN ANTONIO 3 13 .188 12 VANCOUVER 2 16 .111 14 PACIFIC DIVISION W L PCT GB SEATTLE 15 5 .750 - LA LAKERS 13 7 .650 2 PORTLAND 11 8 .579 3 1/2 LA CLIPPERS 7 11 .389 7 GOLDEN STATE 6 12 .333 8 SACRAMENTO 6 12 .333 8 PHOENIX 2 14 .125 11 FRIDAY , DECEMBER 6 NEW JERSEY AT BOSTON CLEVELAND AT DETROIT NEW YORK AT MIAMI PHOENIX AT SACRAMENTO VANCOUVER AT SAN ANTONIO MINNESOTA AT UTAH CHARLOTTE AT PORTLAND INDIANA AT GOLDEN STATE ORLANDO AT LA LAKERS
NFL AMERICAN FOOTBALL-STANDINGS AFTER THURSDAY 'S GAME . NEW YORK 1996-12-05 National Football League standings after Thursday 's game ( tabulate under won , lost , tied , points for and points against ) : AMERICAN FOOTBALL CONFERENCE EASTERN DIVISION W L T PF PA NEW ENGLAND 9 4 0 355 269 BUFFALO 9 4 0 267 215 INDIANAPOLIS 8 6 0 269 284 MIAMI 6 7 0 285 266 NY JETS 1 12 0 221 368 CENTRAL DIVISION W L T PF PA PITTSBURGH 9 4 0 299 211 HOUSTON 7 6 0 291 254 JACKSONVILLE 6 7 0 263 288 CINCINNATI 5 8 0 299 318 BALTIMORE 4 9 0 320 369 WESTERN DIVISION W L T PF PA X-DENVER 12 1 0 351 199 KANSAS CITY 9 4 0 262 230 SAN DIEGO 7 6 0 277 323 OAKLAND 6 7 0 274 234 SEATTLE 5 8 0 250 317 NATIONAL FOOTBALL CONFERENCE EASTERN DIVISION W L T PF PA DALLAS 8 5 0 254 201 WASHINGTON 8 5 0 291 251 PHILADELPHIA 8 6 0 313 302 ARIZONA 6 7 0 248 332 NY GIANTS 5 8 0 200 250 CENTRAL DIVISION W L T PF PA Y-GREEN BAY 10 3 0 346 191 MINNESOTA 7 6 0 243 245 CHICAGO 5 8 0 202 248 DETROIT 5 8 0 263 289 TAMPA BAY 4 9 0 153 243 WESTERN DIVISION W L T PF PA SAN FRANCISCO 10 3 0 325 198 CAROLINA 9 4 0 292 164 ST LOUIS 4 9 0 246 334 ATLANTA 2 11 0 234 393 NEW ORLEANS 2 11 0 184 291 X -- CLINCHED DIVISION TITLE Y -- CLINCHED PLAYOFF BERTH SUNDAY , DECEMBER 8 ST LOUIS AT CHICAGO BALTIMORE AT CINCINNATI DENVER AT GREEN BAY JACKSONVILLE AT HOUSTON NY GIANTS AT MIAMI ATLANTA AT NEW ORLEANS SAN DIEGO AT PITTSBURGH WASHINGTON AT TAMPA BAY DALLAS AT ARIZONA NY JETS AT NEW ENGLAND BUFFALO AT SEATTLE CAROLINA AT SAN FRANCISCO MINNESOTA AT DETROIT MONDAY , DECEMBER 9 KANSAS CITY AT OAKLAND
NFL AMERICAN FOOTBALL-THURSDAY 'S RESULT . NEW YORK 1996-12-05 Result of National Football League game on Thursday ( home team in CAPS ) : INDIANAPOLIS 37 Philadelphia 10
NCAA AMERICAN FOOTBALL-OHIO STATE 'S PACE FIRST REPEAT LOMBARDI AWARD WINNER . HOUSTON 1996-12-05 Ohio State left tackle Orlando Pace became the first repeat winner of the Lombardi Award Thursday night when the Rotary Club of Houston again honoured him as college football 's lineman of the year . Pace , a junior , helped Ohio State to a 10-1 record and a berth in the Rose Bowl against Arizona State . He was the most dominant offensive lineman in the country and also played defensive line in goal-line situations . Last year , Pace became the first sophomore to win the award since its inception in 1970 . Pace outdistanced three senior finalists -- Virginia Tech defensive end Cornell Brown , Arizona State offensive tackle Juan Roque and defensive end Jared Tomich of Nebraska . The Lombardi Award is presented to the college lineman who , in addition to outstanding effort on the field , best exemplifies the characteristics and discipline of Vince Lombardi , legendary coach of the Green Bay Packers .
SOCCER - DUTCH FIRST DIVISION RESULTS / STANDINGS . AMSTERDAM 1996-12-06 Result of Dutch first division soccer match played on Friday : RKC Waalwijk 1 Willem II Tilburg 2 Standings ( tabulate under played , won , drawn , lost , goals for , goals against , points ) : PSV Eindhoven 18 13 3 2 52 14 42 Feyenoord 17 11 3 3 29 20 36 Twente Enschede 18 10 4 4 28 15 34 Graafschap Doetinchem 18 9 3 6 29 22 30 Vitesse Arnhem 18 8 5 5 29 21 29 Ajax Amsterdam 18 7 8 3 23 16 29 Heerenveen 18 7 7 4 30 20 28 Roda JC Kerkrade 17 7 6 4 19 21 27 Utrecht 18 4 10 4 26 24 22 Volendam 18 5 6 7 20 23 21 Sparta Rotterdam 19 6 3 10 21 25 21 NAC Breda 18 6 3 9 17 29 21 Willem II Tilburg 18 5 4 9 19 31 19 Groningen 18 4 6 8 20 31 18 AZ Alkmaar 18 5 2 11 16 23 17 Fortuna Sittard 17 3 7 7 14 28 16 NEC Nijmegen 18 3 7 8 19 32 16 RKC Waalwijk 19 3 5 11 18 33 14
SOCCER - GERMAN FIRST DIVISION RESULTS / STANDINGS . BONN 1996-12-06 Results of German first division soccer matches played on Friday : Bochum 2 Bayer Leverkusen 2 Werder Bremen 1 1860 Munich 1 Karlsruhe 3 Freiburg 0 Schalke 2 Hansa Rostock 0 Standings ( tabulated under played , won , drawn , lost , goals for goals against points ) : Bayer Leverkusen 17 10 4 3 38 22 34 Bayern Munich 16 9 6 1 26 14 33 VfB Stuttgart 16 9 4 3 39 17 31 Borussia Dortmund 16 9 4 3 33 17 31 Karlsruhe 17 8 4 5 30 20 28 VfL Bochum 16 7 6 3 23 21 27 1. FC Cologne 16 8 2 6 31 27 26 Schalke 04 17 7 4 6 25 26 25 Werder Bremen 17 6 4 7 29 28 22 MSV Duisburg 16 5 4 7 16 22 19 SV 1860 Munich 17 4 6 7 25 31 18 FC St. Pauli 15 5 3 7 21 28 18 Fortuna Dusseldorf 16 5 3 8 13 24 18 Hamburger SV 16 4 5 7 20 25 17 Arminia Bielefeld 16 4 4 8 18 28 16 FC Hansa Rostock 17 4 3 10 19 26 15 Borussia Monchengladbach 16 4 3 9 12 22 15 SC Freiburg 17 4 1 12 20 40 13
SOCCER - FRENCH LEAGUE SUMMARIES . PARIS 1996-12-06 Summaries of French first division matches on Friday : Lens 0 Nantes 4 ( Japhet N'Doram 7 , Claude Makelele 42 , Jocelyn Gourvennec 67 , Christophe Pignol 72 ) . Halftime 0-2 . Attendance : 15,000 . Paris St Germain 1 ( Bruno N'Gotty 2 ) Nancy 2 ( Paul Fischer 70 , Phil Gray 89 ) . 1-0 . 30,000 .
SOCCER - DUTCH FIRST DIVISION SUMMARIES . AMSTERDAM 1996-12-06 Summary of Dutch first division soccer match played on Friday : RKC Waalwijk 1 ( Starbuck 76 ) Willem II Tilburg 2 ( Konterman 45 , Van der Vegt 77 ) . Halftime 0-1 . Attendance 5,300 .
SOCCER - FRENCH LEAGUE STANDINGS . PARIS 1996-12-06 Standings in the French first division after Friday 's matches ( tabulate under played , won , drawn , lost , goals for , against , points ) : Paris Saint-Germain 21 12 6 3 34 15 42 Monaco 20 12 5 3 36 16 41 Bordeaux 20 9 7 4 29 21 34 Strasbourg 20 11 1 8 27 27 34 Bastia 20 9 6 5 27 22 33 Auxerre 20 8 8 4 26 12 32 Metz 20 8 7 5 21 16 31 Nantes 21 7 9 5 41 25 30 Guingamp 20 7 7 6 18 18 28 Lille 20 7 7 6 22 28 28 Marseille 20 6 8 6 18 17 26 Lyon 20 6 8 6 24 31 26 Rennes 20 7 4 9 23 28 25 Lens 21 7 4 10 25 34 25 Le Havre 20 5 7 8 20 21 22 Cannes 20 5 7 8 13 22 22 Montpellier 20 3 9 8 17 24 18 Caen 20 3 7 10 12 23 16 Nancy 21 3 7 11 14 26 16 Nice 20 3 4 13 17 38 13
SOCCER - FRENCH LEAGUE RESULTS . PARIS 1996-12-06 Results of French first division matches on Friday : Lens 0 Nantes 4 Paris St Germain 1 Nancy 2
SOCCER - GERMAN FIRST DIVISION SUMMARIES . BONN 1996-12-06 Summaries of matches played in the German first division on Friday : Bochum 2 ( Stickroth 30th pen , Wosz 89th ) Bayer Leverkusen 2 ( Kirsten 18th , Ramelow 56th ) . Halftime 1-1 . Attendance : 24,602 Werder Bremen 1 ( Bode 85th ) 1860 Munich 1 ( Bormirow 8th ) . Halftime 0-1 . Attendance 33,000 Karlsruhe 3 ( Reich 29th , Carl 44th , Dundee 69th ) Freiburg 0 . Halftime 2-0 . Attendance 33,000 Schalke 2 ( Mulder 2nd and 27th ) Hansa Rostock 0 . Halftime 2-0 . Attendance 29,300
TENNIS - GRAND SLAM CUP QUARTER-FINAL RESULTS . MUNICH , Germany 1996-12-06 Quarter-final results at the $ 6 million Grand Slam Cup tennis tournament on Friday : Goran Ivanisevic ( Croatia ) beat Mark Woodforde ( Australia ) 6-4 6-4 Yevgeny Kafelnikov ( Russia ) beat Jim Courier ( U.S. ) 2-6 6-4 8-6
SOCCER - WEAH HEAD-BUTT DEPRIVES PORTUGAL OF COSTA . LISBON 1996-12-06 Portugal called up Porto central defender Joao Manuel Pinto on Friday to face Germany in a World Cup qualifier in place of injured club colleague Jorge Costa , who is still nursing a broken nose after being head-butted by Liberian striker Georg Weah . Costa has not played since being struck by the AC Milan forward after a bad-tempered European Champions ' League game on November 27 . Portugal lead European qualifying group nine with seven points from four games , one more than Ukraine and three more than Germany , who have only played twice . The Portuguese host Germany on December 14 . Squad : Goalkeepers - Vitor Baia ( Barcelona , Spain ) , Rui Correia ( Braga ) : Defenders - Paulinho Santos ( Porto ) , Sergio Conceicao ( Porto ) , Joao Manuel Pinto ( Porto ) , Oceano Cruz ( Sporting ) , Fernando Couto ( Barcelona ) , Helder Cristovao ( Deportivo Coruna , Spain ) , Dimas Teixeira ( Juventus , Italy ) , Carlos Secretario ( Real Madrid , Spain ) : Midfielders - Rui Barros ( Porto ) , Jose Barroso ( Porto ) , Luis Figo ( Barcelona ) , Paulo Bento ( Oviedo , Spain ) , Jose Taira ( Salamanca , Spain ) : Forwards - Antonio Folha ( Porto ) , Joao Vieira Pinto ( Benfica ) , Paulo Alves ( Sporting ) , Rui Costa ( Fiorentina , Italy ) , Jorge Cadete ( Celtic Glasgow , Scotland ) .
SOCCER SHOWCASE-BETTING ON REAL MADRID V BARCELONA . MADRID 1996-12-06 William Hill betting on Saturday 's Spanish first division match between Real Madrid and Barcelona : To win : 6-5 Real Madrid ; 7-4 Barcelona Draw : 9-4 Correct score : Real Madrid to win Barcelona to win 1-0 13-2 1-0 15-2 2-0 9-1 2-0 12-1 2-1 8-1 2-1 10-1 3-0 20-1 3-0 28-1 3-1 16-1 3-1 22-1 3-2 25-1 3-2 25-1 4-0 50-1 4-0 100-1 4-1 40-1 4-1 80-1 4-2 50-1 4-2 80-1 Draw : 0-0 8-1 1-1 11-2 2-2 14-1 3-3 50-1 Double result : half-time full-time 5-2 Real Madrid Real Madrid 14-1 Real Madrid Draw 28-1 Real Madrid Barcelona 5-1 Draw Real Madrid 4-1 Draw Draw 11-2 Draw Barcelona 25-1 Barcelona Real Madrid 14-1 Barcelona Draw 4-1 Barcelona Barcelona First goalscorer of match : Real Madrid Barcelona 9-2 Davor Suker 9-2 Ronaldo 5-1 Pedrag Mijatovic 7-1 Luis Figo 7-1 Raul Gonzalez 7-1 Juan Pizzi 12-1 Fernando Redondo 9-1 Giovanni 14-1 Victor Sanchez 12-1 Guillermo Amor 16-1 Jose Amavisca 14-1 Roger Garcia 16-1 Manolo Sanchis 14-1 Gheorghe Popescu 16-1 Roberto Carlos 16-1 JosepGuardiola 20-1 Fernando Hierro 20-1 Ivan de laPena 20-1 Luis Milla 25-1 Luis Enrique 33-1 Fernando Sanz 25-1 AbelardoFernandez 40-1 Carlos Secretario 28-1 Sergi Barjuan 40-1 Rafael Alkorta 33-1 Albert Ferrer 40-1 Chendo Porlan 33-1 Miguel Nadal 40-1 Laurent Blanc
SOCCER SHOWCASE-FANS FACE BREATHALYSER TESTS , PAPER SAYS . MADRID 1996-12-06 Spanish police will breathalyse fans at the gates of the Santiago Bernabeu stadium and ban drunk supporters from Saturday 's big Real Madrid-Barcelona game , the Madrid daily El Mundo said on Friday . Although there are no known precedents in the country , the action is envisaged in Spanish legislation governing sports events . Tickets for the game stipulate that supporters will be barred if they are " under the effects of alcohol " .
SOCCER - SPANISH FIRST DIVISION STANDINGS . MADRID 1996-12-06 Standings in the Spanish first division ahead of this weekend 's games . ( tabulate under games played , won , drawn , lost , goals for , against , points ) : Real Madrid 15 10 5 0 31 12 35 Barcelona 15 10 4 1 46 19 34 Deportivo Coruna 15 9 6 0 23 7 33 Real Betis 15 8 5 2 28 13 29 Atletico Madrid 15 8 3 4 26 17 27 Athletic Bilbao 15 7 4 4 28 22 25 Real Sociedad 15 7 3 5 20 18 24 Valladolid 15 7 3 5 19 18 24 Racing Santander 15 5 7 3 15 15 22 Rayo Vallecano 15 5 5 5 21 19 20 Valencia 15 6 2 7 23 22 20 Celta Vigo 15 5 5 5 17 17 20 Tenerife 15 5 4 6 23 17 19 Espanyol 15 4 4 7 17 20 16 Oviedo 15 4 4 7 17 21 16 Sporting Gijon 15 4 4 7 15 22 16 Logrones 15 4 3 8 11 33 15 Zaragoza 15 2 8 5 18 23 14 Sevilla 15 4 2 9 13 20 14 Compostela 15 3 4 8 13 28 13 Hercules 15 2 2 11 11 29 8 Extremadura 15 1 3 11 8 30 6
SOCCER - SPAIN PICK UNCAPPED ARMANDO FOR WORLD CUP CLASH . MADRID 1996-12-06 Spain coach Javier Clemente has added uncapped Deportivo Coruna midfielder Armando Alvarez to his squad for the World Cup qualifier against Yugoslavia on December 14 . " I do n't believe it ... I thought it was a joke , " said Armando who replaces injured Atletico Madrid playmaker Jose Luis Caminero .
SOCCER - FIFA BOSS HAVELANGE STANDS BY WEAH . ROME 1996-12-06 FIFA chairman Joao Havelange said on Friday he would personally present AC Milan George Weah with world soccer 's fair play award despite the striker 's attack on Porto captain Jorge Costa . In an interview with the Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport , he was quoted as saying Weah had been provoked into the assault which left Costa with a broken nose . " FIFA has named the Liberian for its 1996 Fair Play award and it is not going to change its decision , " Havelange said . " A reaction , provoked , cannot erase 10 years of loyalty everywhere and in every competition . " I will be happy to give him the award personally on January 20 in Lisbon and I 'm confident that Costa himself will be there beside me on that day to shake his hand . " Weah was suspended for one match by UEFA , European soccer 's governing body , pending a fuller investigation . The incident took place in the players ' tunnel after a European Champions ' League match on November 20 . Weah has admitted head butting Costa but said he reacted to racist taunts . He has offered to apologise if Costa acknowledges the provocation . Costa , who needed surgery on his nose , has not accepted the offer and was reported to be considering suing Weah . Weah served out his suspension during Milan 's 2-1 home defeat by Rosenborg of Norway on Wednesday . The defeat put the Italians out of the Europoean Cup .
GUNMEN WOUND TWO MANCHESTER UNITED FANS IN AUSTRIA . VIENNA 1996-12-06 Two Manchester United soccer fans were wounded by unidentified gunmen on Friday and taken to hospital in the Austrian capital , police said . " The four Britons were shot at from a Mercedes car at around 1 a.m. , " a spokeswoman told Reuters . The two men were hit in the pelvis and leg . Police said their lives were not in danger . The fans , in Austria to watch their team play Rapid Vienna last Wednesday , may have been involved in a pub brawl earlier , the spokeswoman said . Manchester United won 2-0 .
SOCCER - ITALIAN FIRST DIVISION MATCHES THIS WEEKEND . ROME 1996-12-06 Italian Serie A games to be played on Sunday ( league positions in parentheses , all kick- off times GMT ) : Bologna ( 4 ) v Piacenza ( 13 ) 1330 Along with leaders Vicenza , fourth-placed Bologna represent the biggest surprise of this Italian autumn . Led as usual by Swede Kennet Andersson and Russian Igor Kolyvanov in attack , Bologna can expect a tough home match against a Piacenza side still exultant after a 3-2 league win over AC Milan last Sunday . Cagliari ( 16 ) v Reggiana ( 18 ) 1530 Cagliari start favourite in this relegation scrap following draws with Napoli and Inter in last two outings but will be without suspended Swiss defender Ramon Vega . Bottom team Reggiana are also without a suspended defender , German Dietmar Beiersdorfer . Fiorentina ( 10 ) v Perugia ( 8 ) 1330 Fiorentina will be without three suspended players -- defenders Daniele Carnasciali and Lorenzo Amoruso and midfielder Emiliano Bigica -- for a difficult home match against unpredictable , attack-oriented Perugia led by in-form Croat striker Milan Rapajic and the experienced Fausto Pizzi . Lazio ( 12 ) v AS Roma ( 7 ) 1930 Poor man 's Roman derby in what has been a miserable season for both Rome teams , already eliminated from the Italian and UEFA Cups . Lazio have injury doubts about striker Pierluigi Casiraghi , Czech midfielder Pavel Nedved and defender Paolo Negro , while Roma present a full strength side led by Argentine Abel Balbo , Marco Delvecchio and Francesco Totti in attack . AC Milan ( 9 ) v Udinese ( 11 ) 1330 Can Milan sink any further ? Following their midweek Champions ' League elimination by Norwegian side Rosenborg , a morale-boosting win is badly needed . Liberian striker George Weah makes a welcome return for Milan alongside Roberto Baggio , with Montenegrin Dejan Savicevic in midfield . Good news for Milan is that Udinese 's German striker Oliver Bierhoff is out through injury . Napoli ( 5 ) v Verona ( 17 ) 1330 In-form Napoli should prove too strong for second from bottom Verona despite the absence of their suspended Argentine defender Roberto Ayala . Verona 's slim chances have been further reduced by a knee injury to their experienced midfielder Eugenio Corini . Parma ( 14 ) v Atlalanta ( 15 ) 1330 Parma may field new signing , Croat midfielder Mario Stanic , in an attempt to lift a miserable season which has seen them go without a win since a 1-0 triumph over Cagliari eight weeks ago . Parma 's French midfielder Daniel Bravo and defender Fabio Cannavaro are suspended while Argentine Nestor Sensini is out through injury . Atalanta look to Filippo Inzaghi , scorer of eight goals . Sampdoria ( 6 ) v Juventus ( 3 ) 1330 All-conquering Juventus field their most recent signing , Portuguese defender Dimas , while Alessandro Del Piero and Croat Alen Boksic lead the attack . The new world club champions may prove too strong for a Sampdoria side led by captain Roberto Mancini but missing injured French midfielder Pierre Laigle . Vicenza ( 1 ) v Internazionale ( 2 ) 1330 Not exactly a clash of the titans but an intriuguing match nonetheless . Full strength Vicenza , led by Uruguayan Marcelo Otero , may continue their surprise run at the top against an Inter side that has been less than impressive in three successive home draws . Inter will be without suspended French defender Joceyln Angloma and injured Chilean striker Ivan Zamorano .
BASKETBALL - EUROLEAGUE RESULT . BRUSSELS 1996-12-06 Result of a EuroLeague basketball match on Thursday : Group B In Charleroi : Charleroi ( Belgium ) 75 Estudiantes Madrid ( Spain ) 82 ( 34-35 ) Leading scorers : Charleroi - Eric Cleymans 18 , Ron Ellis 18 , Jacques Stas 14 Estudiantes - Harper Williams 20 , Chadler Thompson 17 , Juan Aisa 14 Group D In Belgrade : Partizan Belgrade ( Yugoslavia ) 78 Kinder Bologna ( Italy ) 70 ( halftime 44-35 ) Leading scorers : Partizan - Dejan Koturovic 21 Kinder - Zoran Savic 18
SQUASH - EYLES WITHIN SIGHT OF FIFTH TITLE OF YEAR . BOMBAY , India 1996-12-06 World number two Rodney Eyles moved within sight of his fifth title of the year on Friday when he hurried in only 40 minutes to the final of the richest squash tournament outside the World Open , the $ 105,000 Mahindra International . The Australian brushed aside unseeded Englishman Mark Cairns 15-7 15-6 15-8 . Top-seeded Eyles now meets titleholder Peter Nicol of Scotland who overcame Simon Parke of England 15-7 15-12 15-12 . Nicol was full of praise for his opponent who has battled testicular cancer to return to the circuit . " He 's a remarkably courageous player , " said Nicol .
SQUASH - MAHINDRA INTERNATIONAL SEMIFINAL RESULTS . BOMBAY , India 1996-12-06 Results of semifinals in the Mahindra International squash tournament on Friday : Peter Nicol ( Scotland ) beat Simon Parke ( England ) 15-7 15-12 15-12 Rodney Eyles ( Australia ) beat Mark Cairns ( England ) 15-7 15-6 15-8 . Final : Nicol v Eyles , on Saturday .
GUNMEN KILL FOUR IN S.AFRICA 'S ZULU PROVINCE . DURBAN , South Africa 1996-12-06 At least four people have been shot dead in two suspected political attacks in South Africa 's volatile Zulu heartland , police said on Friday . A police spokesman said two youths believed to be supporters of President Nelson Mandela 's African National Congress ( ANC ) had been killed when unknown gunmen opened fire at the rural settlement of Izingolweni on KwaZulu-Natal province 's south coast on Thursday night . The victims were 18 and 20 , he said , adding one other youth had been wounded in the shooting . In another attack , also on the province 's south coast on Thursday night , two men were shot dead near Umkomaas . " We suspect that these killings are linked to politics , " spokesman Bala Naidoo told Reuters . There had been no arrests . The killings came just hours after violence monitors said they were not optimistic of a peaceful festive season in KwaZulu-Natal and pointed the south coast region where 18 people were massacred last Christmas as one of potential hot spots . They said the recent lull in political feuding could be upset as thousands of migrant workers , some tense with grudges brewed in the cities and keen to settle old scores , flock back to their home villages . More than 14,000 people have lost their lives in over a decade of political turf wars between the ANC and Zulu Chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi 's Inkatha Freedom Party in the province .
HAVEL PRAISES CZECH NATIVE ALBRIGHT AS FRIEND . Klara Gajduskova PRAGUE 1996-12-06 Czech President Vaclav Havel on Friday welcomed the appointment of Madeleine Albright , who is of Czech extraction , as the United States ' first woman Secretary of State . In a statement Havel , who is recovering from cancer surgery , said : " Madeleine Albright is a distinguished friend , a tested diplomat , and a true American of fine origins . " " I look forward to continuing our good relations ... with the United States and with the first woman ever to hold the position of Secretary of State . I wish her well , " Havel said in a statement to Reuters . Havel , who helped lead the " velvet revolution " that ousted the Communist regime in Prague in 1989 , invited Albright , then working for a private foreign policy think tank , to advise his new democratic government in 1990 . Havel had a small malignant tumour removed from his lung on Monday and is recovering in hospital . Albright , born Marie Korbelova to a Czechoslovak diplomat in 1937 , fled with her family to the United States after the Communists came to power in a coup in 1948 . As an academic , Albright studied and lectured on Europe 's 20th century problems before becoming U.S. ambassador to the United Nations . Czech diplomats , seeking to have their country included in the expected expansion of NATO , praised the selection of Albright , known to be a strong supporter of alliance 's integration of former Soveit-bloc countries . " The nomination ... is a clear signal that one key of the lines of foreign policy will be the strengthening of the trans-Atlantic cooperation , a creation of strategic partnership between Europe and the US , " Foreign Minister Josef Zieleniec told Reuters . " ( Albright ) is a convinced advocate of NATO enlargement and of stabilisation of security structures . " Czech ambassador to the United Nations , Karel Kovanda , told the daily Mlada Fronta Dnes that Albright " is a little light in our diplomatic heaven , " but warned against expecting her to exert any influence in favour of the Czechs .
RADIO ROMANIA AFTERNOON HEALINES AT 4 PM . BUCHAREST 1996-12-06 Radio Romania news headlines : * The Democratic Convention signed an agreement on government and parliamentary support with its coalition partners the Social Democratic Union and the Hungarian Democratic Union ( UDMR ) . The ceremony was attended by President Emil Constantinescu . * The three parties in the government coalition have committed themselves to a real reform of Romania 's economy , Constantinescu said after the ceremony . * The UDMR wants to contribute to social reform and economic revival in Romania , union leader Marko Bela said . * The international airport in Timisoara and the domestic airports in Arad , Oradea and Sibiu were closed due to fog . -- Bucharest Newsroom 40-1 3120264
CZECH VICE-PM SEES WIDER DEBATE AT PARTY CONGRESS . PRAGUE 1996-12-06 Saturday 's national congress of the ruling Czech Civic Democratic Party ( ODS ) will discuss making the party more efficient and transparent , Foreign Minister and ODS vice-chairman Josef Zieleniec , said on Friday . " Modernisation and more profesionalism of the party 's structure , having financing of the party be more transparent ... are absolutely fundamental , " Zieleniec , who is also vice-premier in the government , told Reuters . He said after June general elections in which the ruling three-party coalition lost its parliamentary majority , the ODS executive , led by Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus , had developed proposals on these subjects to present at the congress on Saturday in the Czech second city Brno . " I am convinced , that the congress will tackle these proposals , " he said . The ODS , a party in which Klaus often tries to emulate the style of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher , has been in control of Czech politics since winning general elections in 1992 . Zieleniec in the summer led calls for the party and its leadership to listen to more diverse opinions , a thinly-veiled criticism of Klaus who has spearheaded the country 's post-Communist economic reforms . The party , led by the vigorously-confident Klaus , took 32 of 81 seats after late November runoff elections to the new upper house of Czech parliament . But after the first round vote a week before , the ODS had the potential to win as many 79 seats . Klaus and his coalition lost its majority in parliament in June lower house elections after the left-wing opposition consolidated , putting the centre-left Social Democrats in a strong second-place position . -- Prague Newsroom 42-2-2423-0003
POLAND GOT MONEY FROM POST-WAR SWISS ACCOUNTS . Marcin Grajewski WARSAW 1996-12-06 Poland said on Friday that Swiss bank accounts , which in many cases belonged to Polish Jews who died in the Holocaust , were used in debt settlements between the two countries after the World War Two . Foreign Minister Dariusz Rosati , unveiling first findings of a special government commission , said that in 1970s the then communist Poland received 460,000 Swiss francs from the accounts . " In 1970s , Poland received from unclaimed accounts in Switzerland a sum of 460,000 francs . What was its right ( to the money ) ...I do not know , " Rosati told a news conference . Switzerland stands accused by Senator Alfonse D'Amato , chairman of the powerful U.S. Senate Banking Committee , of agreeing to give money to Poland from unclaimed bank accounts of Polish citizens , as part of an accord on compensating Swiss nationals whose assets had been seized in communist Poland . Many of these citizens were Jews murdered during the war , when Nazi German invaders killed most of Poland 's 3.5 million Jews . Rosati did not say whether the payment in 1970s was part of the 1949 agreement between Warsaw and Switzerland on compensation to Swiss citizens whose assets were seized by the Soviet-imposed communists authorities after World War Two . " I expect that the commission will finish gathering information within two to three weeks and then more details will be provided , " Rosati said . Rosati confirmed that the 1949 agreement had provided for granting Switzerland about 53 million francs and most of this sum was repaid with coal exports . He said , however , that Switzerland did get about 16,000 francs from the so-called " dead accounts " as part of the compensation . " About 16,000 francs were seized from accounts of four or five Polish citizens , whose data we do not precisely know . The issue is of moral and legal nature , because its financial significance is small , " Rosati said . Under pressure from international Jewish organisations , Swiss government has devised a plan to pay out millions of dollars in unclaimed bank accounts as a conciliatory gesture toward Holocaust victims . The conservative Radical Democrats ( FDP ) have said they would ask parliament next week to order Swiss banks to put some 40 million Swiss francs ( $ 31 million ) in dormant wealth into a fund earmarked for Jewish groups and charitable organisations . But Swiss banks and the country 's Jewish community voiced doubts whether the plan would work .
INTERVIEW-ZYWIEC SEES NO BIG 97 NET RISE . Steven Silber WARSAW 1996-12-06 Polish brewer Zywiec 's 1996 profit slump may last into next year due in part to hefty depreciation charges , but recent high investment should help the firm defend its 10-percent market share , the firm 's chief executive said . Company President Jean van Boxmeer told Reuters in an interview on Friday that the firm , whose net profit fell 77 percent in the first 10 months of 1996 despite a 30-percent rise in sales , might only post slightly better profits in 1997 before having a chance to make a more significant turnaround . So far this year Zywiec , whose full name is Zaklady Piwowarskie w Zywcu SA , has netted six million zlotys on sales of 224 million zlotys . It has produced 1.5 million hectolitres . Van Boxmeer would not say how much higher 1997 profits or market share could be but said sales of leading Polish brewers should rise as the country 's young urban professionals gradually switch from vodka to beer . " The perspective on growth is such that reasonably we can think that somewhere between 65 and 80 litres per year is certainly reachable , " van Boxmeer said on Polish per-capita beer consumption , currently around 40 litres . He said the 65-80-litre level could be reached in the next ten years and make Poland , with its 40-million population , Europe 's third largest beer market after Germany and Britain . Van Boxmeer said Poland 's top five brewers , which produce about 55 percent of the country 's beer , could all raise market share as some of the numerous small brewers fall to competition from the large brewers with foreign investors . Zywiec is 31.8-percent owned by Heineken while Carlsberg has the same amount in Okocim . Earlier this year South African Breweries Ltd ( SAB ) bought strategic stakes in the unlisted Lech and Tychy brewers , which together hold more than 20 percent of the market , and Australia 's Brewpole BV has a controlling stake in Poland 's larges t brewery , Elbrewery Company Ltd. ( EB ) . Van Boxmeer said the tough competition had prevented Zywiec from raising prices in line with inflation , which had added to the pressure on the firm 's margins . He said advertising costs would also increase in the fight for market share . But he said the company 's investment of more than $ 100 million already this decade , largely in production , would help position it to compete with such competitors as brewers from the neighbouring Czech Republic . Some analysts say cheaper but high-quality Czech imports could invade Poland once tariffs for CEFTA countries are lifted in 1998 , but van Boxmeer says such a threat might be exaggerated despite the Czech beer market 's overcapacity . " I think Polish consumers in general are quite proud of their beers -- and I 'm speaking about all the brands -- and as we make good beers ... I think that this fidelity to our beers is a factor which can limit the Czech beers , " he said . Van Boxmeer said Zywiec had its eye on Okocim , which has said it would start producing Carlsberg beer next year , but that Zywiec 's potential production of Heineken was a medium-term possibility rather than a short-term one . He said his firm would be better off concentrating on its leading brand , Zywiec Full Light , which accounts for 85 percent of sales and is the country 's largest-selling brand . " You will not win the war of the Polish beer market with imported international brands , " van Boxmeer said , adding that Heineken would remain an up-market import in Poland . Van Boxmeer also said Zywiec would be boosted by its recent shedding of soft drinks which only accounted for about three percent of the firm 's overall sales and for which 7.6 million zlotys in provisions had already been made . -- Warsaw Newsroom +48 22 653 9700
HAVEL HAS TRAECHEOTOMY AFTER CONDITIONS WORSENS . PRAGUE 1996-12-06 Doctors performed an emergency tracheotomy to help Czech President Vaclav Havel breathe after cancer surgery on his lungs earlier this week , a spokesman said on Friday . He said that the procedure to insert a device into Havel 's throat , done after his breathing worsened on Thursday , had helped , and the president 's condition significantly improved . " A worsening in the president 's lung functions took place yesterday , " presidential spokesman Ladlislav Spacek said in a statement . " A tracheotomy was performed and supportive breathing was installed through the help of a breathing device , " he said . " After these steps , the president 's condition signigicantly improved . " Havel has been recovering from surgery on Monday which removed a small malignant tumour and half of his right lung . Doctors after the operation said that they had caught the cancer early , and that Havel could fully recover from the surgery within six weeks . His spokesman said on Thursday that Havel , 60 and a heavy smoker , had also developed a slight case of pneumonia in the left lung .
UK-US open skies talks end , no date to restart . LONDON 1996-12-06 The UK Department of Transport on Friday said that the latest round of " open skies " talks with the U.S. had ended with no deal on liberalising the transatlantic flight market and no date set for when talks would restart . A spokesman for the DOT told Reuters " We have had talks towards concluding a new air service agreement which would produce liberalisation ... useful progress was made on a number of issues , but not all . No date has been set for further talks . "
Tambang Timah at $ 15.575 in London . LONDON 1996-12-07 PT Tambang Timah closed at $ 15.575 per GDR in London on Friday . It recorded the day 's low of $ 15.475 and the day 's high of $ 15.725 . It closed at $ 15.80 on Thursday . One Global Depository Receipt represents 10 common shares . -- Jakarta newsroom +6221 384-6364
Telkom at $ 35 in London . LONDON 1996-12-07 PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia ( Telkom ) closed at $ 35 in London on Friday . It recorded the day 's low of $ 34.475 and the day 's high of $ 35.375 . Its previous close on Thursday as $ 35.63 . One ADS represents 20 ordinary shares -- Jakarta newsroom +6221 384-6364 .
Woman charged over N. Ireland arms find . BELFAST 1996-12-06 A woman was charged on Friday with terrorist offences after three Irish Republican Army mortar bombs were found in a Belfast house , police said . Police said the bombs were found hidden with incendiaries and ammunition that were blocked up behind a kitchen wall . The 35-year-old woman was charged with possession of explosives with intent to endanger life and making a house available for the purpose of terrorism , police said . She will appear in court on Saturday . Her name was not released . Security forces said the bombs may have been intended for use in a pre-Christmas bombing campaign by the guerrilla group that is battling to oust Britain from Northern Ireland .
Britain sets conditions to clear American alliance . Edna Fernandes LONDON 1996-12-06 The British government warned Friday that it would refer the proposed trans-Atlantic alliance between British Airways Plc and American Airlines to Britain 's Monopolies and Mergers Commission unless the carriers complied with a number of conditions . Trade and Industry Secretary Ian Lang added that even if the conditions were met by both airlines , final clearance would hinge on an open skies deal between Britain and the United States to liberalise trans-Atlantic air traffic , which would create greater competition on the routes . Lang said he supported conditions proposed by Britain 's Office of Fair Trading , which was asked to examine the case last month . " I agree ... that without suitable undertakings the alliance would be likely to lead to a significant loss of actual and potential passengers , on those routes where BA and AA currently compete and for all passengers on the trans-Atlantic market route between the UK and U.S. , " he said . His comments came just minutes after the latest set of open skies talks ended in London with no deal signed . Industry sources said there was no new date for fresh talks and blamed the deadlock on uncertainty over whether the British Airways-American deal would be cleared . The conditions for clearance of the alliance were that British Airways and American drop 168 slots at London Heathrow airport , the busiest in Europe . American 's parent , AMR Corp. , said it did not view the terms as a " deal breaker . " However , it called the conditions " more severe " than those imposed by other regulatory authorities on similar airline alliances . British Airways 's initial response was that " unconditional divestiture of slots is unprecedented and if done it must be on the basis of fair market value . " It added that it would be " prepared to take reasonable steps to assist the introduction of additional competition . " The government also wants British Airways to drop a clause in its agreement with USAir that bars it from competing on trans-Atlantic routes , and said both British Airways and American should be prepared to reduce services on the London to Dallas-Fort Worth route in the event that a new entrant wishes to enter . It also suggested losing some slots on the London-to-Boston route . The Office of Fair Trade called for British Airways / American to allow third-party access to their joint frequent flyer programme where the applicant does not have access to an equivalent programme . Lang said responses should be made to the Office of Fair Trading by Jan. 10 , 1997 .
Med oil products mostly lower as Elf strike ends . LONDON 1996-12-06 Mediterranean oil products were steady to mostly lower on Friday after Elf refinery workers voted to end their nine-day strike . Gas oil erased Thursday 's gains , plunging $ 5.50 a tonne in line with the screen . Volume was very thin and market remained long , with premiums down $ 1 at about high cif quotes +$0.50 basis Genoa . " The sharp moves on the screen make everyone nervous , " a trader said . Trades were discussed in 0.2 , 0.5 and one percent heating oil into Syria and Lebanon and there were fresh inquiries from France and Spain for low sulphur diesel . Interest remains focussed on a tender by India for a second purchase of high speed diesel for January delivery . Fuel oil lost ground sharply with weaker crude , but also suffered from some pricing pressure . High sulphur cracked fuel lost about $ 3 to $ 109-111 fob Med with several cargoes threatening to overhang the market . The chance of material heading north , talked earlier this week , may be in jeopardy now since American fuel oil is expected to head transatlantic following outages at two coking units in the U.S . Up to 165,000 tonnes of fuel will have to find a new home and with the arbitrage from the U.S. to Europe open Rotterdam is a prime candidate . Low sulphur prices were lower with cif Med pegged in the mid to low $ 140s . Gasoline prices fell after striking Elf refinery workers voted to go back to work , traders said . But an open arbitrage to the U.S. and tight Italian supplies after Elf scooped up Med material over the last week , continued to underpin prices into next week .
New meningitis scare hits Britain . LONDON 1996-12-06 A boy has died from meningitis and a girl from the same school has contracted the disease in the second such scare to hit Britain in as many weeks , health authorities said on Friday . The 16-year-old who attended Sale Grammar School in the northern England city of Manchester died less than a day after becoming ill . The 15-year-old girl is also suffering from the disease and hospital officials described her condition as serious . " At the moment there is no evidence the two cases are linked . However , we are assuming they are as a precaution for the time being , " a spokeswoman said . The more than 1,260 students at the school are being given antibiotics as a precaution . Wales grappled with its own cluster of meningitis cases on a university campus in Cardiff . At least two people have died and hundreds have been vaccinated in an effort to contain the virus . In Scotland , eight people have died and hundreds more are fighting a widespread food-poisoning outbreak . A health authority spokeswoman said 78 people suspected of having the disease , including 64 confirmed cases , were still being treated . Three were listed in poor condition . More than 290 people have reported symptoms in Lanarkshire county , the worst-hit area , since the outbreak first came to light after people ate tainted meat pies at a pensioners ' lunch .
Major 's office-Conservatives still have majority . LONDON 1996-12-06 British Prime Minister John Major 's office said on Friday that rebel Conservative MP Sir John Gorst had not " resigned the whip " ( quit the parliamentary party ) and the government still had a majority in the 651-seat parliament . " He ( Gorst ) isreserving the right not to cooperate , but he has not resigned the whip . The government still has a majority , " a spokesman from Major 's office in Downing Street said . Gorst 's office said later the MP would not feel himself obliged to vote with the government . He said at one point during a press conference : " I have seen my whip ( party manager ) for next week which , of course , does n't mean very much to me now . " Before Gorst 's statement , Major had a one-seat majority in the 651-seat House of Commons lower house of parliament . In his formal statement , Gorst said : " I am today withdrawing my cooperation from the government and shall not treat the " whip ' as either a summons to attend the House of Commons or as placing me under any obligation to vote as advised . " Gorst resigned over a hospital closure in his constituency .
Electronic Data bags flight data contract . LONDON 1996-12-06 Information technology firm Electronic Data Systems said on Friday it had bagged a contract for the first air traffic control project being funded under the Private Finance Initiative . In a statement , EDS said the contract would be in the region of 50 million stg . The contract involved upgrading the flight data processing system at the Oceanic Control Centre in Prestwick in south west Scotland for National Air Traffic Services Ltd ( NATS ) , subsidiary of the Civil Aviation Authority . The system is responsible for the control of aircraft flying transatlantic routes from Europe and North America . The system , which would use satellite technology , is scheduled to enter service in 2000 . -- London Newsroom +44-171-542 7717
RTRS - Cricket - Play restarts in Australia-West Indies match . MELBOURNE 1996-12-06 Play restarted in the first World Series limited overs match between West Indies and Australia after a rain delay of 50 minutes on Friday . West Indies resumed their innings on 53 for two with opener Sherwin Campbell on 25 and Shivnarine Chanderpaul 10 . Rain earlier delayed the start of play by 30 minutes . -- Sydney Newsroom 61-2 9373-1800
Cricket - Pakistan beat New Zealand by 46 runs . SIALKOT , Pakistan 1996-12-06 Pakistan beat New Zealand by 46 runs on Friday to take an unbeatable 2-0 lead in the three-match one-day series . Scores : Pakistan 277-9 , New Zealand 231
Manitoba Pork forward contract PM prices - Dec 6 . WINNIPEG 1996-12-06 Manitoba Pork closing forward contract prices in Canadian dollars per hundred lbs ( Cwt ) for Dec 6 including minimum guaranteed price -- CONTRACT PREVIOUS CLOSE PM CLOSE PM CLOSING RANGE DATE PM CLOSE FIXED MINIMUM AT 1230 CST Feb 97 79.94 79.67 75.55 77.01-81.80 Mar 97 76.37 76.12 72.02 73.47-78.24 Apr 97 74.13 74.69 70.59 72.04-76.81 May 97 76.51 77.07 72.97 74.42-79.19 Jun 97 77.53 77.24 73.17 74.62-79.35 Jul 97 74.45 74.01 69.95 71.39-76.12 Aug 97 72.41 72.07 68.01 69.45-74.18 Sep 97 69.18 69.24 65.17 66.61-71.34 Oct 97 68.00 68.05 63.98 65.43-70.16 Nov 97 68.00 68.05 63.98 65.43-70.16 Note : Manitoba Government Price Index ( C$ per cwt ) - Dec 4 87.16 Manitoba 's Hog Price Range : 84.00-86.00 per cwt CAN / U.S. DOLLAR EXCHANGE RATE : 1.3570 Source : Manitoba Pork . ( ( Winnipeg bureau 204-947-3548 ) )
Canadian West Coast Vessel Loadings - CWB . WINNIPEG 1996-12-06 The Canadian Wheat Board reported six ships loading , 10 waiting and four due at the Canadian West Coast , as of Friday . The longest wait to load on the West Coast was 13 days . Two ship loaded in Thunder Bay , one waited and seven were due . Two ships loaded on the East Coast , three waited to load , six were due . Port Loading Waiting Vancouver 5 7 Prince Rupert 1 3 ( ( Gilbert Le Gras 204 947 3548 ) )
New York timecharter fixtures - Dec 6 . NEW YORK 1996-12-06 No new fixtures reported from New York . -- New York Commodities Desk +1 212 859 1640
New York coal / ore / scrap fixtures - Dec 6 . NEW YORK 1996-12-06 ORE - Maritime Queen 70,000 tonnes Dampier / Kaohsiung 20-30/12 $ 5.25 fio 35,000 / 30,000 China Steel . -- New York Commodities Desk +1 212 859 1640
Clean tankers fixtures and enquiries - 2321 GMT . NEW YORK 1996-12-06 FIXTURES - WESTERN HEMISPHERE - Danila 28.5 16/12 Caribs / up W224 Mobil . -- New York Commodities Desk , 212-859-1640
Dirty tanker fixtures and enquiries - 2317 GMT . NEW YORK 1996-12-06 MIDEAST / RED SEA - Thai Resource 264 31/12 Ras Tanura / Red Sea W46.50 Mobil . MEDITERRANEAN - Lula I 85 25/12 Sidi Kreir / Augusta W100 Exxon . Spetses 139 17/12 Sidi Kreir / Augusta W97.50 Exxon . Mesipia 77.5 17/12 Bajaia / Fos W105 Exxon . -- New York Commodities Desk +1 212 859 1640
NYC Jan refunding has its 1st Euro floating rate . NEW YORK 1996-12-06 New York City on Friday said that it planned a $ 775 million refunding for January that will include its first floating rate issue of taxable debt for European investors . A city official , who declined to be named , explained that Goldman , Sachs , which this summer was demoted to the second tier of the syndicate , proposed the floating rate issue and as a result was promoted to book runner for this offering . By selling the floating rate debt , the city hopes to establish a benchmark , the city official said , adding that it needed a large deal to accomplish this objective . The city in late June sold its first issue of Euronotes , a strategy that it says saved it $ 500,000 in interest costs , and it has been trying to build on this strategy of expanding the pool of potential investors since then . In November , New York City said it became the first U.S. municipality to offer bonds for sale in European markets by competitive bidding as it listed taxable bonds on the London Stock Exchange . The refunding planned for January also includes a $ 475 million tax-exempt offering . No specific date in January has been selected for the debt sale , the official added . -- Joan Gralla , 212-859-1654
USDA gross cutout hide and offal value . DES MOINES 1996-12-06 The hide and offal value from a typical slaughter steer for Friday was estimated at $ 9.54 per cwt live , dn 0.05 when compared to Thursday 's value . - USDA
Wall St speculates about Santa Fe savior . Brendan Intindola NEW YORK 1996-12-06 Homestake Mining Co tops Wall Street 's list as the most likely white knight buyer for Santa Fe Pacific Gold Corp if Santa Fe rejects unsolicited suitor Newmont Mining Corp . Santa Fe is so far mum on the more than $ 2 billion stock swap takeover proposal from Newmont , announced Thursday . Wall Street , since the bid , has speculated that any deal between Newmont and Santa Fe would be a " bear hug , " or a reluctantly negotiated agreement where the buyer is not necessarily a friendly suitor . Newmont said the companies have had previous contact , though declined to detail the encounters . Analysts predict Santa Fe will go to the highest bidder , and that if a rival buyer is found , Newmont may not be able to match its offer . They said the Santa Fe deal , which includes desirable Nevada mining territory , would only payoff for Newmont longer term . Newmont , in fact , will not benefit from the Santa Fe acquisition on an earnings basis for at least two years , which also limits its capacity to raise its offer . Any deal , friendly or hostile , would almost assuredly be a stock swap , which is necessary to preserve the tax-free , pooling-of-interest accounting , they said . Analysts and arbitrageurs immediately ruled out Barrick Gold Corp and Bre-X Minerals Ltd as Santa Fe saviors because they are locked in negotiations over their splitting Indonesia 's Busang vast gold deposit . Placer Dome Inc too was considered unlikley because it is focusing on geographic expansion in areas that do match Santa Fe 's Nevada , South America and Central Asia presence , they said . A Homestake spokesman was not immediately available to comment on speculation that it tops the list . Homestake , based in San Francisco , operates gold mines in the United States , Australia , Chile and Canada . Earnings in 1995 were $ 0.22 per share , or $ 30.3 million , on revenues of $ 746.3 million . Santa Fe is headquartered Albuquerque , N.M. and reported 1995 earnings of $ 0.30 per share , or $ 40 million , on revenues of $ 350 million . Santa Fe has mining and exploration operations in Nevada , California , Montana , Canada , Brazil , Australia , Chile , Kazakstan , Mexico and Ghana . PaineWebber analyst Marc Cohen said he lowered his rating on Newmont to neutral from attractive today because if Newmont merged with Santa Fe , investors would have to wait until the second half of 1998 to realize earnings accretion . " I think Homestake could come in as a white knight , but how much is someone willing to come in above the Newmont number . One would have to outbid by at least 15 percent , but there is going to be a ( Santa Fe ) deal with someone , " he said . " Longer term , two to three years out , ( a Newmont-Santa Fe deal ) is positive , it does all the right things . But in the near-term it is , at worst , neutral , " the analyst added . Newmont proposed to Santa Fe a stock-swap merger at a ratio of 0.33 Newmont shares for each Santa Fe shares . In Friday New York Stock Exchange trade , Newmonth was off 1/2 to 46-5/8 while Santa Fe added 1/4 to 15-1/8 . " Newmont said it wants to discuss a friendly deal with Santa Fe , which is almost always a euphemism for ' We have more money in our pocket , ' " said an arb , referring to a possible sweetened bid from Newmont . Two other arbs called Newmont 's move a " a 32 cent bid " because there is no formal tender offer , only the proposal letter " mailed " to Santa Fe 's board . -- Wall Street Desk , 212-859-1734 .
Russ Berrie president to retire in July . OAKLAND , N.J. 1996-12-06 Russ Berrie and Co Inc said on Friday that A. Curts Cooke will retire as president and chief operating officer effective July 1 , 1997 . Cooke will provide consulting services to the company through July 1 , 1998 , and will continue to serve as a director , the toy and gift maker said .
Zimbabwe executes convicted murderer . HARARE 1996-12-06 Zimbabwe hanged a convicted murderer on Friday , bringing to eight the number of executions carried out in the past year . A statement said Piniel Sindiso Ncube was hanged at dawn . President Robert Mugabe 's government has resisted pressure from local and international human rights groups to abolish the death sentence .
Multinational commander going back to east Zaire . Jonathan Wright NAIROBI 1996-12-06 The Canadian general in charge of a multinational force for eastern Zaire said on Friday he was going back to Zaire for more information about the plight of about 165,000 Rwandan refugees adrift in the countryside . Lieutenant-General Maurice Baril told a news conference in Nairobi his main concern was for a large group of about 150,000 refugees living off the land in a valley about 65 km ( 40 miles ) west of the eastern city of Goma . If he decided it was necessary and safe for the aircrew , he would not hesitate to order airdrops of food for the refugees , even against the wishes of the government in Kinshasa and the Zairean rebels who control much of eastern Zaire , he said . " Tomorrow I 'm going into Rwanda and my intention is to go across into eastern Zaire and try to find out for the second time what the situation is on the ground , " he said . General Baril saw rebel leader Laurent Kabila in Goma last week but the rebels told him the crisis was over because most of the Rwandan refugees have already gone home . The rebels do not want the multinational force to deploy on the ground , for fear it might help the Zairean army regain control of the area . Kinshasa opposes airdrops , apparently because the food could fall into the hands of the rebels and their local supporters . Canadian Defence Minister Doug Young said on Thursday that the multinational force would probably not have to make food airdrops or intervene militarily in any major way . " It does n't look as though they ( airdrops ) are going to be required in any significant way because the NGOs ( non-governmental organisations ) are in that area on the border between Zaire and Rwanda , " Young told reporters . But General Baril said it would be premature to rule out any course of action until he had more information . " We hope that if the front moves forward or stabilises then we will have access ( to the large group of refugees ) with reconnaissance or humanitarian agencies . " If they ca n't move because they are too weak , then we will probably consider very seriously using air delivery means ( airdrops ) ...It 's complex , it 's dangerous for the air crew that fly in there and it will have to be absolutely necessary . If it is necessary , I wo n't hesitate to use it , " he said . Asked if he would disregard the objections of the Zairean government , he said : " It would have to be in the last resort . It would have to mean that tens of thousands of lives are in danger . Do you think that I would have a conscience problem doing it or not at that time ? And my mandate is also under Chapter Seven to operate in eastern Zaire . " Under Chapter Seven of the U.N. charter , the Security Council has wide powers to preserve peace and security . " I know their ( the Zairean government 's ) position and I know it 's very delicate and we are very sensitive to their position also , " the general added . He denied that his contacts , criticised by Kinshasa , with the Zairean rebels amounted to negotiations . " I do n't negotiate , " he said . " I coordinate with those who are holding ground and that 's a wise thing to do . When we do n't know where the front is , we do n't know what the risk is . " Baril said that apart from the group of 150,000 , U.S. and British reconnaissance plans had tracked two much smaller groups of refugees -- one of up to 1,000 north of the town of Masisi and one of up to 8,000 on the road from Bukavu west to Kindu . The Kisangani office of the medical charity Medecins sans Frontieres said on Friday that more than 100,000 refugees were trekking northwest from the Goma-Bukavu area and many of them were now in the town of Walikale . The general did not mention these refugees , who are on the outer limit of the strip the planes have been checking .
Mauritius put on cyclone alert . PORT LOUIS 1996-12-06 Mauritian authorities put the Indian Ocean island on cyclone alert on Friday . The weather services office said the centre of the intense tropical cyclone Daniella was 570 km ( 310 miles ) north by northwest of the island on Friday afternoon and was moving south by southwest at eight km an hour ( four knots ) . Although not threatening Mauritius directly , it is coming closer to the island and could change direction , it added . Winds up to 75 km an hour ( 40 knots ) could blow over Mauritius during the night of Friday to Saturday , it said . The weather in the capital Port Louis was heavily cloudy on Friday afternoon with occasional showers . The northeastern coast of the nearby island of Madagascar has also gone on alert .
U.N. evacuates staff from Central African Republic . ABIDJAN 1996-12-06 The United Nations evacuated its staff in the Central African Republic on Friday because of mounting violence in a two-week-old army mutiny in the capital , a U.N. official said . The official from the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR said a chartered plane had picked up the staff from Bangui and was heading for Abidjan , Ivory Coast .
Senegal proposes foreign minister for U.N. post . DAKAR 1996-12-06 Senegal 's President Abdou Diouf said on Friday he was proposing his foreign minister Moustapha Niasse for the post of United Nations secretary-general . Diouf announced his intention to reporters when he returned from the Franco-African summit in Burkina Faso where an African successor to Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali was discussed . The United States has vetoed a second term for the Egyptian but left the door open for another African candidate . " If Africa does not wish to lose its turn we have to act fast , " Diouf said . " Some of my brother heads of state asked me if I would n't nominate Moustapha Niasse . I see in him the profile of a secretray-general of the United Nations and I have given my endorsement . "
Ex-minister , son killed in Central Africa unrest . Raphael Kopessoua BANGUI 1996-12-06 A former cabinet minister in Central African Republic and his son were abducted from their home and murdered in growing ethnic violence in the capital Bangui , a government minister said on Friday . With violence spiralling out of control , France voiced backing for the elected Bangui government but said its troops based in the former colony under defence pacts would not help it combat army mutineers . " France cannot be involved in the domestic political debate , " President Jacques Chirac told a news conference at the end of a Franco-African summit in Burkina Faso . " French troops may only take part in maintaining order to avoid major abuses and protect foreign communities , " he said . Public Service Minister David Dofara , who is the head of the national Red Cross , told Reuters he had seen the bodies of former interior minister Christophe Grelombe and his son , who was not named . Witnesses said they had been seized by troops loyal to President Ange-Felix Patasse at dawn on Thursday when they clashed with soldiers staging a mutiny since November 16 . Grelombe is from the Yakoma tribe to which most of the rebel soldiers belong . The uprising began over pay demands but has turned into a campaign to topple Patasse , sparking ethnic violence and dividing the capital . The former minister and his son had been taken from their home close to the presidential palace , which is guarded by loyalist soldiers backed by French troops based in Bangui . The bodies were found on Thursday in an open field about two km ( one mile ) further away , said Dofora and other witnesses . The men were seized as loyalist forces and French troops fought gunbattles with mutineers who fired rockets into the city centre . A French-owned hotel was slightly damaged . Yakomas are hounded in stronghold districts of Patasse 's Baya people while other tribes have fled areas in rebel hands . Roadblocks have been erected in city districts while central Bangui , which is patrolled by French troops with tanks , is deserted . Shops and businesses have remained shut this week . The Franco-African summit decided to send a mission Bangui to seek ways of containing the mutiny and a threat of civil war . Chirac said Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaore would visit Bangui " in the coming hours " with the heads of state of Gabon , Mali and Chad to try and establish dialogue between authorities and rebels . The mutiny forced Patasse to miss the summit . His spokesman had predicted the meeting to send an assessment mission . Patasse , who won Central Africa 's first multi-party elections , refuses to resign . Church-led meadiation attempts hit deadlock over rebel demands for his departure . Soldiers staged mutinies in April and May , with French troops stepping in with tanks and helicopters to quell the more serious second uprising . Patasse offered concessions and amnesty to rebels before the May rebellion ended after rebels looted the city centre . Rebels accuse Patasse of tribalism and of arming his civilian supporters and hired guns from Sudan and Chad . Mutineers have vowed to disarm all civilians and to chase out the foreign forces knwon as Codos . Hospital sources and witnesses said about 10 people were known to have been killed in the more than two weeks of fighting , including two rebels killed in Thursday 's clashes . An undetermined number of people are reported to have been abducted and killed outside the town by tribal vigilante groups . In Thursday 's fighting , French troops fired back as mutineers trying to break out of their strongholds rained mortar shells on the city centre .
Five die as SAfrican crop plane hits pickup . JOHANNESBURG 1996-12-06 Five people were killed when a crop-spraying plane preparing for takeoff crashed into a light delivery vehicle in South Africa 's North West region , state radio reported on Friday . The freak accident occurred in Mafikeng on Thursday . The pilot survived the crash , but the driver and passengers of the van were killed .
WEATHER - Conditions at CIS airports - Dec 6 . MOSCOW 1996-12-06 No weather-related closures of CIS airports are expected on December 7 and 8 , the Russian Weather Service said on Friday . -- Moscow Newsroom +7095 941 8520
Skinheads attack Bratislava Rabbi - police . BRATISLAVA 1996-12-06 Four skinheads attacked and insulted the rabbi of Bratislava , Baruch Meyers , in the city centre on Friday , but he escaped unharmed , a police spokesman told Reuters . " A group of four skinheads attacked the rabbi , one kicked him in the hand but caused no injury , " the spokesman said . " All four attackers were apprehended and two have been detained , " the spokesman added He was unable to give more details . " The further procedure is now in the hands of the local police investigator , " the spokesman said . It was the second attack by skinheads in two years on Meyers , an American . Meyers was not available for comment .
Albanian jailed for threat of bomb suicide . TIRANA 1996-12-06 An Albanian court on Friday sentenced a man who threatened to blow himself up outside President Sali Berisha 's office to 13 years in jail for guerrilla action and illegal possession of arms . Buza last April said he would blow himself up outside the presidential palace unless he was allowed to speak to Berisha , who was at the time meeting Italian President Oscar Luigi Scalfaro . Buza was overpowered by riot police less than one hour after he began his action . " Evaluating all the conditions of the case the court thinks the sentence should be lower than the minimum ( 15 years ) , " Tirana judge Qazim Gjonaj added . The defendant denied the charges , saying his action was intended to urge the authorities to give him a $ 20,000 loan . Medical experts had concluded Buza was mentally unstable but fully responsible for the act he had committed , Gjonaj said .
Polish ex-communist president to visit Pope . WARSAW 1996-12-06 Poland 's ex-communist President Aleksander Kwasniewski is likely to visit Polish-born Pope John Paul in early 1997 despite uneasy relations between the Vatican and Warsaw , the foreign minister said on Friday . " President Kwasniewski plans to visit Italy on a invitation from President Oscar Scalfaro . A meeting with the Pope is also planned , " Dariusz Rosati told a news conference . Rosati said that the atmosphere of the meeting , if it takes place , would largely depend on the progress in talks on ratification of a treaty between Warsaw and the Vatican . @ The ratification of the treaty , which was signed in 1993 by the then right-centrist government , is being delayed by an ex-communist party , which won parliamentary elections in the same year and now dominates parliament . The party , the Democratic Left Alliance , says the agreement would give the Catholic Church too much influence over life in Poland and could infringe on rights of other religious groups and non-believers . The relations with the Vatican have also been soured by a recent relaxation of Poland 's anti-abortion rules , which Kwasniewski signed into law last month .
Russia warns Norilsk , not expected to liquidate it . Lynnley Browning MOSCOW 1996-12-06 Russian Finance Minister Alexander Livshits warned financially-troubled Norilsk Nickel on Friday that it must pay overdue taxes , but analysts said the firm would not be liquidated or that its would assets would be frozen . " Norilsk really is a big debtor , both to the federal and regional budgets , " said Konstantin Chernyshev , equities analyst at Moscow brokerage Rinaco Plus and a Norilsk watcher . " Livshits 's words are an attempt to put pressure on the company . " The official Itar-Tass news agency quoted Livshits as telling parliamentary deputies that RAO Norilsky Nikel 0#NKEL.RUO had to pay its tax arrears and that bankruptcy procedures applied to the metals group . " If it was an unsolicited statement and a bolt out of the blue , then it obviously means something , " said Christopher Granville , chief economist at United City Bank in Moscow . " But if it was a response to a deputy 's question that was essentially loaded , then it was the only answer he could have given . " Russian tax and cabinet authorities , under pressure from the International Monetary Fund to boost tax revenues as a condition for receiving payments of a $ 10 billion , three-year loan to Moscow , have been striking fear into the hearts of some of Russia 's most prominent industrial firms by saying they must pay up or face liquidation . " They could freeze metal , but it 's not a long-term solution to the problem and would n't put money in the budget , " Chernyshev said . " I do n't think they would do that . " Entire social infrastructures in the icy Far North where Norilsk is based depend on the company , and Moscow has said it has no finances to resettle hundreds of thousands of people -- an expenditure which could far outstrip Norilsk 's debts . Norilsk officials declined to comment . Analysts said the government , while anxious about Norilsk 's debts , is highly unlikely to bring the nickel , copper , cobalt , platinum and platinum group metals producer to its knees or take measures that could significantly affect output . But it also wants Norilsk , the world 's second-largest nickel producer , to clean up its act . " The procedure of bankruptcy will be applied , " Tass quoted Livshits as telling Duma deputies about Norilsk . It indirectly quoted him as saying Norilsk should first pay salary arrears , which in the past have led to worker strikes . " It is unlikely that Norilsk will pay these debts in the near-term -- the company will remain a debtor in the near future , " Chernyshev said . He estimated the company 's regional debts at least one trillion roubles and said 30 percent of the giant Krasnoyarsk regional budget was fuelled by Norilsk money . Norilsk 's new majority shareholder , Russian commerical bank Uneximbank , has said it is reorganising metal exports through Interrosimpex in order to boost revenues . But the changes have yet to improve significantly Norilsk 's situation . " Uneximbank has inherited a mountain and whether or not they climb out and over it remains to be seen , " said one metals source . Norilsk said in September that it total debts , including unpaid salaries to workers , were 13 trillion roubles . The company said last month that it had worked out a tax payment schedule with authorities , after regional tax officials threatened to seize some nickel and copper assets . -- Moscow Newsroom , +7095 941 8520
Estonian Tallinna Pank 11-mo net 46.6 mln kroons . TALLINN 1996-12-06 Tallinna Pank , one of the largest banks in Estonia , made a 11-month 1996 net profit of 46.6 million kroons , the bank said on Friday . It said in a statement that it made profits of 4.5 million kroons in November . The bank made a profit of 20.1 million kroons in the first half of the year . Tallinna Pank said its assets rose 17.8 million kroons to 1.84 billion kroons . Demand deposits rose to 855.8 million kroons from 834.6 million kroons and time deposits increased to 295.1 million kroons from 285.3 million kroons . -- Riga Newsroom , +371 721 5240
Russia ready for constructive work with Albright . MOSCOW 1996-12-06 Russia said on Friday it expected a constructive relationship with Madeleine Albright , nominated by U.S. President Bill Clinton to be Secretary of State . Interfax news agency quoted First Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov as saying Moscow was ready for " most active and constructive " work with Albright . But he noted that policy would be shaped by Clinton and President Boris Yeltsin . Clinton and Yeltsin are due to meet next March for their first summit since both were re-elected . " Our countries ' leaders have agreed to meet in March , 1997 . The Russian foreign ministry believes the new directions in the development of Russian-U.S. relations will be worked out there , " Ivanov told Interfax . Interfax , outlining Albright 's biography , pointed out that she had defended Washington 's interests fiercely as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and that this had included actively supporting NATO 's plans to expand eastwards . Russia opposes NATO 's plans to take in countries of eastern and central Europe which used to be part of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact , saying such moves would threaten its security .
Yeltsin plans return to Kremlin for Dec 25 - speaker . MOSCOW 1996-12-06 Russian President Boris Yeltsin , who had heart bypass surgery a month ago , plans to return to work on December 25 , the head of the upper chamber of parliament told Interfax news agency on Friday . " Today he is a mobile , energetic man with lots of colour in his cheeks , " said Yegor Stroyev who met Yeltsin , 65 , on Friday at a country residence . " He told me that he had lost 20 kg ( 44 lbs ) which is natural after such an operation . " December 25 , a normal working day in Russia , is the fifth anniversary of Yeltsin 's arrival in the Kremlin . He took over there , and took control of the red button controlling nuclear arms , in December 1991 when Mikhail Gorbachev resigned , marking the end of the Soviet Union . Yeltsin has been shown a few times on television since his quintuple bypass on November 5 but has yet to deliver any major television or radio address to the nation . Surgeon Renat Akchurin who led the operation , told Itar-Tass news agency Yeltsin was working up to four hours a day at his residence .
Bomb explodes outside home of expelled Slovak MP . BRATISLAVA 1996-12-06 A bomb exploded on Friday outside the home of a Slovak politician expelled from parliament after he quit the ruling party , complaining of a lack of democracy in the country . The official TASR news agency said the explosion blew out all ground floor windows of Frantisek Gaulieder 's family home in Galanta , western Slovakia , and damaged the main entrance , but no-one was injured . Gaulieder , formerly a member of Prime Minister Vladimir Meciar 's ruling Movement for a Democratic Slovakia , was stripped of his parliamentary mandate on Wednesday after leaving the party last month in protest over what he said was a lack of democracy in the country . He said he had been receiving anonymous death threats since making the move . " This was an act of terrorism and now I fear not only for my own life , but also of that of my wife and children , " he told TASR . Gaulieder 's family was sleeping in a bedroom at the back of the house and were unharmed by the blast . It was not immediately clear who was behind the blast .
Bomb explodes at mosque in central Bulgaria . SOFIA 1996-12-06 A bomb exploded on Friday at a mosque in the central Bulgarian town of Kazanluk , causing damage but no injuries , state radio said . Violent crime has soared since the collapse of communism in 1989 as Bulgaria moves to a market economy . Bombings are often carried out by criminals to settle scores but the motive in this case was not immediately clear . Some residents of the Kazanluk area are Moslems who converted to Islam during Ottoman Turkish rule . The majority in Bulgaria are Christians . The radio quoted police as saying the blast broke windows and shattered the door of the mosque .
Hungary o / n rates end up before Dec 10 tax payment . BUDAPEST 1996-12-06 Hungarian overnight interest rates closed higher on Friday as market liquidity tightened before the December 10 social security contribution payment deadline , dealers said . " The banks are already preparing for the December 10 tax payment , " said Budapest Bank 's Sandor Tolonics . " They expect a larger-than-average payment . " The overnight market opened at 22.00 / 22.75 percent , then substantial money was taken up at 22.5 percent . But later , rates dropped and closed at 22.00 / 22.25 as a large bank finished borrowing money . On Thursday , overnight rates moved between 21.625 and 22.125 . Dealers said liquidity could tighten further early next week as the social security contribution payments date approaches . -- Sandor Peto , Budapest newsroom ( 36 1 ) 327 4040
Mexico stocks off lows but still hit by Greenspan . MEXICO CITY Mexican stocks closed sharply lower Friday , but had made a tentative recovery as initial panic and volatility abated . " It was Greenspan at first . Then once we saw the Dow ( Jones industrial average ) was not about to crash , some buyers stepped in , " said a trader , referring to Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan , whose comments that assets were " irrationally exhuberant " upset financial markets worldwide . The blue-chip IPC index ended down 1.29 points , or 43.56 percent , at 3,333.05 . Volume was regular at 74.7 million shares traded . Mexican stocks were also hurt by U.S. long bond rates which had begun to rise before Greenspan 's comments and were inflated by employment data released before trade began in Mexico . Yields on U.S. 30-year Treasury bonds were 6.51 percent when stock trading closed in Mexico , unchanged from Thursday . On the broad market , 107 stocks changed hands , of which losers well outnumbered winners by 75 to 13 . Traders noted the lack of blue chips or stocks traded at significant volume among the gainers . Simec , the steelmaking arm of the debt-ridden Sidek group headed the losers , off 7 centavos ( 1 cent ) at 1.40 pesos ( 18 cents ) . Sidek fell 4 centavos ( 1 cent ) to 95 centavos ( 12 cents ) . Traders also remarked that Mexican ADRs suffered in New York . Heavyweights Telmex and Televisa ended off 25 cents and 75 cents , respectively , at $ 31.125 and $ 25.875 . " Falling share prices in New York do n't hurt Mexico as long as it happens gradually , as earlier this week . It 's a sudden plunge that takes its toll , " said Carlos Ponce , research director at Santander . Traders and analysts differed as to how firm the relative recovery on Friday was . " Some buyers stepped in , but the market was not very convinced . Volume was lackluster , " said one trader . " The market 's very healthy , we 're buying , " said another trader . Ponce said shares were certainly attractively priced in Mexico , but would not appreciate until foreign buyers stepped in , which they had yet to do . '
Plastic surgery gets boost in Brazil . Simona de Logu RIO DE JANEIRO 1996-12-06 Plastic surgery is booming , especially among men , as Brazilians spend much of their new-found wealth on the latest beauty treatments , said the organisers of a four-day international plastic surgery conference that opened on Friday . The number of plastic surgeries in Brazil has jumped 30 percent to an estimated 150,000 this year since an anti-inflation plan was introduced in July 1994 , Farid Hakme , the president of the Brazilian Plastic Surgery Society ( SBCP ) , said . The number of operations on men increased even more -- by 80 percent , from 8,000 in 1994 to 15,000 in 1995 , he said . " Brazil ranks right at the top for plastic surgery with respect to the number of surgeons , the number of patients , number of operations , number of conferences . Our statistics are the highest for everything , " Hakme said . " We believe the increase in plastic surgeries for men results from the difficulties in the job market . People need to have a more youthful look to compete in the job market , given the profound changes in Latin America 's economy . " A controlled exchange rate , trade liberalisation and tight monetary policies have also dramatically curbed inflation , making more money available for cosmetic surgery . Brazil has been at the forefront in plastic surgery for decades and is home to one of the most famous surgeons , Ivo Pitangy . There are 6,000 plastic surgeons there , of which 4,500 have qualified to be members of the SBCP . Every year , 500 new plastic surgeons graduate in Brazil and medical students from all over the world come to study there . Hakme attributes Brazil 's fascination with plastic surgery not to excessive vanity but to the country 's mix and match of different races , which can create physical disharmonies . " What happens is the nose sometimes does n't match the mouth or the buttocks do n't match with the legs , " he said . Brazil 's most sought-after beauty treatment is liposuction in which fat is sucked away from areas of the body , with about 30,000 operations a year at a cost of $ 3,000 to $ 4,000 each . Stomach tucks and breast operations are also popular since the tropical climate calls for flesh-baring fashions , but unlike women elsewhere Brazilians tend to have breast reductions and buttock implants . " The women who want to reduce their breasts here would probably want to increase them in the United States , " SBCP Vice-President Oswaldo Saldanha said . " Beauty ideals and cultures are different in every country . " Plastic surgery scares like the case in which Brazilian model Claudia Liz fell into a coma after being anaesthetised for a liposuction in October are not much of a deterrent . Saldanha said operations fell 30 percent immediately after that case but the rate was back to normal now .
Daily Argentine grain fixings - Camaras Arbitrales . BUENOS AIRES 1996-12-06 Avg December 5 price fix : Buenos Aires Quequen Rosario Bahia Blanca Oats unq unq unq unq Wheat 121 130 121.3 121 Maize ( Flint ) 113 114 113.7 112 Maize ( Dent ) 113 114 113.7 112 Sorghum unq unq unq unq Millet unq unq 90 unq Soybeans 283 unq 283 unq Sunseeds 219 216 220 216 -- Buenos Aires Newsroom +541 318-0655
Mexican daily port , shipping update for Dec 6 . MEXICO CITY 1996-12-06 All major ports were open as of 1000 local / 1600 GMT , the Communications and Transportation Ministry said in a daily update . Tampico port authorities said fishing restrictions were in place in an area adjacent to the port because of a geophysical study being carried out in deep waters of the region from the ship Kenda . The ministry updated port conditions and shipping warnings for the Gulf of Mexico , Caribbean and Pacific Coast . - Pacific Coast : Light rains along the coast of southern Baja California and Sinaloa , with the rest of the coast seeing clear skies . Winds from the northeast of 10 to 15 knots ( 19 to 28 kilometers / 11 to 17 miles per hour ) . A new front is seen emerging during the course of Friday , affecting the north of the Baja California peninsula and Sonora state , bringing lower temperatures , light rains and waves up to six feet . - Gulf of Mexico : Cold front bringing light rains to the coast of Tamaulipas , but with the rest of the Gulf in clear skies . Winds from the northeast at 10 to 15 knots ( 19 to 28 kilometers / 11 to 17 miles per hour ) . - Caribbean : Tropical air carrying sporadic light rains over the coast of Quintana Roo state . Winds from the northeast at 10 to 15 knots with waves three to five feet high . -- Chris Aspin , Mexico City newsroom +525 728-7903
Brazil exam cheats caught using " pager " watches . RIO DE JANEIRO 1996-12-06 Brazilian students have been caught cheating in university entrance exams by using digital watches which gave the correct answers to test questions , a newspaper said on Friday . Rio de Janeiro state university officials discovered students were paying 15,000 reais ( $ 14,563 ) for the special watches , which operated like a telephone pager to receive correct answers , O Globo said . Seventy-seven students were found with the watches and disqualified , O Globo said .
Chile , Mexico to seek to broaden trade deal . SANTIAGO 1996-12-05 Chile and Mexico will start negotiations next year to broaden their free trade agreement to include services and investments , Finance Minister Eduardo Aninat said . Chile hopes to broaden the treaty signed in 1994 beyond reduction of tariffs on imports and exports and add provisions covering services and investment codes , said Aninat . Both areas tend to more laden with friction in free trade negotiations than tariff reduction . ' ' In January or February , we 'll have some very close contacts with Mexico to add the issue of services and advance on the issue of investments , ' ' Aninat told reporters after signing a free trade deal with Canada . ' ' We want to give the treaty between Mexico and Chile greater depth and coverage than it has now . It 's very good now , but it practically only covers trade in goods , ' ' he said . Aninat also said he was confident the Chilean Congress would ratify the treaty with Congress quickly . ' ' The reactions from business and unions which I have seen have been almost unanimously positive , so I do n't see any problem , ' ' he said . -- Roger Atwood , Santiago newsroom +56-2-699-5595 x211
Indonesia 's Belo leaves for Nobel award ceremony . DILI , East Timor 1996-12-06 East Timorese Roman Catholic Bishop Carlos Belo left Dili on Friday on his way to Norway for the awards ceremony as co-recipient of the 1996 Nobel Peace Prize . Witnesses said Belo left the territory for the Indonesian capital Jakarta accompanied by five other people . It was not immediately known when he would arrive in Oslo . The bishop will jointly receive the Nobel award next Tuesday with East Timorese-born activist Jose Ramos Horta , who lives in self-exile in Australia . The Indonesian government has condemned the inclusion of Ramos Horta in the award , and Foreign Minister Ali Alatas said on Friday that Indonesia would not be represented officially at the ceremony in the Norwegian capital . " I sincerely believe that this unfortunate choice in giving the honour to such a controversial figure as Ramos Horta ... will exacerbate the problem in finding a solution ( to East Timor ) , " Alatas said on Friday . He was responding to questions at a news conference called to discuss next week 's ministerial meeting of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference ( OIC ) in Jakarta . Ramos Horta has been a vocal leader of the opposition to Jakarta 's rule in the territory . Belo and Ramos Horta were awared the prize for their efforts to secure a peaceful solution to the issue of East Timor , a former Portuguese colony which Indonesia invaded in 1975 and annexed the following year . The United Nations has never recognised Jakarta 's move . Alatas said the government 's position on the Nobel Peace Prize would have been different if it had been awarded solely to Belo . Asked if the Indonesian ambassador to Norway would have attended the ceremony if only Belo had been involved , Alatas replied : " Probably , yes , but that is a hypothetical question . " Alatas said on Tuesday that on his way back from Oslo , Belo would visit the Vatican to see the Pope , and would also meet German Chancellor Helmut Kohl in Bonn . Kohl had wanted to meet Belo during the chancellor 's official visit to Indonesia last month , but the bishop was too busy in East Timor to come to Jakarta .
China to open port in Hainan to foreign ships . BEIJING 1996-12-06 China 's State Council , or cabinet , has given a port in the southern province of Hainan permission to open to foreign vessels , the Xinhua news agency said on Friday . Xinhua did not say when Qinglan port in Wenchang city would be opened to foreign vessels . Wenchang has built a berth for 5,000 deadweight-tonne container ships at the port and invested 34 million yuan ( $ 4.1 million ) to dredge the harbour , Xinhua said . It gave no further details . ( $ 1 = 8.3 yuan )
Government disperses protest with water cannons . RANGOON 1996-12-07 Burmese troops and riot police moved in to disperse a student street protest at a suburban road junction near the Ranyon ( Rangoon ) University early on Saturday , witnesses said . They said police and troops used water cannons from fire engines to subdue about 120 university students sitting in at the centre of the junction at about 3 a.m. before they moved in to round them up . The students , who had staged an 11-hour protest at the junction in northern Rangoon , were taken away in three vehicles . The witnesses said some of the students were hit with batons while they were herded onto the vehicles and it was believed they were taken to the Insein prison in suburban Rangoon . The protesting students , mostly from Rangoon University , were demanding the right to organise independent unions on campuses and the release of about 80 student leaders currently in jail . They were among 500 students who started demonstrating at the intersection on late Friday afternoon . The protest was the second major one in five days in the capital .
Burmese students march briefly out of campus . Vithoon Amorn RANGOON 1996-12-06 About 200 Burmese students marched briefly from troubled Yangon Institute of Technology in northern Rangoon on Friday towards the University of Yangon six km ( four miles ) away , and returned to their campus , witnesses said . Seven truckloads of armed riot police and three fire engines were on standby at one of the junctions near the institute . There were no clashes . " They are now back in the YIT campus , " an institute official who declined to be identified told Reuters by telephone . One of two roads leading to the University of Yangon from the institute had been closed by authorities . But about 300 university students were still gathered outside the gates of their campus , witnesses said . They were singing peacefully . On Monday and Tuesday , students from the institute and the university launched protests against what they said was unfair handling by police of a brawl between some of their colleagues and restaurant owners in October . On Tuesday and Wednesday , opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was restricted to her home by the military government to prevent her from being drawn into the protests . She was allowed to move freely on Thursday . The protest culminated at dawn on Tuesday with several hundred students being detained briefly by police in central Rangoon . The street protests were the biggest seen in the capital since the student-led pro-democracry demonstrations of September 1988 when the junta crushed the uprising . Thousands were killed or imprisoned . Earlier on Friday some of the students , who were held briefly by police during the protests earlier this week , said they were still dissatisfied with the military government . They told Reuters they were unhappy that the ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council ( SLORC ) had not heeded their calls for the right to organise independent unions on campus . " We still want government answers to our demands . We want police punishment to be published in newspapers , " one student said . But the students stressed their protests were non-political and they had no contact with Suu Kyi 's National League for Democracy ( NLD ) . Suu Kyi , a Nobel laureate and daughter of independence hero Aung San , and key NLD officials have also denied any link with the students . But they have said both parties had a " moral link " in that they were against police brutality and injustice . The students also demanded the government announce punishments meted out to policemen who they said had manhandled students involved in a brawl with some restaurant owners near the Yangon institute in October . The students appealed to the government not to close the institute because of their latest demonstration . The institute was shut for nearly two years after the 1988 uprising . On Friday , the road leading to Suu Kyi 's lakeside residence in central Rangoon remained closed by police .
Union leaders outraged by WTO snub to ILO head . SINGAPORE 1996-12-06 International trade union leaders on Friday expressed outrage that the head of the International Labour Organisation ( ILO ) had been barred from speaking at next week 's WTO meeting in Singapore . Bill Jordan , general secretary of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions ( ICFTU ) , told a news conference the withdrawal of a WTO invitation to ILO director general Michel Hansenne was " outrageous behaviour on the part of an organisation that wants to command respect in the world " . Jordan said a small group of developing nations that oppose linking trade talks and labour conditions had pressured World Trade Organisation ( WTO ) officials to prevent Hansenne from taking the platform to urge such links . " It is to their shame that those who are responsible for encouraging this meeting responded ( to the pressure ) in silencing him , " Jordan said after the opening of an ICFTU conference on international labour standards and trade . The three-day trade union conference in Singapore hopes to push labour issues onto the WTO agenda . Jordan said the WTO 's credibility was at stake over the issue of trade and labour . The ICFTU said it wanted the WTO conference beginning on Monday to outlaw forced and child labour , end discrimination in hiring , and guarantee the right to join a union . Bill Brett , chairman of the ILO Workers Group , told Reuters before the news conference he was " not too surprised , but very disappointed " that the speaking invitation had been withdrawn . " Some governments are very determined to stop the issue ( of trade and labour rights ) being discussed , " he said , adding that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations ( ASEAN ) seemed particularly hostile to the ILO agenda . ASEAN groups Brunei , Indonesia , Malaysia , the Philippines , Singapore , Thailand and Vietnam . The ILO wants a trade and labour rights " social clause " included in the final ministerial statement issued by WTO leaders at the end of the meeting , the organization 's first ministerial-level gathering . Speaking to ICFTU delegates , Richard Eglin , director of the WTO secretariat , said the WTO was capable of making a significant contribution to governmental efforts to solve social problems . But he said the WTO 's organisational structure made it difficult to impose on its members a social clause such as that called for by the ILO .
Indian rubber demand seen outstripping production . SINGAPORE 1996-12-06 Indian rubber demand is seen outpacing local production in the 1996/97 April / March season and the trend will persist way into the next century , the chairman of the Rubber Board of India said on Friday . K.J. Matthew said at the Asia Rubber Markets meeting here Indian production of natural rubber in 1996/97 will reach 547,000 tonnes against projected demand of 578,000 tonnes , a gap of 31,000 tonnes . For synthetic rubber , production reached 68,200 tonnes in 1995/96 while consumption in the same season hit 134,085 tonnes , Matthew added . " Though schemes designed to realise further increases in the production of natural rubber are being operated successfully , the demand-supply gap is expected to widen , " he said . Indian synthetic rubber output is not expected to rise significantly in the next season but demand will rise to 145,000 tonnes . Matthew estimates that by the 2000/01 season , the gap between natural rubber output and consumption will rise to 51,000 tonnes and 319,000 tonnes in 2010/11 . Natural rubber production will go up to 695,000 tonnes in 2000/01 against consumption of 746,000 tonnes . In 2010/11 , domestic demand should rise further to 1.233 million tonnes while production will only reach about 914,000 tonnes . One way to bridge the widening gap is to put more land under cultivation which the Rubber Board official estimates will reach 220,000 hectares between now and the year 2003 although Matthew said this may not be possible at this time in India . " The development objective for the rubber plantation industry will be to increase production to the best extent possibly with a view to minimising imports of natural rubber , " he said . -- Singapore Newsroom ( 65-8703305 )
Japan 's authorities seen seeking to rein in dollar . George Nishiyama TOKYO 1996-12-06 Comments by Japan 's tight-lipped central bank chief and an influential top bureaucrat are further signs that the nation 's authorities want to keep the dollar at current levels , market sources said on Friday . In a rare expression of a view on currencies by the Bank of Japan ( BOJ ) governor , Yasuo Matsushita was quoted in Japan 's leading economic daily on Friday as saying that he sees no further , immediate fall in the yen . This followed a widely watched television appearance late on Thursday by Eisuke Sakakibara , a high-ranking Finance Ministry official , who denied he had said he wants to guide the dollar lower to between 108 and 110 yen . But many in the market thought Sakakibara 's real intentions lay elsewhere , and took more notice of his comments about the U.S. government 's stance on the dollar , dealers said . " I think his views on ( U.S. Treasury Secretary Robert ) Rubin 's comments were indeed what he himself thinks about the dollar , " said Hank Note , chief dealer at Sumitomo Bank . Asked about Rubin 's comment that a strong dollar was in U.S. interests , Sakakibara said the remark does not necessarily mean the United States supports a stronger dollar . " It 's a strong dollar , not stronger . In that sense , the comments are not pointing to a certain direction , " he said . " It shows that Sakakibara is not for a stronger dollar either , " said Sumitomo 's Note . Takao Sakoh , first vice president at Union Bank of Switzerland in Tokyo , said : " Maybe a dollar at 104.50 yen is not acceptable ( to Sakakibara ) , but it may be okay at the current level , at the lower end of 112 yen . " Market participants have kept a close eye on Sakakibara , chief of the ministry 's International Finance Bureau , as a comment he made in November after the dollar hit this year 's high of 114.92 yen pushed the currency down sharply . He had said then that the market 's view on Japan 's economy was too pessimistic and that he believed it was stronger than the market thought . Dealers have come to refer to 115 yen as the " Sakakibara ceiling " for the dollar following the remark . Adding to the comments by " Mr Yen " , as Sakakibara is known for his prominence in the currency market , was BOJ governor Matsushita 's remark . " The recent level of the yen exchange rate has been stable , and it does not appear to be moving towards a further depreciation of the yen immediately , so import prices are likely to stabilise at current levels , " Matsushita said in an interview with the Nihon Keizai Shimbun . " The fact that he touched on the issue of inflation triggered by import prices shows that the BOJ does not want a further depreciation of the yen , past 115 yen , " said Yasuhito Kawashima , chief forex manager at Toyo Trust & Banking Co . Some said the central bank may have been concerned a weaker yen would lead to unfounded pessimism about Japan 's economy . " There was concern that foreign investors may sell Japanese stocks if the dollar goes above 115 yen . The BOJ does not want the yen 's weakness to lead to pessimism over the economy , " said Taisuke Tanaka , market strategist with Credit Suisse in Tokyo . Senior BOJ officials have separately said financial markets ' views on the economy have been too negative . " I realise there are negative views in the markets about the impact of the consumption tax hike and drop in public spending , but the markets appear to be exaggerating the magnitude of the negative impact , " a senior BOJ official told Reuters on Friday . The consumption tax is due to raised in April from three to five percent .
Lebanon sentences pro-Israeli warlord to death . Haitham Haddadin BEIRUT 1996-12-06 A Lebanese military court on Friday sentenced to death in absentia the commander of Israel 's surrogate militia in south Lebanon on treason charges . The court convicted General Antoine Lahd , head of the South Lebanon Army ( SLA ) , of collaborating with Israel with which Lebanon is officially at war . Lahd , a 69-year-old former Lebanese army major-general , heads the 3,000-strong SLA militia which helps Israel hold a border zone in south Lebanon to ward off cross-frontier guerrilla raids on northern Israel . Lahd said a few days after the trial began on February 16 that Lebanese authorities must drop the charges or risk blocking any peace deal with the Jewish state . He said Israel was capable of pressuring Lebanon 's Syrian-backed government to stop the legal pursuit . The charges against Lahd were : forming a hostile army , carrying weapons on Israel 's side , helping Israel strip off a part of Lebanese territory by violence , forming an armed gang , killing or trying to kill Lebanese civilians by artillery shelling and kidnapping Lebanese citizens for long periods . Shortly before Lahd 's trial began , a Beirut military prosecutor charged another 89 former Lebanese army soldiers with collaborating with Israel . No date has been set for the trial of the men , all members of the SLA living in the Israeli-held zone in south Lebanon . Israel and Lahd have repeatedly demanded safety guarantees for the SLA -- a mixed Christian-Shi'ite Moslem force -- which the Jewish states regards as loyal allies . Israel has said the Lebanese army must incorporate the SLA fighters into its ranks as an army brigade as a condition for peace . But Lebanese political analysts have said that would be out of the question and Lebanese authorities pre-empted the issue by taking legal action against Lahd . Former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres , calling Lahd " a great Lebanese patriot " , said earlier this year Lebanon had insulted the SLA commander by ordering his arrest on the treason charges . Peres , who was ousted in May by rightwing Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu , said there could not be real negotiations with Lebanon " unless it will stop the maltreatment of the SLA and its commanders . " The Beirut military court also sentenced to life in jail in absentia Etian Saqr , former head of the pro-Israeli Guardians of the Cedars , a small rightwing Christian civil war militia . Saqr , whose trial was concurrent with Lahd 's , was convicted of " contacting the Israeli enemy , passing information to Israel and undertaking hostile acts against Lebanon " .
Texas / w Okla fed cattle market thin at $ 67 - USDA . AMARILLO 1996-12-06 Trade was slow in the Panhandle area Friday , USDA said . Slaughter steers and heifers were $ 1.00 per cwt lower . Feedlots reporting moderate inquiry . Sales reported on 8,200 head slaughter steers and 1,000 heifers ; following weekly movement of 71,200 head . Note - all cattle prices based on net weights FOB the feedlot after a 4 percent shrink . Slaughter Steers - Select and Choice 2-3 1150-1200 lbs 67.00 . Slaughter Heifers - Select and Choice 2-3 1050-1100 lbs 67.00 . Confirmed - 9,300 Week Ago - None Year Ago - None ( ( Chicago newsdesk 312 408 8720 ) )
USDA daily cattle and hog slaughter - Dec 6 . Est daily livestock slaughter under Fed inspection - USDA CATTLE CALVES HOGS Friday 12/06/96 ( est ) 132,000 7,000 359,000 Week ago ( est ) 130,000 6,000 346,000 Year ago ( act ) 132,000 6,000 336,000 Saturday 12/07/96 ( est ) 38,000 0 18,000 Week to date ( est ) 688,000 31,000 1,810,000 Same Period Last Week ( est ) 601,000 26,000 1,547,000 Same Period Last Year* ( act ) 685,000 31,000 1,914,000 1996 Year to date 33,549,000 1,589,000 84,894,000 1995 Year to date* 32,970,000 1,305,000 88,800,000 Percent change 1.8 % 21.8 % - 4.4 % *1995 totals adjusted to reflect NASS revisions 1996 Totals are subject to revision Yearly totals may not add due to rounding . Previous day estimated Steer and Heifer Cow and Bull Thursday 100,000 33,000
BALANCE - Hartford , Conn . , $ 11 mln . CITY OF HARTFORD , CONNECTICUT RE : $ 25,000,000 GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS MOODY 'S : Aaa / A1 S&P : AAA / AA- Delivery Date : 12/16/1996 FSA INSURED Maturity Balance Coupon List 12/15/2000 1,250M 6.25 4.10 12/15/2001 575M 4.60 4.20 12/15/2003 265M 4.40 4.40 12/15/2004 625M 4.50 4.50 12/15/2005 55M 4.60 4.60 12/15/2006 145M 4.70 4.70 12/15/2007 850M 4.85 4.85 12/15/2008 1,200M 4.95 4.95 12/15/2009 1,240M 5.05 5.05 12/15/2010 1,250M 5.15 5.15 12/15/2011 1,240M 5.25 5.25 12/15/2012 1,200M 5.25 5.30 12/15/2013 1,135M 5.30 5.35 12/15/2014 850M 5.30 5.35 Total : 11,880M State Street Bank and Trust Company Prudential Securities Incorporated PaineWebber Incorporated First Union Capital Markets Corp. - NJ -- U.S. Municipal Desk , 212-859-1650
14 years later , Florida man dies for killing . TALLAHASSEE , Fla. 1996-12-06 Fourteen years after he bludgeoned and shot a man whose trailer home he robbed in 1982 , John Mills Jr . , 41 , was put to death in Florida 's electric chair Friday . As Glenn Lawhon , a rural Florida minister who is the victim 's father , looked on , Mills was pronounced dead at 7:13 a.m. EST ( 1213 GMT ) for the murder of Lester Lawhon . Speaking in Arabic , Mills made a final statement before an anonymous citizen flipped the switch that sent 2000 volts of electricity through his body , said Department of Corrections spokesman Eugene Morris , who was present at the execution . " I bear witness that there is no God but Allah and I bear witness that the prophet Mohammed is the messenger of God , " he quoted Mills as saying . Prison officials said they had no record of Mills ' official conversion , but they said that , on May 14 , 1991 , he had asked that a new name , Yuhanna Abdullah Muhammed , be added to his prison file , which is usually an indication of a conversion to Islam . Mills is the 38th person to die in Florida 's electric chair since the U.S. Supreme Court reversed itself in 1976 and legalised the death penalty . Prison officials said Mills made no special request for a last meal and did not eat the steak , fried potatoes and orange juice offered him . He spent Thursday with family members and his spiritual adviser , Morris said . Mills was scheduled to die Wednesday but had his sentence temporarily postponed by the Florida Supreme Court . On Thursday , the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Atlanta denied his appeal in federal court . In March 1982 , Mills and accomplice Michael Frederick knocked on the door of Lester Lawhon 's trailer in an attempt to rob it , police said . Lester Lawhon was taken to a nearby airstrip where he was bludgeoned with a tire iron . Mills then fired two shots that killed Lawhon as the victim tried to run away . Frederick is serving a 347-year sentence .
New York grain freight fixtures - Dec 5 . NEW YORK 1996-12-06 Mana 50,000 tonnes soybeans USG / China 10-15/12 $ 23.50 10,000 / 4,000 GeePee . -- New York Commodities Desk +1 212 859 1640
Iowa-S Minn fed cattle market quiet , no sales-USDA . DES MOINES 1996-12-06 Slaughter steers and heifers not tested , compared with Thursday 's close , USDA said . Trade slow . Demand and seller interest light . Offerings light . Steers - Select and Choice 2-4 no sales . Heifers - Select and Choice 2-4 no sales . Carcass Basis ( weight only ) Compared Thursdays Close - Slaughter steers and heifers not tested . Steers - Select and Choice 2-4 no sales . Holstein - ( weight only ) Select to mostly Choice 2-3 1250-1400 lbs no sales . Holsteins - ( grade and weight ) Choice 2-3 1250-1450 lbs no sales Select 2-3 1250-1450 lbs no sales . Heifers - Select and Choice 2-4 no sales . Confirmed - None Week Ago - 800 Year Ago - 900 Wk to Date - None Week Ago - 800 Year Ago - 900 ( ( Chicago newsdesk 312-408-8720 ) )
Man stole pigs , tipped strippers , gets 10 years . APPLETON , Wis . 1996-12-06 A farmhand used the proceeds from stolen pigs to lavish tips on dancers at strip clubs and offered one $ 3,000 to pay for breast implant surgery , authorities said Friday . In sentencing Darrel Voeks , 38 , to a 10-year prison term on Thursday , Outagmie County Circuit Court Judge Dennis Luebke said he was " a thief by habit . " " You are self-indulgent . You are narcissitic , " Luebke said at the sentencing , adding Voeks should pay restitution of more than $ 100,000 to the farming family who had hired him . Voeks , who was already on probation for prior pig thefts , pleaded that he was trying to pay bills for his ex-wife and children . But the court heard that receipts showed much of the money went to dancers at strip clubs where he was known as a big tipper . One stripper said Voeks offered to give her $ 3,000 for breast implant surgery .
Canadian grain statistics weekly . CHICAGO , Dec 6 ( Reuter ) Statistics for the week ending December 1 in 000 's tonnes . - Canadian Grain Commission Visible Supplies Farmers Deliveries Curr Wk Yr Ago Curr Wk Yr to Date Yr Ago Wheat 4320.2 3909.3 288.5 6278.9 5580.0 Durum 1168.9 1225.0 44.3 965.3 1069.6 Oats 286.5 284.6 31.9 937.3 581.2 Barley 1074.0 1104.8 178.0 2531.4 1897.1 Rye 44.6 86.3 2.3 108.2 119.2 Flax 165.2 181.9 14.9 231.4 332.9 Canola 646.6 769.4 60.5 1902.0 2147.6 Corn 79.6 163.5 9.4 95.7 252.0 Total 7785.8 7724.8 629.8 13050.2 11979.6 Exports Domestic Disappearance Curr Wk YTD Yr Ago Curr Wk YTD Yr Ago Wheat 387.4 4677.8 4553.6 55.2 1039.7 846.1 Durum 129.0 1515.9 1220.6 4.6 75.8 73.3 Oats 40.0 561.0 391.9 4.8 149.6 115.0 Barley 110.8 1203.4 506.0 48.2 941.0 786.6 Rye 4.1 60.7 57.9 3.0 10.7 18.9 Flax 7.2 154.1 235.7 1.1 22.2 15.7 Canola 47.1 988.1 1135.5 46.7 894.9 822.0 Corn 4.4 15.1 87.0 0.6 22.1 11.1 Total 730.0 9176.1 8188.2 164.2 3156.0 2686.7 In addition , Statistics Canada indicated the following exports to the U.S. between August and September 1996 , in tonnes : Oats Rye Flaxseed Canola Corn Exports 29,200 17,200 7,700 100 59,400 Year Ago 47,000 24,300 8,700 8,200 12,200 ( Chicago newsdesk 312 408 8720 )
NYMEX natgas ends sharply lower on weather outlook . NEW YORK 1996-12-06 NYMEX Henry Hub natgas futures settled significantly lower Friday , pressured early by profit taking and driven even lower late by the National Weather Service 's bearish six to 10 day forecast , sources said . January ended 29.7 cents lower at $ 3.487 per million British thermal units after dipping to a low of $ 3.46 . Feb settled down 22 cents at $ 3.186 . Most others also were down . " Weather forecasts have been sketchy . Now the National Weather Service is calling for above-normal temperatures in more than half of the U.S. , " one futures trader said . In its forecast , the NWS said it expects above-normal temperatures " over the lower 48 states " from December 12 through December 16 . With more room to the downside anticipated early next week , traders said support in January was at $ 3.47 , then $ 3.35 . The next backstops were seen at $ 3.11 and $ 3.04 , the low set on November 21 . Resistance was pegged at the new contract high of $ 3.80 . In the cash market , Gulf Coast prices were around $ 3.60 shortly before nomination deadlines . Midcontinent prices were similarly lower in the $ 3.40s. New York city gate gas slipped into the $ 4.40s , down almost 15 cents . NYMEX said an estimated 35,662 Hub contracts traded , down from Thursday 's revised tally of 43,955 . NYMEX Alberta natgas remained untraded , with January settling at $ 1.65 , off 10 cents from Thursday . Physical prices for the weekend at the AECO storage hub were also down about 10 cents in the C$ 1.92-1.97 per gigajoule , or $ 1.52-1.56 per mmBtu range , pressured by unseasonably mild weather in western Canada . NYMEX Permian natgas , also untraded , ended 10 cents lower at $ 2.90 . In congruence with futures , Permian cash prices for the weekend fell more than 10 cents to the high - $ 3.40s. On the KCBT , January finished 26.5 cents lower at $ 3.35 after dipping to a low of $ 3.33 earlier in the session . February was down 22 cents at the close , while other deferreds were 4.5 to nine cents lower . The East / West spread narrowed by 3.2 cents to 13.7 cents ( NYMEX premium ) . Physical prices at Waha for the weekend lost more than 15 cents to the low-to-mid $ 3.50s as milder weather moved into the Southwest . -- H McCulloch , New York Power Desk +212-859-1628
U.S. barges lightly quoted on call session . ST. LOUIS 1996-12-06 U.S. barge rates were lightly quoted Friday on the St. Louis Merchants Exchange call session . No barges traded versus no trades Thursday . - Two barges next week Illinois bid at a steady 130 percent of tariff , offered at 135 percent . - One barge , week of December 15 , lower Ohio bid 2-1/2 points higher at 105 percent , no offer . Two barges , week of January 5 , Illinois , offered five points lower at 195 percent , bid at 150 percent . - Five barges , 30-day open , mid-Mississippi ( McGregor and south ) bid at 160 percent , offered at 170 percent , no comparisons . - 36 barges , two each week May-August , Illinois , offered at 130 percent of tariff , no bid or comparison . - 36 barges , two each week May-August , mid-Mississippi offered at a steady 135 percent , bid at 120 percent ( basis one each week ) . -- Chicago newsdesk 312-408 8720
CBOT grain / oilseed receipts and shipments . CHICAGO 1996-12-06 Grain and soybean receipts and shipments , in bushels , at delivery locations for the previous trading day , according to the Chicago Board of Trade - Receipts Shipments Wheat Chicago 0 0 St. Louis 21,346 0 Toledo 61,514 0 Corn Chicago 78,056 0 St. Louis 217,092 75,810 Toledo 285,505 561,287 Oats Chicago 0 0 Minneapolis 306,364 153,231 Soybeans Chicago 8,674 484,018 St. Louis 253,821 223,172 Toledo 64,334 160,476 ( ( Chicago Newsdesk 312-408-8720 ) )
Clinton to have more news conferences in 2nd term . WASHINGTON 1996-12-06 President Clinton aims to hold more news conferences in his second term and will have one Dec. 13 , the White House said Friday . The president had only two formal , full-blown news conferences last year , one in January and one after he won re-election in November , although he had various other limited sessions with the press . White House spokesman Mike McCurry said Clinton " plans to have regular news conferences " during his second term . But when asked how frequent these would be , he was evasive , saying , " periodic , occasional . " " He enjoys the give and take " with reporters , the spokesman added .
Action Performance to acquire firms . TEMPE , Ariz . 1996-12-06 Action Performance Cos Inc said Friday it has agreed to acquire Motorsport Traditions Ltd and Creative Marketing & Promotions Inc for about $ 13 million in cash and stock . The two firms to be acquired have about $ 25 million in annual revenues from the design , manufacture and sale and distribution of licensed motorsports products . The deal is expected to close by the end of the year subject to due diligence and other customary closing conditions .
Half of dog bites provoked , says American vet . CHICAGO 1996-12-06 As many as 1 million dog bites are recorded in the United States every year and half of them are provoked by humans , a veterinarian told fellow animal doctors on Friday . The Humane Society of the United States estimates that between 500,000 and one million bites are delivered by dogs each year , more than half of which are suffered by children . " Most bites can be prevented by teaching children how to respect a dog , " Michael Cornwell of the Glencoe Animal Hospital in Columbus , Ohio , told the annual meeting of the American Veterinary Medical Association . " Let 's not let our kids jump on them or crawl on them . Dogs and children do n't have to have an interaction . Let 's respect their territories , " he said . Cornwell said 50 percent of reported bites were provoked by a person and 60 percent were suffered by children . He also estimated that only 25 percent of bites were reported because medical attention was not needed . Don Rieck , president of the National Animal Control Association , said aggressiveness in dogs was related more to gender than breed and a male dog that had not been neutered was three times more likely to bite than an unspayed female . The five breeds credited with the most incidents were chow chows , Rottweilers , German shepherds , cocker spaniels and Dalmatians . " The trends in dog bites by particular breeds have more to do with fad pets owned by individuals who need to have something unique . Speaking strictly of dogs , 15 years ago the macho fad pet was a Doberman . Today , Rottweilers are on the way up , " Rieck said . If approached by a stray dog , children should be taught to stand still with fists folded underneath the neck , elbows in , and gaze forward until the dog goes away .
Iowa-S Minn feedlot cattle market not tested- USDA . DES MOINES 1996-12-06 Steers and heifers were not tested , compared with Thursday 's close , USDA said . Reported sales for Fri- None . Week to Date - None . ( ( Chicago newsdesk 312-408-8720 ) )
Nebraska fed cattle roundup - USDA . OMAHA 1996-12-06 Slaughter steers and heifers were not established Thursday . Demand limited . Seller interest light . - USDA Thursday 200 Last Week Holiday Last Year N / A Week to Date 3,500 Sm Pd Lst Wk 800 Sm Pd Lst Yr N / A Dressed Basis Delivered not well tested . Dressed Basis Steers : Few Select and Choice 2-3 , 1200-1300 lbs 112.00 ; load early 114.00 . Dressed Basis Heifers : Few Select and Choice 2-3 , 1100-1200 lbs 112.00 .
Four Africans said to vie for top U.N. post . Evelyn Leopold UNITED NATIONS 1996-12-06 Four African states are ready to nominate candidates for the post of U.N. secretary-general on Friday now that Boutros Boutros-Ghali has temporarily put aside his bid for re-election . The nominees , according to diplomats , are : Kofi Annan of Ghana , the U.N. undersecretary-general for peacekeeping ; Ahmedou Ould Abdallah of Mauritania , the former U.N. special envoy for Burundi ; Amara Essy of the Ivory Coast , its foreign minister and the U.N. General Assembly president in 1994-95 ; and Hamid Algabid of Niger , the secretary-general of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference . Representatives of the U.N. missions of Ghana , the Ivory Coast , Mauritania and Niger have scheduled a meeting with Security Council president Paolo Fulci of Italy to hand in the nominations in writing , the envoys said . It was not known if other candidates would step forward . Diplomats said General Joseph Garba of Nigeria , a U.N. General Assembly president in 1989-90 , was putting forth his own candidacy without being nominated by his country . Boutros-Ghali on Wednesday opened the door for other Africans to contest his job by saying he was suspending temporarily his candidacy but was not withdrawing completely from the race . His supporters said this meant he remained a candidate in case the race reached an impasse . The United States on Nov. 19 vetoed his bid for re-election while the other 14 Security Council members supported him . The move by the African states means that the council could begin voting on candidates next week , a procedure that could either result in a decision or turn into a bitter fight with vetoes against each nominee . The Security Council has to vote on a new secretary-general and then seek the endorsement of the 185-members General Assembly before December 31 when Boutros-Ghali 's term expires .
Spain 's police seize petrol bombs , arrest five . MADRID 1996-12-06 Spanish police said on Friday they had arrested five people and seized more than 90 petrol bombs during disturbances after a protest in the Basque country against Spain 's constitution . Hooded protesters threw burning bottles and other objects at police in Pamplona after the protest organised by Herri Batasuna , the political wing of Basque separatist group ETA . Police also confiscated eight kg ( 18 lb ) of screws , balaclavas and spray paint cans . The protest , which attracted several thousand supporters , coincided with the 18th anniversary of Spain 's constitution .
Mussolini 's granddaughter rejoins far-right party . ROME 1996-12-06 Alessandra Mussolini , the granddaughter of Italy 's Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini , said on Friday she had rejoined the far-right National Alliance ( AN ) party she quit over policy differences last month . " I 've gone back , " she told a radio show shortly after AN leader Gianfranco Fini , who was being interviewed on the programme , said the row had been resolved . " He did n't want to lose me and I did n't want to lose him . " Fini told state radio RAI he met Mussolini thanks to the good offices of Giuseppe Tatarella , AN 's leader in the Chamber of Deputies ( lower house ) , and had overcome their differences . Mussolini , 33 , resigned from the parliamentary party group for what she said were strictly political reasons . The fiery politician , who is also a niece of screen star Sophia Loren , had accused AN leaders of stifling internal party debate . Mussolini , who sits in the Chamber , told La Stampa newspaper last month after quitting AN 's parliamentary party that she was considering joining the neo-fascist Social Movement ( MS-Fiamma ) formed by some of the Duce 's World War Two followers .
German Santa in bank nearly gets arrested . HANOVER , Germany 1996-12-06 A Santa Claus distributing presents to workers in a German bank on Friday nearly ended up behind bars when a passing police patrol thought he was a robber in disguise . The man , doing his rounds in the northern city of Hanover on the day when German children traditionally receive small presents from Saint Nicholas , convinced police eventually that he was genuine .
Italy commission concludes 1997 budget examination . ROME 1996-12-06 The Italian upper house Senate budget commission has concluded its examination of Italy 's 1997 budget , and it will approve the measure officially by Saturday . From Tuesday , the full assembly of the Senate will start its examination of the financial package . -- Milan newsroom +392 66129502
EU , Poland agree on oil import tariffs . BRUSSELS 1996-12-06 The European Union and Poland have resolved disagreements over a new Polish oil import regime , the European Commission said on Friday . The EU had objected to increases in Polish tariffs on imports of gasoline and gasoil products introduced on January 1 , 1996 , saying they contravened levels envisaged in the so-called Europe Agreement between the EU and Poland . The increases were aimed at protecting the Polish market while helping to modernise the local oil industry . " The EU and Poland have now reached a final settlement regarding issues related to the Polish import regime in the oils sector , " the Commission said in a statement . Under the agreement , Poland will abolish all oil import tariffs by 2001 , remove all oil price controls and end quantitative restrictions on imports by January 1 , 1997 . The agreement includes the early privatisation and modernisation of Polish oil refineries , which will be obliged to offer equal treatment to all buyers . The EU and Poland will monitor the settlement at six-monthly meetings .
Hindu party forces India parliament to adjourn . NEW DELHI 1996-12-06 Hindu nationalists forced adjournment of India 's lower house of parliament on Friday , in protest against a proposal to observe a minute 's silence over the destruction of a mosque by a Hindu mob in 1992 . Members of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party ( BJP ) shouted pro-Hindu slogans in the house after a communist deputy made the proposal in remembrance of the Babri mosque , which was razed on December 6 , 1992 . The house was first adjourned for two hours . When it reconvened , BJP deputies resumed the slogan-shouting , and deputy speaker Suraj Bhan suspended work until Monday . The destruction of the 16th-century mosque in the northern Indian town of Ayodhya triggered nationwide Hindu-Moslem violence in which more than 3,000 people were killed . Indian officials blame revenge-minded Moslem underworld gangs in Bombay for a string of bombings in the city three months later that killed 260 people . The BJP backs a hardline Hindu campaign to build a temple at the site of the mosque , which Hindus believe was the birthplace of the Lord Rama . The campaign catapulted BJP from the political fringe to become India 's main opposition party in 1991 .
Indian Sept crude oil output falls to 2.6 mln T . NEW DELHI 1996-12-06 India 's crude petroleum output fell to 2.56 million tonnes in September from 2.83 million in the same month in 1995 , the government said on Friday . STEEL OUTPUT Sept Sept Apr-Sept Apr-Sept 1996 1995 1996 1995 Crude petroleum 2,557 2,832 15,838 17,648 Petroleum products 4,605 5,110 30,589 29,328 Note - Figures are in thousands of tonnes and preliminary .
LUXEMBOURG CHRISTMAS MARKET GOES ON WORLD WIDE WEB . BRUSSELS 1996-12-06 Luxembourg 's traditional Christmas market , which starts on Saturday and runs to December 24 , has taken to the world wide web as a way of publicising its activities . The web site ( http://www.pt.lu/infoweb/kreschtmaart ) gives details of the market 's concert programme as well as its various retailers . -- Brussels Newsroom +32 2 287 6810 , Fax +32 2 230 7710
London coal / ore fixtures . LONDON 1996-12-06 COAL - Lantau Peak - 120,000 tones coal Hay Point or Newcastle / Kaohsiung 20-30/1 $ 5.25 and $ 5.85 fio respectively 40,000-35,000 / 28,000 shinc China Steel . Royal Clipper - 77,000 tonnes coal Maracaibo / Fos 19/12-2/1 $ 9.90 fio 20,000 shinc / 25,000 shinc Coe and Clerici . ORE - IMC TBN - 70,000 tonnes Dampier / Kaohsiung 20-30/12 $ 5.25 fio 35,000 shinc / 30,000 shinc China Steel .
UK bookmakers lengthen Conservative victory odds . LONDON 1996-12-06 UK bookmakers William Hill said on Friday they have lengthened the odds of a Conservative victory in the next general election from 9-4 to 5-2 . William Hill said the odds were the longest they had been for six months . The Labour opposition are now 1-4 favourites , it said . The election must be held by May . -- London Newsroom +44 171 542-7768
Italy tops week of meagre bond returns - Salomon . LONDON 1996-12-06 High-flying Italy topped the league in a week of meagre returns on government bonds , Salomon Brothers said on Friday . In local currency terms , Italian BTPs offered returns of 0.85 percent in the week ended on Thursday , with fellow high-yielder Sweden close behind on 0.80 percent . The weekly government bond index rose 0.07 percent in local currency terms . France managed third place with 0.68 percent in the 16-nation world government bond index . Canada 's were the worst performing bonds . They lost 2.21 percent , depressed by a wave of new Canadian supply . Returns on Treasuries were also in negative territory at minus 0.24 percent , the poorest result after Canada and British gilts which lost 0.28 percent . Australia was the only dollar-bloc country in the table to eke out a positive return , albeit a paltry 0.02 percent . German Bunds were not much better , offering returns of 0.05 percent , while Japanese government bonds managed a 0.38 percent gain . Spanish bonds , which had been top performers in Salomon Brothers ' league table for November as a whole , turned in a more subdued weekly performance with a return of only 0.27 percent . In U.S. dollar terms , Japan was the only country to give positive returns at 1.35 percent . France lost 0.37 percent , followed by Italy on minus 0.59 percent . The biggest losers in dollar terms were British gilts , which shed 3.41 percent , Canada with minus 3.03 percent and Australia at minus 1.54 percent . Salomon 's bond index is calculated using all government bonds with over one year to maturity , weighted for market capitalisation . Only bonds freely available to institutional investors and with a certain minimum amount outstanding are included . Returns take account of price moves and accrued interest . -- Stephen Nisbet , International Bonds +44 171 6320
OPEC basket price $ 24.20 on Thursday . LONDON 1996-12-06 The price of the OPEC basket of seven crudes stood at $ 24.20 a barrel on Thursday , against $ 23.47 on Wednesday , the OPECNA news agency said , quoting the OPEC secretariat . The basket comprises Algeria 's Saharan Blend , Indonesia 's Minas , Nigeria 's Bonny Light , Saudi Arabia 's Arabian Light , Dubai of the UAE , Venezuela 's Tia Juana and Mexico 's Isthmus . -- London Newsroom +44 171 542 7630
Relations between Clarke , Major good - spokesman . LONDON 1996-12-06 Relations between Chancellor of the Exchequer Kenneth Clarke and Prime Minister John Major are good despite media reports of a rift over European policy , a spokesman for Major 's office said on Friday . Asked about the reports , the spokesman said : " Relations are good . " Asked about Major 's mood after a day of media speculation about his political fortunes , the spokesman said : " He is resolute . He is getting on with the job . " The spokesman said he was not aware of any meetings overnight between Clarke and Major , nor of any talks between the prime minister and parliamentary business managers . Both Major and Clarke were in their constituencies on Friday .
Two dead after executive jet crashes in Newfoundland . STEPHENVILLE , Newfoundland 1996-12-06 Two people were killed when an executive jet en route to Ireland from Michigan crashed on approach to an airport in Stephenville , Newfoundland , on Friday , authorities said . The pilot and co-pilot , the only two aboard , were killed in the crash of the Learjet 36 , airport manager David Snow said in a telephone interview . Snow said the plane last reported to air traffic control at about 3 A.M. local time / 1:30 A.M. EST ( 0630 GMT ) when it began its final approach about 10 miles ( 16 km ) from the airport in this east coast Canadian province . That was the last communication the aircraft made with the airport , he added . " We considered it as being missing until about 0600 ( 4:30 A.M. EST ) ( 0930 GMT ) . That 's when the wreckage was discovered , " Snow said . He said the cargo flight originated in Grand Rapids , Michigan , and was due to stop at Stephenville for refueling before going to Shannon , Ireland . The cause of the crash was not yet known . Investigators were due to fly to Stephenville later on Friday .
PLO says Arafat , Netanyahu could meet Saturday . JERUSALEM 1996-12-06 PLO negotiators said on Friday Palestinian President Yasser Arafat , Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak might all meet on Saturday to try to clinch a deal on Israel 's handover of Hebron to the PLO . " It is very possible that Arafat and Netanyahu will meet in Cairo on Saturday . There is work on arranging such a meeting hosted by President Mubarak , " one PLO official , who requested anonymity , told Reuters . Israeli officials said no meeting had yet been set . Arafat 's adviser Nabil Abu Rdainah said : " President Arafat is ready to meet Prime Minister Netanyahu but no time or date has been set for such a meeting yet . " President Arafat 's position is clear that such a meeting should come after successful negotiations so that the meeting would have positive results . Especially since the Hebron issue has not been agreed yet and the crucial disputed issues have not been resolved . " But Rdainah said Arafat would go to Cairo on Saturday for talks with Mubarak . Both Arafat and Netanyahu have expressed willingness to meet . They last met in Washington after clashes in September that killed 60 Palestinians and 15 Israelis . The violence was spurred by Israel 's opening an entrance to a tunnel near Moslem sites in Jerusalem . The Palestine Liberation Organisation ( PLO ) negotiators said the last two weeks of talks with Israel on implementing the long-delayed handover of most of Hebron to PLO rule had been " meaningless " , necessitating an Arafat-Netanyahu meeting . Mubarak 's adviser Osama el-Baz said on Thursday there were efforts to arrange a meeting between the Israeli and Palestinian leaders . Palestinian Authority Secretary General Ahmed Abdel-Rahman said on Thursday he understood it could be held in Cairo either on Friday or Sunday . Abdel-Rahman had said on Thursday he did not think Saturday would be the date because it is the Jewish sabbath . But the Jewish sabbath ends at sundown , so a night meeting would not interfere with the religious observance .
Turkey hindered by own landmines on Syrian border . ANKARA 1996-12-06 Turkey 's efforts to prevent Kurdish rebels and smugglers infiltrating from Syria are being badly hindered because the military does not have a map of its own minefields on the border , a commission of parliamentarians said . " It is not known exactly where the mines have been sown because a minefield chart cannot be found , " the commission said in a report on border protection . The report , to be debated in parliament in coming weeks , was seen by Reuters on Friday . " Officials say the minefields present an obstacle to the security forces , " it said . It said Kurdistan Workers Party ( PKK ) guerrillas sometimes know the layout of mined areas along the border better than the security forces . " Terrorists and smugglers have dug up the mines , defused them and opened up wide paths in some areas . They can come in and out easily as the minefields are not an obstacle , " it said . An armed forces spokesman was not available for comment . Turkey says Syria sponsors the PKK , fighting for Kurdish self-rule in southeast Turkey . Damascus denies aiding the rebels . The PKK also crosses into Turkey from bases in the mountains of northern Iraq . More than 21,000 people have died in the 12-year-old conflict .
Three dead in Kurd militia blood feud in Turkey . DIYARBAKIR , Turkey 1996-12-06 Three people were killed on Friday in a gun battle between rival groups of anti-guerrilla militiamen on the streets of this southeastern Turkish city , police said . Four others were wounded in the clash , caused by a blood feud between two families , the Kesers and Karabuluts , serving as state-paid village guards against Kurdish rebels . Police said the guards fired automatic weapons at each other . One of the dead was a civilian passer-by . The role of the 70,000 mainly Kurdish village guards who fight Kurdistan Workers Party ( PKK ) guerrillas in the southeast has been questioned recently after media allegations that many of them are involved in common crime . The head of the region 's main pro-state militia is at the centre of a security scandal that has shaken the government . More than 21,000 people have been killed in the 12-year-old conflict between Turkish security forces and the PKK , fighting for Kurdish autonomy or independence .
Texas / w Okla fed cattle roundup - USDA . AMARILLO 1996-12-06 Trade very slow in the Panhandle area Thursday . Slaughter steers and heifers not well tested . Feedlots reporting light inquiry from buyers . - USDA Thursday 200 Week Ago Holiday Year Ago 10,900 Wk to Date 69,100 Week Ago 58,100 Year Ago 30,800 Sales reported on 200 head steers ; 69,100 head confirmed for week to date which includes 14,000 formulated and 3,400 contracted cattle to be shipped this week . Slaughter Steers : Pen Select and Choice 2-3 , 1150 lbs 67.00 . Pen Select , few choice 2-3 1150 lbs 66.00 .
Kansas feedlot cattle roundup - USDA . DODGE CITY 1996-12-06 Trade slow . Not enough slaughter steer or heifer sales confirmed for an adequate market test . - USDA Thursday 600 week ago holiday year ago 14,200 week to date 89,300 week ago 71,000 year ago 47,200 Inquiry good , demand light . Sales confirmed on 500 slaughter steers and 100 slaughter heifers Thursday . For the week to date 89,300 head confirmed including 30,600 head of contracted or formulated cattle . Steers : Select and Choice 2-3 , 1200 lbs 67.00 . Heifers : Select and Choice 2-3 , 1150 lbs 67.00 .
Delphis Hanover weekly municipal bond yields . Delphis Hanover weekly muni bond yields calculated Dec 5 Aaa Aa A Baa 1997 3.50 3.60* 3.70 3.75 4.00 4.00 4.30 4.35 2001 4.20 4.20 4.35 4.40 4.65 4.65 5.00 5.00 2006 4.70 4.70 4.85 4.85 5.15 5.15 5.50 5.50 2011 5.15 5.15 5.30 5.30 5.60 5.60 5.90 5.90 2016 5.35 5.30 5.50 5.45 5.80 5.75 6.10 6.05 2021 5.45 5.40 5.60 5.55 5.90 5.85 6.20 6.15 2026 5.50 5.45 5.65 5.60 5.95 5.90 6.25 6.20 *from previous calculation on Nov 27 -- U.S. Municipal Desk , 212-859-1650
ACCESS energy futures prices add to daytime gains . LOS ANGELES 1996-12-05 U.S. energy futures added to floor session gains in light NYMEX ACCESS trade Thursday , as forecasts for colder temperatures in distillate-hungry Northeastern markets raised supply concerns . " The cold weather forecasts are helping right now , " a trader said . Earlier , NYMEX crude ended daytime trade 78 cents higher at $ 25.58 a barrel , following breakthroughs of key technical levels and reports of tighter supplies . Front-month heating oil firmed 0.09 cents a gallon to 75.20 cents as roughly 100 lots changed hands within the first few hours of ACCESS . About 112 lots were exchanged overall , traders said . NYMEX gasoline for January delivery climbed 0.12 cents a gallon to 69.80 cents as a light 33 lots traded in the nearby month and 35 moved overall . January crude was barely changed from its settlement , edging up one cent to $ 25.66 a barrel . About 350 lots were traded for January and 870 in all months . -- David Brinkerhoff , Los Angeles bureau +1 213 380 2014
U.S. blasts release of convicted bomber . WASHINGTON 1996-12-05 The United States Thursday blasted the release from a Greek prison of a Palestinian guerrilla convicted of bombing an airliner and killing a teenager in 1982 , saying the move " does not make sense . " " All of us who have been victimised by terrorists ... need to stand together against terrorists . We ca n't let terrorists out of jail when they are a danger to civilians all around the world , " State Department spokesman Nicholas Burns said . ' Mohammed Rashid " is a terrorist who deserves to be behind bars . It is inexplicable to us why he would have been allowed to leave Greece before serving his just sentence ... This is an incomprehensible move . It does not make sense , " Burns told a news briefing . He spoke after Rashid left Greece Thursday on being freed from prison early for good behaviour after serving 8-1/2 years . The Clinton administration 's strong views on this subject have been conveyed to the Greek government , Burns said . Mahammad Rashid was whisked from Korydallos maximum security prison just outside Athens to the airport where he boarded a regular Olympic Airways flight to Cairo where he would transit to Tunis and the former Palestine Liberation Organisation headquarters . Rashid , 46 , was sentenced to 18 years in prison by a Greek court in 1992 after being convicted of premeditated murder in the mid-air bombing of a Pan American airliner in 1982 . His sentence had been reduced to 15 years in 1993 . A parole court ruled recently that Rashid could be freed after serving 8-1/2 years , with time in pre-trial detention counted towards his term , but said he must be expelled immediately from Greece . The United States accuses Rashid of belonging to the May 15 Palestinian guerrilla group and being an accomplished student of master Palestinian bombmaker Abu Ibrahim . Three FBI agents who testified against Rashid during the trial , held at Korydallos prison , said they had ample evidence against Rashid for a bomb planted on a Pan American plane in Brazil in 1982 and a mid-air bomb blast on a TWA airliner approaching Athens in 1986 which killed four U.S. citizens .
School football player banned for slashing opponents . ALBUQUERQUE , N.M. 1996-12-05 A New Mexico high school football player who used razor-sharp helmet buckles to slash opponents and a referee was expelled from high school banned Thursday from competition for one year . Mike Cito , 17 , was expelled from St Pius X High School in Albuquerque after an October game in which he used the sharpened chin strap buckles to injure two opposing players and the referee . One of the players need 10 stitches to a cut on his forearm . Officials said the New Mexico Activities Association decided to bar Cito from any inter-scholastic competition until next October , regardless of the school he attends . Cito 's father , Stephen Cito , had admitted filing the metal buckles to a fine edge , saying he did it to get even with the referee and with players who had roughed up his son in a previous game .
Cyberspace squabbles overshadow copyright talks . Elif Kaban GENEVA 1996-12-06 In a gloomy Geneva conference centre built before the dawn of the Internet , groups of staid officials made a first stab on Friday at rewriting copyright laws for the digital age . But critics at the first government-level meeting to revise copyright laws in 25 years said the officials and legislators might as well be trying to police the ether . After four days of diplomatic wrangling over procedures , some 600 delegates from nations small and large got down to the nitty-gritty of setting the digital agenda for the first time . Cyberspace squabbles overshadowed the debate on a stack of proposals covering literary and artistic works , the rights of performers and producers of music and producers of databases . " If it goes on like this , we wo n't have enough time to finish all the discussions , " a frustrated Western delegate said . " They announced they will start evening sessions next week . " Attempts by copyright-based industries to ensure they get a cut from online works led to a storm of protests by Internet companies and critics who say the pacts would curb public access to online information from soccer results to stock prices . " It 's not illegal to make photocopies of newspaper articles . It 's fair use . We can read sports statistics or stock prices . But with the treaty , this kind of fact will be owned and subject to licensing , " said James Love , a consumer lobbyist heading the Washington-based Consumer Project on Technology . " None of the treaties are ready to move . These people do n't understand what they 're doing . " At stake are billions of dollars and the future of the electronic information industry -- the coming medium for the distribution of music , films , literature , software and commerce . Supporters of the three pacts say they are only an extension of existing intellectual property rights , covered by the century-old Berne Convention . But an array of opponents from the network industry to consumer , scientific and academic groups say the pacts will give sweeping powers to entertainment and copyright-based industries . A quick survey at the conference centre found few officials who had actually surfed the Internet . Mongolia 's state copyright official , Gundegma Jargalshaihan , said apologetically that he had just arrived from Ulan Bator and was not aware of the details of the digital agenda . " We do n't have money for Internet in Mongolia , " he added . Alexander Bavykin , deputy legal chief at Russia 's foreign ministry , said Moscow had yet to formulate a policy on copyright in cybersppace . He too had never browsed the Net . " I 've never tried it and why should I ? There are lots of other things in this life I have n't tried either , " he said . A visit to the computer centre offering Internet services found a lone European official clicking away on his mouse . " Internet is a potential cash cow for copyright-based industries and we need roadmaps on the information superhighway , " said Marc Pearl , vice-president of the Information Technology Association of America , a trade association of U.S. network companies opposing the treaties . " But there are a lot of dinosaurs here . People here do n't understand Internet technology . Because they do n't understand technology , they fear the unknown . " Before the Internet , those whose business was to protect copyrights knew where they stood . Their enemies were tangible if elusive , such as the people who pirated music cassettes . But the Internet , a global computer network where anything from music to software can be duplicated and distributed at the click of a computer mouse , has ripped up the rulebooks . Network operators said the draft laws would hold them responsible for copyright infringements in the system and expose them to multi-billion-dollar liabilities . " There are 500 million messages transmitted through the Internet everyday , " said Tim Casey of the U.S.-based MCI Communications Corporation . " How can we control them all ? "
Italy evacuates 17 nuns and priests from Zaire . ROME 1996-12-06 Italy said on Friday it had evacuated 17 Roman Catholic nuns and priests from Zaire where they had been at risk from fighting between government troops and ethnic Tutsi rebels . The Foreign Ministry said the 10 Europeans and seven Africans took a special flight from the Garamba national park in northern Zaire to the Ugandan capital Kampala where they were being looked after at the Italian embassy . The group had travelled from their mission on the edge of the park to a landing strip to make the rendezvous , a ministry official said . The ministry said the group consisted of 13 nuns , seven Italians and six Zaireans , and four priests , two from Belgium , one from Spain and one from Zambia .
Third Paris blast victim was Moroccan student . PARIS 1996-12-06 Moroccan Mohamed Benchaou , the third person to die after a bombing on a Paris train , was a 25-year-old student about to submit a mathematics doctorate , the Moroccan embassy said on Friday . Benchaou died of his injuries on Thursday night , two days after the blast . A newly-married Canadian woman and a man from New Caledonia died instantly in the bomb that injured 90 others in the rush-hour train . An embassy spokesman said Benchaou , the son of a Moroccan army colonel , had been due to take his doctorate in March and hoped to become a teacher . Investigators have said the explosion bore the hallmarks of Algerian Moslem fundamentalists who staged a series of bombings last year which killed eight people and injured more than 160 .
Italian President urges separatists to turn back . MANTUA , Italy 1996-12-06 Italian President Oscar Luigi Scalfaro visited the symbolic heartland of the separatist Northern League on Friday and appealed to its supporters to drop their campaign for a breakaway state . Addressing a convention on Italian unity in Mantua , where the party has set up its own " parliament of the north " , Scalfaro made a direct appeal to what he called " my friends from the League " to work instead for federal reform . " It is an invitation , a commitment , a promise . Let 's march together , " Scalfaro , a northerner himself , said . " Help Italy to teach , to propose a capacity for strong local autonomy , for the federalism which can give new vigour to our blood . But turn back from the line you are taking now , " he said . Scalfaro was in Mantua to attend a ceremony commemorating the executions there by Austrian rulers in 1852 and 1853 of a group of Italians who had campaigned for national unity . He was jeered and whistled at by a small group of League supporters when he arrived for a visit marked by heavy security . Witnesses said the protesters were outnumbered by other Italians who waved tricolour flags in the national red , white and green or shouted " Viva Italia " . The League won more than eight percent of votes at the last general election in April on a federalist platform but its leader Umberto Bossi later switched to a separatist agenda . A three-day " independence " march along the Po River in September , culminating in a declaration in Venice of a self-styled " Republic of Padania " , flopped badly .
Denmark 's Radiometer H1 result seen flat . COPENHAGEN 1996-12-06 A Reuter consensus survey sees medical equipment group Radiometer reporting largely unchanged earnings when it publishes first half 19996/97 results next Wednesday . An average of four analysts ' forecasts predicted pre-tax profit of 147.3 million crowns compared to 144.5 million in the first six months of 1995/96 . They said that the group 's failure to introduce new products was behind the share 's weak performance in 1996 , during which it has lost seven percent so far . -- Soeren Linding Jakobsen , Copenhagen newsroom +45 33969650
Moslem fundamentalists kill 19 Algerians - agency . PARIS 1996-12-06 Moslem fundamentalists killed 19 civilians overnight in Blida province south of Algiers , Algerian security forces said on Friday . In a statement carried on the official Algerian news agency APS , the security forces said the 19 had been killed by " a group of terrorists " .
Belgian police smash major drugs rings , 30 arrested . BRUSSELS 1996-12-06 Police smashed two drugs smuggling rings and arrested 30 people after a taxidriver in Spain alerted them to a suitcase of heroin left in his cab , Belgian police said on Friday . Police seized dozens of kilos of heroin with a street value of hundreds of millions of Belgian francs , a public prosecutor 's office spokesman in the port city of Antwerp said . He said a 24-year-old Belgian woman left a suitcase containing 13 kg ( 29 lb ) of heroin in a taxi in Barcelona . The taxidriver alerted police who arrested a 33-year-old Turkish man when he came to pick up the suitcase at a lost luggage office . The woman was later arrested in Belgium . She and the Turkish man smuggled heroin from Turkey to Antwerp from where it was taken to Spain , France and Germany by others , the spokesman said . He said 14 people were arrested in Belgium and 16 others in other European nations after an investigation lasting nearly a year . ( $ 1=32.14 Belgian Franc )
Port conditions update - Lloyds Shipping . GREECE , Dec 5 - Greek port workers called off a strike which had kept the country 's ports closed , giving the government until Feb 1 to introduce a promised bonus scheme .
German Jan-August coffee imports detailed . HAMBURG 1996-12-06 German net green coffee imports from outside the EU totalled 7.73 million bags in January-August compared with 7.66 million in the year-ago period , the DKV coffee association said . Imports of 1.04 million bags in August were down from 1.08 million in August 1995 but up from 992,860 bags in July 1996 . Colombia shipped 198,226 bags in August after 164,185 in July , El Salvador 160,553 ( 129,184 ) , Indonesia 72,218 ( 78,959 ) , Ethiopia 69,252 ( 60,456 ) and Kenya 63,969 ( 60,043 ) . Brazil was in seventh position with 54,333 bags ( 29,055 ) . -- Hamburg newsroom +49-40-41903275
Munich Re says to split stock . MUNICH , Germany 1996-12-06 Muenchener Rueckversicherungs AG , the world 's largest reinsurer , said on Friday it expected to switch its shares to a lower par value by September 1997 at the earliest . The group , known as Munich Re , plans to seek approval for the move at its shareholders ' meeting today . The company said the switch would probably become effective in September . The planned 10-for-one stock split would reduce the par value of Munich Re 's shares to five marks from 50 , causing their price to drop to around one tenth of the present value . Munich Re 's registered shares , part of the blue-chip DAX index , were trading at 3,710 marks on Friday . -- Frankfurt Newsroom , +49 69 756525
EU experts postpone talks on rice area aid . BRUSSELS 1996-12-06 European Union rice experts on Thursday postponed discussion on area aid payments to rice producers because the documents were not available in all the EU languages , an EU offcial said on Friday . " The discussion in the experts group had to be postponed because the documents needed to be translated into the official languages and the item will be on next week 's agenda , " the offcial said . European rice producers are due to get compensatory area aid payments similar to those paid to cereal producers because of cuts in intervention prices . -- Brussels Newsroom 32 2 287 6800
Frankfurt dollar fix 1.5338 marks . FRANKFURT 1996-12-06 The dollar was fixed at 1.5338 marks in Frankfurt on Friday , after 1.5607 marks on Thursday . There was no Bundesbank intervention .
John Lewis UK store sales up 4.5 % in week . LONDON 1996-12-06 The John Lewis Partnership said its UK department store sales rose 4.5 percent in the week to November 30 compared with the same week a year earlier . In the 18 weeks to November 30 , sales were up 13.6 percent year-on-year . Total sales , including the Waitrose supermarket chain , rose 5.8 percent in the week and were up 11.4 percent in the 18-week period . -- Rosemary Bennett , London Newsroom 44 171 542 2774
Timah at 15.625 in London at 0931 GMT . LONDON 1996-12-06 PT Tambang Timah was traded at $ 15.625 per GDR in London on Friday at around 0931 GMT . It recorded a low of $ 15.625 and a high of $ 15.725 . Its previous close on Thursday was $ 15.80 . One Global Depository Receipt represents 10 common shares . -- Jakarta newsroom +6221 384-6364
British " Euro-sceptic " says Clarke should resign . LONDON 1996-12-06 A " Euro-sceptic " member of the ruling Conservative party said on Thursday British finance minister Kenneth Clarke had to resign to prevent the party disintegrating over the issue of a single European currency . Member of Parliament Tony Marlow said the resignation of the chancellor of the exchequer was the only way to make the Conservatives electable in a general election which must take place by May next year . " We have a divided and split Cabinet . This cannot endure , " Marlow told BBC television 's Newsnight programme on Thursday . " It is not sustainable . Kenneth Clarke has to go . If he does n't resign , the prime minister has got to fire him . " Marlow 's comment come on the heels of speculation that Clarke had threatened to resign if the government changed its " wait and see " policy on a single currency and declared it would not sign up for the currency in the next Parliament . Clarke denied on Thursday he had threatened to resign and said his position on the single currency was in tune with that of Prime Minister John Major . Major told parliament on Thursday he would keep his options open on single-currency membership . His statement was interpreted as a significant victory for Clarke and fellow pro-European Michael Heseltine , deputy prime minister . Pro-European Conservative MP Edwina Currie told the BBC that if Clarke resigned , other ministers would go with him .
Court ejects head of Australian child-sex inquiry . CANBERRA 1996-12-06 The Australian opposition on Friday demanded a high-powered investigation into paedophilia in the Australian diplomatic service after the federal court forced the head of the existing inquiry to stand aside . The court said inquiry head Chris Hunt might be biased , since he privately told a newspaper he had turned up no major evidence of paedophile activity , even though he still had months ' of investigation before him . " Today we are left with a ruinous wreck beyond salvage and a continuing pall of doubt and suspicion hanging over our diplomatic service , " opposition foreign affairs spokesman Laurie Brereton said . But the government responded by pressing ahead with the original inquiry , established in May , appointing a new head to lead it . Critics say that if there were many paedophiles in senior posts in the Foreign Affairs Department then a secret inquiry would be open to internal influence and would become a public service whitewash . Accordingly , they demand an open investigation . A spokesman for Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer said the appointment of a new inquiry head , administrative law expert Pamela O'Neil , showed the government 's commitment to pursue the matter . A report is due in May next year . One Australian diplomat has been prosecuted this year for having sex with a Cambodian boy under 16 but was acquitted . Police have investigated others . A newspaper reported allegations in April that diplomats had directed Australian government aid to certain foreign orphanages to secure sex with children .
Australian hitman killed wrong victim . SYDNEY 1996-12-06 An Australian hitman who went to the wrong house and killed the wrong man was sentenced to 20 years jail on Friday . Paul Crofts , 33 , and an accomplice were contracted to shoot a man , identified only as Tony , in the leg to punish him for his misconduct with a female friend of the contractor , the New South Wales Supreme Court was told . But in February 1993 Leszic Betcher , was shot and killed after answering a knock at the door of his Sydney home . " The inference from all the material is that the marauders had come to the wrong house , " Judge Michael Grove said . In sentencing Crofts , who pleaded guilty , Grove took into account his " mildly retarded " intellectual state , which placed him in the lowest two percent of the population . Grove said Betcher was " not only the victim of a horrendous crime , but his death was brought about in circumstances of an equally ghastly error on the part of the prisoner and his accomplices " . The unnamed accomplice was earlier sentenced to 20 years in prison .
NZ 's Bolger says Nats to meet NZ First on Sunday . WELLINGTON 1996-12-06 New Zealand Prime Minister Jim Bolger , emerging from coalition talks with the nationalist New Zealand First party on Friday afternoon , said National and NZ First would meet again on Sunday . Bolger said he expected a government to be formed by Thursday .
NZ 's Peters says Nat , Lab talks at similar stage . WELLINGTON 1996-12-06 New Zealand First leader Winston Peters on Friday said coalition talks with the National and Labour parties were at a similar level of completion . Peters left a meeting between NZ First and National negotiators to spend 20 minutes speaking to Labour leader Helen Clark . He told Reuters he had needed to speak to her before she left Wellington later on Friday . Peters said the talks with Labour and National had reached " about the same level of completion , and that 's good " .
RTRS - Australian MP John Langmore formally resigns . CANBERRA 1996-12-06 Australian parliamentarian John Langmore has formally resigned from his lower house seat , the office of House of Representatives speaker Bob Halverson said on Friday . " Halverson announced that he had received today from Mr John Vance Langmore , a letter resigning his place as member of the House of Representatives for the electoral division of Fraser in the Australian Capital Territory , " his office said in a statement . Halverson was considering possible dates for the by-election , his office said . Langmore , 57 , announced in November that he intended to resign from parliament to take up a position as Australia 's senior representative at the United Nations headquarters in New York . He played an active role at the U.N. social development conference in Copenhagen last year and has co-authored articles with U.N. development programme officer Inge Kaul . Langmore , a persistent campaigner for interventionist economic policy , has been Labor member for Fraser since 1984 . He was senior private secretary to the employment and industrial relations minister from 1983 to 1984 and was economic advisor to then treasurer Paul Keating in 1983 . His previous posts include assistant director of the national planning office of Papua New Guinea from 1969 to 1973 . -- Canberra Bureau 61-6 273-2730
Burmese students march out of campus again . RANGOON 1996-12-06 A group of Burmese students on Friday marched out of the Yangon Institute of Technology ( YIT ) in the northern outskirts of Rangoon and moved toward the University of Yangon about six km ( four miles ) away , witnesses said . The witnesses could not give exact numbers of those taking part in the march or any other details immediately . On Monday and Tuesday , students from the YIT and the university launched street protests against what they called unfair handling by police of a brawl between some of their colleagues and restaurant owners in October . The protests culminated at dawn on Tuesday with several hundred of the student protesters being detained briefly by police near the central Shwe Dagon pagoda in Rangoon . They were later released . On Friday , some students told Reuters that they were still dissatisfied with the ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council 's ( SLORC ) handling of their demands . They said they wanted to organise independent unions on university campuses and demanded that details of the punishment of policemen who allegedly manhandled some students at the October brawl be published in newspapers .
Thai rice vessels loading and movements at Dec 06 . BANGKOK 1996-11-29 The Thai Commerce Ministry detailed rice loading at Thai ports as follows ( in tonnes ) : Vessel Date of Arrival Quantity Destination Iran Sabr 19/11/96 9,000 Iran Princess of Loine 19/11/96 10,000 Philippines Deligst 20/11/96 5,500 Indonesia Seagramd ace 20/11/96 5,000 Japan Lucky Emdldm 20/11/96 5,000 Japan Algoa Day 21/11/96 6,000 Africa Sangthai Glory 22/11/96 3,000 Singapore Myos Yang 5 22/11/96 4,000 Indonesia Budisuryana 22/11/96 3,800 Malaysia King Ace 22/11/96 5,000 Japan Tong Shun 25/11/96 3,000 Vietnam But 2 27/11/96 5,000 Burma -- Bangkok newsroom ( 662 ) 652-0642
Chinese girl nearly dies from cigarette smoke . SHANGHAI 1996-12-06 A five-year-old girl in the east China city of Tianjin choked and almost died from cigarette smoke at her grandfather 's birthday with relatives smoking for hours in a small room , the Wen Hui Bao newspaper said on Friday . The newspaper said the girl was rushed to hospital and found to be having extreme difficulty breathing . It said eight of the people at the party , including the girl 's father , immediately announced they would give up smoking .
South Korean won closes down on import settlements . SEOUL 1996-12-06 The won slid against the U.S. unit on Friday as players prepared for Monday 's import settlement needs , traders said . The won ended at 831.00 , slightly down from an opening of 830.60 . It ranged between 830.20 and 831.40 . " A sale of about $ 60 million by Hyundai Heavy pushed the dollar down earlier in the day , but Monday 's import needs helped it recover , " said a Koram Bank dealer . Dealers said the dollar / yen 's movement on the world market would continue to set the trend for the dollar / won next week .
Foreign planes to land in China 's popular Guilin . BEIJING 1996-12-06 China 's tourist spot of Guilin in the southern region of Guangxi will open its airport to foreign aircraft , the Xinhua news agency said on Friday . An assessment group made up of the State Council 's Port Office , the Civil Aviation Administration of China , the General Administration of Customs and other authorities had granted the airport permission to handle foreign aircraft , Xinhua said . " The move is expected to give a shot in the arm to the economic expansion of Guangxi and southwest China as a whole , " the agency said but gave no further details . Guilin is well known for its mountain and river scenery and is one of China 's most popular tourist destinations .
EPA says economic assessment unchanged by GDP data . TOKYO 1996-12-06 Japan 's Economic Planning Agency has not changed its view that the economy is gradually recovering , despite relatively weak gross domestic product figures released on Tuesday , EPA Vice Minister Shimpei Nukaya told reporters on Friday . He said the GDP growth was weak but that this reflected the economy between July and September and did not take into account more recent data . When asked about the outlook for the fiscal year beginning in April , Nukaya said the economy may slow down in the early part of the fiscal year due to a planned consumption tax hike , but that would be only temporary . The consumption tax will be raised to five percent from three percent from April 1 .
Sangetsu - 96/97 parent forecast . TOKYO 1996-12-06 Year to March 31 , 1997 ( in billions of yen unless specified ) LATEST ACTUAL ( Parent ) FORECAST YEAR-AGO Sales 128.00 117.56 Current 12.00 9.94 Net 6.20 5.36 EPS 143.56 yen 127.64 yen Ord div 30.00 yen 30.00 yen NOTE - Sangetsu Co Ltd is a trader specialising in interiors .
Bre-X , Barrick said to continue Busang talks . K.T. Arasu JAKARTA 1996-12-06 Canada 's Bre-X Minerals Ltd and Barrick Gold Corp are to continue negotiations to hammer out a partnership agreement to develop the spectacular Busang gold find in Indonesia , sources close to the talks said on Friday . " The negotiations will be held both in Toronto and in Jakarta , " one source , speaking on condition of anonymity , told Reuters . Another source said most of the key negotiators from both Bre-X and Barrick had returned to Toronto , but declined to say if there had been any progress in their negotiations . Both sources said Bre-X and Barrick did not hold talks on Thursday with Mines and Energy Ministry Secretary-General Umar Said , who is coordinating the negotiations over the Busang find in East Kalimantan . The first source also said Bre-X had until December 21 to submit to the Indonesian Mines and Energy Ministry a feasibility study on the central region of the Busang property , estimated to contain 2.6 million ounces of gold . The richest parts of the property to the north and south of the central region have been estimated by Bre-X to contain 57 million ounces of gold . " Bre-X is expected to complete the feasibility report by December 16 and submit it to the government before the December 21 deadline , " the source said . He said Bre-X would then formally seek the permission of the Indonesian government to begin construction to develop Busang 's central region , which might take up to two years . The source declined to say if there had been any progress in the talks between Bre-X and Barrick . " This is a huge project ... we are not selling furniture , and Bre-X has 13,000 shareholders to answer to , " the source said . " While there has been some agreement in principle on some issues , there are still others such as procedures and mechanisms that needed to be sorted out , " he added . The source said no new deadline had been set by the Mines and Energy Ministry for Bre-X and Barrick to strike a deal . The Ministry had given the companies until December 4 to complete a partnership deal , and advised Bre-X to take a 25 percent stake and Barrick 75 percent to develop the property . " As far as I am aware , there 's been no new deadline , " the source said . The Ministry 's Umar said on Thursday that both Bre-X and Barrick had responded positively to a government letter recommending a 25-75 split in the Busang gold property . The government also wants 10 percent of the property . Umar said the government had yet to receive a formal reply from the companies . He had said earlier that if the two companies failed to reach a partnership agreement , the government would explore other ways to expedite development of the Busang find . Bre-X has a partnership deal with PT Panutan Duta of the Panutan Group run by President Suharto 's eldest son , Sigit Harjojudanto , under which Panutan would receive $ 40 million over 40 months plus a 10 percent stake Busang 's richest parts . Barrick has teamed up with a construction company in the Citra Group of Suharto 's eldest daughter , Siti Hardianti Rukmana , in what Barrick had said was a partnership " to prepare us for a potential mining development project " .
Honda RV exceeds sales target . TOKYO 1996-12-06 Honda Motor Co Ltd said on Friday that it had received 15,000 domestic orders for its S-MX recreational vehicle in the first two weeks after its launch . Honda launched the S-MX light minivan , featuring cubic body styling , on November 22 with a monthly sales target of 5,000 units . A version with lower road clearance and front and rear spoilers accounted for two-thirds of the sales .
FEATURE - Singapore sees prestige in hosting WTO . Ramthan Hussain SINGAPORE 1996-12-06 Singapore 's winning campaign to host the World Trade Organisation ( WTO ) 's first ministerial meeting reflected its ambition to play a key role in shaping global free trade , the lifeblood of its economy , analysts said . " As one of the world 's most externally oriented economies , Singapore has a disproportionately large stake in the WTO , " said Desmond Supple , economist at research house I.D.E.A . " Singapore stands to benefit more than most from continued global trade liberalisation as trade is the engine of its growth , accounting for nearly three times its gross domestic product . " The city-state met U.S. opposition two years ago in its bid to host the meeting , expected to gather 4,000 officials from 160 countries from December 9 to 13 . In a stand some analysts linked to controversy over Singapore 's caning of an American teenager for vandalism , then-U.S. Trade Representative Mickey Kantor had said the meeting ought to be held where the WTO was going to be headquartered . That would have meant Geneva . But Singapore had the support of other WTO members . Derek da Cunha , senior fellow at the Institute of Policy Studies ( ISEAS ) , said Singapore 's hosting of the conference " carries a great deal of symbolism for the city-state , underscoring its commitment to free trade and its trading links across the globe . " There is the international prestige Singapore would enjoy , but " more importantly there is a genuine national interest in fostering better global free trade and an open market " , said Tan Kong Yam , head of Business Policy at the National University of Singapore . At the ministerial meeting , trade ministers will review the work of the WTO and the implementation of the Uruguay Round free trade commitments under its predecessor the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade ( GATT ) . In June , the WTO hailed Singapore for its open market policies but the European Union and other trading powers called on Singapore to speed up the opening of its services sector . Supple said the struggle that Singapore had to wage in vying to host the meeting would be repeated during the talks . " There is tension at every step of the way , " since a battle line between the West and developing countries has been drawn over the issue of linking trade liberalisation with labour rights , he said . Supple said hosting the meeting carried prestige for Singapore , " however , this is quite intangible as the prestige factor may not necessarily lead to any additional investment and trade flows to this region . " From a commercial point of view , the meeting would be good for Singapore 's tourism industry , Tan said . A large part of Singapore 's workforce would be mobilised to ensure the meeting would run without a glitch but the average Singaporean " would probably not be too concerned about some of the issues , " Tan said . " But the more educated public will realise that these kind of things are important for Singapore as a small economy . " Supple said any political gains the Singapore government would get from the WTO meeting -- ahead of a general election due by April 1997 -- would depend on how successful it was in pushing its economic agenda . " If there are any movements toward freer trade , then Singapore 's economy and the electorate would gain , " he said . " But I do n't think it would be wise to play up the political aspect of this . I think political issues will take secondary importance to all these economic issues that will be displayed . "
Japan NTT says hopes to start int'l business soon . TOKYO 1996-12-06 Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp ( NTT ) said on Friday that it hopes to move into the international telecommunications business as soon as possible following the government 's decision to split NTT into three firms under a holding company . " We hope to start international telephone business as soon as possible , " a company official told Reuters . The official said the latest government decision to split the company under a holding company would allow flexibility in NTT 's international phone business . Earlier , Posts and Telecommunications Minister Hisao Horinouchi told a news conference the government plans to split NTT into three firms under a holding company , but did not specify when the restructuring would likely take effect . One of the three new companies will be a long-distance operator and the other two will be local-call operators , Horinouchi said . One of the local firms will operate in west Japan and the other in east Japan , he added . The long-distance operator will offer international services , Horinouchi said . The NTT official said the timing of the planned split-up was uncertain because more discussions by government officials were required .
Ahold launches Asian food discount stores . ZAANDAM , Netherlands 1996-12-06 Dutch supermarkets group Ahold NV said on Friday it had launched a second food store format for Asian consumers today , opening 16 BILO food discount stores in Malaysia . The BILO stores are located in Malysia 's capital Kuala Lumpur and in the country 's second city Johor Bahru . The discount price format store BILO is to complement Ahold 's full service supermarket TOPS , recently launched in Asia . " In the coming five to ten years , Ahold plans to open many more stores of both formats , making TOPS and BILO household names in the region , " Ahold said in a statement . As well as its activities in Asia , Dutch retail group Ahold has a strong presence in Europe , in the U.S. and the company recently announced a joint venture agreement in Brazil . Ahold has annualised sales of approximately US$ 24 billion , and employs 180,000 people worldwide . -- Amsterdam newsroom +31 20 504 5000 , Fax +31 20 504 504
ALPINE SKIING-WOMEN 'S WORLD CUP SUPER G WINNER PROFILE . VAIL , Colorado 1996-12-07 Profile of the winner of Saturday 's women 's World Cup super G race : Name : Svetlana Gladishiva Age : 25 Nation : Russia Previous World Cup victories : None Other Facts : Gladishiva won a silver medal in super G at the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Olympics and a bronze medal in downhill at the 1991 World Championships .
ALPINE SKIING-WOMEN 'S WORLD CUP SUPER G RESULTS . VAIL , Colorado 1996-12-07 Provisional results from Saturday 's women 's World Cup super G race : 1. Svetlana Gladishiva ( Russia ) one minute 17.76 seconds 2. Pernila Wiberg ( Sweden ) 1:17.97 3. Carole Montillet ( France ) 1:18.11 4. Hilde Gerg ( Germany ) 1:18.15 5. Isolde Kostner ( Italy ) 1:18.19 6. Warwara Zelenskaja ( Russia ) 1:18.21 7. Madlen Brigger-Summermatter ( Switzerland ) 1:18.23 8. Florence Masnada ( France ) 1:18.31 9. Katja Seizinger ( Germany ) 1:18.32 10= Martina Ertl ( Germany ) 1:18.48 10= Stefanie Schuster ( Austria ) 1:18.48 12. Bibiana Perez ( Italy ) 1:18.52 13. Barbara Merlin ( Italy ) 1:18.67 14. Sybille Brauner ( Germany ) 1:18.81 15. Katharina Gutensohn ( Germany ) 1:18.92 16. Leatitia Dalloz ( France ) 1:18.96 17. Renate Goetschl ( Austria ) 1:18.98 18. Marianne Brechu ( France ) 1:19.02 19. Heidi Zurbriggen ( Switzerland ) 1:19.03 20. Spela Bracun ( Slovenia ) 1:19.07 21. Shannon Nobis ( U.S. ) 1:19.08 22= Regine Cavagnoud ( France ) 1:19.21 22= Anita Wachter ( Austria ) 1:19.21 24. Megan Gerety ( U.S. ) 1:19.39 25. Hilary Lindh ( U.S. ) 1:19.41 26= Catherine Borghi ( Switzerland ) 1:19.44 26= Michaela Dorfmeister ( Austria ) 1:19.44 28. Alexandra Meissnitzer ( Austria ) 1:19.53 29. Ingeborg Helen Marken ( Norway ) 1:19.54 30. Monika Tschirky ( Switzerland ) 1:19.60 The results were declared official .
ALPINE SKIING-GLADISHIVA WINS WORLD CUP SUPER G . VAIL , Colorado 1996-12-07 Svetlana Gladishiva of Russia won the women 's World Cup Super G race on Saturday . Pernilla Wiberg of Sweden finished second and Carole Montillet of France came in third , according to provisional results .
GOLF - THIRD ROUND OF JCPENNEY CLASSIC WASHED OUT . TARPON SPRINGS , Florida 1996-12-07 Heavy rains on Saturday washed out the third round of the $ 1.5 million JCPenney Classic at the Innisbrook Hilton Resort . Officials said the tournament would be reduced to 54 holes for the first time in its 37-year history . The final round of the special event , which pairs players from the PGA and LPGA Tours , will be played in the alternate shot format on Sunday . The duo of Pat Hurst and Scott McCarron were tied for the lead with the team of Donna Andrews and Mike Hulbert at 13-under-par 129 through 36 holes . The tandem of reigning U.S. Amateur champions Kelli Kuehne and Tiger Woods were another shot back at 12-under 130 . Defending champions Beth Daniel and Davis Love will start the final round six shots off the pace .
ALPINE SKIING-WOMEN 'S DOWNHILL WINNER PROFILE . VAIL , Colorado 1996-12-07 Profile of the winner of Saturday 's women 's World Cup downhill race : Name : Renate Goetschl Age : 20 Nation : Austria Previous victories ( two ) : slalom , Lillehammer Norway , 1993 ; super G , Flachau , Austria , 1995 . Other facts : As a qualifier for the 1993 World Cup finals through Europa Cup results , 16-year-old Goetschl won the slalom to become history 's youngest World Cup victor .
ALPINE SKIING-WOMEN 'S WORLD CUP STANDINGS . VAIL , Colorado 1996-12-07 Women 's World Cup standings after Saturday 's downhill race : Downhill Standings 1. Katja Seizinger ( Germany ) 180 points 2. Renate Goetschl ( Austria ) 132 3. Carole Montillet ( France ) 86 4. Pernilla Wiberg ( Sweden ) 75 5. Heidi Zurbriggen ( Switzerland ) 69 6. Regina Haeusl ( Germany ) 66 7. Alexandra Meissnitzer ( Austria ) 65 8. Isolde Kostner ( Italy ) 60 9. Ingeborg Helen Markein ( Norway ) 58 10= Megan Gerety ( U.S. ) 51 10= Warwara Zelenskaja ( Russia ) 51 10= Florence Masnada ( France ) 51 13= Picabo Street ( U.S. ) 50 13= Stefanie Schuster ( Austria ) 50 15. Miriam Vogt ( Germany ) 47 16. Bibiana Perez ( Italy ) 45 17. Hilde Gerg ( Germany ) 42 18. Barbara Merlin ( Germany ) 38 19= Kate Pace Lindsay ( Canada ) 23 19= Svetlana Gladishiva ( Russia ) 23 19= Regine Cavagnoud ( France ) 23 Overall women 's World Cup standings leaders after Saturday 's downhill and super G races : 1. Katja Seizinger ( Germany ) 414 points 2. Pernilla Wiberg ( Sweden ) 353 3. Hide Gerg ( Germany ) 276 4. Anita Wachter ( Austria ) 180 5. Isolde Kostner ( Italy ) 157 6. Heidi Zurbriggen ( Switzerland ) 153 7. Warwara Zelenskaja ( Russia ) 151 8= Renate Goetschl ( Austria ) 146 8= Carole Montillet ( France ) 146 10. Svetlana Gladishiva ( Russia ) 137 11. Florence Masnada ( France ) 133 12. Deborah Compagnoni ( Italy ) 120 13. Martina Ertl ( Germany ) 119 14. Alexandra Meissnitzer ( Austria)118 15. Urska Horvat ( Slovenia ) 108 16= Claudia Riegler ( New Zealand ) 100 16= Sabina Panzanini ( Italy ) 100 18. Barbara Merlin ( Italy ) 92 19. Stefanie Schuster ( Austria ) 89 20. Miriam Vogt ( Germany ) 76 Super G standings : 1. Pernilla Wiberg ( Sweden ) 180 2. Hilde Gerg ( Germany ) 130 3. Svetland Gladishiva ( Russia ) 114 4. Warwara Zelenskaja ( Russia ) 100 5. Florence Masnada ( France ) 82 6. Katja Seizinger ( Germany ) 74 7. Isolde Kostner ( Italy ) 65 8. Carole Montillet ( France ) 60 9. Martina Ertl ( Germany ) 58 10. Anita Wachter ( Austria ) 49 11. Heidi Zurbriggen ( Switzerland ) 43 12= Madlen Brigger-Summermatter ( Switzerland ) 42 12= Barbara Merlin ( Italy ) 42 12= Katharina Gutensohn ( Germany ) 42 15. Stefanie Schuster ( Austria ) 39 16. Leatitia Dalloz ( France ) 33 17. Bibiana Perez ( Italy ) 30 18= Miriam Vogt ( Germany ) 29 18= Marianne Brechu ( France ) 29 20. Alexandra Meissnitzer ( Austria ) 27 Nation 's Cup standings : 1. Austria 1,973 points 2. Germany 1,135 3. Switzerland 972 4. Italy 887 5. France 853 6. Norway 746 7. Sweden 673 8. Slovenia 432 9. Russia 288 10. United States 164
ALPINE SKIING-WOMEN 'S WORLD CUP DOWNHILL RESULTS . VAIL , Colorado 1996-12-07 Provisional results from Saturday 's women 's World Cup downhill race : 1. Renate Goetschl ( Austria ) one minute 47.71 seconds 2. Katja Seizinger ( Germany ) 1:48.53 3. Isolde Kostner ( Italy ) 1:48.91 4. Alexandra Meissnitzer ( Austria ) 1:49.13 5. Megan Gerety ( U.S. ) 1:49.26 6. Miriam Vogt ( Germany ) 1:49.28 7. Stefanie Schuster ( Austria ) 1:49.38 8. Ingeborg Helen Marken ( Norway ) 1:49.41 9. Florence Masnada ( France ) 1:49.51 10. Regina Haeusl ( Germany ) 1:49.53 11. Heidi Zurbriggen ( Switzerland ) 1:49.65 12. Warwara Zelenskaja ( Russia ) 1:49.66 13. Barbara Merlin ( Italy ) 1:49.76 14. Hilde Gerg ( Germany ) 1:49.84 15. Martina Ertl ( Germany ) 1:49.85 16. Pernilla Wiberg ( Sweden ) 1:49.88 17. Svetlana Gladishiva ( Russia ) 1:50.03 18. Anita Wachter ( Austria ) 1:50.10 19. Spela Bracun ( Slovenia ) 1:50.40 20. Regine Cavagnoud ( France ) 1:50.51 21. Kate Pace Lindsay ( Canada ) 1:50.54 22. Bibiana Perez ( Italy ) 1:50.65 23. Hilary Lindh ( United States ) 1:50.69 24. Catherine Borghi ( Switzerland ) 1:50.72 25. Carole Montillet ( France ) 1:50.91 26. Brigitte Obermoser ( Austria ) 1:50.99 27. Sybille Brauner ( Germay ) 1:51.04 28. Grete Stroem ( Norway ) 1:51.07 29. Patrizia Bassis ( Italy ) 1:51.13 30. Alessandra Merlin ( Italy ) 1:51.16 The results were declared official .
NORDIC SKIING-WORLD CUP BIATHLON RESULTS . OESTERSUND , Sweden 1996-12-07 Results of Saturday 's World Cup biathlon races : Men 's 10 kms 1. Vadim Sashurin ( Belarus ) 26 minutes 17.2 seconds ( no penalty rounds ) 2. Frode Andresen ( Norway ) 26:17.8 ( 2 ) 3. Ole Einar Bjorndalen ( Norway ) 26:24.9 ( 2 ) 4. Sven Fischer ( Germany ) 26:28.2 ( 1 ) 5. Ricco Gross ( Germany ) 26:33.0 ( 1 ) World Cup standings 1. Fischer ( Germany ) 82 points 2. Pavel Muslimov ( Russia ) 82 3. Sashurin 68 . Women 's 7.5 kms 1. Olga Melnik ( Russia ) 23:13.3 ( 0 ) 2. Svetlana Paramygina ( Belorus ) 23:58.6 ( 0 ) 3. Gunn Margit Andreassen ( Norway ) 24:00.4 ( 0 ) 4. Simone Greiner-Petter-Memm ( Germany ) 24:09.5 ( 1 ) 5. Petra Behle ( Germany ) 24:15.4 ( 2 ) World Cup standings 1. Behle 89 2. Paramygina 79 3. Greiner-Petter-Memm 78
ALPINE SKIING-GOETCHL WINS WORLD CUP DOWNHILL . VAIL , Colorado 1996-12-07 Renate Goetschl of Austria won the women 's World Cup downhill race on Saturday , according to provisional results . Katja Seizinger of Germany finished second and Islode Kostner of Italy took third .
BOBSLEIGH-SHIMER PILOTS USA III TO SURPRISE WIN . IGLS , Austria 1996-12-07 Brian Shimer piloted USA III to a surprise victory in a World Cup two-man bobsleigh race on Saturday . Lying fifth after the first run , Shimer and breakman Randy Jones delivered a near-perfect second trip down the 1976 Olympic course for an aggregate time of one minute 45.91 seconds . First run leaders Guenther Huber and breakman Antonio Tartaglia in the Italy I sleigh finished second two-hundredths of a second behind the Americans . Canada I , represented by Pierre Lueders and breakman Dave MacEachern , completed the third World cup event of the winter a further one-hundredth of a second behind the Italians . The Canadians , winners of the opening two events in Altenberg , Germany , and La Plagne , France , increased their lead in the World Cup standings . They have 104 points , 15 ahead of USA I 's Jim Herberich and breakman Garrett Hines who managed only 10th place on Saturday .
SKIING-CHINESE MAKE PROMISING FREESTYLE SKIING DEBUT . TIGNES , France 1996-12-07 China made a promising debut on the freestyle skiing world cup circuit in an aerials event in the French resort of Tignes on Saturday . While the Chinese failed to gain a place in the men 's final , they had two in the top 10 of the women 's competition , Cuo Dan finishing a respectable seventh and Xu Nannan ninth . But overall , it was France and Canada who dominated the day . Alexis Blanc and Sebastien Foucras gave France a one-two finish in the first aerials competition of the season . Blanc collected his seventh career World Cup win with a two jump combined score of 238.36 points , easily beating Foucras , the overall World Cup aerials champion , who was a distant second with 223.60 . Canada 's Jeff Bean , who had never finished higher than ninth in a World Cup event , made his first trip to the podium taking third place with a mark of 209.96 . Veronica Brenner of Canada , who picked up her first career victory at Tignes last year , made it two wins in a row at the French resort taking first in the women 's competition with a score of 170.42 . Swiss skiers occupied the other two places on the podium , Karin Kuster taking second with 160.55 narrowly ahead of Evelyne Leu with 160.36 .
BOBSLEIGH-WORLD CUP TWO-MAN RESULTS . IGLS , Austria 1996-12-07 Results of a World Cup two-man bobsleigh event on Saturday : 1. United States III ( Brian Shimer , Randy Jones ) one minute 45.91 seconds ( 52.90 / 53.01 ) 2. Italy I ( Guenther Huber , Antonio Tartaglia ) 1:45.93 ( 52.74 / 53.19 ) 3. Canada I ( Pierre Lueders , Dave MacEachern ) 1:45.94 ( 52.76 / 53.18 ) 4. German I ( Sepp Dostthaler , Thomas Lebsa ) 1:45.95 ( 52.82 / 53.13 ) 5. Switzerland I ( Reto Goetschi , Guido Acklin ) 1:45.98 ( 52.91 / 53.07 ) 6. Germany III ( Dirk Wiese , Jakobs Marco ) 1:46.02 ( 52.89 / 53.13 ) 7. Czech Republic I ( Jiri Dzmura , Pavel Polomsky ) 1:46.06 ( 53.01 / 53.05 ) 8. Austria I ( Hubert Schoesser , Erwin Arnold ) 1:46.13 ( 52.92 / 53.21 ) 9. Britain I ( Sean Olsson , Dean Ward ) 1:46.26 ( 52.97/ 53.29 ) 10 equal . United States I ( Jim Herberich , Garrett Hines ) 1:46.34 ( 53.14 / 53.20 ) and Austria III ( Hannes Conti , Georg Kuttner ) 1:46.34 ( 53.30/ 53.04).
CRICKET - WOOLMER MAKES SENTIMENTAL RETURN TO KANPUR . KANPUR , India 1996-12-07 South Africa 's trip to Kanpur for the third test against India has given former England test cricketer Bob Woolmer the chance of a sentimental return to his birthplace . Woolmer was born in the northern city of Kanpur when his father worked there for an insurance compnay and was himself an active cricketer . " It 's been a sentimental journey ... A visit to India is always an intriguing experience , " Woolmer , now the South African coach , said on Saturday . Woolmer , 48 , played 19 tests for England between 1975 and 1981 . His first cricketing sojurn to India was as a member of Tony Greig 's England side in 1976-77 . His father Clarence Woolmer represented United Province , now renamed Uttar Pradesh , in India 's Ranji Trophy national championship and captained the state during 1949 . Now aged 86 , Woolmer senior lives with his son in Cape Town . Woolmer 's memories of Kanpur are few and blurred . " I do n't remember much of the place , " he said . " I came here on zero and left at three ( aged three ) when my father was transferred to Calcutta where I spent another four and half years . " But I do remember we had a cobra snake in the basement of our house . Also that my father bought a bicycle and when we rode over a hose pipe it broke into two . " Woolmer said the hospital where he was born is close to the stadium where the India-South Africa test will be played .
FREESTYLE SKIING-WORLD CUP AERIALS RESULTS . TIGNES , France 1996-12-07 Results of the World Cup freestyle skiing aerials competition on Saturday : Men : 1. Alexis Blanc ( France ) 238.36 points 2. Sebastien Foucras ( France ) 223.60 3. Jeff Bean ( Canada ) 209.96 4. Eric Bergoust ( U.S ) 207.15 5. Christian Rijavec ( Austria ) 204.17 6. Alexandre Mikhailov ( Russia ) 202.59 7. Ales Valenta ( Czech Republic ) 194.02 8. Andy Capicik ( Canada ) 193.82 9. Trace Worthington ( U.S. ) 192.36 10. Dmitri Dashinski Belarus ) 190.70 Women : 1. Veronica Brenner ( Canada ) 170.42 2. Karin Kuster ( Switzerland ) 160.55 3. Evelyne Leu ( Switzerland ) 160.36 4. Caroline Olivier ( Canada ) 157.10 5. Jacqui Cooper ( Australia ) 156.52 6. Marie Lindgren ( Sweden ) 154.82 7. Dan Cuo ( China ) 154.61 8. Kristie Marshall ( Australia ) 154.60 9. Xu Nannan ( China ) 152.08 10. Hilde Synnove Lid ( Norway ) 148.20
SKI JUMPING-LEADING WORLD CUP RESULTS / STANDINGS . KUUSAMO , Finland 1996-12-07 Leading results in a World Cup high hill ( 120-metre ) ski jumping event on Saturday : 1. Takanobu Okabe ( Japan ) 303.4 points ( first jump 145.4 / second jump 158 ) 2. Kazuyoshi Funaki ( Japan ) 295.4 ( 151.5 / 143.9 ) 3. Andreas Goldberger ( Austria ) 274.4 ( 144.4 / 130 ) 4. Dieter Thoma ( Germany ) 267 ( 141.6 / 124.4 ) 5. Ari-Pekka Nikkola ( Finland ) 256.4 ( 126 / 130.4 ) 6. Reinhard Schwarzenberger ( Austria ) 252.6 ( 119.7 / 132.9 ) 7. Noriaki Kasai ( Japan ) 242 ( 124.2 / 117.8 ) 8. Hiroya Saitoh ( Japan ) 234.7 ( 124.6 / 110.1 ) 9. Jani Soininen ( Finland ) 231.5 ( 115 / 116.5 ) 10. Kristian Brenden ( Norway ) 228.1 ( 129.4 / 98.7 ) Leading World Cup standings ( after three events ) : 1. Thoma 210 points 2. Brenden 206 3. Goldberger 160 4. Okabe 146 5. Funaki 143 6. Saitoh 121 7. Espen Bredesen ( Norway ) 112 8. Nikkola 101 9. Soininen 85 10. Primoz Peterka ( Slovakia ) 76
BADMINTON - WORLD GRAND PRIX SEMIFINAL RESULTS . TEMBAU DENPASAR , Bali 1996-12-07 Results of semifinals at the World Grand Prix finals on Saturday : Men 's singles Fung Permadi ( Taiwan ) beat Indra Wijaya ( Indonesia ) 15-6 15-8 Sun Jun ( China ) beat Allan Budi Kusuma ( Indonesia ) 15-9 15-10 Women 's singles Susi Susanti ( Indonesia ) beat Camilla Martin ( Denmark ) 11-1 11-3 Ye Zhaoying ( China ) beat Gong Zhichao ( China ) 11-8 11-3
SPEED SKATING-RESULTS OF WORLD CUP SPEED SKATING RACES . CHONJU , South Korea 1996-12-07 Results on the first day of the World Cup speed skating races here on Saturday . Men 's 500 metres first round : 1 . Horii Manabu ( Japan ) 37.23 seconds ; 2 . Jaegal Sung-Yeol ( South Korea ) 37.46 ; 3 . Grunde Njos ( Norway ) 37.49 ; 4 . Shimizu Hiroyasu ( Japan ) 37.68 ; 5 . Sergey Klevchenya ( Russia ) 37.86 ; 6 . Yamakage Hiroaki ( Japan ) 37.93 ; 7 . Casey Fitzrandolph ( US ) 37.97 ; 8 . Sylvain Bouchard ( Canada ) 38.00 ; 9 . Kim Yoon-man ( South Korea ) 38.05 ; 10 . Inoue Junichi ( Japan ) 38.08 . Women 's 500 metres first round : 1 . Xuc Rulhong ( China ) 40.78 ; 2 . Svetlana Jhurova ( Russia ) 41.08 ; 3 . Franziska Schenk ( Germany ) 41.13 ; 4 . Okazaki Tomomi ( Japan ) 41.19 ; 5 . Shimazaki Kyoko ( Japan ) 41.45 ; 6 . Marianne Timmer ( Netherlands ) 41.58 ; 7 . Jin Hua ( China ) 41.59 ; 8 . Alena Koroleva ( Russia ) 41.64 ; 9 . Chris Witty ( US ) 41.75 ; 10 . Anke Baler ( Germany ) 41.76 . Men 's 1,000 metres first round : 1. Sylvain Bouchard ( Canada ) 1 minute 16.24 seconds 2. Sergey Klevchenya ( Russia ) 1:16.31 3. Jan Bos ( Netherlands ) 1:16.38 4. Grunde Njos ( Norway ) 1:16.44 5. Lee Kyou-hyuk ( South Korea ) 1:16.47 6. Inoue Junichi ( Japan ) 1:16.61 7. Gerard Van Velde ( Netherlands ) 1:16.63 8. Kim Yoon-man ( South Korea ) 1:16.75 9. Jeremy Wotherspoon ( Canada ) 1:16.75 10. Miyabe Yasunori ( Japan ) 1:16.86 Women 's 1,000 metres first round : 1. Franziska Schenk ( Germany ) 1:23.17 2. Kusunose Shiho ( Japan ) 1:24.77 3. Marianne Timmer ( Netherlands ) 1:24.86 4. Anka Baier ( Germany ) 1:25.16 5. Becky Sundstrom ( U.S. ) 1:25.39 6. Shimazaki Kyoko ( Japan ) 1:25.51 7. Oksana Ravllova ( Russia ) 1:25.55 8. Sammiya Eriko ( Japan ) 1:25.79 9. Chris Witty ( U.S. ) 1:25.85 10. Xue Rulhong ( China ) 1:25.89
ALPINE SKIING-OFFICIALS HOPE TO SALVAGE WORLD CUP WEEKEND . WHISTLER , British Columbia 1996-12-06 World Cup ski officials hope to be able to get in at least one men 's downhill training run on Saturday in an effort to salvage the weekend racing programme . For the third consecutive day , Friday 's scheduled training runs were cancelled due to heavy wet snow and fog on Whistler Mountain , leaving the scheduled World Cup events in jeopardy . Rules call for at least one training run to be completed before a World Cup downhill race can be staged . Organisers hope to get that run in on Saturday morning , conditions permitting , and stage the race later in the day or on Sunday . " There was no possibility today to make a training run , " said Bernd Zobel , the Canadian men 's national coach , citing too much new snow and poor visibility . If organisers are forced to run the downhill on Sunday , the super-giant slalom originally scheduled for Sunday would likely be abandoned .
SOCCER - LEADING SCOTTISH PREMIER DIVISION SCORERS . GLASGOW 1996-12-07 Leading goalscorers in the Scottish premier division after Saturday 's matches : 10 - Billy Dodds ( Aberdeen ) , Pierre Van Hooydonk ( Celtic ) 9 - Paul Gascoigne ( Rangers ) 7 - Paul Wright ( Kilmarnock ) , Ally McCoist ( Rangers ) 6 - Andreas Thom ( Celtic ) , Dean Windass ( Aberdeen ) , Brian Laudrup ( Rangers ) , Darren Jackson ( Hibernian ) 5 - Peter van Vossen ( Rangers ) , Gerry Britton ( Dunfermline ) , Colin Cameron ( Hearts ) , Robert Winters ( Dundee United ) , Paolo Di Canio ( Celtic ) .
SOCCER - LEADING ENGLISH GOALSCORERS . LONDON 1996-12-07 Leading goalscorers in the English premier league after Saturday 's matches : 13 - Ian Wright ( Arsenal ) 9 - Fabrizio Ravanelli ( Middlesbrough ) , Alan Shearer ( Newcastle ) 8 - Matthew Le Tissier ( Southampton ) , Dwight Yorke ( Aston Villa ) , Les Ferdinand ( Newcastle ) , Efan Ekoku ( Wimbledon ) , Gianluca Vialli ( Chelsea ) 7 - Robbie Earle ( Wimbledon ) , Les Ferdinand ( Newcastle ) 6 - Marcus Gayle ( Wimbledon ) , Gary Speed ( Everton ) , Chris Sutton ( Blackburn ) 5 - Robbie Fowler ( Liverpool ) , Steve McManaman ( Liverpool ) 4 - Peter Beardsley ( Newcastle ) .
SOCCER - NORTHERN IRELAND PREMIER DIVISION RESULTS / STANDINGS . LONDON 1996-12-07 Results of Northern Ireland premier division matches on Saturday : Ards 0 Crusaders 0 Cliftonville 1 Portadown 1 Glenavon 2 Linfield 1 Glentoran 1 Coleraine 0 Standings ( tabulated - played , won , drawn , lost , goals for , goals against , points ) : Coleraine 10 7 1 2 18 11 22 Linfield 10 4 3 3 13 10 15 Crusaders 10 3 4 3 11 9 13 Glenavon 10 3 4 3 15 14 13 Glentoran 10 3 3 4 18 18 12 Portadown 9 3 3 3 11 12 12 Ards 10 3 2 5 12 17 11 Cliftonville 9 1 4 4 5 12 7
RUGBY UNION - BRITISH RESULTS . LONDON 1996-12-07 Results of British rugby union matches on Saturday : Pilkington Cup fourth round Reading 50 Widnes 3 English division one Bath 35 Harlequins 20 Gloucester 29 London Irish 19 Orrell 22 West Hartlepool 15 Wasps 15 Bristol 13 Welsh division one Caerphilly 20 Cardiff 34 Llanelli 97 Newbridge 10 Newport 45 Dunvant 22 Pontypridd 53 Bridgend 9 Swansea 49 Neath 10 Treorchy 13 Ebbw Vale 17 Scottish division one Boroughmuir 31 Watsonians 35
SOCCER - SCOTTISH PREMIER DIVISION SUMMARIES . GLASGOW 1996-12-07 Summaries of Scottish premier division matches played on Saturday : Dunfermline 2 ( Millar 43 , 46 penalty ) Aberdeen 3 ( Miller 10 , Rowson 55 , Windass 78 ) . Halftime 1-1 . Attendance : 5,465 Hearts 0 Raith 0 . 10,719 Kilmarnock 0 Dundee United 2 ( Olafsson 22 , 51 ) . 0-1 . 5,812 Motherwell 2 ( Davies 39 , Ross 89 ) Celtic 1 ( Hay 83 ) . 1-0 . 11,589 Rangers 4 ( Ferguson 34 , McCoist 71 74 , Laudrup 83 ) Hibernian 3 ( Wright 21 , Jackson 41 , McGinlay 86 ) . 1-2 . 48,053 .
RUGBY UNION - RETIRING CAMPESE WEIGHS UP OPTIONS . LONDON 1996-12-07 David Campese will consider offers to play club rugby in England but looks more likely to spend the next year chasing business opportunities in Australia . The 34-year-old winger played his final game in a Wallaby jersey on Saturday but is currently a target for clubs eager to match London side Saracens who have already snapped up Francois Pienaar , Michael Lynagh and Philippe Sella . " If the opportunity is there I 'd obviously think about it but the thing that holds me back is business , " said Campese . " I 'd like to come over but there are a lot of things happening at home . I 've also got a contract to play for New South Wales in the Super 12 next year . " Former Wallaby captain Nick Farr-Jones believes Campese may yet be tempted to England . " I 'm sure there are a few people in England who 'd be delighted to have David Campese in their club 's jersey , " he said .
SOCCER - ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE SUMMARIES . LONDON 1996-12-07 Summaries of English premier lealgue matches on Saturday : Arsenal 2 ( Adams 45 , Vieira 90 ) Derby 2 ( Sturridge 62 , Powell 71 ) . Halftime 1-0 . Attendance : 38,018 Chelsea 2 ( Zola 12 , Vialli 55 ) Everton 2 ( Branch 17 , Kanchelskis 28 ) . 1-2 . 28,418 Coventry 1 ( Whelan 60 ) Tottenham 2 ( Sheringham 27 , Sinton 75 ) . 0-1 . 19,675 Leicester 1 ( Marshall 78 ) Blackburn 1 ( Sutton 34 ) . 0-1 . 19,306 Liverpool 0 Sheffield Wednesday 1 ( Whittingham 22 ) . 0-1 . 39,507 Middlesbrough 0 Leeds 0 . 30,018 Southampton 0 Aston Villa 1 ( Townsend 34 ) . 0-1 . 15,232 Sunderland 1 ( Melville 83 ) Wimbledon 3 ( Ekoku 8 , 29 , Holdsworth 89 ) . 0-2 . 19,672 .
SOCCER - SCOTTISH LEAGUE STANDINGS . GLASGOW 1996-12-07 Scottish league standings after Saturday 's matches ( tabulated - played , won , drawn , lost , goals for , goals against , points ) : Premier division Rangers 14 11 2 1 35 12 35 Celtic 14 8 3 3 32 15 27 Aberdeen 15 7 4 4 28 19 25 Hearts 15 5 6 4 18 19 21 Hibernian 15 5 3 7 16 25 18 Dundee United 15 4 5 6 17 17 17 Motherwell 15 4 5 6 17 23 17 Dunfermline 14 4 5 5 19 27 17 Raith 15 3 3 9 14 27 12 Kilmarnock 14 3 2 9 17 29 11 Division One St Johnstone 17 12 2 3 36 8 38 Falkirk 17 9 2 6 18 15 29 Airdrieonians 16 6 8 2 26 16 26 Dundee 16 7 5 4 12 8 26 Partick 16 6 6 4 23 16 24 St Mirren 16 7 2 7 22 21 23 Greenock Morton 16 6 4 6 17 16 22 Clydebank 16 4 2 10 11 25 14 Stirling 16 3 3 10 18 33 12 East Fife 14 1 4 9 10 35 7 Division Two Ayr 16 11 2 3 30 18 35 Livingston 16 10 4 2 27 13 34 Hamilton 15 9 4 2 31 11 31 Clyde 15 6 4 5 21 20 22 Queen of South 16 6 4 6 24 27 22 Stenhousemuir 15 4 5 6 18 12 17 Stranraer 15 5 2 8 13 21 17 Dumbarton 16 4 4 8 18 29 16 Brechin 16 3 6 7 14 20 15 Berwick 16 1 3 12 16 41 6 Division Three Montrose 17 9 3 5 30 25 30 Inverness Thistle 16 8 5 3 28 20 29 Ross County 17 8 3 6 27 23 27 Alloa 16 7 4 5 24 21 25 Cowdenbeath 15 7 3 5 22 16 24 Albion 16 6 6 4 21 17 24 Forfar 15 6 4 5 26 24 22 Queen 's Park 16 3 5 8 20 30 14 Arbroath 16 2 6 8 12 23 12 East Stirling 16 2 5 9 14 25 11
SOCCER - ENGLISH LEAGUE STANDINGS . LONDON 1996-12-07 Standings in English league soccer after Saturday 's matches ( tabulated - played , won , drawn , lost , goals for , goals against , points ) : Premier league Arsenal 17 10 5 2 34 16 35 Wimbledon 16 9 4 3 29 17 31 Liverpool 16 9 4 3 26 14 31 Aston Villa 17 9 3 5 22 15 30 Newcastle 15 9 2 4 26 17 29 Manchester United 15 7 5 3 29 22 26 Chelsea 16 6 7 3 25 23 25 Everton 16 6 6 4 25 20 24 Sheffield Wednesday 16 6 6 4 17 18 24 Tottenham 16 7 2 7 17 17 23 Derby 16 5 7 4 19 19 22 Leicester 17 6 3 8 17 22 21 Leeds 16 6 2 8 15 20 20 Sunderland 16 4 5 7 14 21 17 West Ham 16 4 5 7 13 20 17 Middlesbrough 17 3 6 8 20 28 15 Blackburn 16 2 7 7 16 21 13 Southampton 17 3 4 10 24 32 13 Coventry 16 1 7 8 10 23 10 Nottingham Forest 15 1 6 8 12 25 9 Division One Bolton 21 11 8 2 43 28 41 Sheffield United 21 11 6 4 38 20 39 Barnsley 21 10 8 3 38 26 38 Crystal Palace 21 9 8 4 46 22 35 Wolverhampton 21 9 6 6 29 21 33 Tranmere 22 9 5 8 31 26 32 Norwich 20 9 5 6 27 21 32 Birmingham 22 8 8 6 23 21 32 Oxford 22 8 6 8 27 21 30 Stoke 20 8 6 6 27 30 30 Swindon 22 9 2 11 32 28 29 Charlton 21 9 2 10 23 29 29 Huddersfield 22 7 7 8 25 28 28 Queens Park Rangers 22 7 7 8 25 28 28 Port Vale 22 6 10 6 19 22 28 Ipswich 22 6 8 8 27 32 26 Manchester City 22 8 2 12 26 35 26 Portsmouth 22 7 5 10 25 29 26 Reading 22 7 5 10 25 33 26 West Bromwich 20 5 9 6 26 31 24 Southend 22 5 9 8 23 36 24 Grimsby 22 5 6 11 24 41 21 Bradford 22 5 6 11 21 37 21 Oldham 22 4 8 10 23 28 20 Division Two Brentford 22 11 7 4 35 23 40 Millwall 22 11 7 4 32 22 40 Bury 21 11 6 4 33 20 39 Luton 21 11 4 6 34 25 37 Burnley 22 11 4 7 30 22 37 Chesterfield 21 11 4 6 22 16 37 Stockport 22 10 6 6 29 25 36 Watford 21 9 9 3 24 18 36 Wrexham 20 9 8 3 27 22 35 Crewe 21 11 1 9 29 21 34 Bristol City 21 9 6 6 36 23 33 Bristol Rovers 22 7 7 8 22 23 28 Shrewsbury 22 7 6 9 26 33 27 York 21 7 5 9 23 29 26 Blackpool 22 5 10 7 22 24 25 Walsall 21 7 4 10 21 25 25 Gillingham 22 7 4 11 21 27 25 Preston 22 7 4 11 21 27 25 Bournemouth 22 7 4 11 20 27 25 Plymouth 22 5 8 9 24 31 23 Peterborough 22 4 8 10 32 41 20 Notts County 21 5 5 11 15 23 20 Wycombe 22 4 5 13 17 33 17 Rotherham 21 3 6 12 18 33 15 Division Three Fulham 22 15 3 4 36 16 48 Cambridge 22 13 3 6 33 27 42 Wigan 21 12 4 5 39 24 40 Carlisle 22 11 7 4 32 20 40 Cardiff 21 10 4 7 25 22 34 Swansea 22 9 5 8 25 25 32 Barnet 22 8 8 6 23 17 32 Colchester 22 7 10 5 32 26 31 Scunthorpe 22 9 4 9 28 30 31 Northampton 22 8 6 8 31 26 30 Scarborough 21 7 9 5 30 27 30 Lincoln 22 8 6 8 28 33 30 Chester 21 8 6 7 23 23 30 Hull 22 6 11 5 20 22 29 Torquay 22 8 4 10 22 24 28 Rochdale 21 6 8 7 27 26 26 Exeter 22 7 5 10 21 28 26 Doncaster 22 7 3 12 24 33 24 Mansfield 21 5 9 7 21 22 24 Leyton Orient 21 6 6 9 16 19 24 Hereford 22 6 5 11 23 31 23 Darlington 22 6 4 12 30 39 22 Hartlepool 21 6 4 11 23 28 22 Brighton 22 3 4 15 18 42 13
SOCCER - VIEIRA SAVES ARSENAL WITH LAST-MINUTE EQUALISER . LONDON 1996-12-07 Frenchman Patrick Vieira blasted a last-minute goal to salvage a 2-2 draw for English premier league leaders Arsenal at home to Derby on Saturday . The London club had been rocked by a two-goal burst from forwards Dean Sturridge and Darryl Powell in the 62nd and 71st minutes which overturned Arsenal 's 1-0 lead from a diving header by captain Tony Adams on the stroke of halftime . Liverpool suffered an upset first home league defeat of the season , beaten 1-0 by a Guy Whittingham goal for Sheffield Wednesday . Wimbledon leap-frogged over Liverpool into second place by winning 3-1 at Sunderland to extend their unbeaten league and cup run to 18 games . Two strikes by Efan Ekoku in the first half and a late goal from fellow forward Dean Holdsworth secured victory for Wimbledon , who trail pacemakers Arsenal by four points .
SOCCER - SCOTTISH LEAGUE AND CUP RESULTS . GLASGOW 1996-12-07 Results of Scottish league and cup matches played on Saturday : Premier division Dunfermline 2 Aberdeen 3 Hearts 0 Raith 0 Kilmarnock 0 Dundee United 2 Motherwell 2 Celtic 1 Rangers 4 Hibernian 3 Division one Dundee 2 Falkirk 0 Greenock Morton 0 St Johnstone 2 Postponed : Airdrieonians v Clydebank ( to Wednesday ) , East Fife v Partick , Stirling v St Mirren ( to Tuesday ) Division two Livingston 2 Stenhousemuir 1 Stranraer 0 Brechin 1 Division three Ross County 4 Montrose 4 Postponed : Forfar v Alloa , Inverness Thistle v Queen 's Park Scottish Cup first round Alloa 3 Hawick 1 Elgin City 0 Whitehill 3 Postponed : Albion v Forfar , Huntly v Clyde ( both now play on December 14 )
SOCCER - ENGLISH LEAGUE AND CUP RESULTS . LONDON 1996-12-07 Results of English league and cup matches on Saturday : Premier league Arsenal 2 Derby 2 Chelsea 2 Everton 2 Coventry 1 Tottenham 2 Leicester 1 Blackburn 1 Liverpool 0 Sheffield Wednesday 1 Middlesbrough 0 Leeds 0 Southampton 0 Aston Villa 1 Sunderland 1 Wimbledon 3 Division one Barnsley 3 Southend 0 Birmingham 0 Grimsby 0 Charlton 2 Swindon 0 Crystal Palace 2 Oxford 2 Huddersfield 2 Norwich 0 Ipswich 0 Wolverhampton 0 Manchester City 3 Bradford 2 Oldham 0 Queens Park Rangers 2 Reading 0 Port Vale 1 Sheffield United 1 Portsmouth 0 Stoke 2 Tranmere 0 Playing Sunday : West Bromwich v Bolton F.A. Challenge Cup second round Barnet 3 Wycombe 3 Blackpool 0 Hednesford 1 Bristol City 9 St Albans 2 Cambridge United 0 Woking 2 Carlisle 1 Darlington 0 Chester 1 Boston 0 Chesterfield 2 Scarborough 0 Enfield 1 Peterborough 1 Hull 1 Crewe 5 Leyton Orient 1 Stevenage 2 Luton 2 Boreham Wood 1 Mansfield 0 Stockport 3 Notts County 3 Rochdale 1 Preston 2 York 3 Sudbury Town 1 Brentford 3 Walsall 1 Burnley 1 Watford 5 Ashford Town 0 Wrexham 2 Scunthorpe 2 Cardiff 0 Gillingham 2
RUGBY UNION - CAMPESE SIGNS OFF WITH TRY IN WALLABY ROMP . LONDON 1996-12-07 Australia bade farewell to David Campese in spectacular fashion by overwhelming the Barbarians 39-12 in the final match of their European tour at Twickenham on Saturday . The Wallabies ran in five tries with Campese , who has retired from test rugby after collecting 101 caps and a world record 64 tries , adding one last touchdown in a Wallaby jersey before departing the international game . The Barbarians included 14 internationals but , with only two pre-match practice sessions behind them , proved no real match for a Wallaby side determined to finish their 12-match tour unbeaten . The touring team were 27-0 ahead by half-time before easing up in the second-half . Full-back Matthew Burke finished with a personal haul of 24 points to take his tour aggregate to 136 .
RUGBY UNION - AUSTRALIA BEAT BARBARIANS 39-12 . LONDON 1996-12-07 Australia beat the Barbarians 39-12 ( halftime 27-0 ) in the final match of their European tour on Saturday : Scorers : Australia - Tries : Matthew Burke ( 2 ) , Joe Roff , David Campese , Tim Horan . Penalties : Burke ( 2 ) . Conversions : Burke ( 4 ) . Barbarians - Tries : Alan Bateman , Scott Quinnell . Conversion : Rob Andrew .
GOLF - ZIMBABWE OPEN THIRD ROUND SCORES . HARARE 1996-12-07 Leading third round scores in the Zimbabwe Open on Saturday ( South African unless stated ) : 201 Mark McNulty ( Zimbabwe ) 72 61 68 205 Des Terblanche 65 67 73 206 Nick Price ( Zimbabwe ) 68 68 70 207 Clinton Whitelaw 70 70 67 , Mark Cayeux ( Zimbabwe ) 69 69 69 , Justin Hobday 71 65 71 209 Steve van Vuuren 65 69 75 210 Brett Liddle 75 65 70 211 Hugh Baiocchi 73 67 71 , Greg Reid 72 68 71 , Mark Murless 71 67 73 212 Trevor Dodds ( Namibia ) 72 69 71 , Schalk van der Merwe ( Namibia ) 67 73 72 , Hennie Swart 75 64 73 , Andrew Pitts ( U.S. ) 69 67 76 213 Sean Farrell ( Zimbabwe ) 77 68 68 , Glen Cayeux ( Zimbabwe ) 75 68 70 , Nic Henning 73 70 70 , Dion Fourie 69 73 71 214 Steven Waltman 72 70 72 , Bradford Vaughan 72 71 71 , Andrew Park 72 67 75 , Desvonde Botes 72 68 74 .
SOCCER - REINSTATED ALBANIA NAMES SQUAD TO PLAY N.IRELAND . TIRANA 1996-12-07 Albanian coach Astrit Hafizi said on Saturday it was important that his players brush aside the country 's short ban by FIFA in order to concentrate on next Saturday'sWorld Cup group nine qualifier against Northern Ireland . World soccer 's governing body reinstated Albania last Tuesday after the Balkan country 's government lifted suspensions on various soccer officials . FIFA had banned Albania indefinitely after its sports ministry had ordered the suspension of Albanian Football Association general secretary Eduard Dervishi and dissolved the executive committee . " We would be very happy with a draw in Belfast , " said Hafizi . " Especially if one takes into consideration our difficult post-suspension situation and the fact Northern Ireland is very keen to win . " Regular defender Artur Lekbello , who is injured , was missing from Hafizi 's squad named on Saturday for the Belfast match . Squad : Goalkeepers - Blendi Nallbani , Armir Grima Defenders - Rudi Vata , Saimir Malko , Arjan Xhumba , Ilir Shulku , Afrim Tole , Nevil Dede , Arjan Bellai Midfielders - Bledar Kola , Altin Haxhi , Sokol Prenga , Ervin Fakaj Forwards - Altin Rraklli , Viktor Paco , Fatmir Vata , Erjon Bogdani .
CRICKET - JONES HITS CENTURY AS VICTORIA FIGHT BACK . HOBART , Australia 1996-12-07 Former Australia test batsman Dean Jones hit an unbeaten 130 to lead Victoria 's fightback in their Sheffield Shield match against Tasmania on Saturday . Replying to the home side 's first innings 481 for eight declared , Victoria reached 220 for three at close of play on the second day of the four-day match at Hobart 's Bellerive Oval . Jones became the fourth century-maker of the match , equalling the feats of Tasmanian trio David Boon , Shaun Young and Michael DiVenuto . Jones , who took over as captain for the match in the absence of Australia test leg-spinner Shane Warne , added 195 runs for the third wicket with left-hander Laurie Harper . Harper was eventually dismissed for 77 after the pair joined forces with their side reeling on nine for two . Earlier , former Australia test batsman David Boon scored 118 and all-rounder Shaun Young hit 113 . The pair hammered 36 boundaries between them . Pace bowler Ian Harvey claimed three for 81 for Victoria .
CRICKET - SHEFFIELD SHIELD SCORE . HOBART , Australia 1996-12-07 Close of play score on the second day of the four-day Sheffield Shield cricket match between Tasmania and Victoria at Bellerive Oval on Saturday : Tasmania 481 for eight declared ( Michael DiVenuto 119 , David Boon 118 , Shaun Young 113 ) ; Victoria 220 for three ( Dean Jones 130 not out ) .
SOCCER - SOUTH KOREA MOVE CLOSE TO QUARTER-FINAL BERTH . ABU DHABI 1996-12-07 South Korea made virtually certain of an Asian Cup quarter-final spot with a 4-2 win over Indonesia in a Group A match on Saturday . After going four up in the first 55 minutes South Korea allowed Indonesia , newcomers to Asian Cup finals , back into the match , conceding two goals from rare counter attacks . Kim Do Hoon opened the scoring for South Korea in only the fifth minute , turning unmarked on the penalty spot to fire a shot into the top corner . It looked like turning into a rout as Hwang Sun Hong rapidly added two more in the seventh and 15th minutes but although the Koreans continued to dominate they failed to add to the score before the interval . But they started the second half where they had left off and it was not long before they went four up , Ko Jeong Woon heading in from a free kick in the 55th minute . The Koreans then appeared to relax , allowing the Indonesians to get back into the match . Ronny Wabia scored for Indonesia three minutes later direct from a a corner kick that Korean goalkeeper Kim Byung reached with one hand but failed to keep out . With 65 minutes gone Indonesia 's Widodo Putra , who scored a spectacular goal against Kuwait on Wednesday , was again on target , breaking through the Korean defence to beat the keeper with a low shot . Indonesian keeper Hendro Kartiko produced a string of fine saves to prevent the Koreans increasing their lead . Teams : Indonesia : 20 - Hendro Kartiko ; 2 - Agung Setyabudi ; 3 - Suwandi Siswoyo ; 4 - Yeyen Tumera ; 5 - Aples Tecuari ; 6 - Sudiriman ; 7 - Widodo Gahyo Purta ; 8 - Ronny Wabia ; 11 - Bima Sakti ; 12 - Chris Yarangga ( 15 - Francis Wewengken 36 ) ; 16 - Marzuki Badriawan . South Korea : 1 - Kim Byung Ji ; 2 - Kim Pan Keun ; 5 - Huh Ki Tae ; 8 - Roh Sang Rae ( 7 - Sin Tae Yong 33 ) ; 9 - Kim Do Hoon ; 11 - Ko Jeong Woon ; 17 - Ha Seok Ju ; 18 - Hwang Sun Hong ; 22 - Lee Young Jin ; 23 - Yoo Sang Chul ; 24 - Kim Joo Sung .
SOCCER - ISRAELI FIRST DIVISION RESULTS / STANDINGS . JERUSALEM 1996-12-07 Results of first division soccer matches played over the weekend : Zafririm Holon 1 Hapoel Petah Tikva 1 Maccabi Haifa 1 Hapoel Taibe 1 Hapoel Kfar Sava 1 Bnei Yehuda 0 Hapoel Tel Aviv 1 Betar Jerusalem 4 Hapoel Jerusalem 0 Maccabi Tel Aviv 4 Ironi Rishon Lezion 1 Maccabi Herzliya 0 Hapoel Beit She'an 2 Hapoel Beersheba 1 Maccabi Petah Tikva 0 Hapoel Haifa 2 Standings ( tabulate under played , won , drawn , lost , goals for , against , points ) : Betar Jerusalem 12 10 2 0 28 7 32 Hapoel Petah Tikva 12 9 2 1 27 13 29 Hapoel Beersheba 12 8 0 4 18 9 24 Maccabi Tel Aviv 12 6 4 2 21 14 22 Maccabi Petah Tikva 12 6 2 4 14 12 20 Bnei Yehuda 12 6 2 4 15 15 20 Hapoel Haifa 12 6 1 5 21 16 19 Maccabi Haifa 12 4 4 4 14 15 16 Hapoel Kfar Sava 12 5 1 6 10 11 16 Hapoel Jerusalem 12 4 1 7 10 18 13 Ironi Rishon Lezion 12 4 1 7 13 24 13 Zafririm Holon 12 2 4 6 8 14 10 Maccabi Herzliya 12 3 1 8 5 12 10 Hapoel Taiba 12 3 1 8 10 21 10 Hapoel Beit She'an 12 2 3 7 9 13 9 Hapoel Tel Aviv 12 2 3 7 7 16 9
SOCCER - ASIAN CUP RESULTS . ABU DHABI 1996-12-07 Results of Asian Cup group A matches on Saturday : United Arab Emirates 3 Kuwait 2 ( halftime 0-2 ) Scorers : UAE - Hassan Ahmed 53 , Adnan Al Talyani 55 , Bakhit Saad 80 Kuwait - Jassem Al-Huwaidi 9 , 44 Attendance : 15,000 South Korea 4 Indonesia 2 ( 3-0 ) Scorers : South Korea - Kim Do Hoon 5 , Hwang Sun Hong 7 and 15 , Koo Jeon Woon 55 Indonesia - Ronny Wabia 58 , Widodo Putra 65 Attendance : 2,000 Group A standings ( tabulate under : played , won , drawn , lost , goals for , against , points ) : South Korea 2 1 1 0 5 3 4 UAE 2 1 1 0 4 3 4 Kuwait 2 0 1 1 4 5 1 Indonesia 2 0 1 1 4 6 1
NBA BASKETBALL - STANDINGS AFTER FRIDAY 'S GAMES . NEW YORK 1996-12-07 Standings of National Basketball Association teams after games played on Friday ( tabulate under won , lost , percentage , games behind ) : EASTERN CONFERENCE ATLANTIC DIVISION W L PCT GB MIAMI 14 5 .737 - NEW YORK 11 6 .647 2 ORLANDO 8 7 .533 4 WASHINGTON 7 9 .438 5 1/2 PHILADELPHIA 7 10 .412 6 NEW JERSEY 4 10 .286 7 1/2 BOSTON 4 13 .235 9 CENTRAL DIVISION W L PCT GB CHICAGO 17 1 .944 - DETROIT 14 3 .824 2 1/2 CLEVELAND 11 6 .647 5 1/2 ATLANTA 10 8 .556 7 MILWAUKEE 8 8 .500 8 INDIANA 8 8 .500 8 CHARLOTTE 8 9 .471 8 1/2 TORONTO 6 11 .353 10 1/2 WESTERN CONFERENCE MIDWEST DIVISION W L PCT GB HOUSTON 16 2 .889 - UTAH 15 2 .882 1/2 MINNESOTA 7 11 .389 9 DALLAS 6 11 .353 9 1/2 DENVER 5 14 .263 11 1/2 SAN ANTONIO 3 14 .176 12 1/2 VANCOUVER 3 16 .158 13 1/2 PACIFIC DIVISION W L PCT GB SEATTLE 15 5 .750 - LA LAKERS 14 7 .667 1 1/2 PORTLAND 12 8 .600 3 LA CLIPPERS 7 11 .389 7 GOLDEN STATE 6 13 .316 8 1/2 SACRAMENTO 6 13 .316 8 1/2 PHOENIX 3 14 .176 10 1/2 SATURDAY , DECEMBER 7 SCHEDULE TORONTO AT ATLANTA LA CLIPPERS AT NEW YORK MILWAUKEE AT WASHINGTON DETROIT AT NEW JERSEY MIAMI AT CHICAGO VANCOUVER AT DALLAS PHILADELPHIA AT HOUSTON UTAH AT DENVER CHARLOTTE AT SEATTLE
NBA BASKETBALL - FRIDAY 'S RESULTS . NEW YORK 1996-12-07 Results of National Basketball Association games on Friday ( home team in CAPS ) : New Jersey 110 BOSTON 108 ( OT ) DETROIT 93 Cleveland 81 New York 103 MIAMI 85 Phoenix 101 SACRAMENTO 95 Vancouver 105 SAN ANTONIO 89 UTAH 106 Minnesota 95 PORTLAND 97 Charlotte 93 Indiana 86 GOLDEN STATE 71 LA LAKERS 92 Orlando 81
NHL ICE HOCKEY - STANDINGS AFTER FRIDAY 'S GAMES . NEW YORK 1996-12-07 Standings of National Hockey League teams after games played on Friday ( tabulate under won , lost , tied , goals for , goals against , points ) : EASTERN CONFERENCE NORTHEAST DIVISION W L T GF GA PTS HARTFORD 12 7 6 77 76 30 BUFFALO 13 12 2 78 77 28 MONTREAL 11 14 4 99 104 26 BOSTON 10 11 4 74 84 24 PITTSBURGH 10 13 3 86 94 23 OTTAWA 7 12 6 64 77 20 ATLANTIC DIVISION W L T GF GA PTS FLORIDA 17 4 6 83 53 40 PHILADELPHIA 15 12 2 81 78 32 NEW JERSEY 14 10 1 61 61 29 WASHINGTON 13 13 1 72 71 27 NY RANGERS 11 13 5 97 86 27 NY ISLANDERS 7 11 8 65 72 22 TAMPA BAY 8 15 2 69 81 18 WESTERN CONFERENCE CENTRAL DIVISION W L T GF GA PTS DETROIT 15 9 4 81 53 34 DALLAS 16 10 1 77 66 33 ST LOUIS 14 14 0 82 84 28 CHICAGO 12 13 3 72 70 27 TORONTO 11 16 0 81 95 22 PHOENIX 9 13 4 61 74 22 PACIFIC DIVISION W L T GF GA PTS COLORADO 17 7 4 100 60 38 VANCOUVER 14 11 1 84 83 29 EDMONTON 14 14 1 99 90 29 LOS ANGELES 11 13 3 72 83 25 SAN JOSE 10 13 4 69 87 24 ANAHEIM 9 14 5 74 87 23 CALGARY 10 16 2 65 77 22 SATURDAY , DECEMBER 7 SCHEDULE PHOENIX AT NEW JERSEY CALGARY AT BOSTON BUFFALO AT HARTFORD WASHINGTON AT NY ISLANDERS CHICAGO AT MONTREAL NY RANGERS AT TORONTO ANAHEIM AT PITTSBURGH COLORADO AT LOS ANGELES TAMPA BAY AT SAN JOSE OTTAWA AT VANCOUVER
NHL ICE HOCKEY - FRIDAY 'S RESULTS . NEW YORK 1996-12-07 Results of National Hockey League games on Friday ( home team in CAPS ) : NY RANGERS 6 Toronto 5 BUFFALO 1 Anaheim 1 ( OT ) Pittsburgh 5 WASHINGTON 3 Montreal 3 CHICAGO 1 Philadelphia 6 DALLAS 3 St Louis 4 COLORADO 3 EDMONTON 5 Ottawa 2
NHL ICE HOCKEY - CANUCKS RW BURE SUSPENDED FOR ONE GAME . NEW YORK 1996-12-06 Vancouver Canucks star right wing Pavel Bure was suspended for one game by the National Hockey League and fined $ 1,000 Friday for his hit on Buffalo Sabres defenceman Garry Galley on Wednesday . Bure received a double-minor penalty for high-sticking with 2:22 left in the first period of Wednesday 's 7-6 overtime win by Vancouver after colliding with Galley in Buffalo zone . Galley suffered a concussion and did not return to the game . " Mr Bure left his feet to deliver a forearm blow to Mr Galley as he was about to be checked legally by his opponent , " said NHL discipline chief Brian Burke in handing out the suspension . " Although it is clear from the videotape that Mr Bure 's actions were a reaction to the impending hit and there was no intent to injure his opponent , there can be no excuse for this type of conduct , " Burke said . Bure , who is struggling with only nine goals and 12 assists in 26 games , will miss Saturday 's home game against Ottawa .
BOXING - SCHULZ DEFEATS RIBALTA IN IBF HEAVYWEIGHT FIGHT . VIENNA 1996-12-07 German Axel Schulz outpointed Cuba 's Jose Ribalta in their International Boxing Federation non-title 10-round heavyweight fight on Saturday .
SOCCER - SPANISH FIRST DIVISION SUMMARY . MADRID 1996-12-07 Summary of Saturday 's Spanish first division match : Real Madrid 2 ( Davor Suker 24 , Predrag Mijatovic 48 ) Barcelona 0 . Halftime 1-0 . Attendance 106,000 .
SOCCER - BALKAN STRIKE FORCE WIN OLD FIRM GAME FOR REAL . MADRID 1996-12-07 Real Madrid 's Balkan strike force of Davor Suker and Predrag Mijatovic shot their side to a 2-0 win over Barcelona in Spain 's old firm game on Saturday . The result leaves Real on 38 points after 16 games , four ahead of Barcelona . With just one league match scheduled before the New Year break , Real are also assured of spending Christmas ahead of their arch-rivals . A mix-up in the Barcelona defence let Croatian international Suker in midway through the first half , and Montenegrin striker Mijatovic made it 2-0 after fine work by Clarence Seedorf just after the break . Barcelona fought back strongly but were twice denied by the woodwork on an unusually quiet night for Brazilian striker Ronaldo .
SOCCER - PSV HIT VOLENDAM FOR SIX . AMSTERDAM 1996-12-07 Brazilian striker Marcelo and Yugoslav midfielder Zeljko Petrovic each scored twice as Dutch first division leaders PSV Eindhoven romped to a 6-0 win over Volendam on Saturday . Their other marksmen were Brazilian defender Vampeta and Belgian striker Luc Nilis , his 14th of the season . PSV , well on the way to their 14th league title , outgunned Volendam in every department of the game . They boast a nine-point lead over Feyenoord , who have two games in hand , and are 16 points clear of champions Ajax Amsterdam , who have played 18 matches compared to PSV 's 19 . Ajax face AZ Alkmaar away on Sunday and Feyenoord , eliminated from the UEFA Cup after losing 4-2 on aggregate to Tenerife on Tuesday , travel to De Graafschap Doetinchem . The Doetinchem side , dubbed " The Super Peasants " , are one of the surprise packages of the season . They are fourth in the table .
SOCCER - SPANISH FIRST DIVISION RESULT / STANDINGS . MADRID 1996-12-07 Result of Saturday 's only Spanish first division match : Real Madrid 2 Barcelona 0 Standings ( tabulate under games played , won , drawn , lost , goals for , against , points ) : Real Madrid 16 11 5 0 32 12 38 Barcelona 16 10 4 2 46 21 34 Deportivo Coruna 15 9 6 0 23 7 33 Real Betis 15 8 5 2 28 13 29 Atletico Madrid 15 8 3 4 26 17 27 Athletic Bilbao 15 7 4 4 28 22 25 Real Sociedad 15 7 3 5 20 18 24 Valladolid 15 7 3 5 19 18 24 Racing Santander 15 5 7 3 15 15 22 Rayo Vallecano 15 5 5 5 21 19 20 Valencia 15 6 2 7 23 22 20 Celta Vigo 15 5 5 5 17 17 20 Tenerife 15 5 4 6 23 17 19 Espanyol 15 4 4 7 17 20 16 Oviedo 15 4 4 7 17 21 16 Sporting Gijon 15 4 4 7 15 22 16 Logrones 15 4 3 8 11 33 15 Zaragoza 15 2 8 5 18 23 14 Sevilla 15 4 2 9 13 20 14 Compostela 15 3 4 8 13 28 13 Hercules 15 2 2 11 11 29 8 Extremadura 15 1 3 11 8 30 6