News stories from Monday December 17, 1979
Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:
- The militant Iranians occupying the American Embassy and holding 50 hostages in Teheran express the will of the people and are not setting a separate foreign policy, Ayatollah Khomeini said. Broadcast comments by the Iranian leader left in doubt whether Iran would react to the flight of the Shah from the United States to Panama by carrying out a threat to try the captives for espionage.
Washington expressed frustration over the disagreements in the Iranian leadership over American hostages in Teheran and vowed that new economic pressures would be exerted on Iran unless the captives were freed.
[New York Times] - The taking of hostages is outlawed in a code approved without dissent by the United Nations General Assembly. The convention requires signers to prosecute hostage-takers or return them to their homelands to stand trial "without exception whatsoever." Adoption of the code culminates a three-year effort begun by West Germany. [New York Times]
- Approval of a "windfall" profits tax on the oil industry was voted by the Senate, 74 to 24. The Senate version of President Carter's proposed levy, believed to be the largest single tax ever imposed on an industry, would increase federal revenues by $178 billion from 1980 to 1990. The bill passed last summer by the House of Representatives would raise about $276 billion. The measures must be reconciled by a conference committee. [New York Times]
- Higher Iranian oil prices were confirmed by Teheran's oil minister, who said that the charge would be raised by $5 a barrel to $28.50, or nearly 68 cents a gallon. The announcement was made at the opening in Caracas of a ministerial meeting of the petroleum exporting countries and heightened speculation that they would be unable to agree on a uniform price for 1980. [New York Times]
- Chicago transit workers struck for the first time since 1922, leaving more than a million commuters scrambling for alternative ways to get to work in 5-degree weather. The walkout was precipitated by Chicago's effort to cut the cost-of-living increase provision in the workers' contract. [New York Times]
- Concern over prescribed sleeping pills, used by nearly 9 million Americans, has prompted the government to begin a campaign to inform doctors and the public about sleep disorders and their proper treatment. The Surgeon General said that the pills were involved in more than one-third of drug-related deaths of Americans. [New York Times]
- Information on how a poll is taken must be disclosed under a code adopted by a group of 16 polling organizations, including some of the nation's largest. The aim is to allow the public to assess the reliability of opinion surveys at a time when they are gaining in both influence and frequency. [New York Times]
- A final accord on Rhodesia was reached as leaders of the Patriotic Front guerrillas accepted a British cease-fire plan aimed at ending the seven-year civil war. The agreement, achieved after 14 weeks of intensive negotiations in London, also provides for a new independence constitution and early parliamentary elections. The guerrilla leaders said that private assurances by Britain had helped convince them of fair treatment under the truce. [New York Times]
- A curb on some abortions was given preliminary approval in the Israeli Parliament. The elimination of a provision allowing abortions for family and other social reasons was adopted on a first reading and is expected to win final passage. [New York Times]
- The blocking of aid to Cambodians by the Phnom Penh government was reported by the Red Cross, which warned that relief shipments of food and medicine might not continue indefinitely if the authorities did not distribute them. A Red Cross official said after an inspection tour that very little of about 33,000 tons of supplies delivered had been given out. [New York Times]
- East German military spending will be increased as part of a program to strengthen the power and efficiency of the Warsaw Pact, the country's Defense Minister announced. [New York Times]
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Stock Market Report
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 844.62 (+1.87, +0.22%)
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 14, 1979 | 842.75 | 108.92 | 41.82 |
| December 13, 1979 | 836.09 | 107.67 | 36.70 |
| December 12, 1979 | 835.67 | 107.52 | 34.66 |
| December 11, 1979 | 833.70 | 107.49 | 36.16 |
| December 10, 1979 | 833.87 | 107.67 | 32.27 |
| December 7, 1979 | 833.19 | 107.52 | 42.38 |
| December 6, 1979 | 835.07 | 108.00 | 37.51 |
| December 5, 1979 | 828.41 | 107.25 | 39.33 |
| December 4, 1979 | 824.91 | 106.79 | 33.53 |
| December 3, 1979 | 819.62 | 105.83 | 29.03 |