Brenda Schultz-McCarthy of the Netherlands , the 13th seed , was a 6-1 6-4 winner over Japan 's Nana Miyaga , while Czech veteran Helena Sukova prevailed over Yone Kamio 6-2 6-3 .


Austrian Barbara Paulus , seeded 14th , also reached the second round with a 6-2 6-1 victory over Yi Jing-Qian of China .


TENNIS - STICH GLAD HE STAYED AFTER OPEN VICTORY .


Michael Stich nearly pulled out of the U.S. Open in protest over the men 's seeding fiasco but the former Wimbledon champion was glad he stayed after sweating out a four-set win on Monday over qualifier Tommy Haas .


" I still feel it 's embarrassing what happened and I was about to pull out yesterday and say , ' That 's it , ' " said Stich , one of a host of men who cried foul over seeding procedures that forced an unprecedented remaking of the men 's draw last week .


" But there are so many reasons to play , especially spectators and the kids who come out here and want to enjoy watching tennis , that I decided to stay . "


In a break from tradition , the Open did not seed in strict accordance with ATP rankings , instead taking into account other factors that raised objections of favourtism toward U.S. players .


One prominent player that did not stay for the Open was French Open champion Yvegeny Kafelnikov , who after being dropped three spots from his ATP ranking to a seventh seeding , withdrew and returned home to Russia .


Kafelnikov had pulled out of last week 's tournament with a rib injury .


At a news conference attended by approximately 50 players on Sunday , U.S. Davis Cup player Todd Martin expressed the players ' outrage at the seedings .


" The way the U.S. Open has seeded here , tampering with the ranking system , has tarnished the image and reputation of this U.S. Open in the players ' mind , and we think that is damaging to our sport , " Martin said .


Stich said he felt the players ought to have organised an active protest .


" I feel that we made it a little easy for the USTA .


They did n't really get hurt as much as I think they should have , " said Stich . "


I feel that we should have maybe just cancelled out the Monday , not show up today and start the tournament tomorrow . "


But once the 27-year-old Stich got on the court , he focused his energies on trying to win the year 's last Grand Slam .


He took a positive first step with his 6-3 1-6 6-1 7-5 win over compatriot Haas on a sun-baked Grandstand court .


Others advancing early on Monday included 11th-seeded American Malivai Washington , the Wimbledon runner-up , Sweden 's Magnus Gustafsson , and two-time former French Open champion Sergi Bruguera of Spain , who will be Stich 's next opponent .


The suspicion , however , lingers in Stich 's mind that U.S. Open officials did tamper with the seeding process in order to benefit homegrown players .


" I get the feeling that everything is done here for the American players and they forget about all the other players , " said Stich , who lost the 1994 Open final to Andre Agassi .


It was Agassi who was at the centre of the controversy that engulfed the tournament since the original draw was completed on Wednesday .


The flamboyant American star was bumped up two spots from his ATP ranking of eight to a seeding of six .


" He ( Agassi ) should be seeded the way he is playing tennis right now , " said Stich about the unfairness of moving up Agassi , who made early exits from the French Open and Wimbledon .


Stich , not seeded here for the first time since 1990 , might have benefitted from some fiddling with the seedings himself after Kafelnikov withdrew .


Ranked 18th in the world , Stich might have been slipped into that spot ahead of Spain 's Felix Mantilla , who is 16th but had never been played in the Open and had been left out of the seedings originally .


But Stich did n't want to play that game .


" I think he deserves to be seeded as everybody else who is in the top 16 deserves to be seeded , " Stich said .


TENNIS - MONDAY 'S RESULTS FROM U.S. OPEN .


Results of first round matches on Monday in the U.S. Open tennis championships at the National Tennis Centre ( prefix denotes seeding ) :


16 - Martina Hingis ( Switzerland ) beat Angeles Montolio ( Spain ) 6-1 6-0


Anne-Gaelle Sidot ( France ) beat Janette Husarova ( Slovakia ) 6-4 6-4


13 - Brenda Schultz-McCarthy ( Netherlands ) beat Nana Miyagi ( Japan ) 6-1 6-4


Aleksandra Olsza ( Poland ) beat 12 - Magdalena Maleeva ( Bulgaria ) 6-4 6-2


Michael Stich ( Germany ) beat Tommy Haas ( Germany ) 6-3 1-6 6-1 7-5


Sergi Bruguera ( Spain ) beat Kris Goossens ( Belgium ) 6-2 6-0 7-6 ( 7-1 )


Frederic Vitoux ( France ) beat Ramon Delgado ( Paraguay ) 6-4 6-4 7-6 ( 7-3 )


Henrietta Nagyova ( Slovakia ) beat Gala Leon Garcia ( Spain ) 6-1 4-6 6-3


Asa Carlsson ( Sweden ) beat Gloria Pizzichini ( Italy ) 3-6 6-1 7-5


Barbara Schett ( Austria ) beat Sabine Appelmans ( Belgium ) 1-6 6-4 6-4


Cristina Torrens-Valero ( Spain ) beat Sabine Hack ( Germany ) 2-6 6-4 6-2


Helena Sukova ( Czech Republic ) beat Yone Kamio ( Japan ) 6-2 6-3


Irina Spirlea ( Romania ) beat Petra Begerow ( Germany ) 6-3 6-2


Maria Jose Gaidano ( Argentina ) beat Melanie Schnell ( Austria ) 6-4 6-0


Kenneth Carlsen ( Denmark ) beat Patrick Rafter ( Australia ) 7-6 ( 9-7 ) 6-3 7-6 ( 8-6 )


Magnus Gustafsson ( Sweden ) beat Carlos Costa ( Spain ) 7-5 4-6 7-6 ( 7-4 ) 6-3


Jeff Tarango ( U.S. ) beat Alex Radulescu ( Romania ) 6-7 ( 5-7 ) 6-4 6-1 retired , heat exhaustion


Dirk Dier ( Germany ) beat Chuck Adams ( U.S. ) 6-4 2-6 6-4 6-4


Jason Stoltenberg ( Australia ) beat Stefano Pescosolido ( Italy ) 7-5 6-4 6-1


Arnaud Boetsch ( France ) beat Nicolas Pereira ( Venezuela ) 7-6 ( 7-4 ) 6-4 7-5


David Prinosil ( Germany ) beat Peter Tramacchi ( Australia ) 6-3 6-2 3-6 6-7 ( 5-7 ) 6-1


Amanda Coetzer ( South Africa ) beat 6 - Anke Huber ( Germany ) 6-1 2-6 6-2


Anna Kournikova ( Russia ) beat Ludmila Richterova ( Czech Republic ) 7-6 ( 7-4 ) 6-3


Debbie Graham ( U.S. ) beat Stephanie Deville ( Belarus ) 6-4 6-2


Barbara Rittner ( Germany ) beat Katarina Studenikova ( Slovakia ) 7-5 7-5


Kristina Brandi ( U.S. ) beat Andrea Glass ( Germany ) 6-2 6-3


Ines Gorrochategui ( Argentina ) beat Magdalena Grzybowska ( Poland ) 4-6 6-4 6-1


Alberto Berasategui ( Spain ) beat Cecil Mamiit ( U.S. ) 6-1 6-4 6-0


Guillaume Raoux ( France ) beat Filip Dewulf ( Belgium ) 7-6 ( 7-5 ) 3-6 1-6 6-4 7-5


Alex O'Brien ( U.S. ) beat Nicolas Lapentti ( Ecuador ) 6-4 1-6 6-4 6-3


14 - Barbara Paulus ( Austria ) beat Yi Jing-Qian ( China ) 6-2 6-1


Wang Shi-Ting ( Taiwan ) beat Corina Morariu ( U.S. ) 6-4 6-7 ( 5-7 ) 6-2


Linda Wild ( U.S. ) beat Sung-Hee Park ( South Korea ) 6-2 6-3


Sarah Pitkowski ( France ) beat Meghann Shaughnessy ( U.S. ) 6-3 6- 3


Dally Randriantefy ( Madagascar ) beat Elena Makarova ( Russia ) 6- 3 1-6 7-5


Laurence Courtois ( Belgium ) beat Flora Perfetti ( Italy ) 6-4 3-6 6-2


Leander Paes ( India ) beat Marcos Ondruska ( South Africa ) 7-6 ( 7-3 ) 6-2 7-5


Jan Siemerink ( Netherlands ) beat Carl-Uwe Steeb ( Germany ) 4-6 6 - 1 7-6 ( 7-4 ) 6-4


Neville Godwin ( South Africa ) beat Tomas Carbonell ( Spain ) 6-4 6-2 3-6 6-1


Jim Grabb ( U.S. ) beat Sandon Stolle ( Australia ) 6-3 7-5 7-6 ( 7-4 )


Alexandra Fusai ( France ) beat Jill Craybas ( U.S. ) 6-1 2-6 7-5


Naoko Kijimuta ( Japan ) beat Tatyana Jecmenica ( Yugoslavia ) 6-3 6-2


Nathalie Dechy ( France ) beat Christina Singer ( Germany ) 6-4 6-0


Jane Chi ( U.S. ) beat Maria Antonio Sanchez Lorenzo ( Spain ) 6-4 1-6 6-3


Els Callens ( Belgium ) beat Nicole Bradtke ( Australia ) 7-6 ( 7-1 ) 7-6 ( 9-7 )


Natalia Baudone ( Italy ) beat Jolene Watanabe ( U.S. ) 6-4 4-6 7-6 ( 8-6 )


Ai Sugiyama ( Japan ) beat Jana Kandarr ( Germany ) 6-2 6-1


BASEBALL - CUBS EDGE BRAVES WITH RUN IN TOP OF NINTH .


Brian McRae singled in Tyler Houston in the top of the ninth inning to snap a tie as the Chicago Cubs avoided a three-game sweep with 3-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves on Sunday .


The Braves scored four runs in the ninth for a 6-5 victory on Saturday .


Kevin Foster ( 5-2 ) won his second straight start , allowing two runs and six hits with two walks and three strikeouts over eight innings .


" The biggest thing was my fastball , I was able to rotate it pretty good , " Foster said . "


Also , I was able to keep my changeup down . "


At Colorado , Vinny Castilla homered twice and drove in four runs and Larry Walker went 3-for-4 with a homer and three RBI as the Colorado Rockies outslugged the Pittsburgh Pirates 13-9 in the rubber game of a three-game series .


Castilla 's first homer of the game , a solo shot in the seventh off reliever Marc Wilkins ( 3-1 ) extended Colorado 's lead to 9-7 .


He added a three-run homer in the eighth off John Ericks to make it 13-8 .


At Florida , Edgar Renteria 's two-out single in the bottom of the ninth inning scored Jesus Tavarez with the winning run as the Florida Marlins edged the Cincinnati Reds 6-5 .


" Right after Edgar made contact , I knew I had to score , " said Tavarez . "


I knew I would score even if he fielded it cleanly , he could n't throw me out . "


" Edgar is a tremendous player right now , " said Florida manager John Boles . "


But I ca n't wait to see how good he 'll be when he grows up . "


In San Francisco , Osvaldo Fenandez fired a seven-hitter and Trenidad Hubbard belted a two-run homer as the San Francisco Giants ended a three-game losing streak by defeating the Montreal Expos , 7-2 .


Fernandez ( 6-13 ) allowed two runs , walked one and struck out eight for his second career complete game , both against Montreal .


In Los Angeles , Greg Gagne had a run-scoring single and Chad Curtis drew a bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the eighth inning as the Los Angeles Dodgers rallied for a 6-5 victory and a three-game sweep of the New York Mets .


" It was one of these games where you get three straight pinch-hits and a walk of a pinch-hitter , that 's how you win pennants , " Dodgers manager Bill Russell said . "


In San Diego , Steve Finley and Jody Reed drove in three runs apiece as the San Diego Padres built a six-run lead after three innings and cruised to an 11-2 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies .


Ken Caminiti added two RBI for the Padres , who have won six of their last seven games and remained one game ahead of the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League West .


In Houston , Jeff Bagwell homered and Donne Wall allowed one run over seven innings as the Houston Astros defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 4-1 .


Wall ( 8-4 ) allowed three hits , walked two and struck out seven as the Astros moved 1-1/2 games ahead of the Cardinals for the lead in the National League Central .


He left the game with a knot in his right shoulder .


BASEBALL - MAJOR LEAGUE STANDINGS AFTER SUNDAY 'S GAMES .


standings after games played on Sunday ( tabulate under won ,


lost , winning percentage and games behind ) :


BASEBALL - BONDS ' CONSECUTIVE GAME STREAK ENDS .


San Francisco Giants All-Star left fielder Barry Bonds did not appear in Sunday 's 7-2 victory over the Montreal Expos , ending his consecutive games streak .


After appearing as a pinch-hitter in the previous two games , Bonds , who has been battling a hamstring injury , did not see any action today , ending his streak at 357 consecutive games .


It was the second-longest streak by an active player in the the majors behind Baltimore 's Cal Ripken , who appeared in his major-league record 2,282nd straight game today , a 13-0 loss to the California Angels .


Bonds has been limited to a pinch-hitting role since an MRI Friday showed a mild strain of his left hamstring .


Bonds came out of Wednesday 's game against New York in the ninth inning after suffering a mild hamstring strain .


He was back in the starting lineup Thursday night and went 1-for-2 before exiting in the third inning .


The 32-year-old Bonds is hitting .307 with 35 homers and 107 RBI and has been one of the few bright spots for the last-place Giants .


Chicago Cubs outfielder Sammy Sosa had the third-longest streak at 304 games , but that ended earlier this week when he suffered a broken bone in his right hand .


Atlanta Braves first baseman Fred McGriff owns the second-longest streak at 295 games .


SOCCER - JONK RETURNS TO DUTCH SQUAD FOR BRAZIL FRIENDLY .


Dutch coach Guus Hiddink on Monday recalled midfielder Wim Jonk after a 14-month absence for a friendly against World Cup holders Brazil in Amsterdam on Sunday .


Feyenoord midfielder Jean-Paul van Gastel was also named to make his debut in the 18-man squad .


Hiddink did not name a replacement captain for Danny Blind , who announced his retirement from international soccer on Sunday .


Ronald de Boer and Dennis Bergkamp are the likely contenders to lead the team .


The 35-year-old Blind , who won 42 caps for the Netherlands , said he wanted to concentrate on playing for his Dutch club Ajax Amsterdam .


AC Milan midfielder Edgar Davids , who was sent home early from the European championship in England after a clash with the coach , was left out of the squad .


Goalkeepers - Edwin van der Sar ( Ajax ) , Ed de Goey ( Feyenoord ) .


Defenders - Frank de Boer ( Ajax ) , John Veldman ( Ajax ) , Jaap Stam ( PSV ) , Arthur Numan ( PSV ) , Michael Reiziger ( AC Milan ) , Johan de Kock ( Schalke ' 04 ) .


Midfielders - Richard Witschge ( Ajax ) , Philip Cocu ( PSV ) , Wim Jonk ( PSV ) , Aron Winter ( Internazionale ) , Jean-Paul van Gastel ( Feyenoord ) , Clarence Seedorf ( Real Madrid ) .


Strikers - Ronald de Boer ( Ajax ) , Gaston Taument ( Feyenoord ) , Jordi Cruyff ( Manchester United ) , Dennis Bergkamp ( Arsenal ) .


SOCCER - BARCELONA BEAT ATLETICO 5-2 IN SUPERCUP .


Barcelona beat Atletico Madrid 5-2 ( halftime 2-1 ) in the Spanish Supercup on Sunday :


Barcelona - Ronaldo ( 5th and 89th minutes ) , Giovanni ( 31st ) , Pizzi ( 73rd ) , De la Pena ( 75th )


Atletico Madrid - Esnaider ( 37th ) , Pantic ( 57th , penalty )


SOCCER - AUSTRIA FIRST DIVISION RESULTS / STANDINGS .


division soccer match played on Sunday :


Standings ( tabulated under played , won , drawn , lost , goals


CRICKET - AUSTRALIA BEAT ZIMBABWE BY 125 RUNS IN ONE-DAY MATCH .


Australia beat Zimbabwe by 125 runs in the first match of the Singer World Series one-day ( 50 overs ) cricket tournament on Monday .


Scores : Australia 263-7 in 50 overs , Zimbabwe 138 all out in 41 overs .


CRICKET - SCOREBOARD-AUSTRALIA V ZIMBABWE ONE-DAY SCOREBOARD .


Series one-day ( 50 overs ) cricket match between Australia and


Total ( for seven wickets - 50 overs ) 263


Did not bat : P. Reiffel , D. Flemming , G. McGrath


CRICKET - AUSTRALIA 263-7 IN 50 OVERS V ZIMBABWE .


Australia scored 263-7 in their 50 overs against Zimbabwe in the first day-night limited overs match of the Singer World Series tournament on Monday .


CRICKET - AUSTRALIA WIN TOSS , OPT TO BAT AGAINST ZIMBABWE .


Australia won the toss and decided to bat against Zimbabwe in the first day-night limited overs match of the Singer World Series tournament on Monday .


Australia - Mark Waugh , Michael Slater , Ricky Ponting , Steve Waugh , Stuart Law , Michael Bevan , Ian Healy ( captain ) , Brad Hogg , Paul Reiffel , Damein Fleming , Glenn McGrath .


Zimbabwe - Alistair Campbell ( captain ) , Andy Flower , Grant Flower , Guy Whittall , Craig Evans , Eddo Brandes , Heath Streak , Paul Strang , Craig Wishart , Ali Shah , Mark Dekker .


This is the leading story in the Mozambican press on Monday .


Reuters has not verified this story and does not vouch for its accuracy .


- At least 20 people were killed when the two trucks in which they were travelling collided at Nhamavila about 160 km north of Maputo on Saturday , the Maputo daily Noticias said .


Lamonts Apparel files reorganization plan .


Lamonts Apparel Inc , an operator of 42 family apparel stores in six northwestern states , said it has filed a reorganization plan in bankruptcy court in Seattle .


( Corrects to make clear a reorganization plan has been filed ) .


The reorganization plan calls for all secured claims to be paid in full .


Unsecured claims , including those of company bondholders , will be satisfied by issuing new common stock and warrants .


Unsecured claims are estimated at about $ 90 million .


Lamonts said it plans to issue 9 million shares of new common stock .


Of that amount , 4.05 million and 5.67 million shares will be allocated to the company 's trade creditors .


Between 4.75 and 3.13 million shares will be allocated to bondholders and other unsecured non-trade creditors and 200,000 will be allocated to existing shareholders in exchange for all existing stock of the company .


Bondholders and other unsecured non-trade creditors will receive warrants four about 2.2 million shares when the company 's market capitalization reaches $ 20 million .


Bondholders , other unsecured non-trade creditors , and existing shareholders also will receive warrants entitling them to roughly 800,000 shares when the company 's market capitalization reaches $ 25 million .


Management will receive options to purchase 10 percent of the company 's outstanding common stock with protection against dilution at an option exercise price of $ 1 million .


Passengers rescued from blazing ferry off France .


More than 100 people were safely evacuated on Monday from a ferry that caught fire soon after leaving Guernsey in Britain 's Channel Islands , police said .


Police said the 111 passengers and six crew on board the ferry Trident Seven , owned by France 's Emeraud line , were rescued by a variety of private and commercial boats after fire broke out in the engine room soon after it left port .


An 88-year-old woman was taken to hospital with leg injuries , according to a spokesman for Guernsey police .


The ferry , which was towed into port , had been bound for Jersey , another in a cluster of small British-ruled islands off north-west France .


OSCE delays decision on refugee voting .


Bosnia 's election organisers will decide on Tuesday whether or not to postpone municipal elections scheduled as part of nationwide balloting , an OSCE spokeswoman said on Monday .


Officials from the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe ( OSCE ) are considering the postponement following allegations of serious irregularities in the registration of Serb refugees .


International observers say the alleged irregularities could affect the outcome of voting for municipal assemblies .


the Provisional Election Commission will consider the possible postponement of municipal elections only ...


the other elections will be held on September 14 , " OSCE spokeswoman Agota Kuperman told reporters in Sarajevo .


" I think that it would be very difficult to select which municipal elections would have to be cancelled .


I think probably if the decision ( to cancell ) were to be taken it would probably be all municipal elections ..


Kuperman added that options other than postponement were also on the table , but she refused to specify what they were .


The Dayton peace agreement gave the OSCE a mandate to organise Bosnian elections .


The Provisional Election Commission is OSCE 's top rule-making body for the poll .


More than 600,000 refugees have registered to vote in 55 countries around the world , representing about 20 per cent of Bosnia 's total electorate .


They are due to begin voting on Wednesday , August 28 , just one day after the PEC is supposed to make its decision .


Balloting inside Bosnia is scheduled for September 14 , when citizens are slated to elect municipal and cantonal assemblies , separate Moslem-Croat and Serb parliaments , a national House of Representatives and a three-man Presidency .


A Sarajevo daily newspaper , Dnevi Avaz , which is close to Bosnia 's Moslem nationalist SDA party , on Monday said the OSCE would postpone the municipal-level elections until the Spring of 1997 because of the refugee registration problems .


SDA has a representative on the Provisional Election Commission .


" I do n't know what the source of the Dnevi Avaz report is , but it is consistent with what I have heard from western diplomats and from inside the OSCE , " said an OSCE staff member in Sarajevo who asked not to be named .


" The word is that Frowick has decided to postpone municipal elections but that he will wait for one more session of the PEC on Tuesday to take everyone 's temperature on the issue . "


Ambassador Robert Frowick , an American , heads the OSCE mission in Bosnia .


OSCE and independent monitors allege that Serb authorities have systematically discouraged refugees from registering to cast a ballot in the places they lived before the war .


Instead , the refugees were said to have been directed by their authorities to vote from strategic towns which had Moslem majorities before the 43-month Bosnian war , but which are now underpopulated as a result of " ethnic cleansing " .


Diplomats explain the purpose of this electoral engineering is to secure Serb control over pivotal towns inside the 49 per cent of Bosnia known as the Serb republic , consolidating through the ballot box what was initially taken in war .


The top U.N. refugee official in the Balkans highlighted the voter registration problem on Monday .


" Results of the registration for September elections herald a dismal future for multi-ethnicity in Bosia-Hercegovina , " warned Soren Jessen-Petersen , Special Envoy for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees in Former Yugoslavia .


" In the run-up to elections , nationalistic political leaders are playing the ethnic / sectarian card , drumming up support within their constituencies by playing on bitter memories or fear . "


After truce , Lebed faces tougher Chechen problem .


Alexander Lebed may finally get to discuss his Chechen peace proposals with Boris Yeltsin on Tuesday after a lost weekend in the region when he was forced to abandon plans to sign a new political treaty with the separatist rebels .


It could be a sobering experience for the Kremlin security chief who , just two months after being appointed by the president and two heady weeks after taking charge of the Chechen crisis , had promised to wrap up the 20-month war by the weekend .


Despite a mood of compromise in the region after some of the worst fighting of the war , Lebed may be just finding out that concluding a long-term settlement , somewhere between rebel demands for independence and Moscow 's insistence that Chechnya remain part of Russia , will be no easy matter .


A chain-smoking former paratroop general with a sharp line in deadpan putdowns and a soldier 's knack for making life sound simple , Lebed managed to arrange an ambitious ceasefire in the region last week , days after the Russian army threatened to bomb its way back into the rebel-held Chechen capital Grozny .


He returned at the weekend , pledging to conclude a political settlement that would make this truce work where all others have failed .


But then he apparently thought better of it .


Saying he needed to tidy up legal loose ends on the deal -- and also cover his back against unnamed pro-war schemers in Moscow -- he flew back to the capital empty-handed on Sunday .


He met Russian Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin on Monday and , according to the press service of Lebed 's Security Council , could meet Yeltsin on Tuesday .


It was not clear if the start of Yeltsin 's holiday , announced later , would affect plans to talk .


Moscow 's as yet undisclosed proposals on Chechnya 's political future have , meanwhile , been sent back to do the rounds of various government departments .


It is not known what caused the delay in the peace plan .


Speculation mounted last week that Lebed was operating out on a limb in Chechnya as Yeltsin , hardly seen since his reelection last month , kept out of sight and then gave an interview criticising his envoy just as he clinched a truce .


But Chernomyrdin took pains at the weekend to insist Lebed was playing for a united team and that the proposals he took to rebel chief-of-staff Aslan Maskhadov had been agreed by Yeltsin .


If that were the case , it was unclear why Lebed suddenly found it necessary to have the deal verified in Moscow .


Lebed himself said he was concerned that powerful interests in Moscow , who have profited from the war and want it to go on , would seize on any inadequacy in the deal to remove him .


Maskhadov warned that Lebed risked the same fate as a former Russian army commander in the region who sought a compromise and was blown up last year by -- so the Chechens say -- Russian forces .


Maskhadov may also have made new demands on Lebed , forcing him to check back with the Kremlin on what he could offer .


A rebel spokesman said the two military men had come close to agreement on a face-saving formula acceptable to both sides and involving a referendum on independence at some future date .


Chernomyrdin said voters should decide Chechnya 's future but stressed there was no question of the government letting the region quit the Russian Federation -- something Moscow fears could encourage separatist tendencies in other ethnic regions , particularly in the strategic North Caucasus .


Lebed may be be finding that closing that political gap between the two sides is more difficult than just ending a war .


Yeltsin on holiday from Monday - Interfax .


Russian President Boris Yeltsin began a new summer holiday on Monday but would remain in control of affairs of state , Interfax news agency said .


" The head of state 's holiday has only just begun , " the agency quoted Sergei Yastrzhembsky as saying , adding that the president was currently in a Kremlin residence near Moscow .


Interfax said Yastrezhembsky did not exclude that Yeltsin could spend some time in other places .


He would continue working on various documents and might meet " one state offical or another " .


" One must give B. Yeltsin a chance to rest and recover his health after the elections , " Interfax quoted Yastrezhembsky as saying .


" ( Yeltsin ) controls internal and international policies , daily receives a big packet of documents from Moscow , which demand his intervention ...


Many of those documents return to the president 's administration the same day , " he said .


Yeltsin went on a two-day trip outside Moscow last week to check out a holiday home .


Yugo Zastava workers ' protest enters 2nd week .


Thousands of workers of Serbia 's Zastava arms factory entered the second week of protests on Monday over unpaid wages and the lack of a programme to revive the plant 's production .


" We are stubborn , have strength and time to persist until our demands are met , " said the factory 's trade union secretary Dragutin Stanojlovic .


" We are united and we are waiting for the government to decide what to do with us . "


Trade unions demanded payment of June and July wages and last year 's holiday pay , and called on government to develop a revival programme for the plant .


The former Yugoslav national army consumed 90 percent of Zastava 's pre-war output , but like the rest of Yugoslavia 's economy , the new army of Serbia and Montenegro is crippled by lack of funds .


In Kragujevac where the plant is based , 9,000 to 10,000 people gathered in the central square to express their bitterness at what Stanojlovic called government indifference .


The ruling Socialist Party last week accused Serbia 's opposition of stirring up social unrest and using workers ' already difficult social position for their own interests .


" Late wages , no work and ( the lack of a ) production programme are the main reasons for their protests , " a senior member of the local Socialist Party branch told Reuters .


" But there is a significant influence of opposition parties that are collecting points ahead of coming elections . "


Federal Yugoslav elections are due on November 3 .


The party official said the union 's figure on the number of protesters was exaggerated . "


There were about 1,400 to 1,600 people at the protest today -- much less then last week .


" But there were more observers and passers by , " he said .


Croatian lending rate falls to 8.0 vs 9.1 pct .


The Croatian lending rate fell to 8.0 percent on Monday from last Friday 's 9.1 percent after thin demand for kuna forced bank lenders to trim their rates further .


Interbank call money was down to 8.0 from 10.0 percent .


Insurers ' five-10 and 10-15 day loans were made at a steady 8.0 percent after last week 's drop from an earlier 15 percent .


Total Zagreb Money Market settlements shrank to 17.4 million kuna , of which dealers put new borrowing at a meagre 5.5 million .


Supply stood at a high 180 million kuna .


Overnight trade at the weekend left a surplus of 1.2 billion kuna on the supply side after 40 million were settled .


Croatia 's central bank again stayed out of the foreign exchange market .


It calculated the kuna midrates for Tuesday 's trade stronger at 5.2420 against the dollar and slightly weaker at 3.5486 against the German mark .


-- Kolumbina Bencevic , Zagreb Newsroom , 385-1-4557075


SVCD Bulgaria air traffic controllers to strike September 3 .


Bulgarian air traffic controllers will go on strike on September 3 demanding higher pay , the chief of the Bulgarian association of air traffic controllers ( Bulatka ) said on Monday .


Stefan Raichev told a news conference the strike by more than half of the 1,380 traffic controllers and technicians would paralyse traffic which has increased by 10 percent since last year .


More than 1,500 planes per day fly over Bulgaria , in a strategic location between Europe and the Middle and the Far East , Raichev said .


The director general of the air traffic service Valentin Valkov said last Friday that a controllers ' strike would be illegal .


Valkov said he could not curb the summer charter flights of national carrier Balkan Airlines , which carries thousands of foreign tourists to the Bulgarian Black Sea resorts .


But Raichev said it would be " discrimination " against the other airlines if only Balkan planes were guided in .


" Under the law before launching the strike we have to sign an agreement with our employer for a minimal transport servicing of emergency flights , " Raichev said .


Raichev said a lock-out with military air controllers was impossible as they did not speak English .


The controllers are demanding the monthly wage be increased to $ 1,000 per month from the current $ 230 , as well as the resignation of the air traffic service 's management .


They also demand the financial separation of the 350 air controllers from the technical staff .


-- Liliana Semerdjieva , Sofia Newsroom , 359-2-84561


Naina Yeltsin , wife of the Russian president , has undergone " a planned operation " on her left kidney and is in a satisfactory condition , Itar-Tass news agency said on Monday .


Tass quoted the Kremlin press service as saying the operation took place on Saturday in the Central Clinical Hospital which treats top officials .


Mrs Yeltsin would be released from hospital in a few days .


Doctor Sergei Mironov told Tass Naina was " in permanent contact " with her husband and two daughters , Yelena and Tatyana .


The state of health of Boris Yeltsin , who had two heart attacks last year , has been the centre of media and market speculation after he won a second term in office in the July 3 election run-off and all but disappeared from the public eye .


A presidential spokesman said on Monday Yeltsin was in Moscow but could give no details about his agenda or whether meetings were planned .


Yeltsin is expected to go on holiday in the near future , but officials have not yet said where he will go or when .


Mostostal Z shareholders approve bonds .


Shareholders of the Polish construction firm Mostostal Zabrze Holding SA approved a 25- million-zloty , five-year convertible issue with a par value of 100 zlotys each , the company 's spokesman said on Monday .


Piotr Grabowski told Reuters that a Mostostal extraordinary shareholders meeting on Saturday had decided that the price of the 250,000 bonds would be set as a 10-session average price of Mostostal shares plus a premium .


" The premium will be no lower than 15 percent and will be set by management before the issue ...


which we expect at the beginning of next year , " Grabowksi said .


Mostostal , based in southern Poland , wants to offer the bonds to large investors in a public offering , paying an annual coupon of no more than 80 percent of the yield of the benchmark 52-week T-bill .


The firm has signed an agreement with the Polish Development Bank ( PBR ) to manage the issue and plans them to be listed on the Warsaw bourse 's bond market .


Grabowski also said shareholders approved the issue of 1.6 million shares for which the bonds could be exchanged , a ratio of 6.4 shares per bond .


He also said shareholders approved the issue of 2.6 million new shares , two million of which are earmarked for large investors and 600,000 for retail domestic investors .


The price will be determined through book-building .


Mostostal plans to use the proceeds from the issues to add companies to its holding and modernise its plant .


Unknown group kidnaps Dutch couple in Costa Rica .


Kidnappers have seized a Dutch couple who manage a farm in northern Costa Rica and have demanded a $ 1.5 million ransom , authorities said on Monday .


Officials said Humberto Hueite Zyrecha and his wife Jetty Kors , both 50 , were kidnapped late on Saturday or early Sunday .


Misael Valerio , head of border police at the Security Ministry , told reporters surveillance of the northern border with Nicaragua has been stepped up to keep the kidnappers from fleeing Costa Rica .


Preliminary reports said the couple were kidnapped on the " Altamira " farm , owned by Dutchman Richard Wisinga , at Aguas Zarcas de San Carlos near the Costa Rica-Nicaragua border .


Unconfirmed news reports said a vehicle belonging to them was found abandoned at Santa Maria de Pocosol , about 12 miles ( 20 km ) north of the site of the abduction .


The reports said authorities found a statement , supposedly from the kidnappers , in the vehicle , addressed to Wisinga and demanding a $ 1.5 million ransom .


Wisinga was believed to be travelling in Europe , they said .


A Swiss tourist guide and a German tourist were kidnapped in the same area on New Year 's Day by a group of former Nicaraguan guerrillas .


Regula Susana Siegfried , 50 , and Nicola Fleuchaus , 25 , were released after 71 days after a $ 200,000 ransom was paid .


In a bizarre twist , Fleuchaus and the leader of the kidnappers , Julio Cesar Vega Rojas , developed a sentimental attachment during her captivity , according to photographs printed in Costa Rican newspapers and court documents including a love letter written by Vega .


Interacciones ups Mexico GDP forecast , lowers peso .


Interacciones brokerage on Monday raised its forecasts for 1996 gross domestic product growth to 4.3 percent from 3.8 percent , but it kept its 1997 projection unchanged at 4.5 percent , a statement said .


Economist Alonso Cervera said the revisions were chiefly fueled by stronger than expected growth of 7.2 percent in the second quarter and he forecast an annual GDP rise of 6.1 percent in the third quarter and 4.9 percent in Q4 .


The firm also revised down its year-end peso forecast to 7.85-8.15 per dollar from 8.20-8.50 .


It forecast an end 1997 peso in the range of 9.20-9.40 .


Interacciones kept its 1996 and 1997 inflation forecast unchanged at 26 percent and 20 percent , expecting the government 's 1997 inflation target to be around 15 percent .


It bumped up its average interest rate projection in 1997 to 25.8 percent from 23 percent .


Fiscal policy was expected to be loosened a bit in the second half of this year , boosting growth without running into a deficit .


" Next year , the fiscal policy will have less margin of freedom because the government will have to face commitments that it has taken on under different support schemes for the banks , debtors and firms , " the brokerage said .


-- Henry Tricks , Mexico City newsroom +525 728-9560


Bancomext official says Mexico peso level suitable .


A top official of export development bank Bancomext said the peso 's appreciation against the dollar this year has not hurt demand for Mexican exports .


We have n't felt a drop-off in demand ....


We have no basis for saying that the exchange rate is affecting exports , " Rafael Moreno Turrent , deputy director general for foreign trade promotion at the bank , said at a news conference .


Colombian peso closes lower , importers buy dlrs .


Colombia 's peso closed lower at 1,044 after coming under pressure from dollar-buying by importers seeking to meet their commitments abroad , interbank dealers said .


It was the second consecutive session that saw the peso , which ended at 1,041 Friday , close lower .


" The ( dollar 's ) rise was due to demand from importers who have a lot of wire transfers accumulated , " one dealer said .


Contributing to the peso 's weakness , another dealer said banks who might have sold greenbacks in Monday 's trading appeared to shy away from the market .


This , according to the trader , was typical of month-end position-squaring -- and the fact that a stronger U.S. currency helps limit some foreign exchange losses .


Dealers reported 355 trades for a total of $ 142 million and said the peso hit an intra-day high of 1,037 before heading lower into the close .


-- Juan Guillermo Londono , Bogota newsroom , 571 610 7944


Japan 's Hashimoto leaves Brazil for Peru .


Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto left Brasilia on Monday for Lima , the penultimate stop on a 10-day Latin American tour , a Brazilian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said .


Hashimoto , who has already visited Mexico and Chile , spent three days in Brazil .


After Peru , he was due to go to Costa Rica .


Nicaraguan president has operation in U.S .


Nicaraguan President Violeta Chamorro underwent successful surgery in the United States on Monday to correct a compression in her lower spinal column , the government said .


Doctors at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore found an inflamation in her spinal column that , once treated , will free her of chronic pain in her back and one leg that has limited her movement , a government statement said .


" ( Chamorro ) is in good health and , according to her doctors , will be able to return to Nicaragua next week , " it said .


Chamorro , 66 , had complained of lower back pain since a trip to Taiwan in May , when pain forced her to go to Taipei University Hospital for an examination .


She suffers from osteoporosis , a disease that weakens the bones , and has repeatedly flown to Washington for treatment .


She is scheduled to step down in January after a term of nearly seven years .


Eight drown in Venezuelan boating accident .


Eight members of a family , five of them children aged between two and seven , drowned when their small boat sank on Lake Maracaibo in western Venezuela early on Monday , authorities said .


The accident happened when the Sanchez Zarraga family took their boat out for a nighttime spin , Civil Defence and Coast Guard officials said .


The cause of the sinking was not known but officials said the boat had a hole in the stern and no lifejackets .


Three members of the party were rescued unhurt .


Banco de Mexico to inject 3.412 bln pesos .


Banco de Mexico sought to inject 3.412 billion pesos in the secondary market on Monday through three credit auctions , dealers said .


A Dutch couple who manage a farm in northern Costa Rica have been kidnapped by an unidentified group demanding $ 1.5 million in ransom , authorities said on Monday .


Officials said Humberto Hueite Zyrecha and his wife Jetty Kors , both 50 , were kidnapped late Saturday or early Sunday .


Misael Valerio , head of border police at the Security Ministry , told reporters that surveillance of the country 's northern border with Nicaragua has been stepped up to stop the kidnappers from fleeing Costa Rica .


No other details were immediately available .


RTRS - Melbourne train collides with truck , 15 injured .


Fifteen people were injured when a suburban passenger train and a truck collided at a street-level rail crossing in the Australian city of Melbourne on Monday , said rail and ambulance officials .


The injured , which included a pregnant woman , were taken to hospital , but were not in a serious condition , an ambulance spokesman told Reuters .


A Public Transport Corporation spokesman said the train , collided with the truck loaded with concrete pylons in the north Melbourne suburb of Preston just before 8.30 a.m ..


The train was derailed when a corner of the driver 's compartment caught the rear of the truck , the spokesman said .


The truck was overturned , spilling its load onto the crossing , and careered into the nearby Bell St Station .


" Remarkably both the train driver and the truck driver were not injured , " the rail spokesman said .


" It had the potential to be quite a nasty accident . "


A gunman being hunted on Auckland 's North Shore was captured by police just after 9 a.m. on Tuesday , New Zealand Press Association reported .


Senior Sergeant Dave Pearson of Auckland police said John Grant Fagan was in police custody , but further details of his capture would not be released until a press conference later in the day .


Fagan had earlier telephoned an Auckland radio station in a distraught state , saying he feared for his life .


Police said he did not have a weapon when taken into custody and was now cooperating with them .


Radio New Zealand reported earlier that an armed man on Monday entered the Northcote College swimming pool changing sheds and confronted a 16-year-old schoolgirl .


A shot was fired , but onlookers managed to disarm the man .


Police seek fugitive after Auckland gun incident .


Auckland police were seeking an escaped gunman on Tuesday after an incident in which he fired at a 16-year-old schoolgirl , Radio New Zealand said .


The man entered the Northcote College swimming pool changing sheds on Monday and told the girl and a friend : " You 're for it now . "


A shot was fired , but onlookers managed to seize the gun , the radio said .


Police , who were unsuccessful in finding the man overnight , described him as disturbed and dangerous .


SIMEX Brent closed on Monday owing to IPE holiday .


The Brent crude futures market on the Singapore International Monetary Exchange ( SIMEX ) was closed on Monday in respect for a U.K. national holiday .


THE SIMEX Brent market keeps to the trading schedule of the International Petroleum Exchange ( IPE ) in London , which is closed for a British bank holiday .


Contracts traded in Singapore are mutually offset against contracts traded in London .


Metro slides 3.3 pct after market opens .


Shares in retailer Metro Holdings dropped 3.31 percent , or Singapore $ 0.20 , to S$ 5.85 minutes after the market opened on Monday .


By 0120 GMT , 357,000 Metro shares had been traded .


On Friday , Metro Holdings topped gainers , soaring by S$ 1.55 to close at S$ 6.05 on market rumours of a takeover bid by First Capital Corp .


The company said it was not aware of any reason for the surge .


Indonesian rupiah stable in quiet late trading .


The Indonesian rupiah was stable against the dollar in quiet trading on Monday , dealers said .


They said volume was thin following a public holiday in Hong Kong and the United Kingdom .


" We did n't see anything from Singapore operators either .


It 's a pretty quiet day , " one foreign bank dealer said .


Spot rupiah was quoted at 2,342.0 / 42.5 at 0915 GMT , unchanged from the opening level .


It was softer in the morning due to relatively ample rupiah liquidity but recovered later .


Tomorrow and today rupiah closed at 2,342.00 / 42.45 and 2,341.5 / 42.0 , respectively .


Another dealer said operators were reluctant to unload rupiah despite ample conditions due to the month-end factor .


" There are two factors which determine the market at present .


The liquidity at month-end and the next court hearing scheduled for Thursday , " the dealer said .


Megawati Sukarnoputri , deposed leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party ( PDI ) has sued the government for ousting her as PDI leader .


The central Jakarta court adjourned the case last Thursday for possible out-of-court settlement .


The hearing is due to resume on Thursday .


Megawati 's lawyers said they were still discussing a possible out of court settlement but they was not optimistic an agreement could be reached .


The dealer said this issue remained a factor but its importance to the market seemed to diminish .


He said liquidity would be the main concern for the next few days .


Overnight swap was at 0.45 / 0.48 and tom / next at 0.50 / 0.55 .


The central bank kept its intervention rate at 2,337 / 2,455 and the conversion rate at 2,337 / 2,383 on Monday .


Senate intelligence chairman in Saudi bomb probe .


U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee chairman Arlen Specter , who has questioned whether Defence Secretary William Perry should resign over the latest bombing in Saudi Arabia , met Saudi officials on Monday during a brief visit to the kingdom .


A U.S. embassy spokesman in Riyadh said Specter , who arrived from neighbouring Oman on Sunday and left on Monday , had talks with Saudi and American officials in Dhahran , where 19 U.S. airmen were killed by a fuel truck bomb on June 25 , and Riyadh .


Specter met Crown Prince Abdullah and Minister of Defence and Aviation Prince Sultan in Jeddah , Saudi state television and the official Saudi Press Agency reported .


He had earlier visited Japan , South Korea and China .


Specter said after the bombing there should be a shake-up at the Pentagon and questioned whether Perry should resign .


He said he was not satisfied with some of Perry 's answers to the committee 's questions in closed testimony last month .


The question of whether Perry should resign remained open , the Pennsylvania Republican said .


FBI Director Louis Freeh , who has twice visited Saudi Arabia to seek improved cooperation with Saudi investigators , told the committee he was not entirely satisfied with Saudi cooperation on the Dhahran bomb and a previous bomb attack in Riyadh .


" If we 're to stay in Saudi Arabia , we need to have total cooperation , " Specter said .


The United States has 5,000 U.S. air force and other military personnel in Saudi Arabia .


Hijacked Sudanese plane leaves Cyprus for Britain .


A Sudan Airways plane with 199 passengers and crew which was hijacked to Cyprus took off from Larnaca airport after refuelling and headed to Britain early on Tuesday , witnesses said .


Police said an unknown number of hijackers were on board the Airbus 310 which was hijacked on its way from Khartoum to Amman in Jordan .


One had threatened to blow it up unless it was refuelled and they were taken to London where they intended to surrender and seek political asylum .


Kurds clash again in Iraq , dozens reported dead .


Heavy fighting broke out between two rival Kurdish factions in northern Iraq at midnight Sunday and at least 29 people were killed , one of the groups said on Monday .


The Kurdistan Democratic Party ( KDP ) said the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan ( PUK ) had broken the U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreed between the two parties last week .


The factions reached a ceasefire on Friday after a week of fierce fighting which had put an end to a truce agreed a year earlier .


" The PUK leadership who pledged to end fighting and cooperate with the latest U.S. initiative started a major military offensive against KDP positions , " the KDP said in a statement .


It said heavy fighting started at midnight in the region dividing the two warring factions , with the PUK aiming to break through to KDP 's headquarters in Salahuddin .


The KDP said 29 PUK fighters were killed in the attack .


It did not provide details of KDP casualties and a PUK spokesman was not immediately available for comment .


The statement said the PUK resumed its attack on Monday morning on KDP positions near Rawandouz and indiscriminately shelled the town of Dayana , killing a priest and injuring some civilians .


The fighting has threatened a U.S.-led peace plan to unite the mountainous Kurdish region in northern Iraq against President Saddam Hussein .


A U.S.-led air force has protected Iraqi Kurds against attack from Baghdad since shortly after the Gulf War in 1991 .


Egypt to press Britain over Islamist conference .


Egypt will tell Britain it is concerned about a meeting of Islamists to be held in London soon , Foreign Minister Amr Moussa said on Monday .


" There is a question mark over this issue .


We , and many other countries , do n't understand this ( Britain 's ) position , " Moussa told reporters .


" Egypt will contact the British government to find out the truth of the matter and to discuss the possible consequences of such an unfortunate step , " he added .


Egyptian government newspapers have criticised Britain for allowing Islamists , whom they brand as " terrorists " , to hold their conference , saying the meeting will be a chance for dangerous Moslem militants to plot against their countries of origin .


It is not clear when the conference will be held .


About 1,000 people have been killed in Egypt since Islamic militants took up arms in 1992 in an attempt to overthrow the government and set up a strict Islamic state .


Cairo says several Egyptian militants on the run from death sentences or convictions for violent attacks at home have taken shelter in Britain .


Israeli army ransacks Bedouin Palestinian camp .


Israeli security forces ransacked a Bedouin encampment in the West Bank on Monday to expel them from an area which Palestinians say had been earmarked for Jewish settlement expansion , residents said .


They said soldiers stole a gold necklace and about $ 2,000 in Israeli currency from an elderly woman and her daughter-in-law while rummaging through their luggage before destroying family shacks and animal barns .


" They rammed our shacks with jeeps and destroyed the shack over my baby , " said 25-year-old Amina Muhammad . "


A spokesman for Israel 's civil administration in the West Bank said the Bedouins were moved because they were encamped on an Israeli army firing zone .


The spokesman Peter Lerner said he knew nothing about soldiers having stolen anything from the Palestinians .


Israeli security forces have been pursuing Bedouin Palestinians living in the desolate wilderness between East Jerusalem and the Dead Sea , where several Jewish settlements have been established .


The Israeli army also uses the area for military training .


U.S. base metals and scrap prices - August 26 .


U.S. premiums added to LME official cash settlement price , except for copper , which is added to the COMEX spot month .


Premium includes price for delivery to consumer 's works .


Aluminum : Western grade 3.25-3.75 cents / pound


Russian grade A7E 3.25-3.75 cents / pound


Russian grade A0 nominal 2.00-2.25 cents / pound


Zinc : Special high grade SHG 5.50-6.00 cents / pound


( low lead , 50 ppm ) 9.0-10.5 cents / pound


Nickel ( melting grade ) 9.0-12.0 cents / pound


Copper ( high grade cathode ) 2.50-3.0 cents / pound


and East coast , delivered to consumer 65-66 cents / pound


Aluminum scrap , Midwest and East coast average price ,


Old Sheet and Cast metal 42 to 44 cents / pound


Turnings , clean and dry 43 to 44 cents / pound


Mixed low-copper clips 48 to 49 cents / pound


Copper scrap , Midwest and East coast average price ,


Lead batteries , delivered consumer 4.5 to 6.0 cents / pound


Alcan aluminum , U.S. Midwest ( effective date : August 1 , 1996 )


Noranda aluminum , U.S. Midwest ( effective date:August 1 , 1996 )


RSR pure lead price ( effective date : March 20 , 1996 )


Doe Run pure lead price ( effective date : August 14 , 1996 )


ASARCO pure lead ( effective date : August 1 , 1996 )


-- ( New York commodities desk 212 859 1646 )


Florida boy kills himself before starting new school .


A 12-year-old Florida boy hanged himself in his backyard just hours before he was due to start at a new school on Monday , police said .


Samuel Graham , who told his family earlier that he was nervous about starting at a new school because he feared teasing about his weight problem , had been due to spend his first day at Parkway Middle School Monday , police said .


The boy was last seen alive Sunday night when he joined his two younger brothers and father in a bedtime prayer .


Two younger brothers found him hanging from a tree early Monday morning .


His father cut him down and tried to revive him but paramedics pronounced him dead when they arrived .


The Broward County Sheriff 's Office found a step stool and a flashlight under the tree where the boy was hanged .


They said there was no sign of foul play and that investigators believed the death was a suicide .


CBOT rice closes higher on technical bounce .


CBOT rice futures closed higher on a technical bounce tied to signs the market was oversold , traders said .


" It rallied on ideas the market was oversold , " a trader said .


Traders said the U.S. cash market remains well above the benchmark Thai price which limited gains .


Rice futures volume was estimated at 450 contracts , up from 202 Friday .


Rice options volume was estimated at 50 contracts , down from 56 Friday .


Rice futures closed 13 to 16 cents per cwt higher , with September up 16 at $ 10.28 a cwt .


Talbott to meet Russian , Canadian counterparts .


Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott flew to Ottawa on Monday to meet his Russian counterpart and discuss a range of bilateral and European security issues , the State Department said .


Talbott , the second-ranking State Department official , was to meet Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Georgy Mamedov as part of a regular pattern of consultations , the department said .


" There is much to discuss on the fall calendar , " acting chief spokesman Glyn Davies said . "


There 's a fairly intensive diplomatic calendar coming up in the fall . "


He said Talbott , who was scheduled to return on Tuesday , would also to meet his Canadian counterpart , Gordon Smith , in Ottawa for talks that would include the situation in Haiti .


U.S. Midwest hog market seen steady Tuesday - trade .


Midwest direct cash hog prices Tuesday were seen steady following strong demand Monday that lifted prices as much as $ 1.50 per cwt in some areas , livestock dealers said .


The demand was sparked by Saturday 's active slaughter , which left some packers short on supplies to get Monday operations started , they said .


Top prices in Iowa / southern Minnesota Tuesday were expected to range from mostly $ 59.50 to $ 60.00 , steady following a $ 0.50 - $ 1.50 jump Monday .


Illinois tops were seen matching Monday 's at $ 59.00 with tops in Indiana at $ 57.50 .


However , USDA reported tops of $ 58.00 in Illinois and in Iowa / southern Minnesota , $ 60.00 on some hogs Monday .


Attempts to move prices higher again Tuesday could be offset by expected increased hog marketings this week , sources said .


Producers were expected to ship as many hogs as they can ahead of the Labor Day holiday weekend , they said .


Demand for hogs is expected to be light by the end of the week , as the industry prepares for Labor Day , Monday , September 1 when most U.S. packers will be closed .


Gore presents new image of lead attack dog .


No more mild-mannered and meek Al Gore , the vice president and likely heir apparent to President Bill Clinton , emerged on Monday as the new Democratic attack dog leading a front-line assault on Bob Dole and House Speaker Newt Gingrich .


While Clinton takes a train trip to the Democratic Convention that will renominate him on Wednesday for a second term , Gore is the bright star in the convention city now .


Crowds anxiously wait for his appearances , thrusting out hands for him to grip as they scream " 12 more years " -- a wishful hope to eight years of Gore after a Clinton re-election .


Over a 15-hour span from Sunday evening to Monday morning , so many people jammed Gore events that the fire marshal stopped members of Congress , reporters and others from entering a pro-Israel rally and a meeting of the New York delegation .


In his appearances , the often stiff and wooden Gore seemed transformed into a new energetic , gesturing " pol " as he ripped into Republican presidential nominee Dole and Gingrich , who has emerged as the favorite right-wing foil of Democrats .


Gore told a roaring labor rally of about 1,000 union workers that Dole and Gingrich were the virtual personifaction of evil , without even mentioning that former Housing Secretary Jack Kemp is Dole 's running mate .


" With equal measures of ignorance and audacity this two-headed monster of Dole and Gingrich has been launching an all out assault on decades of progress of behalf of working men and women , " Gore said to whoops of " 12 more years . "


" They want to drive you out of politics and they ca n't , " he added . "


They want to silence your voices in elections . "


At a downtown hotel Monday , the 48-year-old Gore gave Wisconsin delegates a taste again of the new Gore .


What would Wisconsin face if the same extremist coalition , the Gingrich / Dole Congress , also controlled the executive branch ? "


Noting the next presidential term will probably see two or three Supreme Court justice nominations , he warned , " Their extremist agenda would come out of the Gingrich Congress , into and through the Dole White House , down through the Supreme Court . "


He painted a scene of horrors he saw if Republicans controlled the White House and the Congress they hold now . "


Our personal and religious liberties would be at risk .


Medicare would be at risk of withering on the vine .


Medicaid would be at risk of being taken away from poor children .


The environment would be at risk from the polluters that control that coalition , " he said .


His new style mixed an assault on Republicans with what he sees as " productive opportunity , a vision for the future that lifts up working families , that builds Wisconsin stronger , that builds America stronger .


With your help we can re-elect Bill Clinton . "


Dole 's tax cut plans were called " deja-voodoo economics .... It 's a warmed-over plan that failed and drove our economy into a ditch .


We got burned once and we wo n't let that happen to our nation again . "


Gore ridiculed Dole 's defense of the tobacco industry , praised Clinton for " courage " in advancing regulations of it .


To the delegates of Wisconsin , a leading dairy state , Gore had the right audience in poking fun at Dole 's comparison to addiction to tobacco to those who ca n't tolerate milk .


" Some people say milk is bad for you , " Gore said as Wisconsin delegates held aloft a plastic inflated cow .


He praised Clinton for vetoing the Republican Congress ' attempt to repeal parts of the Clean Air Act , and criticized Republicans for " slashing money to combat drugs in schools . "


" The choice has never been starker , the stakes today have never been higher , " Gore said . "


We 're not going to let them get away with that . "


Actor Reeve highlights Democrats ' first night .


The highlights of the first day of the Democratic convention on Monday were expected to feature a mix of party leaders and people who have overcome adversity .


Among the latter were gun control advocate Sarah Brady and actor Christopher Reeve and the politicians included Rep .


Here are thumbnail profiles of the convention 's key Monday speakers .


Sarah Brady -- The nation 's toughest gun control law is named after Ronald Reagan 's press secretary James Brady but it was his wife who was the major force behind its passage .


As head of Handgun Control Inc. , Sarah Brady , 54 , campaigned nonstop for tough gun control in the years following the shooting of her husband and then President Reagan in 1981 .


Her reward was the passage in 1993 of the " Brady Bill " which requires a mandatory five-day waiting period for purchase of handguns and also mandates background checks for would-be gun purchasers .


Reagan recovered fully from his wounds but Brady , who was close to death after being shot by John Hinckley Jr .


Sarah was Brady 's second wife and they have a son , James Scott Brady Jr .


Before the assassination attempt , she had worked for Republican congressmen and for the Republican Party .


Christopher Reeve -- Reeve was best known for playing the comic book hero Superman in four movies but his greatest heroics came in real life .


Reeve , an accomplished rider who owned several horses , suffered multiple injuries including two shattered neck vertebrae when he was thrown from his horse at an equestrian event in Culpepper , Virginia , on May 27 , 1995 .


Almost entirely paralyzed , Reeve underwent extensive surgery to fuse the vertebrae to the base of the skull and prevent any further damage to his spine .


That allowed him to be moved to a semi-upright position .


Over time he regained the power of speech , so much so that he was asked to address the opening night of the Democratic National Convention .


Reeve , 43 , was classically trained as an actor but became the prototypical handsome leading man .


He performed in summer stock and soap operas before being plucked as an almost unknown to play the lead in " Superman " and three sequels .


Richard Gephardt -- Gephardt , House Democratic leader , is a politician with a " Mr Clean " reputation who sought the presidency eight years ago and is widely believed to still have ambitions for the job .


Gephardt , 55 , the son of a milkman from a working class district of St. Louis , is a consummate congressional insider , sufficiently skilled in compromise and the ways of the legislature to manage the often-unruly House Democrats .


A former lawyer , he was in the front line of President Bill Clinton 's battle with the Republican-led Congress over the budget but has opposed the president 's decision to sign the Republican-written welfare reform bill .


He advocated tough action against foreign countries to cut U.S. trade deficits but sometimes been out of step with the party 's liberal wing .


He was an opponent of abortion until 1986 and voted for President Ronald Reagan 's big tax cut bill .


Gephardt , a red-haired square-jawed man , is a less than fiery orator .


His 1988 bid for the Democratic nomination only took off after he recreated himself as a firebreathing reformer of the establishment , standing up for blue collar workers and farmers .


Tom Daschle -- Daschle , 48 , was largely unknown outside Washington and his state of South Dakota when he surprisingly beat more prominent rivals to become Senate Democratic leader after the party lost its majority to the Republicans in 1994 .


A mild-mannered and youthful man who rose rapidly after entering the Senate in 1987 , he presented himself as a Midwest moderate , as a Democratic winner in a Republican state able to unite Senate factions .


Concern that he might be steamrollered by the vastly more experienced Republican leader Bob Dole was dispelled when he showed a tough edge , outmaneuvering Dole in a wrangle over scrapping a gas tax and raising the federal minimum wage .


In his early Senate years he was seen as a " prairie populist " , working on legislation protecting farmers ' prices and also on compensating veterans sickened by Agent Orange defoliant spraying in the Vietnam War .


Daschle was a key player in President Bill Clinton 's failed attempt at sweeping healthcare changes but when he became minority leader he declared he would be no water-carrier for the White House .


He has made clear he opposed Clinton 's signing of the Republican-initiated welfare reform bill .


He has spent his adult life in politics , coming to Congress as an aide in 1972 after three years in the Air Force and then being elected to the House of Representatives himself in 1978 .


U.S. boy , 13 , accused of murdering adoptive mother .


A 13-year-old Dallas boy has been charged with murdering his adoptive mother over the weekend , police said on Monday .


Margaret McCullough , 55 , was found dead in her home on Saturday with gunshot wounds to the head .


Police , who at first thought her son had been kidnapped , found him on Sunday with a friend in his mother 's car in Oklahoma and arrested him .


A shotgun and a .357 handgun were found in the car .


A police spokesman said the boy was being questioned . "


They are talking to him now about the motive and everything else . "


McCullough had adopted the boy , who was the grandson of her late husband , shortly after his birth but neighbours said they often had loud arguments .


Pakistani bourse to use new recomposed index .


The Karachi Stock Exchange ( KSE ) said on Monday it would introduce a new recomposed KSE-100 index on September 10 .


A KSE statement said the recomposed index would be more representative , capturing market capitalisation of 82.3 percent , up from 79.9 percent previously .


NWE oil products mixed , holiday dulls trade .


NWE oil products were mixed on Monday but markets were becalmed because of a public holiday in the United Kingdom , traders said .


An explosion at Repsol 's Puertollano refinery , which killed four workers , had not affected output of oil products , an official said .


" The plant is functioning as usual , " Jose Manuel Prieto , director of personnel , told Spanish state television .


Gasoline prices were notionally unchanged from Friday despite sagging NYMEX numbers , with the arbitrage window to the U.S. considered closed for the moment .


Eurograde barges were offered at $ 207 fob ARA for Amsterdam-Rotterdam barrels , and at $ 206 for full ARA material .


" There is no market at the moment , " one Rotterdam trader said . "


Maybe sentiment is a little bit weaker but prices have not changed . "


Outright gas oil prices were notionally softer as the NYMEX heating oil contract headed lower , and following news that the Indian Oil Corp ( IOC ) had issued a tender to buy only 120,000 tonnes of high speed diesel for October .


Asian traders had earlier expected an IOC tender for around 400,000 tonnes .


ARA gas oil barges were quiet although one trader said he had seen offers at $ 1 a tonne over September IPE for prompt barrels , while Antwerp material was available for 0-50 cents over September .


The IOC tender had " a bearish impact , but not a great impact , " one German player said .


Offers were around a dollar a tonne higher at $ 102 fob ARA but bids were scarce .


Prairies saw no frost Monday , none rest of week .


Canada 's Prairies saw no frost on Monday morning and none was expected anywhere on the grainbelt until late in the Labour Day long weekend , Environment Canada said .


" Apparently , we 're home free for the rest of the week .


We 're not calling for any frost until after the weekend when it starts to cool off in northwestern Alberta after the weekend probably Monday or Tuesday , " meteorologist Gerald Machnee told Reuters .


Sprague , Manitoba , on the Minnesota border was the cold spot of the Prairies Monday morning at 4.0 Celsius ( 39.2 F ) .


Temperatures at ground level can be 2.0 to 5.0 Celsius lower than at chest level depending on windspeed , sky conditions and ground surface moisture .


Freezing occurs at 0 Celsius ( 32.0 F ) .


, reported a low of 5.0 Celsius ( 41.0 F ) and Grande Prairie , Alta .


, in the Peace River Valley reported 7.0 Celsius ( 44.6 F ) .


Machnee dismissed talk of frost Wednesday by proponents of the " full moon , frost soon " school of thought .


Lows on August 28 across the Prairies should range from 8.0 to 12.0 Celsius with highs around 30.0 Celsius .


Brush Wellman comments on beryllium lawsuits .


Brush Wellman Inc said Monday that 10 of 24 lawsuits involving chronic beryllium disease have been dismissed since July 1 .


The leading U.S. beryllium producer said in a conference call it has traditionally been pro-active regarding the workplace disease , a lung ailment which can affects a small percent of people whose immune systems are susceptible .


Of the 14 remaining suits , 10 were filed by employees of industrial Brush Wellman customers and Brush Wellman liability in such suits is typically covered by insurance , Timothy Reid , vice president of corporate communications , said on the call .


The company was responding to an article in Sunday 's New York Times .


He said the article largely reiterated information about the suits and the disease which had previously been made public via Securities and Exchange Commission filings and annual reports .


" Brush Wellman has been a leader in dealing with health and safety issues ( related to chronic Beryllium disease ) for nearly 50 years , " he said . "


We have a record of going beyond regulatory requirements ... and we consistently share the most current information available ... with customers and employees . "


The customer employee suits were filed in 1990-95 , he said .


A class action filed by a former Brush Wellman employee in April 1996 was dismissed in July , he said .


The company is " vigorously defending " the remaining four suits filed by former and current Brush Wellman employees , he said .


After a delayed opening , the stock was off 1-1/2 to 18-7/8 .


Salomon cuts refiner Q3 EPS view on margin concern .


Salomon Brothers analyst Paul Ting said he cut his share earnings estimates on refiners for the third quarter on the belief the companies will face sharp revisions in refining and marketing margins .


He cut his third-quarter share earnings estimate on :


-- Diamond Shamrock Inc to $ 0.38 from $ 0.73 versus the Street 's consensus $ 0.63


-- Sun Co to $ 0.15 from $ 0.85 versus the consensus $ 0.63


-- Tosco Corp to $ 0.95 from $ 1.03 versus the consensus $ 0.94


-- Total Petroleum ( North America ) Ltd to $ 0.15 from $ 0.46 versus the consensus $ 0.33


-- And , Valero Energy Corp to $ 0.27 from $ 0.55 compared with the consensus $ 0.40 .


PRESALE - Marion County Board of Education , W. Va .


ISSUER : Marion County Board of Education ST : WV


ISSUE : Public School , Series 1996 TAX STAT:Exempt-ULT


M / SP / F : NA / NA / NA BOOK ENTRY : Y


PAYING AGENT : WesBanco Bank Fairmont , Fairmont


F.A. : Ferris , Baker Watts , Inc. , Charleston


COMPETITIVE PRE-SALE CONTRIBUTED BY J.J. KENNY K-SHEETS :


BALANCE - Ohio refunding bonds at $ 290,000 .


REPRICING OF THE BALANCE OF THE BONDS IN THE ACCOUNT .


PRESS DIGEST - Washington Post business - Aug 26 .


The Washington Post carried only local business stories on August 26 , 1996 .


Chelsea makes political debut on Clinton train trip .


- Chelsea Clinton , until now carefully shielded from the exposure of public life , made her political debut on Sunday on her father 's whistlestop train trip .


Chelsea , 16 , was at President Bill Clinton 's side as he rode the rails through parts of West Virginia , Kentucky and Ohio , and was introduced at every stop .


She even worked ropelines , shaking hands with excited fans .


Hillary Rodham Clinton saw her husband and daughter off on the trip in Huntington , West Virginia and then went on to Chicago to begin a rigorous Democratic Convention schedule .


Asked if Chelsea would have a prominent role in the campaign , White House spokesman Mike McCurry said : " She 'll do what she did today when she can .


The president 's daughter is going into her senior year of high school at Sidwell Friends School , a private school in Washington .


McCurry said Chelsea has asked to go on the train trip and attend the convention where her father will be renominated , but said her exposure did not signal the start of a new political career .


Chelsea " is a very poised young lady , but she 's not that much interested in politics , " the spokesman said .


Dutch shares drifted to a lower close on Monday , dragged down by weakness in the domestic bond market and turnover depressed by the UK bank holiday and lack of any significant U.S. economic data .


The AEX index of leading shares closed 4.54 points easier at 556.19 , the day 's low .


The Dutch market had been on the defensive all day but a softer start to Wall Street did little to boost sentiment in late trade , dealers said .


" It was always going to be a tough day with participation so low .


But the only thing really worrying the market was the bonds , and that dragged us lower , " one dealer said .


Stocks were down across the board , with Dutch PTT topping the volume list and closing down 1.90 guilders at 58.70 .


The post and telecoms firm posted an 8.5 percent rise in first half earnings on Friday , just below analysts ' expectations .


IHC Caland reported first half results well under forecasts on Monday and the shares suffered as a result .


They were trading unchanged just before the release of figures but closed 2.40 guilders down at 80.70 after it reported net profits of 34.9 million guilders against 36.6 million last year and estimates ranging from 37.5 to 47.2 million .


IHC also forecast post tax earnings rising 21 percent for the full year .


Banking group ING traded ex-dividend today and finished 0.60 guilders weaker at 52.90 as a result .


But Nutricia shrugged off its ex-div tag to soar a further 4.10 guilders to 214.40 continuing its explosive rally sparked by the 51 percent jump in first half net profits last week , which set the market alight on Friday , sending the shares up 18.40 at 210.00 by the close .


Engineering concern Stork started the day well as the shares attracted some follow-through interest to the announcement late on Friday that its Fokker Aviation unit had won a major order .


But the rally was short-lived and Stork ended just 0.20 up at 51.00 guilders .


Tapie to quit French assembly seat as film opens .


Former businessman and soccer boss Bernard Tapie said that he would give up his seat in the National Assembly by Wednesday , the day a film by Claude Lelouche in which he stars opens in France .


" I will no longer be deputy by the time the film opens , " he said in a broadcast interview .


" Just about , " he told Europe 1 radio when asked whether he had sent his letter of resignation to Assembly speaker Philippe Seguin .


A Seguin spokeswoman confirmed that no letter or call had yet been received .


Tapie , 53 , was resigning just ahead of expected government action to eject him from the Assembly following a finding by the Supreme Court that he was bankrupt and thus ineligible for public office for a five-year period .


Tapie , the target of a blizzard of legal actions over his now-destroyed business empire and the Marseille soccer team he once ran , has a starring role in Lelouche 's " Homme , femmes : mode d'emploi " ( Men , women : instructions for use ) .


He plays a power-hungry lawyer in the movie described as " a tender and cruel comedy " by Lelouche , who is making his 35th film .


" I have paid too dearly for mixing two careers , " Tapie said . "


In France , you cannot be a film artist and a national politician at the same time .


That is why I will no longer be deputy by the time the film opens . "


Justice Minister Jacques Toubon began last month the formal process of ejecting Tapie from the French parliament as well as stripping him of his seat in the European parliament .


The French procedure was expected to be completed before October 2 , when the National Assembly is to reconvene after a summer break , but the European procedure was expected to take longer .


Tapie 's lawyer has said he intends to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights in an effort to prevent or delay the loss of his European seat .


But such an appeal , even if the court were to accept the case , which it is not obliged to do , would not suspend enforcement of the French judgement against him .


Tapie faces a probable spell in prison after he loses his parliamentary immunity , since two appeal courts have confirmed jail sentences of eight and six months against him for tax fraud and rigging a soccer match .


He is appealing in both cases to the Supreme Court .


Bank of France drains 3.9 bln Ffr at tender .


The Bank of France drained 3.9 billion francs at a securities repurchase tender held on Monday to allocate funds for injection into the money market on Tuesday .


It accepted bids for 44.3 billion francs in new liquidity , 3.9 billion less than the 48.2 billion leaving the market on Tuesday when a previous pact expires .


The Bank of France said it allocated 13.4 billion francs to bidders offering Treasury bills as collateral , satisfying 3.4 percent of such demand .


It allotted a further 30.9 billion to bidders putting up private paper , satisfying 12.5 percent of this demand .


RABOBANK [ RABN.CN ] SEES H2 NET GROWTH UNDER 10 PCT .


Dutch co-operative bank Rabobank Nederland BA 's net profit growth might slow to less than than 10 year percent in the second half of 1996 , executive board chairman Herman Wijffels said on Monday .


The unlisted bank earlier announced a 1996 interim net profit of 853 million guilders , up 21.5 percent on the 702 million guilders reported in the first half of 1995 .


He said second-half profit growth would depend on customer demand for loans , which was already easing , and the performance of financial markets , which were strong in the first half and boosted securities , trading and underwriting income .


" We expect reasonable growth in the second half .


Maybe it will be in single-digits , " Wijffels told Reuters .


He said growth in customer demand in the first half was 50 percent above normal but it was hard to maintain this pace .


Rabobank 's net profit was 1.43 billion guilders in 1995 .


The bank earlier warned that profit growth would slow in the second half , citing the increasing momentum in profit growth in the comparative period of 1995 and increased investment .


But Wijffels was unable to quantify second half investment to improve and extend domestic and offshore services .


PRESS DIGEST - FRANCE - LE MONDE AUG 26 .


These are leading stories in Monday 's afternoon daily Le Monde , dated Aug 27 .


-- Ipsos poll reports majority of French public opinion sympathises with plight of Africans seeking to renew or obtain work and residence permits , calling government " stubborn , " " confused " and " cold-hearted . "


-- SNCF railway trade unions want renegotiation of government bailout package , as European Union prepares more proposals to increase competition .


-- World steel market shows signs of upturn .


Finnish foodstuffs group Atria Oy said in a statement on Monday it expects its result to improve in the second half of 1996 compared to the first half .


" The result of the second year-half is expected to improve on the early part of the year , " Atria said .


Atria said earlier its January-June profit before extraordinary items , appropriations and taxes fell to 15 million markka from 39 in the first-half of 1995 .


BRIGHT-BELGIANS SPEED AFTER SCHUMACHER 'S WIN .


Michael Schumacher 's victory in the Belgian Formula One Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps sparked a speeding epidemic on Belgian roads after the race was over .


Belga news agency reported that police checked more than 3,000 drivers amd booked 222 for speeding on their way home after the race .


Some were clocked doing 180 kilometres an hour ( 112 miles per hour ) , Belga said .


Schumacher won the race in 1 hour 28 minutes 15.125 seconds at an average speed of 208.442 km / hour ( 130 m.p.h. ) .


Thai PM proposes Sept 18 for no-confidence debate .


Thai Prime Minister Banharn Silpa-archa on Monday proposed September 18 as the date for parliamentary debate on an opposition no-confidence motion accusing him of incompetence .


The president of parliament had earlier said September 11 could be set for the debate .


The opposition motion against Banharn accuses him of being incompetent , lacking ethical leadership and alleges his administration is corrupt .


His critics allege he may be attempting to delay the debate .


Banharn has denied the accusations and said he is ready to clear himself in parliament .


" In my opinion September 18 would be a convenient date for the government to answer questions .


This has nothing to do with the accusation that I am trying to escape the debate , " Banharn told reporters after meeting coalition partners .


Banharn 's 13-month-old , six-party coalition government controls 209 seats in the 391-seat lower house of parliament .


Political infighting within Banharn 's Chart Thai party has raised doubts whether he can hold his supporters together and defeat the opposition motion , political analysts said .


September 18 is regarded as tentative because we still have not received the order to fix it on the agenda , " said an official at parliament 's agenda section .


The last no-confidence debate against Banharn 's coalition in May was won by the government .


NOTE - Fontaine Co Ltd sells women " s fashion wigs .


Manila international coconut oil prices .


International Philippine coconut oil prices as reported by the United Coconut Associations of the Philippines ( dollars per tonne cif Europe ) .


Nomura Research Institute Ltd downgraded Aronkasei Co Ltd to a " 2 " rating from its previous " 1 " , market sources said on Monday .


In its three-grade rating system , the research institute assigns a " 2 " rating to issues whose values it sees moving within 10 percentage points in either direction of the key 225-share Nikkei average over the next six months .


Nomura officials were not immediately available for comment .


These are the leading stories in the Tunisian press on Monday .


Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy .


- English langage to be taught as of the eighth year of the primary school instead of the third year of the secondary school .


- International Fair opens in the northern city of Beja with the participation of 16 foreign countries .


Senior United Nations arms official Rolf Ekeus left Bahrain for Baghdad on Monday for talks with Iraqi officials , a U.N. spokesman said .


The spokesman said Ekeus , chairman of the United Nations Special Commission ( UNSCOM ) , would spend two or three days in Iraq but declined to give further details .


U.N. oficials have said Ekeus would hold talks with Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tareq Aziz and other officials as part of an agreement Iraq reached with the United Nations in June to hold higher level political talks with Ekeus .


The Security Council on Friday asked Iraq to stop blocking arms inspectors search for concealed weapons or materials they believe were being shuttled around to avoid detection .


Disarming Iraq of weapons of mass destruction under 1991 Gulf War ceasefire terms is a prerequisite before the lifting of crippling sanctions imposed on Iraq in 1990 for invading Kuwait .


These are the leading stories in the Beirut press on Monday .


Almost no chance at all for any complete ticket to win altogether and the results will weaken some leaders .


Opposition Boutros Harb scoring high in preliminary results and former prime minister Omar Karame moves backwards .


- Fears of an Israeli operation causes the redistribution of Syrian troops locations in Lebanon .


- Parliament Speaker Berri : The occupied south should not be used as a winning card in elections .


- Prices of alimentary goods up 13.4 percent in 1996 .


- Christian Maronite Patriarch Sfeir : We fear a movement from democracy to dictatorship .


- A cabinet minister : " Lebanon First " aims at splitting the Syrian-Lebanese peace tracks with Israel .


- Prime Minister Hariri : Elections are the beginning of a long political life which we begin with an incomplete ticket of 17 candidates .


- The Lebanese Association for the Democracy of Elections cited 51 incidents of violation in the north Lebanon round .


These are the leading stories in the Maltese press on Monday .


Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy .


- Visitors slam bus and taxi drivers for cheating .


Tourists interviewed in Malta complain about over-charging .


- Government considering measures for better road discipline .


Malta , with a population of 365,000 , has 195,000 registered vehicles , with 80,000 new cars having been introduced on the congested roads in 10 years .


- Five people arrested in Romania after drugs container found in Malta .


The container , with 7.5 tonnes of cannabis , was found in Malta Freeport in transit from Singapore to Romania .


- Opposition leader Alfred Sant on steep rise in taxes over 10 years .


He reiterates promise that a future Labour government will remove VAT .


Tamils demonstrate outside U.N. headquarters .


Thousands of Tamils demonstrated outside the United Nations ' European headquarters in Geneva on Monday to appeal for U.N. recognition of their fight for independence from Sri Lanka .


The demonstrators , said by police to number 6,000 , also urged the release of Nadarajah Muralidaran , Swiss-based leader of the the Tamil Tiger guerrillas , who has been held in a Zurich jail since April on charges of extortion .


The demonstrators delivered an appeal to the U.N. human rights centre demanding an immediate end to " state terrorism " against Tamils and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam ( LTTE ) .


FOCUS - Eurobourses end mixed but London recovers .


European bourses closed mixed on Tuesday with London clawing back most of the day 's losses despite an unsteady start on wall Street , hit by inflation worries .


The dollar weakened during the day with many dealers sidelined because of uncertainty over Tokyo 's monetary direction ahead of the important Japanese Tankan economic survey out on Wednesday .


But it recovered at the close of trade .


Stocks in London started the week badly after a three-day weekend , slipping 0.3 percent , but bargain-hunters later moved in and the FTSE index recovered most of the lost ground to end only just in negative ground .


Tuesday 's patchy showing in London followed a string of records last week , culminating in Friday 's trading high of 3,911 , fuelled by a wave of European interest rate cuts .


The London bourse drew little help from the unsettled morning on Wall Street , which slipped in and out of positive ground after a stronger-than-expected August consumer confidence report refuelled inflation fears , pulling U.S. Treasuries back from their early peaks .


Shortly after the report appeared showing the confidence index rising to 109.4 in August from a revised 107.0 in July , Wall Street relinquished virtually all its morning gains .


" Treasuries remain very sensitive to any indication of a strong economy and we 're still in that summer doldrum period of light trading , " said Alan Ackerman , market strategist at Fahnestock & Co . "


Consequently , stocks and bonds are both subject to rapid swings . "


Frankfurt was the one bright spot in Europe .


Floor trading ended up 0.25 percent and the computerised IBIS index climbed nearly 0.4 percent , given a push by the performance of chemical shares . "


The market is trading 100 percent on fundamentals at the moment as interest rate fantasy disappears -- it 's all company news , " said one trader .


French shares ended slightly down amid growing unease about a difficult autumn for the government which also weighed on the franc , dealers said .


Bond prices were weaker and the franc was quoted at 3.4210 per mark for the first time since August 13 as worries about the government 's autumn budget and a weak U.S. currency lifted the mark and squeezed French investments .


The dollar , which dropped sharply on Monday because of jitters over the Japanese Tankan survey , weakened further in quiet trading but regained losses to end the day close to Monday 's levels .


" Besides the Tankan , there 's nothing really until the U.S. jobs numbers next week , " said a UK bank corporate dealer . "


There is still the summer malaise hanging over the market . "


Foreign exchange markets regard the Tankan report as an important indication of the country 's future monetary policy direction .


If it points to weakness in the economy , the report will help the dollar regain some lost ground as speculation of a near-term rise in Japanese interest rates will evaporate .


The Japanese discount rate is currently at a record low of 0.5 percent .


The dollar was also pressured by the mark 's strength against European currencies amid renewed concerns over Europe 's economic and monetary union ( EMU ) timetable .


The dollar was at 1.4788 marks and 107.74 yen at the close of European trading compared with 1.4789 marks and 107.55 yen on Monday .


The Financial Times-Stock Exchange index of 100 leading British shares ended 1.8 points lower at 3,905.7 .


In Paris , the CAC-40 share index finished down 2.43 at 2,017.99 .


The 30-share DAX index in Frankfurt closed up 6.48 at 2,558.84 .


Gold closed at $ 388.55 an ounce , compared with Monday 's close of $ 388.75 on international markets .


More hostages freed from hijacked Sudanese plane .


Armed hijackers believed to be Iraqis released between 60 and 70 people on Tuesday from a Sudan Airways plane carrying 199 passengers and crew that landed in London after being diverted on a flight from Khartoum to Amman , authorities said .


A spokesman for Stansted airport said that the unidentified hijackers were demanding to see a British-based member of the Iraqi Community Association , called Mr Sadiki , and that police were trying to trace him .


Police spokeswoman Kim White said police had already contacted Sadiki and were trying to arrange to bring him to Stansted , 30 miles ( 48 km ) north-east of London , to talk to the hijackers .


The airport spokesman said the six hijackers , who police said were armed with grenades and possibly other explosives , were believed to be Iraqi nationals .


The hijackers started to release people for the Airbus plane in batches of 10 , starting with women and children , in what police described as a " controlled release " .


Police said most of the passengers were Sudanese but that there were also an unknown number of Iraqis , Jordanians , Palestinians , Syrians and Saudis .


Later they said the number of passengers released from the plane had reached 80 .


FEATURE - " Eco terrorists " target UK builders .


Ecological warfare has broken out across the British construction industry , striking some of the biggest corporates as activists give up peaceful protests and seek to hit builders where it hurts -- their profit margins .


Described by one British company as " eco-terrorism " , it is seen as the new business risk of the 1990s .


Famous names like Tarmac Plc , Costain Group Plc and ARC , a unit of conglomerate Hanson Plc , have all been targeted .


Activist groups are no longer seen by British firms as a harmless , badly organised ragbag of students and hippies .


" You only have to see them in action at protests , " said David Harding , spokesman at ARC , Hanson 's aggregates company . "


They walk around with mobile phones and camera equipment , they communicate and gather support for demos via the Internet -- we 're talking about a highly sophisticated organisation . "


One road protestor under the codename Steady Eddie told construction journal " Building " earlier this year , " If it comes down to full-scale economic warfare , we will aim to drive them out of business . "


As well as financial threats , companies also emphasise the " terror " tactics used .


Costain 's contract to build the controversial Newbury bypass , which runs through a conservation area , has led to violent protests delaying building , bomb threats , staff intimidation and picketing of chief executive Alan Lovell 's home .


A Costain spokesman told Reuters : " We 've had all sorts of protests at the head office and the chief executive 's house .


But it 's when it gets to the ( employee ) families -- that it goes across the line . "


Tactics used by some underground groups including the cryptic Berkshire Wood Elves , which distribute leaflets with instructions on home-made explosives , are now the subject of a police investigation .


Other larger activist groups include Earth First , The Land is Ours , Alarm UK and Road Alert .


The groups have targeted specific projects like the Newbury bypass and the M3 motorway through Twyford Down in the southern county of Hampshire .


But they are also campaigning on broader issue such as stopping the government road building programme and out-of-town superstores which they say create more traffic , pollution and damage local communities .


The government has slashed its road-building spending .


Although protests may have contributed to the decision it has been seen primarily as economic rather than ecological .


Graham Watts , chief executive of the Construction Industry Council , said : " I do n't think many firms involved in tendering for sensitive projects realise the impact environmental activity has on the cost of running a project .


" But they are more alert than they were 3-4 years ago .


There 's no doubt it 's a big issue now . "


He says the damage comes in two forms : " Tangible -- in the form of extra costs , additional security , threats to staff and the more intangible damage caused by negative publicity . "


Watts said the cost of protesting can be heavy once the company is locked into a contract .


" I do often hear on the industry circuit of tales where the company tenders at low margins and the demonstrations which follow means they are running the project at a loss . "


ARC says it 's not just contractors in the front line but also suppliers like itself .


Its own quarries came under attack after it emerged that it may be a supplier for the Newbury bypass .


" It was called the " First Battle of the Newbury bypass ' , " said ARC 's Harding .


" We had 300 Earth First protestors invade and occupy our site .


Hundreds of thousands of pounds ( dollars ) of damage was done in one day .


Plus there was the knock-on cost of lost production and extra security in future . "


Simon Brown , analyst at investement bank UBS , said this new phenomenon has led to a change in the way the industry evaluates project risk .


" When talking to Tarmac about the M3 link ( through Twyford Down ) they made it fairly clear that their risk assessment methods have been changed and now involve a very clear environmental risk analysis . "


Harding says others have done the same . "


As a result of eco-terrorism we are looking at controversial jobs more closely to see if the profit margins are wide enough to cover things like extra security . "


For an industry already suffering from razor-thin margins , overcapacity and stagnant demand , eco-terrorism is the latest bizarre twist in the construction sector 's tale of woe .


London 's annual Notting Hill Carnival , the largest in Europe and second in the world only to Rio , ended peacefully on Monday with an estimated 800,000 revellers singing and dancing the day away in high spirits .


Police said they made 30 arrests and there were two stabbings .


But there was no repeat of the ugly scenes that used to scar the street festival , and police praised the crowds over the two days of festivities as good-natured .


Around 400 police were wounded in riots in 1976 when the carnival , now in its 31st year , acquired its darker reputation from which it is now only slowly recovering .


Shopkeepers still board up their windows and many residents leave town for the weekend , but for four or five years there has been no disorder and relatively little crime .


OFFICIAL JOURNAL CONTENTS - OJ C 248 OF AUGUST 26 , 1996 .


( Note - contents are displayed in reverse order to that in the printed Journal )


STATEMENT OF THE COUNCIL 'S REASONS END OF DOCUMENT .


Indonesia newspaper reports central bank scandal .


Indonesia 's central bank suffered seven billion rupiah ( $ 2.9 million ) in losses resulting from fake transactions , the Jakarta Post reported on Tuesday .


A Bank Indonesia spokeswoman confirmed the newspaper report but declined to give further details .


The bank 's governor Sudradjat Djiwandono was quoted as saying on Monday about 5.4 billion rupiah of the seven billion rupiah had been recovered .


The newspaper said it was the central bank 's first public scandal in its 43-year history .


The paper said five people had been arrested and police were looking for two more suspects .


GOLF - PLAYERS DIVIDED ON CART REQUEST FOR OLAZABAL .


Seve Ballesteros and Colin Montgomerie are divided on whether Jose Maria Olazabal should be allowed to return to the European PGA Tour using a motorised cart to transport him around the course .


The Spaniard has not played for nearly a year because of rheumatoid arthritis in both his feet , and organisers of a pairs event to be staged in Bordeaux , France from October 17 to 20 have been asked to provide him with a buggy .


" If the ( Tour 's tournament ) committee decides to change the rule I would not be against it , " said Ballesteros , Olazabal 's compatriot and Ryder Cup captain .


But commitee member Montgomerie said it could set an unhelpful precedent . "


I know Olly 's situation is very unfortunate , but I do n't think we can start giving dispensations , " he said . "


You 've got to have a rule for everybody and I do n't think it 's feasible . "


The use of carts is generally prohibited in the professional game , and if Olazabal is allowed to use one in Bordeaux , he might then request one for the qualifying tournaments for next year 's Ryder Cup .


SOCCER - POLAND TIES CYPRUS 2-2 IN FRIENDLY MATCH .


2-2 ( halftime 0-0 ) in a friendly soccer international on


Poland - Krzysztof Warzycha ( 46th minute ) , Marcin Mieciel


Cyprus - Klimis Alexandrou ( 75th ) , Kostas Malekos ( 80th )


SOCCER - THOMSON RESIGNS AS MANAGER OF RAITH ROVERS .


Jimmy Thomson became Scotland 's first managerial casualty of the season on Tuesday when he quit Raith Rovers , bottom of the premier division .


Thomson resigned after the club 's directors asked him to return to his previous position as youth team coach .


Raith lost their first two games of the season away to Rangers and Celtic , then crashed 3-0 at home to Motherwell on Saturday .


A club statement said : " The directors of Raith Rovers FC invited Jimmy Thomson to relinquish the post of manager and to resume his former position as youth team coach .


" Regrettably Jimmy has felt unable to accept that offer , and has accordingly left the club . "


Thomson said : " I am leaving with my dignity and my pride intact , and that is very important to me .


" While not agreeing with the directors ' decision , I respect their reasons for making it . "