European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 16, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Thursday. May 16, 1991 the stars and stripes Page 17 today s tip Texaco inc. The nation s third largest Oil company turned in one of its Best years of the past decade in 1990, with earnings of More than $1.45 billion. Chief executive officer James Kinnear said. The firm plans to invest $21 billion in capital projects Over the next five years in a variety of areas. A. \ a included Are expenditures on new crude Oil exploration and production in 18 countries refining and. Marketing of Petroleum products and the development of alternate Energy sources. Conversion rates London up wednesdays rates for the . Dollar to other currencies. Figures Are expressed in dollars to the British Pound other local currencies in dollars Gold was quoted at $360.25 a ounce Silver at $4.07, a a. V.-. A a a British Pound German Mark. French . Dutch Guilder. I. Belgian trans. A. Italian lira a. Swiss franc. Greek drachma. Turkish lira. Saudi arabian Riyal i. Spanish peseta. Portuguese escudo. Canadian Dollar. Austrian Schilling a. Norwegian Krone. A danish Krone. These Are unofficial rates As reported by wire service and banking sources and they Are listed to give some idea of daily currency. Frkic Tuat ions. The Only official rate concerns the Sale of German Marks to . Personnel for personal use and this will be 1.65 through thursday based on wednesday s noontime Price fixing new York Exchange May 14 May 15 .1.7385 1 7455 .1.7026 .1.694 .5.81. J 5.7513 .1.9282. 1 91 .35 27. 34,90 .1,273.45 1,259.50 .1.435 1.4304 .187.36 a 185,79 3,953.80 3,942.90 .3.7502 3.7501 .105.86 104.95 ,.149.00 148.75 .1.1501 1.1505 .12.046 11.935 .6658 6.603 .6.539 6.481. New York up York Stock Exchange a the 15 most Active stocks in new composite trading on tuesday Stock sales last net chg. Us Marathon 35.545.800 .25vb off 1% Telef Meads 16.518,400 27% unch us corp 7,337,400 25. Off % Amer express. 3.090,800 23%. Up a ism corp. 1,966,600 106 up a get corp 1.848.000 30 up % Philip Morris a1,537,100 66% Oft.1 a blockbuster ent 1.453,000 9% unch Exxon corp 1,362.600 56% 0 11% Wal Mart stores a 1.355,700 40% -. Off Varr Nabisco hip .1,310.900 11 % unch Texas utilities 1,250,000 36% off % Pepsico inc 1,224,000 31% off % at amp to company 1,147,500. 36 off % Boeing co. 1,087,200 46% off american Exchange new York up a the i 0 most Active stocks in american Stock Exchange composite trading tuesday. A Stock a Morgan foods Amdahl corp. Luchu Bay mines Dow chemical it Conti air Hodgs Alza corp fruit of loom. Americus disc magma Copper co Fyk sportsman it sales last net chg. 468,800 1% unch 347,100 16% off % 303,200. 8% a a up a 300.700 8 up of 243,300 2%. Up a a 212.400. 59% Oft 1 % 196.800 a 14%. Off % 196.800 9% unch 188.600 a 5% off % 177.500 7. A up % Dow Jones new York up a Dow Jones closing Range of averages tuesday. A a. 30 industrials 30 trans Pons 15 utilities Ca stocks High 2922 85. 1180 54 211.14 .1051 52 Low 2870 08 1152.15 208 25 1031 38 close 2896 85 1, j9 73 208 82 1037.15 change Oft 37 57 Ott 21 33 off 2 20 Oft 14 73 spouses need to share details on finances before it s too late by Kathy m. Kristof the los Angeles times in Many households one partner handies the finances and the other does not. Often the other has Little specific knowledge about income expenses investment strategies and the inc. / that Means that in the event of a death or d divorce one spouse i 11 us f be r a serious financial trauma As Well As the obvious emotional one. But such financial difficulties Are rela Lively easy to guard against if both partners sit Down while they Are healthy and Happy and talk about their Money and their financial goals. Even those who Are already on their own can Benefit from a thoughtful self analysis and strategic planning. How important is if a widow in los Angeles said recently that she had lost nearly All her estate through bad investments recommended by a plethora of  one investment now on the verge of collapse May mean the difference Between a comfortable retirement and living almost solely up social Security income. Planning is incredibly simple when it is actually done in Advance. All it takes is a few minutes once a year a perhaps at the same time As you Are preparing an annual income tax return a to review All of the family s major expenses assets and investments. Much of the information you need is the same information you pull out to prepare a tax return. For instance you should have statements that  much interest income a you be been paid during the year in investments and How much Iii Terest you were charged on your Home. A a mortgage or other purchases made on credit v a a there Are a few additional items you should pull out for a financial discussion with your spouse. Foremost Are insurance policies on everything from your life to your House and cars. You and your spouse should both know whether you Are adequately covered for an emergency such As a fire or a ear Accident. And you should  to figure out How Well either spouse could survive on insurance proceeds and other investments in the event that one spouse Dies or is disabled after tallying assets and liabilities it is advisable to discuss strategy. Talk about Why you have put your Money in various instruments a last growth preservation of principle Etc. A and whether that s a strategy you want to continue. Usually As people age they want to gradually move their investments from More aggressive in nth oriented vehicles to conservative and liquid investments such As Treasury Hills and Bank certificates of  is simply because they become less Able to risk a significant amount of their net Worth. Moreover Many worry about investment losses. And generally speaking the added return you might earn on a More aggressive investment in t Worth the emotional Cost. A those who Are  their own can Benefit from this yearly analysis too. The investment climate changes Vear to  you might be Wise to  investments along with it. A Lew notes of caution it von Are newly widowed or divorced Don t Rush in to a any t lung. Of ten distraught a Dovidu als make bad business decisions simply because they tire not vet Able to focus on practical matters. Stick your Money m an insured Bank or thrill Deposit Nihil you Are ready to Analyse the pros and sons til riskier ventures. Done to let anyone push you into an  Don t Hilly understand. When von tire re tide to Deal with investments. Hire a seasoned financial adviser to help you make decisions frequently. Individuals take the advice of friends and relatives instead of actually paying a professional to help them. This is a perfect example of being Penny Wise and Pound foolish. In most cases you la spend less tin the professional .adviser., than you la lose investing in your Best friends hot tip. Be carotid How you Doose advisers though. Many it Neial advisers gel Lees from companies they recommend Lor instance it you buy a life insurance policy your financial adviser might get a 1 1 percent commission irom the insurer. Mutual Lund companies and promoters of limited partnerships might pay advisers to recommend their shares As  i hat does no mean that the investments these advisers recommend Are necessarily had but you should know from the Start whether your adviser has a vested interest m certain of tors. Weigh investment decisions accordingly. First Mountain Bike manufacturer acted on dream a and scored big Morgan Hill Calif. Up Mike Sinyard stands amid the space age technology of the research and development Laboratory of specialized bicycle components the personification of a California businessman. V a self described a Bike bum a Sinyard took a Chance on a dream Back in 1974 and started his own import bicycle parts company. In the ensuing years he has combined his love for bicycling with a zen like business approach and a keen Eye toward the future to fashion one of americans fastest growing corporations. Specialized bicycle components inc., of Morgan Hill Calif., has grown from sales of just $64,000 in 1974, its first year to projected sales of $150 million for 1991. And while those figures May not seem stunning at first it is the growth in the last three years a from $20 million in sales to the projected $150 million a that has the bicycling Industry Abuzz. The engine for this financial escalator ride has been a sport that has become us californian As surfing a Mountain biking. Quot i Nev a dreamed it would grow to what it is today a said Sinyard who still enjoys a daily 10-mile lunchtime Bike ride. A a what i really wanted to do was to improve the products that were available to Bike enthusiasts like myself. Then along came the Mountain hike a. The sport of Mountain biking was con a eyed in the mid-1970s As a byproduct of the lifestyle of Northern California s. Marin county. Looking for a new Hal tenge a Hardy band of bicycle enthusiasts put thick heavy duty tires on stripped Down frames and challenged the rugged Redwood lined trails that Dot Marin s coastal Mountain Range. The sport was a perfect combination of the spirit of individualism the Beauty of the outdoors and californians obsession with health and fitness. But Many in the tradition Laden bicycling Industry at first discounted Mountain bikers As a Lunatic fringe a passing fad. Not Sinyard. A the first  on a Mountain Bike i could t believe it a. Sinyard said. A there was so much Freedom. I. Was instantly hooked.�?�. His company came out with the first mass produced Mountain hike a the stump jumper a 10 years ago and has been Oil the Industry a cutting Edge Ever since. But Back in 1974, Mountain bikes and sales in the millions were just a  really Neer thought about Starling my own  Sinyard said. Quot i came out of san Jose state in 1974 and immediately headed to Europe to do some travelling. I was Iii Italy and 1 met a woman who introduced me to some friends of hers who were in the Bike Man u fact u ring business. A i told them i Felt there was a Market for their products in the United states hut they really were not that interested. So i sold my vow Van and with the $1,500 bought a shipment of parts and came Back to the states to see in i was right. A it did t take Long to resell the first shipment and then 1 went around to Bike shops and acted As a go Between. I would take orders and collect Money from the hike shops and then 1 would buy the parts from the  specialized bicycle components was very much a cottage Industry in those Early Days As Sinyard worked out of a House trailer in nearly san Jose Calif. A i never could go away on vacation because my warehouse was located underneath my trailer Quot Sinyard said. A a shipment would come in and id store it there until we could Send it out to the Bike shops. I had to stay Homey to make sure no one stole my  As it grew the company a now numbering Sinyard and a handful of employees a began to turn its attention to designing manufacturing and distributing its own products. In -197.s. Specialized came but with the Turbo tire still considered an Industry Standard. Quot we had a naive approach at first and i honestly think that was an advantage a said Sinyard. Quot instead of coming up with ideas and saying we  do it for one reason or another. We said a Why not a a i still try to instill that spirit within the stall take the risk. Make it