News stories from Wednesday March 20, 1974
Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:
- The House Judiciary Committee headed into its first serious party-line dispute over a demand by the President's attorney that he play an active role in the impeachment inquiry. In two letters to the committee, James St. Clair said it was "imperative" that he be allowed "to cross-examine witnesses, suggest witnesses to be called and to introduce relevant and material evidence." At separate caucuses the committee's Democratic majority decided to oppose the request and the Republicans supported it. [New York Times]
- Federal Judge John Sirica refused to grant a delay of more than 24 hours in sending a secret grand jury report to the House Judiciary Committee, and the matter was taken to the Court of Appeals. [New York Times]
- Senator James Buckley's call for President Nixon's resignation gained no visible converts among conservative Republicans, drew a stack of angry telegrams and evoked glee in some Democratic circles. An Associated Press poll showed that Mr. Buckley and Edward Brooke of Massachusetts were the only two Republican Senators in favor of Mr. Nixon's resignation, while 15 Democratic Senators said they believed the President should resign. [New York Times]
- A former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission testified at the Mitchell-Stans trial that John Dean had made at least four telephone calls -- one at the behest of John Mitchell -- concerning Robert Vesco's problems with the S.E.C. William Casey said that in one call, Mr. Dean, then the President's counsel, asked the S.E.C. to delay its investigation a week, until after the 1972 election, out of fear of "some kind of last-minute smear." [New York Times]
- Citing increased car sales, the General Motors Corporation canceled scheduled layoffs for 27,000 workers at seven plants over the next two weeks. A spokesman said that the decision had been influenced by a better outlook for the spring selling season as a result of the easing of the Arab oil embargo. Among those affected by the decision are 3,400 workers at G.M.'s Tarrytown, N.Y., plant who had been scheduled for a layoff in two weeks. [New York Times]
- Six days before the crash of a DC-10 that killed 346 people in the worst airline disaster, the plane's manufacturer balked at a federal request for a review of safety measures to prevent the type of explosive decompression most experts believe caused the tragedy. [New York Times]
- Chet Huntley, the former television newscaster, died in Montana. He was 62 years old and had undergone surgery for abdominal cancer two months ago. [New York Times]
- A gunman in London fired several shots into a car carrying Princess Anne and her husband, Capt. Mark Phillips, but the couple were unhurt in what the government called a kidnapping attempt. Four other persons were seriously wounded, however, when the gunman opened fire after ambushing the royal car near Buckingham Palace. After wounding the Princess's bodyguard, her chauffeur, a policeman and a passerby, the gunman was reportedly seized as he tried to enter the car. [New York Times]
- West Germany has made a compromise proposal to answer American complaints that the European Common Market nations do not consult adequately with Washington before making important decisions. Under the terms of the German proposal, the Common Market's Political Consultation Group, which prepares decision papers for the Common Market ministers, would invite American comment before recommendations on important questions are referred to the ministers for final decision. [New York Times]
- Apparently fearing that increased oil supplies would lead to lower prices, some Arab nations are still not relaxing production cutbacks imposed last October despite the lifting of the embargo on shipments to the United States. Though Saudi Arabia announced an immediate production increase and is expected to produce more than her pre-October levels, both Kuwait and Libya indicated that their cutbacks would be maintained. The result may be only a slow decline of international oil prices. [New York Times]
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Stock Market Report
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 872.34 (+4.77, +0.55%)
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 19, 1974 | 867.57 | 97.23 | 12.80 |
| March 18, 1974 | 874.22 | 98.05 | 14.01 |
| March 15, 1974 | 887.83 | 99.28 | 14.50 |
| March 14, 1974 | 889.78 | 99.65 | 19.77 |
| March 13, 1974 | 891.66 | 99.74 | 16.82 |
| March 12, 1974 | 887.12 | 99.15 | 17.25 |
| March 11, 1974 | 888.45 | 98.88 | 18.47 |
| March 8, 1974 | 878.05 | 97.78 | 16.21 |
| March 7, 1974 | 869.06 | 96.94 | 14.50 |
| March 6, 1974 | 879.85 | 97.98 | 19.14 |