JUST ANOTHER MERGER MONDAY: FLEET, BANKBOSTON DEAL HINTS AT FUTURE MOVES.

Byline: Leslie Miller Associated Press 

The merger between New England banking powerhouses Fleet Financial Group and BankBoston may be just a step on the way to the creation of a national institution.

Even though the $16 billion weekend deal will create the biggest bank in New England, some analysts said Monday that further mergers will be needed for the bank to compete with other much larger institutions.

``It's the final chapter of bank consolidation as a regional story,'' said Fred Breimyer, an economist with State Street Bank. ``To go on, they have to go national.''

Fleet's proposed acquisition got an unenthusiastic reception on Wall Street. Fleet shares fell 5.7 percent, or by $2.5625, to $42.1875 a share on the New York Stock Exchange, where BankBoston nudged up less than 1 percent, or by 12.5 cents, to $47.0625.

Fleet is the nation's ninth-largest bank, BankBoston the 15th. The merged institution, to be called Fleet Boston Corp., will still only rank as the eighth-biggest bank in the country.

With approximately $180 billion in assets, it will be less than a third the size of such giants as Citigroup and BankAmerica Corp.

``They have staying power where they are, but I believe the bar for scale and scope of activities is going to continue to be raised over the next couple of years,'' said Scott Birbaum, a vice president specializing in banking at Mercer Management.

Size alone doesn't matter, Terrence Murray, Fleet's chairman and chief executive officer, said at a news conference Monday.

``It's where your concentration is, your earnings, where your earnings growth is accelerating,'' said Murray, who will become the chairman and CEO of Fleet Boston Corp.

Fleet brings to the table commercial and mortgage lending, discount brokerage, student loan processing and a large credit card operation.

BankBoston brings investment banking, corporate lending and extensive Latin American operations.

``We can do it all, and that's what we intend to do,'' said Charles K. ``Chad'' Gifford, BankBoston's chairman and CEO.

Gifford will become president of the merged institution, then succeed Murray as CEO after two years.

Combining the banks, which requires the approval of regulators and shareholders, is expected to save about $600 million in operating costs, but will also eliminate 5,000 of the two institutions' 60,000 positions.

WHEELIN' AND DEALIN'

Among other deals announced Monday:

DuPont Co. agreed to buy the 80 percent of Pioneer Hi-Bred International Inc. that it doesn't already own for $7.7 billion in cash and stock, or $40 a share, to boost its growing agriculture unit. Pioneer Hi-Bred, the world's largest seed-corn company, helps DuPont to expand its so-called life sciences businesses, which include agricultural biotechnology.

El Paso Energy Corp. is buying Alabama-based Sonat Inc. for $3.5 billion in stock to create the largest natural gas pipeline system in North America. The deal allows Houston-based El Paso Energy to ship gas from supply fields in California and Texas to growing markets in the South.

Ciena Corp. is buying two optical communications companies for stock worth nearly $1 billion: Lightera, which builds optical switches and operating systems for fiber optic networks and Omnia, which builds equipment that allows telephone companies to provide voice and data services through fiber optic networks. Both are privately held companies.

Chancellor Media Corp. is ending its quest for a merger partner after just two months, with no takers emerging for the $20 million price tag set by the radio-station empire. Instead, Chancellor is shaking up top management - with its chief executive stepping aside - and scrapping the planned purchase of Lin Television Corp

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Photo, Box

PHOTO (Color) Terrence Murray of Fleet Financial Group, left, and BankBoston's Charles K. Gifford share a light moment after the announcement.

Neal Hamberg/Associated Press

BOX: WHEELIN' AND DEALIN' (See text)