News stories from Thursday April 17, 1980

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

Force against Iran was hinted by President Carter, who said that "some sort of military action" seemed to be the only alternative if economic and political sanctions failed to achieve an early release of the American hostages. At a news conference, he announced new economic and political steps, including bans on imports from Iran and on travel there by Americans, except reporters.Iranians have been prepared by their leaders for the imposition of new economic sanctions as a welcome test of the national will. Many Iranians view Western influences as corrupting and want Iran to become economically more self-sufficient. Iran's oil wealth, despite production snags, still gives it great freedom of action. [New York Times] Rhodesia gained independence as the new nation of Zimbabwe, ending decades of struggle by the country's blacks for majority rule. Prince Charles of Britain delivered documents conferring independence on the colony at a ceremony in Salisbury attended by 40,000 guests. [New York Times] John Anderson is preparing to announce an independent presidential campaign, according to close associates, who said that he planned to make the announcement next week before his name is put on the New Jersey ballot. If current polls prove accurate, the Illinois Representative could pose the most serious threat to major party domination of the presidency since Theodore Roosevelt won 28 percent of the popular vote on the Progressive Party ticket in 1912. [New York Times] Discontent over the presidential race is widespread, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News Poll. It found that Ronald Reagan and President Carter represented an unsatisfactory choice to half the American public, but that Mr. Reagan was gaining on the President and was now the only candidate whom more of the public viewed favorably than unfavorably. [New York Times] A plethora of political ads on television in advance of Tuesday's presidential primary in Pennsylvania is a key conversation topic in a working-class neighborhood of Pittsburgh. The television ads on behalf of President Carter and Senator Edward Kennedy seem to have stirred some voters into reconsidering their choices. [New York Times] President Carter cited a slowdown in the economy and said for the first time that a recession had probably begun. He maintained at a televised news conference that "any recession will be mild and short," but the administration moved, in response to growing congressional pressure, to subsidize more housing construction and to cut interest costs to help builders saddled with unsold homes. [New York Times] Military registration of men advanced as a House committee, by a 26-23 vote, approved $13.3 million in new funds for the Selective Service System. The bill, pressed by President Carter, is to be sent to the House next week. Opponents promised a vigorous struggle in the floor debate and contended that the bill faced an uphill battle. [New York Times] Anxiety over the nuclear accident a year ago persists among many people living near the disabled Three Mile Island reactor, according to a study by the Pennsylvania Health Department. The report said that nearly 13 percent of the 37,000 people living within five miles of the plant had become anti-nuclear activists. [New York Times] A Middle East peace plan is blocked by two basic issues, according to President Carter, who said that they involved the duties and composition of a self-governing Palestinian authority in Israeli-occupied territories and how it would be elected. [New York Times]

Stock Market Report

Dow Jones Industrial Average: 768.86 (-2.39, -0.31%)
S&P Composite: 101.05 (-0.49, -0.48%)
Arms Index: 1.06

	Issues	Volume*
Advances	653	11.92
Declines	891	17.30
Unchanged	371	3.55
Total Volume		32.77

* 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*
April 16, 1980	771.25	101.54	39.72
April 15, 1980	783.36	102.63	26.67
April 14, 1980	784.90	102.84	23.06
April 11, 1980	791.55	103.79	29.96
April 10, 1980	791.47	104.08	33.95
April 9, 1980	785.92	103.11	33.02
April 8, 1980	775.00	101.20	31.69
April 7, 1980	768.34	100.19	29.13
April 3, 1980	784.13	102.15	27.96
April 2, 1980	787.80	102.68	35.20