STOCKWATCH: Petrochina -- 2 (high dividend payout expected: analyst)

At 11:48 am, the Hang Seng index was down 105.49 points at 13,342.64.	    Petrochina was up 0.03 hkd at 1.50 on turnover of 33.70 mln shares.	    An analyst with a foreign brokerage said she forecasts a 2000 net profit of 53 bln yuan for Petrochina, up 98 pct from 1999.	    She also attributed the sharp increase in net profit to the substantial hike in crude oil prices last year.	    The analyst said interest in Petrochina shares is strong due to the projected results as well as an anticipated high dividend payout.	    She is looking at a dividend payout of 6.5 fen for 2000, which she described as higher than the average payout of other oil companies.	    She concurred with other analysts that earnings could fall this year due to weak crude oil prices.	    The analyst is projecting a 25 pct decline in net profit this year.	    "The company will definitely be affected by the falling oil prices. I am looking at a 25 pct drop in profits."	    Despite this, she is calling a 'buy' on the company, which she still considers undervalued relative to other oil companies.

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