News stories from Wednesday August 18, 1976

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

Gerald Ford, who struggled for seven grueling months to avoid rejection by his party, was nominated for president in his own right at the 31st Republican National Convention in Kansas City. The party sent Mr. Ford, a political insider who has held elective office for 28 years, into combat against Jimmy Carter, the rank political outsider chosen by the Democrats, after Gov. William Milliken of Michigan hailed him as the nation's "present and future President." The vote was 1,187 for Mr. Ford and 1,070 for his challenger, Ronald Reagan. Mr. Ford kept his choice of a running mate secret, scheduling a meeting tomorrow with Mr. Reagan to discuss the subject. [New York Times] John Sears, who managed Ronald Reagan's national campaign, said a few hours before the final vote that very small items -- mistakes, misunderstandings, misinterpretations -- had brought the nine-month campaign to the point where victory seemed beyond reach. The final unexpected twist, he said, was the Mississippi delegation's vote not to support Mr. Reagan's crucial floor fight for a rules change concerning the vice-presidential selection. [New York Times] Some of President Ford's closest advisers are urging a strategy of provocation against Jimmy Carter in the presidential race and say they will "wipe that smile off his face" Their assumption is that the Democratic nominee is vague, self-righteous and short-tempered, and that sharp attacks on his integrity and credibility can rattle him. These advisers would put former Gov. John Connally of Texas in charge of the Republican campaign, citing his mastery of political ridicule and sarcasm. [New York Times] The Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Maritime Administration and at least one congressional committee are investigating whether the Burmah Oil Company, a major British concern, illegally received federal guarantees or subsidies to build at least eight huge tankers in this country. The possibility of fraud in seeking federal backing, illegal for foreign companies, may be jeopardizing hundreds of millions of dollars in contracts for the ships under construction at the yards of the General Dynamics Corporation in Quincy, Mass., and thousands of jobs. [New York Times] North Korean soldiers wielding axes and metal pikes attacked a group of American and South Korean soldiers in the demilitarized zone, killing two American officers and wounding four American enlisted men and five South Korean soldiers The United Nations Command said the soldiers had routinely been trimming branches from a tree at the Panmunjom truce site near the south end of the bridge used for prisoner exchange after the Korean war. In Kansas City, President Ford condemned the attack and said the North Korean government would be responsible for the "consequences." The North Korean radio said American troops had attacked North Korean soldiers protesting the tree-trimming. [New York Times] Faced with a United Nations ultimatum expiring at the end of the month, a constitutional committee in South-West Africa announced plans for a multi-racial government to lead the territory to independence from South Africa by Dec 31, 1978. The statement issued in Windhoek, the territorial capital, did not mention the South-West Africa People's Organization, which the United Nations recognizes as representative of its people but which did not take part in the discussions. Nor was there any reference to elections, called for in the ultimatum. [New York Times] Survivors of the Mindanao earthquake and tidal wave told of being swept out to sea and back in the disaster that left 3,131 in the Philippines dead and 3,117 missing. The National Disaster Coordinating Center said the death toll might reach 5,000. [New York Times]

Stock Market Report

Dow Jones Industrial Average: 995.01 (-4.33, -0.43%)
S&P Composite: 104.56 (-0.24, -0.23%)
Arms Index: 1.04

	Issues	Volume*
Advances	628	6.42
Declines	726	7.74
Unchanged	505	2.99
Total Volume		17.15

* 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*
August 17, 1976	999.34	104.80	18.50
August 16, 1976	992.77	104.43	16.21
August 13, 1976	990.19	104.25	13.93
August 12, 1976	987.12	104.22	15.56
August 11, 1976	986.79	104.06	18.71
August 10, 1976	993.43	104.41	16.69
August 9, 1976	983.46	103.49	11.70
August 6, 1976	986.00	103.79	13.93
August 5, 1976	986.68	103.85	15.53
August 4, 1976	992.28	104.43	20.65