Corning Chairman Anticipates Earnings Growth of 20-25% in 2000.

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 6, 1999--

Speaking at a meeting with analysts today, Chairman and CEO of Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) Roger G. Ackerman said he expects the company's 1999 earnings per share before one-time items to be in line with analyst consensus of $1.86, representing a 24% increase over 1998's $1.50 per share, and next year's earnings to grow 20-25%, to $2.25-2.35 per share.

"We will soon close the books on one of the best years in Corning's history and anticipate that 2000 will be another year of equally strong growth," Ackerman said. He added that next year's growth is expected to come from strong demand for optical fiber, cable and networking devices which serve as the backbone of the Internet, as well as from flat-panel displays used in computer monitors and more recently in TVs, automotive substrates used in catalytic converters, and life-science products used in drug discovery.

The earnings outlook for 2000 reflects the company's recent announcement to acquire Oak Industries as well as the potential impact of acquiring Siemens Corporation's worldwide optical fiber, cable and related equipment businesses, including Siecor Corporation, the optical cable company currently jointly owned by the two companies. Ackerman indicated that Siemens and Corning are in negotiations and hope to make an announcement before the end of 1999.

Ackerman described the growth opportunities available to each of Corning's three business segments.

Telecommunications. Ackerman said that Corning's LEAF optical fiber, which was introduced last year for high-data-rate applications, is the fastest selling fiber in the company's history and is expected to contribute to an overall increase of 30% in fiber volume next year. The company opened a new optical fiber plant in Concord, NC, in July to meet growing demand for its products.

Corning also makes photonic devices used to increase the capacity (bandwidth), speed and economics of communication networks. Corning's sales of these products are up approximately 50% this year and, according to Ackerman, should grow at a similar pace in 2000. Corning, which is the leading supplier of optical amplifiers, introduced a dozen optical networking products this year used to expand the optical layer - the portion of the communications network that transmits, amplifies and multiplexes information in the form of light, instead of electronics.

Information Display. Corning is a leading supplier of the liquid crystal display (LCD) glass substrates used in flat-panel displays in notebook and desktop computers, and digital cameras. Demand for LCD glass substrates has doubled this year and is expected to double again next year. As a result of this increased demand, Corning recently announced plans to double its manufacturing capacity in Asia by the end of next year.

"The applications for LCD glass are very exciting," Ackerman said. "Our customers in the consumer electronics industry envision using our glass substrates in many new applications - from full-size flat-panel TVs and hand-held digital video displays (DVDs) just now being introduced in Asia, to screens in the back of headrests in U.S. minivans."

Advanced Materials. Corning said that the recent growth in revenues from automotive substrates is due to the increased use of a new generation of products capable of meeting new clean-air regulations. According to Corning, thin-wall substrates have grown to 14% of its substrate sales, up from just 6% in 1998, and could be used in more than half of the world's automobiles by the end of 2003. Corning recently broke ground on a new substrate plant in China and announced plans to build another plant in South Africa.

Sales of the Science Products Division's microplates (3x5 inch plates containing as many as 1536 individual testing wells, which are used by pharmaceutical companies for high-throughput screening of new drug candidates) are up 40% this year and could produce similar growth in 2000, according to Ackerman.

Investment in research, development and engineering has increased from 5% of sales in 1995 to 8% in 1999, allowing the company to double the size of its main research laboratory and add nearly 500 scientists and technicians. Ackerman said that the company will spend slightly more than 8% of sales on RD&E next year, with much of it earmarked for its telecommunications businesses, which currently represent approximately 60% of the company's revenues.

"Corning's position as a high-technology innovator is becoming ever more evident as we play an increasing role in the new economy -- enabling the growth of the Internet, facilitating the discovery of novel drugs, and providing the advanced materials for a new generation of computer monitors and other electronic devices," Ackerman concluded.

Established in 1851, Corning Incorporated (www.corning.com) creates leading-edge technologies for the fastest-growing markets of the world's economy. Corning manufactures optical fiber, cable and photonic products for the telecommunications industry; and high-performance displays and components for television and other communications-related industries. The company also uses advanced materials to manufacture products for scientific, semiconductor and environmental markets. Corning's revenues in 1998 were $3.5 billion.

Forward-Looking and Cautionary Statements

Except for historical information and discussions contained herein, statements included in this release may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause results to differ materially, as discussed in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.