Voice of America, 97-10-28

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From: The Voice of America <gopher://gopher.voa.gov>

CONTENTS

[01] EURO STOCKS (L) BY JACK HUIZENGA (LONDON)

[02] N-Y ECON WRAP (S & L) BY BRECK ARDERY (NEW YORK)

[03] TUESDAY'S EDITORIALS BY ANDREW N. GUTHRIE (WASHINGTON)

[01] EURO STOCKS (L) BY JACK HUIZENGA (LONDON)

INTRO: THE EARLY RALLY IN STOCK PRICES ON WALL STREET HAD A DRAMATIC IMPACT ON MARKETS IN WESTERN EUROPE. V-O-A'S JACK HUIZENGA HAS THE CLOSING EUROPEAN MARKET REPORT FROM LONDON.

TEXT: EUROPEAN MARKETS OPENED DOWN SHARPLY, WITH AN OPENING PLUNGE EVEN BIGGER THAN EXPECTED -- ALMOST 10 PERCENT OR MORE IN THE THREE LARGEST MARKETS: FRANKFURT, PARIS AND LONDON.

BUT PRICES THEN STARTED A SLOW, CAUTIOUS COMEBACK, AS NERVOUS TRADERS WAITED FOR THE OPENING OF WALL STREET. AND THEN, AS WALL STREET REBOUNDED, SO DID THE EUROPEAN MARKETS THAT STILL WERE TRADING.

PRICES ROSE SHARPLY IN LONDON, EUROPE'S BIGGEST MARKET. THE FOOTSIE-100 INDEX -- WHICH WAS DOWN MORE THAN NINE PERCENT IN THE MORNING -- ENDED THE DAY OFF 85 POINTS, ABOUT ONE-AND-SEVEN-TENTHS PERCENT.

THE RECOVERY WAS MUCH THE SAME IN PARIS. THE FRENCH MARKET ALSO WAS OFF ABOUT 10 PERCENT EARLY IN THE DAY. BUT THE CAC-40 INDEX ENDED DOWN 118 POINTS, FOUR-AND-THREE-TENTHS PERCENT.

SIMILAR LATE GAINS ALSO WERE REPORTED IN SMALLER EUROPEAN MARKETS AMONG THEM AMSTERDAM, LISBON, MILAN, AND STOCKHOLM. IN MADRID, THE TRADING DAY WAS EXTENDED BY 30 MINUTES SO INVESTORS COULD TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE LATE RALLY.

BUT THE WALL STREET COMEBACK WAS TOO LATE TO HELP THE GERMAN MARKET, WHICH ENDS FLOOR TRADING BEFORE THE NEW YORK MARKET OPENS. THE DAX-30 INDEX ENDED DOWN 312 POINTS, ABOUT EIGHT PERCENT.

SHARP DROPS ALSO WERE REPORTED IN THE SMALL EMERGING MARKETS OF EASTERN EUROPE. THE BUDAPEST MARKET WAS OFF MORE THAN 16 PERCENT. WARSAW WAS DOWN ABOUT 10 PERCENT. MOSCOW'S MARKET FELL MORE THAN 19 PERCENT.

THE MARKET TURMOIL PROMPTED A SHARP DROP IN THE VALUE OF THE U-S DOLLAR. ON THE LONDON CURRENCY EXCHANGE, THE DOLLAR WAS DOWN MORE THAN THREE CENTS AGAINST THE GERMAN MARK AND TWO CENTS AGAINST BOTH THE BRITISH POUND THE JAPANESE YEN.
NEB/JWH/RRM
28-Oct-97 1:43 PM EST (1843 UTC)
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Source: Voice of America

[02] N-Y ECON WRAP (S & L) BY BRECK ARDERY (NEW YORK)

INTRO: STOCK PRICES IN THE UNITED STATES REBOUNDED STRONGLY TODAY (TUESDAY) WITH THE DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE GAINING MORE THAN HALF OF ITS MONDAY LOSS. VOA CORRESPONDENT BRECK ARDERY REPORTS FROM NEW YORK.

TEXT: THE DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE CLOSED AT 74 HUNDRED 98, UP 337 POINTS OR ALMOST FIVE PERCENT. IT WAS A RECORD ONE-DAY POINT GAIN IN THE INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE AND THE GAIN WAS MORE THAN HALF THE 554 POINT LOSS OF MONDAY. THE MORE INCLUSIVE STANDARD AND POOR'S 500 INDEX CLOSED AT 921, UP 44 POINTS.

THE VOLUME ON THE NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE WAS AN HISTORIC ONE POINT TWO BILLION SHARES. BUT ANALYSTS SAY THE PRICE REPORTING OF TRADES WAS BETTER THAN EXPECTED WITH SUCH HEAVY VOLUME. EXCHANGE OFFICIALS SAY THE SYSTEM IS CAPABLE OF HANDLING AS MANY AS TWO AND ONE-HALF BILLION SHARES A DAY.

U-S STOCKS DID OPEN THE DAY LOWER, WITH THE INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE DROPPING ABOUT 200 POINTS BEFORE REVERSING DIRECTION. ANALYSTS SAY THE INITIAL DROP WAS LARGELY IN RESPONSE TO CONTINUED LOSSES IN ASIAN MARKETS. AS THEY DID MONDAY, THE LOSSES IN HONG KONG AND OTHER ASIAN MARKETS SPREAD TO EUROPE.

BUT HUGH JOHNSON OF THE FIRST ALBANY INVESTMENT COMPANY BELIEVES THE U-S MARKET HAS NOW DISCOUNTED THE SITUATION IN ASIA.

WE MAY HAVE SOME DOWN DAYS. WE MAY EVEN HAVE SOME DEEP DOWN DAYS. BUT I THINK BY AND LARGE THE MARKET HAS NOW FULLY DISCOUNTED THE EVENTS IN SOUTHEAST ASIA ON THE U-S ECONOMY AND (CORPORATE) EARNINGS.

OTHER ANALYSTS SAY THAT, AFTER MONDAY'S STEEP DECLINE, MANY INVESTORS SAW IRRESISTIBLE BARGAINS IN U-S STOCKS.

AN ANNOUNCEMENT FROM I-B-M ALSO HELPED BOLSTER CONFIDENCE. THE WORLD'S LARGEST COMPUTER COMPANY SAID IT HAS ALLOCATED AN ADDITIONAL THREE AND ONE-HALF BILLION DOLLARS TO REPURCHASE ITS OWN STOCK.

A MONTHLY SURVEY OF CONSUMER CONFIDENCE IN THE UNITED STATES DROPPED IN OCTOBER. BUT ANALYSTS SAY THE CONFIDENCE INDEX IS STILL HIGH BY HISTORICAL STANDARDS.

THE GOVERNMENT REPORTED THE COMPENSATION OF AMERICAN WORKERS GREW MODESTLY IN THE THIRD QUARTER, REDUCING THE LIKELIHOOD OF INFLATIONARY PRESSURES.

THE U-S AIRLINE INDUSTRY CONTINUES ITS STRONG PERFORMANCE. THE PARENT COMPANY OF UNITED AIRLINES REPORTED BETTER-THAN-EXPECTED THIRD QUARTER PROFITS AND T-W-A REPORTED ITS FIRST PROFIT IN A YEAR. (SIGNED) NEB/NY/BA/LSF/WFR
28-Oct-97 4:47 PM EST (2147 UTC)
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Source: Voice of America

[03] TUESDAY'S EDITORIALS BY ANDREW N. GUTHRIE (WASHINGTON)

INTRO: WITH STOCK MARKETS AROUND THE WORLD STILL REELING FROM YESTERDAY'S MAJOR PLUNGE ON WALL STREET, THERE IS NOT MUCH SPECULATION ABOUT TODAY'S DOMINANT EDITORIAL SUBJECT.

OTHER TOPICS, OF COURSE, INCLUDE THE VISIT OF CHINA'S PRESIDENT, AS WELL AS CHANGES IN THE IMMIGRATION LAW; THE REFORM OF THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE; THE WEEKEND'S MILLION WOMAN MARCH OF AFRICAN AMERICANS; AND THE 1997 WORLD SERIES.

TEXT: THE NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE HAD A REALLY BAD DAY YESTERDAY, BUT THE DIVE IN STOCK PRICES IS CERTAINLY GIVING EDITORIAL WRITERS PLENTY TO TALK ABOUT. HERE IS SOME OF "THE WALL STREET JOURNAL'S" LEAD EDITORIAL.

VOICE: "IN THE FUMBLE TO EXPLAIN YESTERDAY'S CARNAGE IN STOCK MARKETS WORLDWIDE, INCLUDING THE SEVEN-POINT-TWO PERCENT DIVE OF THE DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE, IT'S STARTING TO SOUND AS IF THE MARKETS THEMSELVES BELONG IN THERAPY. .... PRESIDENT CLINTON'S SPOKESMAN, MIKE MCCURRY, TOLD A WAITING WORLD TO JUST 'TAKE A DEEP BREATH' AND RELAX BECAUSE 'THE PRESIDENT IS CONFIDENT THE FUNDAMENTALS OF THE AMERICAN ECONOMY ARE STRONG.' WE HAPPEN TO BELIEVE THAT MARKETS BY AND LARGE REACT TO REAL FACTORS, AND THE ISSUE HERE IS NOT U-S 'FUNDAMENTALS.' .... MARKETS NEED SOME REASSURANCE THAT SOMEONE HAS AN EYE ON THE ALL-IMPORTANT QUESTION OF LIQUIDITY.

IN TODAY'S WORLD, OF COURSE, NO ONE PRECISELY CONTROLS OR EVEN MEASURES HOW MUCH MONEY AN INTEGRATED WORLD NEEDS IN THE FORM OF DOLLARS, YEN, MARKS AND RINGGIT. YET, SPATS AMONG CENTRAL BANKERS, AS IN THE COMPETITIVE DEVALUATIONS OF THE 1930S, HAVE A VAST POTENTIAL FOR GETTING THIS CRUCIAL QUESTION WRONG. THIS IS THE REAL DANGER MARKETS SENSED IN 1987, AND NO DOUBT THE SAME DANGER THEY SENSE TODAY. [OPT] IN THIS SITUATION, MARKETS COULD USE SOME REASSURANCE, WHICH HAS BEEN ANYTHING BUT EVIDENT THE PAST FEW DAYS. TREASURY SECRETARY ROBERT RUBIN HAS SIMPLY HANDED OVER LEADERSHIP TO THE INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND AND WORLD BANK. ..... ASKED WHETHER HONG KONG SHOULD STICK TO ITS FIXED RATE, MR. RUBIN REPLIED YESTERDAY, 'I'M NOT GOING TO COMMENT .....' IT WOULD HAVE BEEN FAR BETTER FOR MR. RUBIN TO EXPRESS HIS SUPPORT OF THE HONG KONG MONETARY AUTHORITY IN DEFENDING ITS RATE.

....GIVEN A U-S ADMINISTRATION IN WHICH THE PRESIDENT FIGURES THE CURE FOR STOCK-MARKET CONVULSIONS IS A DEEP BREATH AND TREASURY SECRETARY RUBIN THINKS THE ANSWER IS THE IMF, THE WORLD IS LOOKING FOR A FINANCIAL LEADER."

TEXT: "THE NEW YORK TIMES" VIEWS "THE PLUNGING DOW" WITH THESE THOUGHTS:

VOICE: "THERE ARE THREE SALIENT FACTS TO KEEP IN MIND BEFORE SIZING UP YESTERDAY'S SCARY 554-POINT-DROP OF THE DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL STOCK AVERAGE. ITS DROP OF SEVEN PERCENT WAS MUCH SMALLER THAN THE 22 PERCENT, 508-POINT DROP ON OCTOBER 19TH, 1987. THE ECONOMY CAN ABSORB SHOCKS BETTER TODAY THAN 10 YEARS AGO, BECAUSE INFLATION IS LOWER, EMPLOYMENT IS HIGHER AND, MOST IMPORTANT, BANKS ARE FINANCIALLY STURDIER. [OPT] THE FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD, UNDER ITS CURRENT CHAIRMAN, ALAN GREENSPAN, REACTED CORRECTLY IN 1987 TO KEEP THE ECONOMY ROLLING ON AN EVEN KEEL, AND WILL HAVE TO DO SO AGAIN TODAY. [END OPT] .... THERE REMAINS A DANGER THAT CURRENCY DISRUPTION AND STOCK MARKET CRASHES WILL SPREAD FROM ASIA TO OTHER REGIONS, BUT SUCH CONTAGION, GIVEN THAT SCARED FOREIGN INVESTORS WILL LIKELY POUR THEIR MONEY INTO THE UNITED STATES AS A SAFE HAVEN, OUGHT TO POSE A LIMITED DANGER HERE. THE ECONOMY'S VITAL SIGNS ARE STRONG, WHICH REFLECTS MANY YEARS OF SOLID MONETARY AND FISCAL POLICIES THAT SHOULD NOW SERVE AMERICANS WELL."

TEXT: TURNING TO THE DAY'S OTHER BIG STORY, THE VISIT OF CHINA'S PRESIDENT JIANG ZEMIN, "THE ORLANDO SENTINEL" SUGGESTS "IT WOULD BE A SHAME IF PROTESTS [OVER HUMAN RIGHTS] OBSCURED THIS SUMMIT-MEETING OPPORTUNITY."

VOICE: "ACTUALLY, BY DEALING WITH CHINA, MR. CLINTON COULD HELP TO PROMOTE THE CAUSE OF HUMAN RIGHTS. CONSIDER THAT 20 YEARS AGO CHINA HAD A MISERABLE RECORD ACROSS THE BOARD - - FROM HUMAN RIGHTS TO ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE - - AND APPEARED ON THE BRINK OF CHAOS. THEN NEW LEADERS CAME TO THE FOREFRONT, CHANGING CHINA'S COURSE AND EMBRACING FREE-MARKET THINKING. .... THE RESULTS WERE IMPRESSIVE: CHINA NOW HAS A THRIVING ECONOMY ... THE CHINESE ENJOY GREATER FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT, TRAVELING TO PLACES WHERE JOBS ARE BEING CREATED. NEW IDEAS ARE INFUSING CHINESE SOCIETY, BROUGHT IN BY GROWING CONTACT WITH AMERICANS AND OTHERS. SUBSTANTIAL POLITICAL AUTONOMY NOW IS PERMITTED AT THE LOCAL LEVEL. BY ANY MEASURE, THAT'S PROGRESS."

TEXT: "THE LOS ANGELES TIMES" AGREES THE SUMMIT IS PREGNANT WITH POSSIBILITIES, BUT WORRIES ABOUT THE CLARITY OF PRESIDENT CLINTON'S VISION TOWARD THE ASIAN GIANT.

VOICE: "DESPITE THE PRESIDENT'S EARLY RECOGNITION OF THE IMPORTANCE OF A CHINA EMERGING AS A GREAT POWER, THIS ADMINISTRATION HAS LACKED A CLEAR COURSE ON RELATIONS AND WAFFLED IN ITS 'CONSTRUCTIVE ENGAGEMENT' APPROACH TO BEIJING. FIRST CLINTON THREATENED TO SNATCH MOST-FAVORED-NATION TRADING STATUS FROM CHINA IF IT DID NOT HONOR HUMAN RIGHTS, THEN BACKED OFF. BUT WHEN CHINA FIRED MISSILES CLOSE TO TAIWAN, U-S AIRCRAFT CARRIERS MOVED INTO THE AREA, SENDING A CLEAR MESSAGE THAT TROUBLE NEAR THE TAIWAN STRAIT WAS NOT ACCEPTABLE.... BUT THE TWO COUNTRIES HAVE WORKED TOGETHER TO EASE TENSIONS OVER NORTH KOREA. THE POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC RELATIONSHIPS NEED NURTURING IN ALL THESE AREAS."

TEXT: CHANGES IN THE NATION'S IMMIGRATION LAWS CONTINUE TO BE ASSAILED IN EDITORIALS, LIKE THIS ONE FROM "THE WASHINGTON TIMES," ESPECIALLY IN THE CASE OF LONG-TIME LEGAL ALIENS FROM LATIN AMERICA WHO ARE NOW SUFFERING UNFAIRLY.

VOICE: "IT IS AN ENCOURAGING SIGHT TO SEE MEMBERS OF CONGRESS WILLING TO FACE UP TO AN UNINTENDED LEGISLATIVE MISTAKE AND WORK TO ENSURE THAT FAIRNESS IS RESTORED. THAT'S WHAT APPEARS TO BE HAPPENING IN THE CASE OF THE 300-THOUSAND LATIN AMERICANS REFUGEES WHO HAVE BEEN IN THIS COUNTRY SINCE THE 1980S AND WHO FOUND THEMSELVES SQUEEZED BY CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF THE 1996 IMMIGRATION REFORM ACT. THESE ARE PEOPLE WHO HAVE NOT ONLY BEEN THROUGH SOME VERY DIFFICULT TIMES, AS CIVIL WAR RAVAGED THEIR COUNTRIES, BUT ALSO PEOPLE THE VAST MAJORITY OF WHOM [,] HAVE BECOME PRODUCTIVE MEMBERS OF THIS SOCIETY."

TEXT: "THE MIAMI HERALD" IS WRITING ON THE POPULAR SUBJECT OF INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE [I-R-S] REFORM, AN ACTIVE TOPIC ON CAPITOL HILL.

VOICE: "PRESIDENT CLINTON, IN AN ABRUPT ABOUT-FACE, NOW HAS JOINED IN THE I-R-S-BASHING. HE NOW SUPPORTS A MAJOR OVERHAUL THAT INCLUDES AN I-R-S OVERSIGHT BOARD AND SHIFTING TO THE I-R-S THE BURDEN OF PROOF IN DISPUTED CLAIMS. ..... THE I-R-S EARNED THIS FULL-SCALE PUBLIC DRUBBING FOR FOSTERING A CULTURE OF MEANNESS TOWARD TAXPAYER GRIEVANCES. .... NOW IT'S PAYBACK TIME. BUT CONGRESS SHOULD PROCEED WITH EXTREME CARE, FOR IT DESERVES EQUAL BLAME FOR SADDLING THE AGENCY WITH A MINDNUMBING MATRIX OF TAX CODES."

TEXT: COMMENTING ON ANOTHER DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENT, "THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER" HAS THIS TO SAY ABOUT THE MILLION WOMAN MARCH IN THAT CITY THIS PAST WEEKEND.

VOICE: "[OPT] THEY PROVED THEIR POINT. ALL ALONG THE ORGANIZERS OF SATURDAY'S MILLION WOMAN MARCH INSISTED THAT THEY'D PULL OFF [SUCCEED IN CREATING] THE LARGEST SINGLE-DAY GATHERING OF BLACK WOMEN - - EVEN THOUGH THEY DIDN'T HAVE EXPERIENCE PLANNING MAJOR EVENTS, MUCH MONEY, OR BIG CELEBRITY NAMES. AND THEY DID IT. [END OPT] .... THESE MOSTLY POOR, UNKNOWN WOMEN TAPPED INTO A GROWING NATIONAL TREND: A FOCUS ON INNER CHANGE AS A FIRST STEP TO COMMUNITY-WIDE CHANGE. AND THEY PRACTICED A KIND OF BOTTOM-UP ACTIVISM, WHERE THE GRASSROOTS LEAD AND LEADERS SCRAMBLE TO CATCH UP. .... ONLY TIME WILL TELL IF THE WOMEN'S MARCH WILL LEAD TO REAL INROADS AGAINST SOCIAL ILLS. BUT NOW THAT THE MILLION WOMAN MARCHERS HAVE PROVED THE SKEPTICS WRONG, IT WILL BE INTRIGUING TO SEE WHAT THEY DO FOR AN ENCORE."

TEXT: LASTLY, SEVERAL PAPERS ARE LAUDING THE FLORIDA MARLINS, WHO WON THE WORLD SERIES -- THE U-S PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP -- SUNDAY OVER THE CLEVELAND INDIANS. SAYS "THE LOS ANGELES TIMES:"

VOICE: "THIS [BASEBALL] SEASON GAVE US QUITE A RIDE, AND IT FOUND THE GRAND OLD GAME ITSELF IN TRANSITION. SOME OF THE CHANGES ARE WONDERFUL, EXPANDING THE BASE OF THE GAME AND APPEALING TO A WIDER GROUP OF FANS. .... [HOWEVER] BASEBALL IS A GAME THAT WE ASSOCIATE NOT SO MUCH WITH CHANGE AS WITH REASSURING HABITS AND TRADITION. SO EXPERIMENTATION IS NOT ALWAYS WELCOME. .... BUT DESPITE PREMATURE PREDICTIONS OF THE GAME'S DEMISE, IT WAS A GOOD SEASON AFTER ALL. BASEBALL SHOWED ITS STURDY ADAPTABILITY, AND ITS RENEWABLE CAPACITY TO PROVIDE GOOD FUN."

TEXT: ON THAT UPLIFTING CULTURAL AND ATHLETIC NOTE, WE CONCLUDE THIS BRIEF LOOK AT SOME OF THE EDITORIALS IN TODAY'S U-S PRESS.
NEB/ANG/RRM
28-Oct-97 10:20 AM EST (1520 UTC)
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Source: Voice of America

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