News stories from Thursday March 24, 1977

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

A minimum wage increase substantially less than the unions had been seeking was proposed by the Carter administration in a plan presented to Congress by Secretary of Labor Ray Marshall. There would be a rise in the minimum from the current $2.30 an hour to $2.50 on July 1 and, starting a year later, to be maintained at 50 percent of average hourly manufacturing wages. George Meany, president of the A.F.L.-C.I.O., said that the proposal was "shameful." [New York Times] Some of the principles on which the administration is seeking the restructuring and simplification of the nation's tax laws were disclosed in a briefing given to newsmen by Laurence Woodworth, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for tax policy. He emphasized that no final decisions had yet been taken. [New York Times] Court action has been taken by two American movie makers to stop the sale of Betamax color television tape recorders made by the Sony Corporation of Japan. MCA Inc.'s Universal Studios and Walt Disney Productions allege that the Sony devices make it too easy for consumers to steal what the movie makers contend is their property -- copyrighted motion pictures and other material shown on television. They also accuse Sony and its advertising agency, Doyle Dane Bernbach Inc., of inducing the public to violate their copyrights. [New York Times] He would "respond well," President Carter said, on the question of possible American economic aid for Vietnam if the assistance was arranged as part of successful negotiations to open normal diplomatic relations, and that any aid should be viewed as "normal" assistance and not as reparations. He suggested that the promise of renewed efforts by the Vietnamese to account for American servicemen still missing in action would be sufficient to open diplomatic and trade relations. [New York Times] A major setback was given the Unification Church of the Rev. Sun Myung Moon by a California Superior Court judge who has ordered five adult members to be placed in the custody of their parents, who seek to have their children "deprogrammed" from the church. [New York Times] Changes that materially weaken the boycott legislation now before Congress, and apparently at odds with the White House, were suggested by Secretary of State Cyrus Vance in a letter to the head of the House Foreign Relations Committee. The legislation would affect all foreign trade, but is intended mainly to counter the Arab boycott against Israel. Mr. Vance repeated his support for the legislation, but offered amendments that he hoped could "avoid an unnecessary confrontation" with various countries. [New York Times] Mayor Beame of New York City personally led pornography raids on several Midtown establishments and closed a club where naked girls were dancing on tables, Jax 3-Ring Circus on 53rd Street near Lexington Avenue. The Mayor helped Sidney Baumgarten, his assistant in charge of cleaning up Midtown, tape a "peremptory vacate order" to the front window of Jax, closing the club. Within a few hours, the club was open again under an order signed by the Justice Theodore Kupferman of the Appellate Division of the state Supreme Court. [New York Times] The main points of the talks that Secretary of State Cyrus Vance will undertake in Moscow next week were outlined by President Carter at a news conference. The United States, the President said, will give priority to getting a Soviet agreement for substantial reductions in the number of strategic missiles and bombers agreed to in 1974 by President Ford and Leonid Brezhnev. The United States will also seek a Soviet agreement barring outside military interference in African affairs, Mr. Carter said. [New York Times] Direct negotiations between the United States and Cuba were begun in New York over an agreement to regulate fishing in the waters between the two countries. The State Department disclosed the meeting in a terse announcement and a spokesman said he expected there would be additional meetings, also in New York, "over the next week or so." [New York Times] Morarji Desai, who was a political prisoner two months ago, was sworn in as India's Prime Minister. He pledged immediately "to drive fear out of the society." His endorsement by the Janata Party, which controls more than half the seats in the newly elected Parliament, had guaranteed him the prime ministership. [New York Times]

Stock Market Report

Dow Jones Industrial Average: 935.67 (-6.65, -0.71%)
S&P Composite: 99.70 (-0.50, -0.50%)
Arms Index: 1.02

	Issues	Volume*
Advances	506	5.89
Declines	870	10.28
Unchanged	506	3.48
Total Volume		19.65

* 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*
March 23, 1977	942.32	100.20	19.36
March 22, 1977	950.96	101.00	18.66
March 21, 1977	953.54	101.31	18.04
March 18, 1977	961.02	101.86	19.84
March 17, 1977	964.84	102.08	20.70
March 16, 1977	968.00	102.17	22.14
March 15, 1977	965.01	101.98	23.94
March 14, 1977	958.36	101.42	19.29
March 11, 1977	947.72	100.65	18.23
March 10, 1977	946.73	100.67	18.52