ICEN articles from March 1991

ICEN archives from March 1991

M.L.L. East German deal.
March 1, 1991... M.L.L. East German Deal M.L.L. Software & Computer Industries, through its subsidiary Comfuture, is planning to set up a plant in partnership with Sedlbuaer and a group of German investors in what was formerly East Germany. M.L.L. will...

IIS French breakthrough. (IIS Intelligent Informations Systems)
March 1, 1991... IIS French Breakthrough IIS Intelligent Informations Systems of Haifa, has received a $1 million order for 700 of their model IS-327-C color terminals. The terminals will operate in an IBM mainframe environment in a hospital network in the...

U.S. economic delegation.
March 1, 1991... U.S. Economic Delegation A top-level U.S. economic delegation is due to visit Israel in early March for discussions with officials at the Finance Ministry and the Bank of Israel. Discussion will focus on proposals for aid and cooperation,...

Interferon cures Interpharm.
March 1, 1991... Interferon Cures Interpharm Interpharm Laboratories has reported a 1990 profit of $3.5 million on sales of $25.2 million, which include $19.2 million in exports of the anti-cancer drug Interferon to Italy; the company lost $600,000 on sales...

Greenhouses for immigrants.
March 1, 1991... Greenhouses for Immigrants The Chief Scientist of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Yigal Ehrlich, said ten "greenhouses" to promote technological initiatives of new immigrants will soon be in operation. The aim of the greenhouses is to...

Gulf checkmate. (safety shoes for walking in mine fields)
March 1, 1991... Gulf Checkmate The MFC Checkmate Safety Shoes enable a soldier, with the utmost of security, to traverse over mine-laden terrain. The shoes are being used by coalition forces in the Gulf war. The inflatable shoes have air-cushions, which...

Leumi criticized. (Koor recovery program)
March 1, 1991... Leumi Criticized Banking circles involved with the Koor recovery program strongly criticized Bank Leumi, claiming the board of directors is behaving as if the bank was the sole Koor creditor. Bank Leumi refuses to sign the agreement, which...

Swordfish from National. (National Semiconductor)
March 1, 1991... Swordfish from National National Semiconductor has disclosed a new generation of imaging technology that achieves an unprecedented 100 MIPS performance by combining a 64-bit superscalar architecture with high-performance, on-chip digital...

Tourism loses $1 billion.
March 1, 1991... Tourism Loses $1 billion A drop of 850,000 tourists has resulted in a $1 billion loss to the local tourist industry thus far in 1991, a doubling of last year's losses. These figures were given by Tourism Minister Gideon Pat during a speech...

Housing loan guarantees.
March 1, 1991... Housing Loan Guarantees Following the signature of U.S. Secretary of State James Baker on the $400 million housing loan guarantee package, sources in Israel are optimistic concerning more loans with U.S. government guarantees. The agreement...

No static at Motorola.
March 1, 1991... No Static at Motorola Sales at Motorola Israel reached $243.5 million in 1990, up from $224 million last year. Exports totaled $92.9 million as compared to $83.4 million in 1989. Motorola Israel, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Motorola...

New advertising regulations. (Advertising and Public Relations)
March 1, 1991... New Advertising Regulations Minister of Industry and Trade Moshe Nissim has signed new regulations protecting the consumer from advertising aimed at minors. The regulations distinguish between children under the age of 12 and minors under...

Cotton planting area reduction. (Agriculture)
March 1, 1991... Cotton Planting Area Reduction The area devoted to cotton growing will be reduced by one-third in 1991 -- from 300,000 dunams to 100,000 dunams. David Antwerg, executive director of the Cotton Production and Marketing Board, predicted exports...

CMB to close. (Citrus Marketing Board) (Agriculture)
March 1, 1991... CMB to Close Following the Agriculture Minister's policy to disband the Citrus Marketing Board, all its European branches will be shut down as of June 30, 1991, the end of the citrus season. Instructions to that effect were sent to all...

Agrexco exports down. (Agriculture)
March 1, 1991... Agrexco Exports Down Since the start of the Gulf war, exports of Agrexco Agricultural Export Co. to the Scandinavian countries have dropped by three percent in nominal terms -- from $17 million in 1989 to $16.5 million for the parallel 1990....

Foreign airlines insurance. (Aviation)
March 1, 1991... Foreign Airlines Insurance Following consultations with Transportation Minister Moshe Katsav, Finance Minister Yitzhak Moda'i has decided that in order to enable resumption of flights the State of Israel would assume responsibility for...

El Al promotions. (Aviation)
March 1, 1991... EL AL Promotions El AL is preparing for the spring season by introducing attractively-priced bonus offerings for tour packages from the U.S. to Israel. Passengers buying a tour package to Israel, in the U.S. will enjoy bonuses such as free...

El Al charter acquisition approved. (Aviation)
March 1, 1991... El Al Charter Acquisition Approved El Al has received a cabinet subcommittee approval to acquire a 24.9 percent interest in North American Airlines, a U.S. charter airline. North American, which specializes in charter flights to Mexico and...

Dovrat Investment Bank. (Banking)
March 1, 1991... Dovrat Investment Bank The investment company being established by Aharon Dovrat, retiring managing director of Clal and his deputy, Itzhak Schrem, will operate as an investment bank. It is not clear if the company will apply for a license...

General Bank profits down. (Banking)
March 1, 1991... General Bank Profits Down The Israel General Bank reported a net profit of NIS 3 million for 1990, compared to NIS 4.2 million in 1989. The drop in profits was due to a sharp drop in income (from NIS 23.1 million to NIS 18.9 million) and...

Mizrahi sale update. (Banking)
March 1, 1991... Mizrahi Sale Update The tender for the sale of the United Mizrahi Bank will close on February 26. M.I. Holdings, the company in charge of the sale, says that to date no notice has been received from any of the contenders of their intention...

Leumi Switzerland profit increase. (Banking)
March 1, 1991... Leumi Switzerland Profit Increase Bank Leumi Switzerland reported a net profit of SF 11.9 million for 1990--an increase of 11 percent over 1989. Return on capital and reserves was 12.7 percent. The total assets of the bank reached SF 655...

Atzmaut results up. (Atzmaut Mortgage and Development Bank) (Banking)
March 1, 1991... Atzmaut Results Up The Atzmaut Mortgage and Development Bank earned a net profit of NIS 4.2 million, an 18.6 percent increase over last year. Total bank assets stood at NIS 733 million, a 2.2 percent growth from 1989. Outstanding credit...

First International Mortgage results. (Banking)
March 1, 1991... First International Mortgage Results The First International Mortgage Bank, a subsidiary of the First International Bank, earned a net profit of NIS 7.9 million, a 16.6 percent increase over last year. The bank's outstanding credit rose 3.6...

Rotem sells more fertilizer. (Chemicals)
March 1, 1991... Rotem Sells More Fertlizer Rotem Fertilizers has reported 1990 sales of $217 million, an $11 million increase over 1989. 1990 exports totaled $75.5 million, versus $67 million last year. The company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Israel...

Kedem acquires Sicca. (Chemicals)
March 1, 1991... Kedem Acquires Sicca Kedem Chemicals has acquired all outstanding shares of Sicca Chemical Enterprises for $800,000, from the French owners. Kedem is a publicly traded company with shares held by David Hirshfeld--20 percent, Bank Leumi--20...

Missile affect on phone usage. (Communications)
March 1, 1991... Missile Affect on Phone Usage As a result of wartime worries and anxieties, the number of phone calls, especially during missile attacks, has risen sharply, while business calls, which comprise 75 percent of calls placed during a regular...

Dead Sea Bromine reports. (Chemicals)
March 1, 1991... Dead Sea Bromine Reports Sales of Dead Sea Bromine in 1990 totaled $307 million, a 10 percent increase over 1989; this figure includes exports of $295 million. The company will invest $45 million in 1991, including $30 million in the Ramat...

Detergent imports clean up. (Chemicals)
March 1, 1991... Detergent Imports Clean Up Imports of detergents rose by 18.4 percent in 1990, according to Shlomo Yafe, director of the detergent division of the Manufacturers Association. Imports for the year totaled $57 million, as compared to $48...

Formula in Haifa. (Computers)
March 1, 1991... Formula in Haifa Formula, one of the largest software houses in Israel, specializing in large scale conversion projects, has inaugurated a new branch in Haifa; the new office will serve the company's clients in northern Israel, including...

MAGIC in Japan. (Computers)
March 1, 1991... MAGIC in Japan The applications generator MAGIC, designed by Mashov Computers, is enjoying great success in Japan. MAGIC is being used as a development tool for thousands of PC systems installed in some of the largest firms in Japan,...

H.P. work stations to IDF. (Israel Defense Force) (Computers)
March 1, 1991... H.P. Work Stations to IDF In one of its biggest work station projects, the Israel Defense Force has purchased 350 work stations from Hewlett Packard. According to the agreement, all of the stations will be provided by 1992. Sources at HP...

New HRM software. (human resources management) (Computers)
March 1, 1991... New HRM Software M.L.L. Software & Computer Industries and Digital Equipment will jointly market the new human resources management software Eshkol, which was developed by the Haifa branch of M.L.L. and runs on Digital computers. The...

Fudim leaving Clal. (Yair Fudim; Clal Issuing) (Conglomerates)
March 1, 1991... Fudim Leaving Clal Yair Fudim, managing director of Clal Issuing, is resigning and will join an investors group started by outgoing Clal directors Aharon Dovrat and Itzhak Schrem. Fudim created Clal Issuing in April, 1987; the company is...

Teus selling holding. (Conglomerates)
March 1, 1991... Teus Selling Holdings Teus Development Areas has decided to divest itself of some of its companies. Teus is a holding company for eight companies including Offis Textile, Chemoplast, Wimasor and Teus Maintenance & Operation of Installation....

Koor shuts down plants. (Conglomerates)
March 1, 1991... Koor Shuts Down Plants Koor Industries has closed down four plants in the Acre area and sent the workers on a two-week leave of absence. The plants concerned are Middle East Tube Co., Barbour Koor Ceramics Enterprises, United Steel Mills and...

Alumit sales down. (Conglomerates)
March 1, 1991... Alumit Sales Down The Alumit Group will report 1990 sales of $14 million, a 20 percent decrease in real terms in comparison to 1989. This figure includes sales of subsidiaries GMA Communications (a manufacturer of computerized communications...

Harrison seeks industrial profits. (Ted Harrison) (Construction)
March 1, 1991... Harrison Seeks Industrial Profits American businessman Ted Harrison is conducting advanced negotiations for the establishment of a factory for components for industrialized building in Israel; the investment is valued at $15 million to $20...

IMI in housing rift. (Israel Military Industries) (Construction)
March 1, 1991... IMI in Housing Rift Israel Military Industries (IMI) has expressed its displeasure with the Ministry of Construction and Housing as a result of the ministry's refusal to purchase prefabricated housing from the company. IMI claims that it...

Doubting Japanese. (Diamonds, Jewelry and Gems)
March 1, 1991... Doubting Japanese Since the Gulf war, Japanese newspapers have printed a number of articles expressing doubts as to the ability of Israeli diamond exporters to meet their commitments to supply polished diamonds. The same newspapers are...

Electronic catalog for Italy. (Electronics)
March 1, 1991... Electronic Catalog for Italy An international company in Italy, manufacturing mechanical drive trains, has placed an order with Koor Communication and Security Systems for the development of an electronic catalog. The client intends to show...

H.E.I. still mobilizing. (Energy and Fuels)
March 1, 1991... H.E.I. Still Mobilizing H.E.I. group, which was headed by Armand Hammer, has requested a fourth extension to enable the group to raise capital to continue its oil exploration off the Ashdod coast; the most recent extension expired on...

Stock exchange symposium. (Exhibitions, Conferences, and Seminars)
March 1, 1991... Stock Exchange Symposium Lahav, the management training center of Tel Aviv University, will hold a symposium entitled "The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange -- Trading Methods, Market Structure and Anticipated Changes"; the symposium will be held at...

Flowers bloom in Anatolia. (Exhibitions, Conferences, and Seminars)
March 1, 1991... Flowers Bloom in Anatolia Private Israeli flower growers will participate in the international flower fair to be held from March 13-17 in Anatolia, Turkey. Some 150 growers from Europe will exhibit at the fair and will include the leading...

Info 91 postponed. (Israel information week) (Exhibitions, Conferences, and Seminars)
March 1, 1991... Info 91 Postponed Info 91, the Israel information week organized by Teldan Information Systems, originally scheduled for February 17-21, has been rescheduled for May 12-16. The program, which includes more than 140 lecturers and 33 sessions,...

Capital raising team. (Finance)
March 1, 1991... Capital Raising Team Following the appointment of Joseph Nitzani to manage the Government Companies Authority, a team of financial experts will be formed and made responsible for capital market policy. The team will include the...

Equalization differences. (Finance)
March 1, 1991... Equalization Differences The dispute between economist Avraham Tabarsky and the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange relating to equalization of voting rights has worsened. The stock exchange contends Tabarsky awarded exaggerated compensation to holders...

Bank of Israel package deal. (Finance)
March 1, 1991... Bank of Israel Package Deal The Bank of Israel's version of the new package deal should include factors that were decided upon as part of the financial plans drawn up in September but were never carried out. Professor Michael Bruno,...

Stock exchange budgets. (Finance)
March 1, 1991... Stock Exchange Budgets The 1991 budget proposal submitted for approval of the board of directors of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange amounts to NIS 24.5 million. Revenues are expected to reach NIS 25.4 million, including NIS 16 million from...

Bank of Israel increases tenders. (Finance)
March 1, 1991... Bank of Israel Increases Tenders Effective March 1, the Bank of Israel is increasing the weekly credit offerings from NIS 650 million to NIS 1 billion. The amounts offered to the public by weekly tender are also being increased to NIS 250...

Businesses waiting on fund. (Finance)
March 1, 1991... Businesses Waiting on Fund The assistance fund set up by the banks and the government for businesses that have encountered difficulties has yet to be activated. The banks claim that they have not received final instructions in spite of the...

Trade liberalization discussion. (Imports)
March 1, 1991... Trade Liberalization Discussion Osem Managing Director Dan Propper said it is company policy to restrict imports to 10 percent of sales; in 1990 Osem imports were only 5 percent of total sales, which reached $212 million. In a discussion on...

Dolev interest in Biderman. (Dolev Insurance; Biderman Insurance) (Insurance)
March 1, 1991... Dolev Interest in Biderman Dolev Insurance, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Israel Phoenix Insurance is considering the acquisition of Biderman Insurance, a subsidiary of Hassneh Insurance Co. of Israel. Dolev is interested in utilizing...

Unemployed not exploiting benefits. (Labor)
March 1, 1991... Unemployed not Exploiting Benefits A survey conducted by the National Insurance Institute indicates that 52.1 percent of the 58,500 unemployed people in Israel do not exploit their full entitlement to unemployment benefits -- payable for a...

Unemployed guard duty. (Labor)
March 1, 1991... Unemployed Guard Duty The Knesset labor and social welfare committee unanimously decided that unemployed persons for whom the Employment Service cannot find suitable employment, should be asked to undertake guard duties in schools and...

New disabled device. (Medical Equipment)
March 1, 1991... New Disabled Device Cannon, the Japanese company famous for its copy machines, has decided not to continue its talks with Haifa inventors who have developed a revolutionary device for aiding the handicapped in communicating. The developers...

Elscint suit settled. (Medical Equipment)
March 1, 1991... Elscint Suit Settled Elscint has announced final settlement of the compromise agreement reached in response to a suit filed against the company in the U.S.; all compensation shares have been distributed to claimants. The case was filed by...

Dispomedic in Dimona. (Medical Equipment)
March 1, 1991... Dispomedic in Dimona Dispomedic, which specializes in the manufacture of disposable needles and syringes, will soon open a plant in Dimona. Investment in the new plant, whose output is primarily intended for export, will total $3 million and...

Pharmaceutical imports up. (Pharmaceuticals and Cosmetics)
March 1, 1991... Pharmaceutical Imports Up A 22.2 percent increase in imported pharmaceuticals was registered in 1990, capping off a year in which $127 million in pharmaceuticals were imported, according to Ami Rosenfeld, director of the pharmaceutical...

Suburban railroad offer. (Ports, Roads and Rail)
March 1, 1991... Suburban Railroad Offer A well-known international railroad company is willing to invest millions of dollars in building a suburban railroad in Israel; the first stage of the project would entail investment of $20 million in a railroad line...

Immigration and public lands. (Real Estate)
March 1, 1991... Immigration and Public Lands The Division for Economic Policy Research of the Institute for Advanced Strategic and Political Studies has published an updated paper entitled Mass Immigration and the Sale of Public Land; the purpose of the...

Capital injection for Hezi. (Retail)
March 1, 1991... Capital Injection for Hezi Businessman Israel Shimoni will inject capital to save electrical appliance chain Hezi Electronics owned by Hezi Ben Moshe. At the request of a company representative, a Tel Aviv District Court judge issued a...

Blum resignation demanded. (Amram Blum) (Shipping and Shipbuilding)
March 1, 1991... Blum Resignation Demanded Shalom Singer, director-general of the Finance Ministry, has called for the resignation of Amram Blum, the receiver of Israel Shipyards, claiming he has not performed his function satisfactorily. The Finance...

Dim lights at the cinema. (Sports and Entertainment )
March 1, 1991... Dim Lights at the Cinema The Cinema Owners Association has asked Finance Minister Yitzhak Moda'i for aid. Miriam Hochman, executive director of the Association says owners are losing NIS 10 million each month. Last month, cinemas were closed...

Income tax interest reduced. (Taxes and Custom Duties)
March 1, 1991... Income Tax Interest Reduced The Knesset finance committee has formally approved a reduction in interest payable on income tax refunds or chargeable on delayed payments, from 8 percent to 6 percent. The change is effective as of March 1,...

Loosening carpet imports. (Textiles)
March 1, 1991... Loosening Carpet Imports The domestic carpet industry should be completely exposed to competitive imports, according to Dan Propper, managing director of Osem and chairman of the labor relations committee of the Manufacturers Association....

Adgar exports up. (Textiles)
March 1, 1991... Adgar Exports Up 1990 exports of Adgar Textiles Industries totaled $3.5 million, compared to $250,000 in 1989. Sales in 1990 were double those of 1989 and amounted to $12 million; 70 percent of Adgar shares are held by Eliyahu Yosef with the...

Las Vegas at the Dead Sea. (casino gambling proposed for Dead Sea area) (Tourism)
March 1, 1991... Las Vegas at the Dead Sea P.O.C. Export Marketing Consultant has submitted a new strategic and marketing plan for the Dead Sea area to Avi Rosenthal, director-general of the Tourism Ministry. The plan specifies eight ways to promote tourism...

Eilat hotel occupancy up. (Tourism)
March 1, 1991... Eilat Hotel Occupancy Up Occupancy of Israelis in Eilat hotels during January, 1991, was 350 percent higher than the same period last year. David Newman, a spokesman of the Central Bureau of Statistics, says that for the country as a whole,...

Beneficial trade talks with ECC. (European Community Commission) (Trade)
March 1, 1991... Beneficial Trade Talks with ECC The European Community Commission has expressed willingness to finance the Ramat Hovev waste disposal project. The $100 million project entails erection of a disposal center to handle waste from the Tel Aviv...

Egged losses. (Transport)
March 1, 1991... Egged Losses Egged Israel Transport Cooperative estimates its losses since the start of the Gulf war at NIS 15 million. The number of passengers during daylight hours is only 75 percent of normal; in evening hours, this figure drops to only...

Impatient driver soother. (Transport)
March 1, 1991... Impatient Driver Soother A new device to curb the impatience of drivers has been developed by Signalor of Rishon Lezion. The device consists of a digital clock attached to traffic lights, showing how many seconds remain until the light turns...

Politics in IEC fuel purchases. (Israel Electric Co.) (Utilities)
March 1, 1991... Politics in IEC Fuel Purchases The Israel Electric Co. will sustain a direct loss of $300,000 in 1991, due to the pressures exerted on the company to stop direct imports of crude oil. IEC will also suffer in direct losses since it will be...

The Israeli defense industry and the Gulf War.
March 1, 1991... The Israeli Defense Industry and the Gulf War Doing It Better Experts close to the research and development sector of the Israeli defense industry stress that Israel has developed and used weapons equal to or better than the...

Daniel Branover. (Personal Profile)
March 1, 1991... DANIEL BRANOVER Managing Director, SATEC Customarily, company founders start businesses with a product to sell. Daniel Branover, however, is an exception. In 1987, the 26-year-old managing director of Shamir Advanced Technologies...

New $14 million DSP Group design center.
March 8, 1991... The DSP Group will invest $14 million in a new design center in Givat Shmuel, outside of Tel Aviv. The facility will develop semiconductor components for digital signal processing. The new investment plan was approved by the Investment Center...

Another good year for Teva. (Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.)
March 8, 1991... Teva Pharmaceutical Industries reported 1990 profits of NIS 38.2 million on sales of NIS 605 million, in comparison to 1989 earnings of NIS 31.6 million on revenues of NIS 527 million. Foreign sales, which constitute 46 percent of total sales,...

Heat starts building for Baker. (James Baker)
March 8, 1991... U.S. Secretary of State James Baker is to visit Israel during his forthcoming trip to the Persian Gulf and the Middle East. Sources in Jerusalem say Baker will discuss political and economic issues and the new order the U.S. wants to see...

Opening up the telecommunications monopoly.
March 8, 1991... Minister of Communications Raphael Pinhasi recently granted 18 telecommunication and end-user equipment licenses. These licenses represent the opening up of the Israeli telecommunications market, which until now has been a Bezeq monopoly....

IAI $15 million retrofit. (Israel Aircraft Industries)
March 8, 1991... Israel Aircraft Industries has been awarded $15 million contract by Electra Aviation U.K. The contract calls for conversion of 10 Boeing 747 aircraft from passenger to cargo layout. The first aircraft for conversion will be delivered in...

Ryland in Israel. (Ryland International)
March 8, 1991... Ryland International is planning to set up a plant for the manufacture of wooden homes in partnership with an Israeli company. Investment in the plant is estimated at $5 million. Ryland, which was recently awarded contracts to build 200 homes...

1990 production output increase.
March 8, 1991... The Central Bureau of Statistics has reported a 6.5 percent rise in industrial production for 1990; this follows two years in which industrial production registered a negative rate of growth. The increase in 1990 affected all sectors: rubber...

1990 advertising expenditure. (Advertising and Public Relations)
March 8, 1991... The advertising industry spent $558 million in 1990; with 20 percent of this total as commissions, the net expenditure was $470 million. In gross terms, last year saw a growth of 12.4 percent, but the increase in advertising prices and the...

Tomato losses. (Agriculture)
March 8, 1991... As a result of declining prices in Western Europe, hothouse tomato exporters will lose millions of dollars this season. Though the quantity of tomatoes exported increased to 7,200 tons this season (versus 5,000 tons last year), prices were...