News stories from Wednesday December 26, 1973
Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:
- President Nixon met with his chief energy adviser, William Simon. The President hinted that gasoline rationing won't be necessary to deal with the energy crisis. Simon will announce the government's final plans regarding rationing tomorrow. [CBS]
- President Nixon may fly to California aboard a commercial airliner to conserve energy. [CBS]
- The few gas stations which remained open on Christmas named their own prices. Prices were highest in Brooklyn -- 99.9 cents per gallon. That station was closed today only because no fuel was left in the tanks. Other station owners in the area may raise their prices since one station got away with it. But the IRS announced that the station owner in Brooklyn may be fined $2,500 for violating the price limit. The IRS checked gasoline stations across the country in November and December and discovered 10,000 violations. [CBS]
- The Christmas holiday death toll on the nation's highways was remarkably low. The National Transportation Safety Council attributed the low figure to lower speeds and less travel. In Rhode Island, the state ordered auto insurance rates covering injuries be reduced 10% because of changing driving patterns. [CBS]
- The stock market jumped after Arabs relaxed their oil boycotts in Western Europe and Japan. Analysts believe that investors feel more optimistic about the possibility of avoiding a worldwide recession, but even lifting the oil embargo to the United States won't solve all of America's problems. [CBS]
- President Nixon and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger met to discuss general U.S. foreign policy. Soviet ambassador Dobrynin joined Kissinger and the President later. No details of the meeting were released. [CBS]
- A bill providing emergency aid to Israel was signed by President Nixon. [CBS]
- Israeli and Egyptian military officers met in Geneva to discuss troop disengagement along the Suez front. The head of United Nations peace-keeping forces, General Siilasvuo, presided over the meeting. [CBS]
- Israel will hold national elections next week. Golda Meir's government may be replaced with a right-wing government. The key issue of the election deals with the Geneva peace conference. Opposition leader Menachem Begin remains uncompromising regarding troop disengagement, and Begin's party has gained ground in polls. [CBS]
- French security agents arrested 13 pro-Palestinian terrorists who hoped to launch more attacks in Western Europe; weapons were confiscated also. United Press International reported that the Arab guerrillas who were responsible for the fire bombing and hijacking in Rome originally intended to assassinate Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. [CBS]
- National elections were held in Denmark earlier this month. Denmark's military will be abolished along with the country's income tax. Mogens Glistrup of the New Progress party says he plans to cut politicians, authors and university teachers from the public payroll if he gets his way. Glistrup admitted that Denmark may be unsafe without an armed forces, but he added that it's not safe with them either. The nation's new defense system will consist of a Russian language recording announcing Denmark's surrender. [CBS]
- Chinese Communist party leader Mao Tse-tung celebrated his 80th birthday. [CBS]
- The special Watergate prosecutor said that White House tapes and documents don't support the dairy industry's charge against the Nixon administration. [CBS]
- An aide to Republican Senator Edward Gurney reported that Gurney won't leave the Senate Watergate Committee; Gurney is now under investigation. [CBS]
- Just before he was appointed by Ohio Governor John Gilligan to fill the vacated Senate seat of William Saxbe, Democrat Howard Metzenbaum paid back taxes he owed to the IRS. [CBS]
- A couple in Schenectady, New York, may have frozen to death after the power company turned off their heat. Frank and Catherine Baker were both in their 90's. A neighbor said that she recalled a man from the power company cutting electricity to the Baker home. The company reported than an employee's personal decision led to the power being turned off. [CBS]
- The Soviet Union's Soyuz 13 spacecraft returned safely to earth. [CBS]
- New York City decided to provide a system to save on gasoline and see the sights. "Culture Loop" buses go past or near tourist attractions in the city. The buses visit Manhattan and Brooklyn but not Queens. [CBS]
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Stock Market Report
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 837.56 (+22.75, +2.79%)
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* |
| December 24, 1973 | 814.81 | 92.90 | 11.54 |
| December 21, 1973 | 818.73 | 93.54 | 18.68 |
| December 20, 1973 | 828.11 | 94.55 | 17.43 |
| December 19, 1973 | 829.57 | 94.82 | 20.67 |
| December 18, 1973 | 829.49 | 94.74 | 19.49 |
| December 17, 1973 | 811.12 | 92.75 | 12.93 |
| December 14, 1973 | 815.65 | 93.29 | 20.00 |
| December 13, 1973 | 800.43 | 92.38 | 18.13 |
| December 12, 1973 | 810.73 | 93.57 | 18.19 |
| December 11, 1973 | 834.18 | 96.04 | 20.10 |