Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.banks From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: banks Tue, Apr 7 1992 Date: Tue, 7 Apr 92 05:44:02 EDT Message-ID: 04-07 0000 DECISIONLINE: Banking & Economy USA TODAY Update April 7, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network JOB MARKET TIGHT: College seniors face a grim job market upon graduation, according to the college Placement Council's March salary survey. The survey found students with job offers are getting starting salaries about the same as last year's, when they barely kept pace with a 3% inflation rate. College placement directors surveyed say they've seen a 15% to 20% decrease in on-campus recruiting. BOND FUNDS LOSE MONEY: Bond mutual funds have not been the land of opportunity that many investors who left low-yielding bank certificates of deposit thought. The average government securities fund - the most popular type of bond fund - fell 2% the first quarter, Lipper Analytical Services reported Monday. And that includes dividends, which the funds paid at a 12-month rate of 7.7%. GM ANNOUNCES CHANGES: General Motors cleaned house in a surprise move Monday afternoon by Chairman Robert Stempel. Heading the new team: President John Smith, who's been head of GM's highly successful international operations the past four years. Smith takes over for previous GM president Lloyd Reuss. Also promoted: William Hoglund, GM's new chief financial officer, who replaces demoted Robert T. O'Connell. PROFIT KEY TO MOVES: In a statement prepared on GM's corporate restructuring moves Monday, the company said, "Regaining profitability requires a more aggressive management approach to remove excess costs, while keeping GM's focus on customer satisfaction with the new high quality, high value vehicles." Analysts say GM's board may have been instrumental in the changes. OIL STOCKS HELP DOW: Gains by oil stocks such as Mobil, Texaco and Exxon, and computerized buy programs linked to futures markets helped lift the Dow higher Monday. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 26.38 points to 3275.49. Other indexes also climbed. Advancers beat decliners 1,027 to 694 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume was 180 million shares. DOW TO REMAIN IN RANGE: Despite a gain of more than 26 points in the Dow Monday, traders generally say investors will keep the Dow within its recent range of 3200 to 3300. Investors "have a little more confidence," says James Andrews, head trader at Janney Montgomery Scott. "But there's still not a lot of volume. It (was) a very quiet rally." CONSUMER DEBT DOWN: Consumer installment debt fell slightly in February despite a big increase in credit-card borrowing, the Federal Reserve said Monday. Consumer debt fell at a 0.3% seasonally adjusted annual rate to $729 billion after rising 0.1% in January. Consumer installment debt includes all loans except mortgages and home equity loans. INTEREST RATES DOWN: Interest rates on short-term Treasury securities fell in Monday's auction to the lowest level in seven weeks. The Treasury Department sold $11.5 billion in three-month bills at an average discount rate of 3.95%, down from 4.08% last week. It also sold $11.5 billion in six-month bills at an average discount rate of 4.02% vs. 4.19% last week. OIL PRICES UP: Oil prices reached new highs for the past year Monday. Light sweet crude oil for delivery in May settled at $20.45 per barrel, up 16 cents, on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest mark for the benchmark U.S. crude since early December. Oil has been rising sharply recently amid cold weather in the Northeast and production cuts by OPEC members. GOLD DOWN, SILVER UP MONDAY: Gold prices declined in worldwide trading Monday, but silver was up. On the New York Commodity Exchange, gold bullion for current delivery settled at $340.40 a troy ounce, off 80 cents. Gold fell in London to a late bid price of $339.35 a troy ounce from $340.90. Silver bullion for current delivery settled at $4.099 a troy ounce on the Comex, up from $4.076. DOW JONES OPENS ON UPSWING: The Dow Jones average of 30 industrials opens Tuesday at 3275.49, after closing up 26.38 Monday. The New York Stock Exchange composite opens at 223.79, up 1.93. The American Stock Exchange market value opens at 391.57, up 2.35. The NASDAQ OTC composite opens at 596.29, up 6.28. DOLLAR OPENS MIXED OVERSEAS: The dollar opens mostly down on Tuesday. It opens at 0.5719 British pounds, down from 0.5726; 5.4948 French francs, down from 5.5350; 1.6240 German marks, unchanged; and 132.81 Japanese yen, down from 133.23. (As of 3 p.m. Monday. Source: First American Bank of New York.) 24-HOUR TELEPHONE INFORMATION: USA TODAY Money Hot Line. 95 cents a minute. 1-900-555-5555. Banking & Economy Editor: Jason P. Smith. (919-855-3491) Making copies of USA TODAY Update (Copyright, 1992) for further distribution violates federal law. This article is copyright 1992 Gannett News Service. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM