It has been proposed that the sale of this property will greatly reduce Hastings' property taxes.

The sale will reduce the state's stake in Lukoil to 7.6 percent, the fund said.

The sale reduces the size and overhead of the bank, as well as strengthens the bank's capital position.

This sale will reduce the bank debt to $93 million, Mr. Pignone said.

Yet a vast sale of state assets will sharply reduce central control over large enterprises.

The voluntary sale of development rights, which keeps the land in farm use, reduces the property's value, thus lowering the property and estate taxes.

The latest sale reduced the company's underperforming mortgage loans and real estate to $4.3 billion, down 16 percent since the end of 1992.

Analysts said the unit's sale would improve the company's long-term profits and reduce costs.

The sale will reduce the government's holding in Lukoil to about 8 percent.

For Inspiration, the nation's sixth-largest copper company, the sale reduces its role as a copper producer.