European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 21, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Tuesday january 21, 1992 the stars and stripes b Page 17money matter today s tip United technologies corp. Plans to announce a major restructuring this week aimed at cutting $1 billion in costs Over the next two years a spokesman said. The Hartford conn., aerospace giant which supplies the . Military with helicopters Jet engines and other equipment last year suffered its first annual operating loss in two decades. Etc plans to announce restructuring plans today after meeting with analysts in the grand Hyatt hotel in new York Etc spokesman Peter Murphy  rates London up mondays rates for the . Dollar to other currencies. Figures Are expressed in dollars to the British Pound other local currencies in dollars Gold was quoted at $358.75 an ounce Silver at $4.25. Jan. 17 Jan. 20 British pound.1.7810 1.7989 German mark.1.6030 1.5990 French franc.5.5475 5.4190 dutch guilder.1.8372 1.7989 belgian franc.33.23 32.80 italian lira.1,224.80 1,196.15 Swiss franc.1.4280 1.4105 greek drachma.188.15 183.12 turkish lira.5,426.00 5,395.00 saudi arabian rtyal.3.7501 3.7498 Spanish peseta.103.23 100.50 portuguese escudo.141.00 137.30 Canadian dollar.1.1530 1.1493 austrian schilling.11.4700 11.1650 norwegian krone.6.4100 6.2370 danish krone.6.3200 6.1550 these Are commercial rates and can be related Only to the use of foreign currency by . Forces for official business. The Only official rate concerns the Sale of German Marks to . Personnel for personal use and this will be 1.55 through tuesday based on mondays noontime  leaves first National amid losses san Diego a the president and chief executive of first National corp. Left the banking company As it announced a $10.3 million loss for 1991 and a tenfold increase in its provision for possible loan losses. Michael West and first National mutually agreed that West should leave first National chairman Malin Burnham said in a statement. West remains As a major shareholder and will assist the Bank on some projects Burnham said. Bank president Tom Lahay will fill West a position until a successor is selected Burnham said. First nationals 1991 loss which amounted to $2.88 per share was of 1990�?Ts profit of $6.5 million or $1.78 per snare. Sharp reversal first National lost $7.6 million or $2.11 per share in the fourth Quarter of 1991, compared with a 1990 fourth Quarter net income of $1.8 million or 50 cents per share officials said. Deteriorating Loans were blamed in part for the losses Burnham said. For the fourth Quarter the Bank a provisions for potential loan losses were $10.8 million a jump from $925,000 the year before. For the year provisions for loan losses were $24 million up from $2.6 million. Companies leave jobs unfilled because applicants Lack skills by John Cunniff the associated press new York with 8.9 million americans officially unemployed another 1.1 million listed As discouraged Iob Market dropouts and 6.3 million involuntarily working part time its hard to believe companies cannot fill openings. But the companies say its so. One reason they give they can to find Good workers. Its a matter of abilities they say citing a total Lack of skills in Many instances and serious educational social and skill analysis deficiencies among masses of Young people. Those who have studied the problem see it As a less measurable but far More serious and costly subtraction from the Gross National product than the often temporary jobless figures so highly publicized each month. Not Only does the problem of skill deficiencies raise those jobless rates but it is Basic to dozens of other economic and social difficulties including Low product Quality Lack of competitiveness crime and poor corporate profits. The problem is motivation for an expected White House Job training proposal that will at least begin attacking the problem. But unlike Federal actions such As tax Relief it might take Many years to produce results. One year ago the National association of manufacturers and human resources consultant towers Perrin surveyed 4,000 member companies about the situation. While the response rate was Only 10 percent the findings were significant. The Survey revealed for example that the average manufacturer rejects five out of every six candidates for a Job and that two thirds of companies regularly reject applicants As unfit for the work environment. A third of the companies said they regularly reject applicants because they cannot read or write adequately and one fourth reject them because of i abilities with communications and Basic mathematics. As for those already employed More than half the companies reported major employee skill deficiencies in Basic math Reading and solving problems. As a consequence the report stated american companies Are crippled in applying technological advances and in otherwise improving productivity which is the source of improved living standards. Two findings demonstrated Why a thirty percent of companies said they could t reorganize work activities because employees  learn new jobs. A Twenty five percent said they were unable to improve product Quality because workers  learn the needed skills. The Survey found that More than 55 percent of the respondents provided training programs usually in Quality and productivity enhancement but Only 20 percent or fewer offered remedial education and Basic skills. Ominously one in four companies responded to the problem of poor work skills by lowering entry level standards in part because they believed they had no other Choice but to do so no matter what the Impact on Quality. The future according to the Survey looks grim a sixty percent of new jobs will require More than a High school education. However 70 percent of new entrants into the work Force will have less than a High school  in Short not Only is the nations com source . Dept of labor a Carl Fox Eti Riveness and future Standard of living eing damaged but social problems Are being created and compounded a a the seeds of a new underclass a according to the report. It called for companies to boost school Reform through involvement in school to work transition programs but it conceded that Industry to Date has developed Little consensus on legislative or regulatory action. Pm chairman blames bad press for pessimism about . Autos Detroit apr consumer criticism spurred by a hostile Media has crippled the . Auto Market and obscured recent Progress at general motors corp., chairman Robert Stempel said in a Magazine interview. A i Haven to seen anything anywhere a to print Media a that suggests anything done in the . Is Good a Stempel told time Magazine in the Jan. 27 Issue which hit Newsstands monday. A certainly the automakers Haven to had Good press on Quality Gas mileage transmission smoothness. But Stempel acknowledged a turnaround in the Media on Gmys 1992 Cadillac Seville which won several automotive press awards. A i am pleased at the reaction on the new Seville a he said. A finally we be seen some  Stempel has led the no. 1 automaker for 18 months. He accompanied president Bush and leaders of the other big three automakers to Japan this month for talks aimed at opening that nations Market to american vehicles. Critics charge that the japanese have excessive Trade restrictions that prevent .-built vehicles from entering the Market. In the interview with time Stempel refuted claims that . Automakers have not tried to tailor vehicles for japanese Consumers by placing the steering wheel on the right siae of the car and by making other alterations. A the right hand steering wheel is a red herring a he said. A one third of Vwg a autos Are sold there with left hand drives. In the upper Price classes the majority Are sold that Way. A however Stempel said pm would ship new Saturn models there with right Side drive. The Trade talks followed Stempele a announcement last month that pm would close 21 plants and eliminate 74,000 jobs As part of a massive downsizing. The automaker lost about $2.1 billion in 1991. Stempel did not name any facilities that would close but he did say one of two similar Assembly plants in Arlington Texas and a Plant near Ypsilanti mich., would be shut Down. Both make the same Large rear wheel drive models. Poll of cos indicates gloomy Outlook new York a even the leaders of americans fastest growing companies have grown pessimistic about the Economy according to a quarterly Survey released sunday. After months of optimism the chief executive officers turned sharply gloomy by the end of last year the Survey said. The quarterly poll of 210 cos was conducted by Coopers amp Lybrand a Large new York based accounting and consulting firm. The companies surveyed ranged in size from $1 million in annual sales to $50 million. A was the recession winds on cos even of companies enjoying rapid growth Are becoming alarmed at the Lack of consumer Confidence a said Daniel j. Of Brien National director of Coopers amp Lybrandt a emerging business services. The Survey said 42 percent of chief executive officers were optimistic in the last Quarter about the Economy a direction. That was Down sharply from the 64 percent who expressed optimism in 1991 s third Quarter. The Survey also showed that outright pessimism at amt the next year has nearly doubled and that High growth firms Are scaling Back plans to boost employment