Keith Brown, a London-based analyst at Morgan Stanley & Company, expects the American unit to lose as much as $200 million this year.

Dennis Exton, a London-based analyst with Merrill Lynch & Company, sees another problem.

Paul Beaver, a London-based military analyst, said they had succeeded in acquiring large number of mortars, some long-range anti-tank weapons and a few tanks.

"At this point the only thing that's stopping the deal from happening is getting both parties to agree on what to pay," said a London-based analyst who follows the companies.

"It is a cozy, friendly deal which suits both parties," a London-based analyst said.

"With Ford, the options are much less clear," said a London-based analyst.

"He is in this all the way," said Adel Malek, a London-based analyst of Arab affairs who produces documentary films and news programs.

'If it is three billion guilders up front, it is an incredible deal,' one London-based analyst who declined identification exclaimed to Reuter.

One London-based analyst, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said Eurotunnel's revenue projections assumed that competition from the tunnel would drive ferry fares down by 5 percent.

"I think one of the big problems is that P.P.R. has really not been able to get inside Gucci," a London-based analyst said.