News stories from Thursday June 29, 1978

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

Confidence in President Carter slipped again, according to the latest national poll by the New York Times and CBS News. It found that, possibly because of doubts about his foreign policy leadership, his standing with the public was lower than that of any of the last five presidents after 17 months in office. Faith in his ability to restore trust in government also plunged. [New York Times] The Bakke ruling by the Supreme Court will enable federal agencies to continue vigorous enforcement of anti-discrimination laws, but the government will have to be much more careful when doing so, according to the Justice Department's top civil rights official. He said the government could not now attack amorphous ills such as "societal discrimination" in enforcing laws in such areas as jobs, housing, education and contracts.The Court's decision pointed up the importance of all kinds of categories -- from minorities to quarterbacks -- in the admission process at selective colleges. Campus officials acknowledged that certain groups of applicants were routinely given special attention and defended using priorities to get a right mix of students. [New York Times] Federal executives lost a privilege. The Supreme Court stripped them of absolute immunity from damage suits brought by aggrieved citizens, Voting 5 to 4, the Justices held that government officials with discretionary authority can claim qualified immunity only from civil lawsuits that charge them with an unconstitutional breach of their power. [New York Times] A property tax relief bill has been sent to Gov. James Thompson by Illinois's General Assembly. The bill is a major issue in the gubernatorial campaign because it is opposed by Mr. Thompson and backed by Michael Bakalis, his Democratic challenger. Supporters estimate that the measure would benefit up to 60 percent of Illinois homeowners and tenants with incomes not exceeding $25,000 a year. [New York Times] Up to 40 percent of cancer deaths may be linked to the American way of eating and cooking, according to researchers. They said that Americans' overall diet, which is high in fat, meat and calories, and a preference for charcoal-broiled and fried meats, probably pose a greater cancer-causing potential than do food additives and residues of farm chemicals. [New York Times] The Senate approved federal help for New York City. Voting 53 to 27, the chamber passed legislation to provide the city with $1.5 billion in long-term federal loan guarantees, which the city has said were essential to stave off bankruptcy. The House has approved up to $2 billion in such guarantees so final passage must await action by a Senate-House conference. [New York Times] New York City is drawing tourists in its biggest visitors' boom in history. Taking advantage of cut-rate air fares and cheaper dollars. American and foreign tourists are flooding into the city. Attractions such as Broadway shows, the Empire State Building and the World Trade Center are drawing visitors at record rates. [New York Times] Washington warned Moscow to reflect "very carefully on the broader implications" of its libel charges against two American reporters and said it was viewing the case "with great concern." The Carter administration held out the possibility that the case could affect overall relations and the ability of Soviet and American newsmen to report freely from each other's country.Major Soviet newspapers declared the two American reporters guilty of libel five days before their scheduled court hearing. The correspondents of the New York Times and the Baltimore Sun are charged with libeling Soviet television by reporting charges that a Georgian dissident's TV confession had been fabricated, Western analysts believe Moscow is pressing the case to intimidate foreign reporters. [New York Times] A rise in Soviet military spending of 4 to 5 percent a year in the early 1980's is expected by the Central Intelligence Agency as the Russians test and deploy a new generation of strategic nuclear missiles, planes and submarines. The Carter administration has pledged a 3 percent increase in military spending to its North Atlantic allies. [New York Times] A blast in Jerusalem killed two persons and injured at least thirty-five. The device, believed to have been hidden in a crate of tomatoes, exploded in the city's central market, knocking shoppers down and scattering debris. A Palestinian group reportedly took responsibility for the attack. [New York Times] A split in India's ruling party seemed near after Prime Minister Morarji Desai was said to have asked two senior cabinet ministers to resign. Mr. Desai, at an emergency cabinet meeting called to consider disciplining the two members for public criticism of the Janata Party and government leadership, got formal authorization to take "appropriate action." [New York Times]

Stock Market Report

Dow Jones Industrial Average: 821.64 (+1.73, +0.21%)
S&P Composite: 95.57 (+0.17, +0.18%)
Arms Index: 0.87

	Issues	Volume*
Advances	831	11.31
Declines	585	6.89
Unchanged	463	3.47
Total Volume		21.67

* 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*
June 28, 1978	819.91	95.40	23.27
June 27, 1978	817.31	94.98	29.28
June 26, 1978	812.28	94.60	29.25
June 23, 1978	823.02	95.85	28.53
June 22, 1978	827.70	96.24	27.17
June 21, 1978	824.93	96.01	29.11
June 20, 1978	830.04	96.51	27.92
June 19, 1978	838.62	97.49	25.50
June 16, 1978	836.97	97.42	27.70
June 15, 1978	844.25	98.34	29.28