News stories from Friday December 17, 1982
Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:
- In further debate on MX missiles, the Senate adopted a compromise endorsed by President Reagan that would give him the money to purchase the missiles, but prevent him from spending it until Congress approved. The Senate also accepted the President's stipulation that would force Congress to forgo a prolonged debate and vote on the missile system this spring. [New York Times]
- Anne Gorsuch's citation of contempt of Congress is being fought by the Reagan administration. The House cited Mrs. Gorsuch, head of the Environmental Protection Agency, for refusing, at President Reagan's direction, to turn over subpoenaed documents about her agency's efforts to enforce a law requiring the cleanup of hazardous waste dumps. Leaders of the House warned that the administration was advocating obstruction of justice and setting the stage for a constitutional crisis. An assistant Attorney General said the Justice Department filed a suit challenging the House directive. [New York Times]
- Crime in the Sun Belt has begun to rival the North in the level of sophistication. Drug trafficking, organized car theft, prostitution, pornography rings and complex fraud and money-laundering operations are among the growing number of criminal activities that confront law enforcement officials in the South. [New York Times]
- Chrysler employees ratified, by a 79.5 percent margin, a contract that will give them a pay increase and restore cost-of-living increases, providing more than $2,200 to each worker in its 11-month term. Chrysler's Canadian employees approved a similar agreement by a 90 percent margin Sunday, ending a five-week strike. [New York Times]
- Fallout from nuclear weapons tests in Utah contributed to a high incidence of cancer deaths and illnesses, attorneys for a group of residents who lived near the testing grounds concluded in closing arguments in Salt Lake City's federal district court. In rebuttal, a Justice Department lawyer said that defense attorneys had produced some "inspiring rhetoric" but little hard evidence that the atomic testing had resulted in death and illness. [New York Times]
- A change in Soviet intelligence chiefs appeared to be linked to moves by Yuri Andropov, the new Communist Party leader, to step up a Kremlin campaign against corruption and crime, two major reponsibilities of the Internal Affairs Ministry. Vitaly Fedorchuk, who had been head of the K.G.B. security and intelligence organization for the last seven months, was appointed Internal Affairs Minister. He was succeeded at the K.G.B. by one of his top deputies, Viktor Chebrikov. [New York Times]
- A further drop in oil prices is a possibility in 1983, industry experts say, as the OPEC ministers gather in Vienna to discuss how to reverse the recent decline. Predictions of a continuing fall below OPEC's basic $34 a barrel price have raised fears that a decline could so reduce revenues for such exporting countries as Mexico and Nigeria by so much that they could not repay their foreign debts, placing the strained international banking system under further stress. [New York Times]
- Lech Walesa will continue to fight for his outlawed trade union Solidarity, "but only by peaceful means," he told foreign journalists after his detention Thursday, which prevented him from addressing a rally in Gdansk. [New York Times]
- Three men who are wanted in Italy in connection with the shooting of the Pope were presented by Bulgarian authorities at a news conference in Sofia. All three denied any involvement in the attack. Bulgaria's prosecutor general invited an Italian magistrate to come to Sofia to question the three men. [New York Times]
- Allegations of a Bulgarian connection in the attempted assassination of the Pope last year were treated skeptically by Israeli and West German intelligence and security sources. Intelligence agencies in both countries, however, regard Bulgaria and other Soviet bloc countries as important links in a terrorist network. [New York Times]
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Stock Market Report
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 1011.50 (+21.25, +2.15%)
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 16, 1982 | 990.25 | 135.30 | 73.69 |
| December 15, 1982 | 992.64 | 135.24 | 81.05 |
| December 14, 1982 | 1009.38 | 137.39 | 98.38 |
| December 13, 1982 | 1024.28 | 139.95 | 63.13 |
| December 10, 1982 | 1018.76 | 139.57 | 86.43 |
| December 9, 1982 | 1027.96 | 140.00 | 90.31 |
| December 8, 1982 | 1047.09 | 141.81 | 97.43 |
| December 7, 1982 | 1056.94 | 142.72 | 111.62 |
| December 6, 1982 | 1055.65 | 141.77 | 83.89 |
| December 3, 1982 | 1031.36 | 138.69 | 71.57 |