News stories from Wednesday August 26, 1981
Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:
- Advice on deploying the MX missile was submitted in writing to President Reagan by Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger. Other administration officials confirmed that Mr. Reagan was leaning toward approval of a modified version of the land-basing system formulated by the Carter administration. [New York Times]
- California's produce industry reeled under two devastating announcements. Officials confirmed that the crop-destroying Mediterranean fruit fly had vaulted 280 miles south to Los Angeles County, and Japan decided to require the fumigation of all fruits and vegetables from the state. [New York Times]
- Earnings nearly matched inflation in the year ended July 30 in a sharp reversal of the slippage in the previous year, the government announced. It said that the weekly earnings of full-time workers had risen from a median of $261 to $285, very close to the 9.7 percent increase in consumer prices in the same period. [New York Times]
- No merger of black and white schools would be required under a formula proposed by the Reagan administration to resolve a 1974 desegregation suit against Louisiana's university system. [New York Times]
- A dispute over Richard Nixon's proposed presidential library has accelerated at Duke University. Many faculty members, including most of the history department, have expressed outrage at the proposal to erect a Nixon library on the edge of the Durham, N.C., campus. [New York Times]
- Efforts to curb Cuban interventionism are under intense study by the Reagan administration. The plans include the creation of a broadcasting station similar to Radio Free Europe to beam information to Cuba. [New York Times]
- The Palestinian autonomy talks between Egypt and Israel are to resume on Sept. 23. The decision to revive the long-stalled negotiations was the major announcement made by President Anwar Sadat and Prime Minister Menachem Begin after they ended their 12th meeting in a four-year effort to achieve peace in the Middle East. [New York Times]
- Nigeria will cut the price of crude oil by $4 a barrel in what may be the first in a series of price reductions by the OPEC exporters in the face of the worldwide oil glut. Industry experts said that if the price reduction -- to $36 from $40 a barrel -- were matched by other African producers, gasoline prices in this country could drop by two or three cents a gallon. [New York Times]
- A South African incursion into Angola was acknowledged by Prime Minister P. W. Botha, but he said that an Angolan charge that a major invasion was underway was a "misrepresentation." He said that the operation against guerrillas fighting for the independence of South-West Africa would have ended quickly if Angolan troops had not intervened. [New York Times]
- An American-Korean missile incident was reported by Pentagon officials. They said that a North Korean surface-to-air missile had been fired at, but failed to hit, a United States high-altitude reconnaissance craft flying over South Korea near the demilitarized zone. [New York Times]
- Washington defended a plane sale planned for Saudi Arabia. The administration released a study of Israel's topography and airspace designed to bolster arguments that the proposed sale of five radar aircraft and other advanced equipment would not significantly endanger Israel's security. Israeli officials and some American military specialists contend that the study is not realistic. [New York Times]
- A malfunction struck Voyager 2 as the American spacecraft was racing behind Saturn, out of communication with Earth, and was pulling away after its closest approach to the planet. The failure involved the camera platform's pointing mechanism and affected three scientific sensors and the two television cameras. Officials sought to correct the failure and said that, in any case, the craft should still be able to take many pictures when it reaches Uranus in 1986. [New York Times]
|
Stock Market Report
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 899.26 (-2.57, -0.28%)
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* |
| August 25, 1981 | 901.83 | 125.13 | 54.60 |
| August 24, 1981 | 900.11 | 125.50 | 46.74 |
| August 21, 1981 | 920.57 | 129.23 | 37.67 |
| August 20, 1981 | 928.37 | 130.69 | 38.27 |
| August 19, 1981 | 926.46 | 130.49 | 39.39 |
| August 18, 1981 | 924.37 | 130.11 | 47.26 |
| August 17, 1981 | 926.75 | 131.22 | 40.84 |
| August 14, 1981 | 936.93 | 132.49 | 42.57 |
| August 13, 1981 | 944.35 | 133.51 | 42.44 |
| August 12, 1981 | 945.21 | 133.40 | 53.65 |