News stories from Friday February 14, 1975

Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:

Labor Department statistics showed that inflation in the United States continued to abate in January, keeping pace with steep declines in production and employment. The Wholesale Price Index declined three-tenths of 1 percent after adjustment for normal seasonal changes in some prices. This was the second consecutive monthly drop following a sustained period in 1973 and 1974 when the index rose on an average by more than 1.5 percent a month. The dramatic reversal of the inflation rate was attributed to improvement in agriculture and industry. The index covers all transactions in the economy except final sales to consumers. Thus, the lower inflation rate will not have an immediate effect on consumer prices, but its effect should eventually be felt. [New York Times] Frank Zarb, the Federal Energy Administrator, criticized congressional Democrats for what he called a "do nothing" attitude toward oil imports in remarks about energy problems at a luncheon at the National Press Club in Washington. He said that to permit oil imports to rise would tend to give oil-exporting countries leverage with which to influence United States foreign and domestic policies. He indicated that President Ford would be willing to compromise with the Democrats on his energy proposals, and expressed a guarded interest in gradual application of the oil and natural gas taxes that Mr. Ford has asked Congress to enact by April 1. [New York Times] "None of the defendants have shown that a new trial would be in the interest of justice," Federal Judge John Sirica said in a decision refusing to set aside or change in any way the guilty verdicts returned in the Watergate cover-up trial against four Nixon administration officials. He ordered the defendants, John Mitchell, H. R. Haldeman, John Ehrlichman and Robert Mardian, to report next Friday for sentencing. [New York Times] President Makarios of Cyprus denounced the Turkish Cypriote proclamation of a separate state in northern Cyprus and said Greek Cypriotes were prepared to resist and if necessary to sacrifice themselves to prevent partition. He spoke to 2,000 student demonstrators who gathered outside the presidential office in Nicosia. [New York Times] Major differences over terms of a new interim agreement still separate Israel and Egypt after Secretary of State Kissinger's preliminary round of talks, but Israeli officials believe there is a good chance that they can be overcome. [New York Times] Park Chung Hee of South Korea announced that he would release all political prisoners except those he said were Communists. Among those to be released are a Roman Catholic bishop, a Protestant minister, a poet, two university professors and a lawyer who defended many of the political prisoners. [New York Times] Princess Maria Christina of the Netherlands, 27 years old, who has been teaching French and music in New York, will marry Jorge Guillermo, a 29-year-old Cuban who teaches at a center for preschool children in Harlem. The engagement was announced by Queen Juliana and Prince Bernhard at the Soestdijk Palace in The Hague. The Princess is the youngest of their four daughters. The marriage will take place in the Netherlands "probably within five months." The couple plan to live in New York. [New York Times]

Stock Market Report

Dow Jones Industrial Average: 734.20 (+7.28, +1.00%)
S&P Composite: 81.50 (+0.49, +0.60%)
Arms Index: 0.76

	Issues	Volume*
Advances	805	12.01
Declines	648	7.31
Unchanged	390	3.97
Total Volume		23.29

* in millions of shares

Arms Index is the ratio of volume per declining issue to volume per advancing issue; a figure below 1.0 is bullish.

Market Index Trends
Date	DJIA	S&P	Volume*
February 13, 1975	726.92	81.01	35.16
February 12, 1975	715.03	79.92	19.79
February 11, 1975	707.50	78.58	16.47
February 10, 1975	708.39	78.36	16.12
February 7, 1975	711.91	78.63	20.06
February 6, 1975	714.17	78.56	32.02
February 5, 1975	717.85	78.95	25.83
February 4, 1975	708.07	77.51	25.04
February 3, 1975	711.44	77.82	25.40
January 31, 1975	703.69	76.98	24.64