Prudential,Halifax mull pounds 36 bn merger: Britain's biggest insurance company Prudential Plc is mulling a 36-billion sterling ($59.66 billion) merger with Halifax Plc, the country's biggest mortgage lender, the Independent newspaper reported on Friday. Such a merger would create a financial services giant which would dominate the life, pensions and mortgages market in Britain.

Hitachi to consolidate seven arms to three: HitachiLtd has said that the group is to consolidate seven domestic affiliates into three companies in April 1999 as part of its efforts to streamline group operations. Of the two resulting companies, Hitachi Engineering Co Ltd would design and engineer nuclear power and thermal power equipment, and Hitachi Engineering and Services Co Ltd would produce thermal power equipment, rolling mill equipment and industrial machinery, Hitachi said in a statement. The third company, Hitachi Kyowa Engineering Co Ltd, would test and analyse precision casting, special painting and gilding. The statement said the move was aimed at speeding up business operations.

Levi's to halt jeans output at 7 US plants: A flat market for Levi's blue jeans prompted Levi Strauss & Co to announce on that it would halt blue jean production for 60 days at seven US plants, a move that will affect 4,037 workers. Levi Strauss spokeswoman Tamara Churchman said the privately held company, the world's largest apparel manufacturer, decided to haltproduction at seven of its 20 US Manufacturing plants because of flat market conditions for Levi's five-pocket blue jeans.

Daewoo '98 sales seen at 60 trln won: Sales of South Korea's Daewoo Group would reach 60 trillion won in 1998, up about 20 per cent from 49.5 trillion won in 1997, a Daewoo executive told Reuters on Friday. President of Daewoo Corp Chang Byung-ju told Reuters that the Daewoo Group's total assets would increase to 58.2 trillion won at the end of 1998 from 47.8 trillion won at end-1997. He said the group's total assets would fall in 1999 in line with an increase in debt repayments. Daewoo's total assets would drop to 55.6 trillion won at the end of 1999 and its total liabilities were expected to fall to 33.2 trillion won, he said. Chang did not provide a company by company breakdown.