Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!enterpoop.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!americast-post Newsgroups: americast.twt.metro From: americast-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: americast-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: Headline Article Date: Mon, 23 Nov 92 15:07:21 EST Message-ID: Lines: 96 \SE B;METROPOLITAN;MONEY;BUSINESS ROUNDUP \BY FROM WIRE DISPATCHES AND STAFF REPORTS S=NEW STORY Clinton role seen in USAir deal The Bush administration is likely to consult with President-elect Bill Clinton before deciding whether to approve a controversial alliance between British Airways and USAir, a Bush aide said yesterday. Speaking on ABC's "This Week With David Brinkley," Sam Skinner, former transportation secretary and former White House chief of staff, said he believed Andrew Card, the current secretary, would consult Mr. Clinton before ruling on a deal to give the British carrier 44 percent of USAir's stock and a 21 percent voting stake. Mr. Card has said he will rule on the alliance by Dec. 24. S=NEW STORY French attacks stun McDonald's PARIS - McDonald's, dismayed at being singled out for attack by French farmers over a European Community trade deal with the United States, said yesterday it was not responsible for the farmers' problems and was surprised to be a target. "All the produce sold in our restaurants comes from French and European suppliers," Chicago-based McDonald's said. Hundreds of farmers furious at the EC-U.S. trade deal forced the closure of one McDonald's in Amiens in northern France Saturday night. Protesters in nearby Lille picketed and demanded free burgers for their children. S=NEW STORY OPEC faces recurring problems LONDON - OPEC faces the unpleasant task this week of tackling a combination of chronic problems: weak oil prices and political squabbling among its members at a meeting in Vienna on Wednesday. Members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries - excluding Iraq - are pumping too much oil, and many analysts doubt OPEC has the willpower to impose quotas that will prop up the price. S=NEW STORY Gas prices take a fall LOS ANGELES - Motorists paid slightly less for gasoline these past two weeks as retailers cut pump prices because of an oversupply at refineries, an industry analyst said yesterday. The overall average price of all grades of gasoline, including taxes, was $1.194 per gallon on Nov. 20, a drop of 0.74 cents per gallon from the Nov. 6 survey, according to the twice-monthly Lundberg survey of 12,000 gas stations nationwide. Environmental Protection Agency rules forced refineries to oxygenate gasoline to make it burn cleaner, but oil companies overproduced, bringing prices down. S=NEW STORY French won't veto EC pact - yet PARIS - The French government said yesterday it had no immediate plans to veto an agreement over farm subsidies clinched last week between European Community and U.S. negotiators, despite its stong objections to the pact. Foreign Minister Roland Dumas said any veto would have to wait until after negotiations are completed on a broader pact to liberalize world trade that is being drafted by the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. Mr. Dumas told French TV, "There will be no text on which we can vote immediately and consequently on which we could exercise a right of veto. Only at the end of the [GATT] negotiations will everything be put on the table and we can decide." Prime Minister Pierre Beregovoy reiterated his opposition to the oilseed deal. "I respect America but I cannot accept the interests of French farmers being flouted in the name of American interests." S=NEW STORY Retailer eyes Woolworth stores HAMBURG, Germany - Kaufhof AG, a German retailer, may be interested in buying Woolworth Corp.'s 500 stores in Germany for $1.1 billion, the weekly newsmagazine Der Spiegel reports in its edition out today. The magazine says Kaufhof's managing board chairman made an offer to buy Woolworth's German operations a year ago, but the offer was rejected. Earlier this month, New York-based Woolworth said it may dispose of some or all of its general-merchandise and specialty-store operations in Germany, other than its Foot Locker stores. This article is copyright 1992 The Washington Times. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM