Oracle earnings fall 13% as sales slump in Asia

Oracle Corp., the world's largest database-software maker, said after the market closed today that fiscal third-quarter earnings fell 13 percent and revenue dropped for a fourth straight quarter on a slump in sales from Asia.

Net income in the period ended Feb. 28 fell to $508 million, or 9 cents a share, from $582.7 million, or 10 cents, a year earlier, Oracle said in a statement. Sales declined 17 percent to $2.23 billion from $2.67 billion.

Oracle two weeks ago said earnings missed an earlier forecast by 1 cent a share because of weaker-than-expected demand in Asia. Investors and analysts say sales also are being hurt as International Business Machines Corp. and Microsoft Corp. cut prices on database programs, eating into Oracle's market share.

The Redwood City, Calif.-based company's sales decline began a year ago, as customers clamped down on spending amid the U.S. economic slowdown and as Oracle's dot-com customers went out of business.

Oracle shares, which have fallen 71 percent from an all-time closing high of $46.31 on Sept. 1, 2000, fell 45 cents to $13.44 today before the earnings report.

Travelocity.com to start site for travelers in Asia

Fort Worth, Texas >> Travelocity.com Inc., the Internet travel agent Sabre Holdings Corp. is trying to acquire, will start a site with 17 airlines to sell air travel to and from Japan and other Asian destinations.

Terms of the agreement weren't disclosed. The site, www.tabini.com, will debut on March 26 and is a joint venture between Travelocity.com, Japan Airlines Co., All Nippon Airways Co. and Japan Air Systems Co., and 14 other U.S. and Asian carriers, including United Airlines Inc., Northwest Airlines Corp., Qantas Airways Ltd. and Singapore Airlines Ltd.

Travelocity.com is trying to expand internationally by adding more country specific sites.

The company has sites specifically for customers in Canada, Germany and the U.K. Tabini.com will be based in Tokyo, said Travelocity.com.

Tabini.com will be Travelocity.com's first Web site focusing primarily on flights to and from Asia, spokeswoman Nicole Rex said.

Rival Sabre began a $345 million hostile bid last week to buy the 30 percent of Travelocity. com it doesn't own.

Japan commission close to ruling on air merger

TOKYO >> Japan's Fair Trade Commission plans to decide by the end of the month whether to allow the proposed merger between Japan Airlines Co. and regional carrier Japan Air System Co., the commission's director said, according to Bloomberg News.

"The process won't carry over into the next business year," said Akio Yamada, director of the Fair Trade Commission.

The commission has to check whether the merger conflicts with Japan's antimonopoly laws, he said.

Japan Airlines, Asia's biggest carrier, said in November it plans to take over Japan Air System to increase its domestic market share and reduce dependence on international sales. The country's domestic air routes are now dominated by Japan Airlines' biggest rival in Asia, All Nippon Airways Co.

Japan Airlines said it will delay releasing its business plan for the next financial year starting April 1 until the end of next month, to wait for the commission's decision. The carrier typically releases business plans in March each year.

In other news . . .

The deficit in the nation's broadest measure of trade narrowed slightly to $417.4 billion last year, the first improvement since 1995. The Commerce Department reported that the deficit in the current account, which covers trade in goods and services as well as investment earnings, shrank by 6.1 percent last year. The deficit was a record $444.7 billion in 2000.