Honolulu Star-Bulletin from Honolulu, Hawaii • 21

Funds Watch By Chet Currier AAA Elections shouldn't influence fund choices 1 inrvi i Honolulu Star-Bulletin Thursday, October 12, 2000 Mfeit iiliidiiwil EiSi Nasdaq loses 94 to its lowest close of the year as investors worry about higher oil prices Bond markets rally. B-3 Oil prices were as high as $37.00 a barrel at one point on the New York Mercantile Exchange, approaching its recent 10-year high of $37.80 a barrel hit last month. In afternoon trading, crude futures were at $36.10. Declining issues outnumbered advancers by more than 3 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, with 2,136 down, 765 up and 422 unchanged. NYSE volume came to 1.37 billion shares, vs.

1.38 billion yesterday. The NYSE composite fell 16.30 to 624.12; the American Stock Exchange index dropped 2.14 to 913.41; and the Russell 2000 index lost Sons Inc. in St. Louis. "A terrorist attack, increased hostilities in the Middle East and a spike in oil prices shake it all up and you get blind dumping of stocks." The apparent terrorist attack on a U.S.

military ship in Yemen early in the day sent oil prices up as much as 10 percent, helping to re-ignite inflation fears. And Israeli combat helicopters rocketed Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's residential compound in the Gaza Strip as well as a West Bank town in retaliation for the brutal killing of three Israeli soldiers by a Palestinian mob. largest point loss ever, buffeted by rising oil prices on top of persistent fears about corporate profits, including an earnings warnings from stalwart Home Depot The Dow closed down 379.21 at 10,034.58, a 3.6 percent decline. Broader markets were also lower. The Nasdaq composite was down 93.81, or nearly 3 percent, to 3,074.68 its lowest close of 2000.

The Standard Poor's 500 index was off 34.81, or 2.6 percent, to 1,329.78. "In an already nervous market, this is all we didn't need," said Al Goldman, an analyst with A.G. Edwards Today's markets Close: 10.034.58 Change: Close: 1,329.78 Change: Close: 3,074.68 Change: Business Briefs AAA Going hi-tech in Hawaii of the- CUfP At Section Business Department: 523-8635 E-mail: businessstarbulletin.com 11.77 at 462.97. Meanwhile, shares of Home Depot, the nation's largest home improvement retailer, plunged $13.94, or 28 percent, to $35 after it warned of lower-than-ex-pected earnings because of material costs and other factors. The news sent other retailers down as well, including Wal-Mart, which fell $1.19 to $44.13.

Financial stocks, which tend to be sensitive to inflation fears, suffered as well; J.P. Morgan, which is also a Dow component, fell $10.38 to $136.44. PLEASE see STOCKS, B-4 as Channel 10. The Korea Times in Los Angeles is the oldest and largest-circulation Korean-language daily in the United States, the publishers said. The company publishes in 10 major metropolitan areas and broadcasts in Korean on radio in Los Angeles area.

It also operates KTAN, a part-time Korean television station in Los Angeles. The parties said the mergers, which are subject to regulatory approvals, should be completed in the first quarter of next year. see TV STATION, B-4 Associated Press NEW YORK The Dow Jones industrial average plunged nearly 380 points today while the Nasdaq composite index recorded its lowest close this year, as jittery investors reacted to the escalating violence in the Middle East. Stocks already in a steady fall nosedived, pushing the Dow to its fifth-largest ciation of Hawaii, the Airlines Committee of Hawaii, and the state departments of Agriculture, Transportation and Business, Economic Development and Tourism. Businesses that rely on air cargo delivery are invited to attend.

Registration costs $200. For more information, call the University of Hawaii Conference Center at 956-8204. Mortgages rise to 7.84 percent WASHINGTON U.S. 30-year mortgage rates rose slightly this week after dipping to their lowest level since November 1999 last week, mortgage broker Freddie Mac said today. Still, 30-year mortgages remained under 8 percent for the ninth consecutive week, averaging 7.84 percent, up from 7.83 percent last week.

Fifteen-year mortgages also rose slightly to an average 7.52 percent from 7.50 percent last week, Freddie Mac said. One-year adjustable rate mortgages increased to an average initial rate of 7.23 percent from 7.21 last week. A year ago, 30-year mortgages averaged 7.85 percent, 15-year mortgages 7.45 percent and the ARM 6.31 percent. Costco earnings climb 9 percent Costco Wholesale the largest U.S. chain of warehouse-club stores, said fourth-quarter profit rose 9 percent as the company closed some sites to focus on larger stores in better locations.

Net income was $200.2 million, or 43 cents a share, compared with profit from operations of $183.2 million, or 39 cents, in the same period a year earlier, Costco said. Costco is expanding in the U.S. and overseas and adding new businesses such as gas stations and pharmacies to its warehouses to boost growth. In May, Costco missed earnings forecasts for the first time since 1995 as store openings and higher wages increased costs. Profit in the quarter ended Sept 3 matched the average estimate of 25 analysts surveyed by First Call.

From staff and wire reports HATEVERyou do with your mutual fund investments in the next few months, don't let the U.S. election mess up your plans. Sure, there's a lot of heavy artillery on display in the battle for the presidency and control of Congress on Nov. 7: More government, less government, tax cuts, plans to save Social Security and fix the schools. Right now stock and bond traders are jumpy as cats about how the saga of the federal budget surplus is likely to play out.

A concerted drive to pay down the national debt just might leave the bond market without its mainstay, U.S. Treasury bonds. But whatever short-term disruptions arise, a victory by either Democrat Al Gore or Republican George W. Bush isn't likely to bring any drastic change in the forces that set the long-term course of the markets. No dictators are being chosen here, and some of the campaign commotion you hear is just noise.

"It's important to bear in mind that platforms and promises rarely become programs," says Ed Kerschner, chief investment officer at Paineweb-ber Inc. When economic policy actions do happen, they seldom conform to election-year expectations. Hark back eight years to when Bill Clinton's election provoked screams of "Robin Hood!" on Wall Street. Last time I checked, the Nasdaq composite index was up 500 percent and the Standard Poor's 500 index 300 percent since the end of October 1992. Dare to think that economics influences politics in the modern-day world far more than politics influences economics.

"Many voters have come to regard political activities as less important in the outlook for the economy than was the case in the past," says Alfred Kugel, senior investment strategist at the fund management firm of Stein Roe Farnham Inc. in Chicago. Be assured, for example, that the Internet is going to develop in whatever way it wants to develop, no matter what any policymaker decrees (and no matter who claims to have invented it). All sorts of people and institutions would like to control something this potent and far-reaching, but no single one of them can. Before we leave the subject of claiming credit, consider that maybe the U.S.

government budget was balanced by neither Republicans nor Democrats, but by the much more powerful force of a surging worldwide economy. The boom created a tidal wave of new tax revenue. Politicians of both parties saw it coming barely in time to organize a celebration saluting their budget-balancing prowess. At the party hardly anybody asked: If these people solved the problem of chronic deficits by their own wise actions, what took them 25 years? Political leaders of all ideologies know where the power lies. Witness how deferentially they treat Alan Greenspan and the Federal Reserve he chairs.

Rock that boat, and you're likely to drown. If anybody tries a policy move that threatens serious mischief for the economy, count on the markets to react swiftly and emphatically. Funds Watch runs Thursdays. Chet Currier writes for Bloomberg News. Key rates Key interest rates in percent.

Previous Year Wednesday day ago Prime 9.50 9.50 7.75 Discount 6.00 6.00 4.50 Fed Funds 6.50 6.57 5.20 Treasury Z-Ka. bills 6.03 6.07 4.83 6 Mo. bills 6.00 6.05 4.93 5.77 5.77 6.10 30-Yr. bonds 5.82 5.81 6.27 Source: Salomon Brothers and Telerate Ahead join major day it has agreed to acquire a 50 percent stake in Korea Times. The companies will then join to acquire all of International Media Group also headquartered in Los Angeles, which owns KIKU and KSCI-TV, licensed in Long Beach and serving the greater Los Angeles area.

They will be combined into a new entity, Asian-Media Group in which the Leonard Green group will invest $165 million. KIKU has been on the air, under various names, since the late 1960s, starting out as a Japanese-only broad Isle insurer lowers automobile rates A Hawaii automobile insurance company, TIG Crum Forster Insurance, said it has cut its auto rates by as much as 34 percent TIG said it ranks ninth in the state as measured by the number of automobiles covered. Most insurers in the islands have trimmed rates this year as a result of auto insurance reform legislation developed by the state government and because of pressure from the state insurance division. TIG last month reduced its homeowners insurance rates. The auto insurance cuts, effective since Oct 1, provide for higher discounts for drivers with good safety records as well as for homeowners and other qualified groups, TIG said.

Local travel agents to track complaints Hawaii travel agents are being asked to keep records Of customer complaints about airlines, such as delayed or cancelled flights and missed connections. The U.S. Department of Transportation is looking into problems experienced by travelers through the summer but relies mainly on the airlines for its information, said Sharon Lester, a spokeswoman for the Hawaii chapter of the American Society of Travel Agents. This means the department sees relatively few complaints and "may not see the magnitude of the problem," said Lester, who is vice president of International Travel Service Inc. ASTA has prepared a questionnaire for its member agencies and will pass the information to the department, she said.

Air cargo meeting set for next week Four panels of speakers will discuss how Hawaiian products rate in overseas markets, how well air cargo companies are tackling e-commerce, and other topics at the Hawaii International Air Cargo Symposium next week. The symposium, to be held Oct 17-18 at the Shera-ton-Waikiki Hotel, is sponsored by the Air Cargo Asso Honey rates By Craig T. Kojima, star-Bulletin VoiceStream senior account executive Bonnie Tarn-Hoy talks on a cell phone yesterday at the HiTechllawaii 2000 conference at the Hawaii Convention Center. The event, which ends today, is expected to attract 750 people. Gov.

Ben Cayetano gave the opening remarks. At the conference yesterday, the Hawaii Technology Trade Association presented Big Island-based Aquasearch Inc. with the group's Technology Company 2000 award for its support of the state's growing tech sector. The association also recognized City Bank as an "outstanding partner for its Targeted Industries Growth Report, a monthly publication that summarizes the state's fast-moving sectors. Asian media group KIKU to A Korea Times stake will usher the sale By Russ Lynch Star-Bulletin Honolulu's Asian-language television station, KIKU-TV, will get a new owner in a series of mergers involving The Korea Times Los Angeles the U.S.

leader in Korean-language daily newspaper publishing and radio broadcasting. A private-equity firm in Los Angeles, Leonard Green Partners LP, said yester caster and expanding later into other languages, such as Chinese and Korean. It provides modern and historic dramas from Japan and other Asian countries and its English-subtitled shows, such as Soko Ga Shiritai from Japan, are watched by many who don't speak Japanese or the other Asian languages. Gregg Mueller, KIKU general manager, described it as the leading Japanese-language station in the United States. KIKU broadcasts on Oceanic Cable Channel 9, on the air on Channel 20 and on Verizon Americast DlLBE By Scott Adams AAA Percentages are annual percentage yields.

The rates for money market funds, which have varying minimum rates, assume an investment of $2,500. Some 6-month CD yields assume reinvestment after 6 months. Rates subject to change. ARE YOU ASKING rAE TO BELIEVE YOU'RE A LOSER AT EVERY ASPECT OF LIFE EXCEPT 6 THAT'S NOT ITS 1 VAT IMPLIED, I rA ASKING. 1 Passbook Money 6-Month 12-Month savings Market CDs CDs American Savings 2.02 2.73 3.99 4.25 Bank of Hawaii 2.02 2.35 3.75 4.25 Central Pacific Bank 2.02 2.53 3.99 4.40 First Hawaiian 2.02 2.65 4.00 4.50 City Bank 2.02 2.30 4.00 4.00 PICKING STOCK? DO YOU WANT A STOCK "jl 'Higher yields are offered for larger deposits.