LEXIS-NEXIS® Academic Universe-Document

LEXIS-NEXIS® Academic

April 28, 1999, Wednesday, FINAL EDITION

SECTION: MONEY; Pg. 1B

LENGTH: 507 words

HEADLINE: DEBT RELIEF

BODY:
Rich countries said Tuesday they wanted to do more to help the
poor and would sell gold from the International Monetary Fund's
reserves to pay for a much-needed program of debt relief. Ministers
and central bank chiefs meeting in Washington backed the idea.
"This will certainly entail some sales of gold," IMF Managing
Director Michel Camdessus told an evening news conference at the
end of a day-long meeting of the fund's policy-making Interim
Committee. The U.S. Congress must approve the deal.
EURO WORRIES: European Central Bank President Wim Duisenberg
on Tuesday said he would be concerned if the European Union's
fledgling single currency, the euro, fell further. Duisenberg's
remarks and similar comments by other senior European bankers
were an effort to put a floor under the euro, officials said.
The euro has lost about 10% against the dollar since it was launched
by 11 of the EU's 15 members Jan. 1. It traded Tuesday at $ 1.0660.

BANKRUPTCY REFORM: Individuals would have a tougher time
wiping debts by filing for bankruptcy under a measure the Senate
Judiciary Committee sent to the full Senate on Tuesday. But the
committee failed to resolve contentious issues, such as consumer
protections and a "means test" to identify debtors who would
be allowed to file for bankruptcy, that contributed to the bill's
failure last year.

HOME SALES: A robust labor market, affordable interest
rates and strong consumer demand pushed existing home sales to
a record pace in March. Sales rose to an annual rate of 5.05 million,
up 0.6% from February's 5.02 million, the National Association
of Realtors said. The median home price was $ 132,700 in March,
up from $ 129,500 in February and $ 127,100 in March 1998.

MGM BOSS: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer named Alex Yemenidjian chairman
and chief executive, hoping to revive the money-losing film studio
with younger blood. Yemenidjian, 43, majority owner Kirk Kerkorian's
right-hand man, succeeds Frank Mancuso, 65, who will continue
as a director. MGM also reported that its first-quarter loss from
operations quadrupled to $ 81.6 million, or 54 cents a share.

ON-LINE TOY SALES: Toys R Us on Tuesday said it was aiming
to become a dominant force in the fast-growing e-commerce market
by overhauling its Internet site with the help of one of Silicon
Valley's top venture capital firms. The world's largest toy specialty
retailer plans to redesign the Web site (www.toysrus.com) it launched
in June.

IMF LOANS: Russia looks to be on the verge of reaching
an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the
World Bank on multibillion dollar loans to help its crisis-racked
economy. "We're very close," World Bank President James Wolfensohn
said Tuesday. Meanwhile, Mexican Finance Minister Jose Angel Gurria
told Reuters that Mexico has asked the IMF for a $ 5.2 billion
loan. The money would be used to help repay about $ 7 billion in
previous IMF loans to Mexico.

Compiled from Money staff and wire reports

LOAD-DATE: April 28, 1999