Brazil Telecom Oi Shares Slumps on Weak 2nd Quarter Figures,
Changes In Dividend Policy      By Rogerio Jelmayer      SAO
PAULO--Shares of Brazilian telecommunications giant Oi SA (OIBR,
OIBR4.BR) were dropping drastically during Wednesday morning's
session after the company posted a loss in the second quarter
and also decided to change its dividend policy for the next
three years, paying less to shareholders.      The company's
shares were down nearly 9% at 4.10 Brazilian reais ($1.78),
while the main local stock index, the Ibovespa, was up 0.03%.
Oi, which has Portugal Telecom SGPS SA (PT, PTC.LB) as part of
its controlling shareholder group, posted a second-quarter loss
of 124 million Brazilian reais ($54 million), reversing a net
profit of BRL347 million in the year-ago period.      "We view
these results as weak and blame it on a mix of gloomy macro and
excessively aggressive offerings (which led to higher bad debt
and commercial expenses) in addition to higher financial
expenses from higher interes