International Disclosure Standards

The Securities and Exchange Commission is adopting revised disclosure requirements for foreign private issuers to conform to the international disclosure standards endorsed by the International Organization of Securities Commissions in September 1998. The international disclosure standards will replace most of the non- financial statement disclosure requirements of Form 20-F, the basic disclosure document for foreign private issuers. We are revising the registration statements used by foreign private issuers under the Securities Act of 1933 to reflect the changes in Form 20-F. We also are revising the definition of ``foreign private issuer'' to give clearer guidance on how foreign companies should determine whether their shareholders are U.S. residents.