European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - March 14, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Saturday March 14, 1992 the stars and stripes b Page 17money matter today s tip a is. Foundation program to help Low income women get started in business has granted More than $2 million in Loans and created hundreds of Obs feminist Gloria Steinem said thursday. A there is a special need for capital for Small businesses at the grass roots level a said Steinem president of the foundation affiliated with is. Magazine. Steinem spoke at a briefing in new York to report on the Progress of the collaborative fund for women a economic development since it was created in 1990, when the nation began slipping into recession. The fund which received its first donations last year divides $2.29 million from 13 sponsors among 15 programs. Sponsors donate a minimum of $150,000 each. They include by America inc., the Ford foundation Hitachi foundation and the Rockefeller Brothers  rates London up fridays 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 $347.00 an ounce Silver at $4.11. March 12 March 13 British Pound.1,7103 1.7118 German mark.1.6750 1.6680 French franc.5.6730 5.6640 dutch guilder.1.8810 1.8792 belgian franc.34.49 34.44 italian lira.1,252.15 1,250.85 Swiss franc.1.5165 1.5105 greek drachma.192.30 192.63 turkish lira.6,012.90 6,037.50 saudi arabian rtyal.3.7501 3.7502 Spanish peseta.105.25 105.57 portuguese escudo.143.66 143.88 Canadian dollar.1.1930 1.1962 austrian schilling.11.740 11.755 norwegian krone.6.539 6.548 danish krone.6.4715 6.4780 these Are commercial rates and can be related Only to the use of foreign currency by . Forces for official business. The Only official rates concerns the Sale of British pounds and German Marks to . Personnel for personal use. Through monday these will be 1.63 Marks to a Dollar and $1.76 for a Pound based on Price fixings Friday afternoon at military banking  York Exchange new York up a York Stock Exchange Stock Silicon graphic Tel Fonos Damn Gap inc Glaxo holdings Rwjr Nabisco hid Philip Morris Amer express co at amp to company general motors Dayton Hudson ism Corn Uniss corp Black amp Decker Wal Mart stores Micron tech inc the 15 most Active stocks in new composite trading on thursday. Sales last Nat chg 5.896.500 21% Quot 2.906.000 53% 2.199.900 44% 1.686.400 27% 1.635.400 9% 1,563,200 77% 1.555.000 21 1.547.800 37% 1.466.900 37% 1.396.400 61% 1,349,700 89% 1.292.800 8% 1,258,300 23% 1.251.800 52% 1.251.500 16 off 4% off 1 up 1% up off % up off % off % up off 5% up1% off a off up off american Exchange new York american Stock Stock Conti air Hodgs Wang labs inc b Echo Bay mines Chambers Dev a pall corp magma Copper co inti Corona us Bio science Weatherford inc Nabors Industry a the 10 most Active stocks in Ange composite trading thursday. Saias last Nat chg. 2,093,500 1% up % 495.200 6% off % 424.700 7% off % 410,600 29 off1% 354.700 26% unch 305.700 9% off % 276,500 3% up % 264,800 15% of 220,000 3% off % 203,400 6% off Dow Jones new York up Dow Jones closing Range of averages thursday it go Low close change 30 industrials 3232.33 3176.21 3206.63 unch 20 transport 1406.58 1379.30 1393.12 up 3.17 15 utilities 205.93 203.30 204.43 off 0.13 65 stocks 1167.02 1146.75 1157.69 up 0.69 smoking ban does t Hurt restaurants professor finds san Francisco up Laws that ban smoking in restaurants do not Hurt business at the eateries according to a study. The study was prepared by Stanton a. Glantz a professor of Medicine at the University of California at san Francisco and a longtime foe of the tobacco Industry. Researchers comparing sales figures in cities that had such no smoking ordinances with cities that did not said the Only change they found was a slight increase in restaurants share of total retail sales. The data released by the University a Institute for health policy studies counters contentions by the tobacco Industry that no smoking ordinances have reduced restaurant business by 30 percent. The researchers said the Industry a claim apparently persuaded the Beverly Hills City Council in 1987 to repeal the first 100 percent smoke free restaurant ordinance in California Only five months after it went into effect. A the Overall conclusion from these data is that 100 percent smoke free restaurant ordinances do not adversely affect restaurant sales within a Community or Lead to a shift in patronage to restaurants in communities with no such ordinances a Glantz said. A the fact that we failed to detect a significant falloff in business in 1991 despite generally poor economic conditions adds Confidence to the general conclusion that smoke free restaurant ordinances Are not bad for  Glantzis conclusions were based on data from the California state Board of equalization on taxable restaurant sales from january 1986 to june 1991 for Beverly Hills. The researchers compared that information with sales data for the communities of Bellflower Lodi and san Luis Obispo Calif. The cities had smoke free restaurant ordinances in effect for at lower Lodi and san Luis Obispo where no smoking ordinances in 1990 and 1991 caused no apparent downturn in restaurant sales. The University researchers said they also looked at restaurant business in comparable California cities without smoking restrictions a Lakewood los Angeles Woodland and Atascadero a and found no significant differences in sales trends during the same period. The study did find in the four cities with 100 percent smoke free restaurants a the Overall conclusion from these data is that 100 percent smoke free restaurant ordinances do not adversely affect restaurant sales within a Community or Lead to a shift in patronage to restaurants in communities with no such ordinances a professor Stanton a Glantz least one year. Working with Glantz was Lisa . Smith a policy analyst at the regional tobacco prevention Center in Sacramento. Glantz and Smith said they found that the ordinance in Beverly Hills had Little effect on restaurant sales and there was no significant change after the ordinance was repealed. Similar findings Are reported for belly that the eateries share of total retail sales increased from an average of 12.7 percent to 13.9 percent after the Laws were in Force. The study also found the Impact of the ordinances was not noticeably affected by whether liquor was served at the restaurants. The study was funded by the states cigarette and tobacco surtax  Security benefits May be disappointing by Mike Causey the Washington Post Washington a Many Federal government workers and retirees Are in for an unpleasant Surprise when they apply for their social Security benefits. The bad news May apply whether they Are seeking their own benefits or benefits earned by a spouse. They May lose almost $200 of their own monthly social Security benefits or All of the spousal or survivor benefits they were expecting. Many workers and retirees Are unaware of the possible Benefit cuts until they get a social Security Check that is much smaller than expected. Years ago Congress enacted legislation to reduce a a Windfall social Security benefits due to government workers and to a a offset spousal social Security benefits for people drawing their own pension from Federal or other non social Security covered service. Windfall benefits apply to social Security benefits you earned yourself. Offset benefits apply to the social Security Benefit earned by your spouse that you May try to collect As a spousal or survivor Benefit. Under the Complex Windfall rules some Federal retirees will lose a part of their earned social Security Benefit unless they have 30 years of social Security coverage or if they were eligible to retire before january 1986 even if they kept working. In addition some retirees except those in the Federal employees retirement system a As opposed to those in the older civil service retirement system program a or those eligible to retire before december 1992 May be affected by the offset Rule. They could lose All the spousal and survivor benefits As it is offset by their own Federal pension. Details on offset benefits Are provided in the social Security administrations fact Sheet number one government pension offset. The Windfall Law is covered in a pamphlet called a pension from work not covered by social  s air travel posts gain London apr air travel in Britain increased again last month continuing a recovery from a year ago when people stayed Home during the persian Gulf War. Eight airports handled 4.8 million passengers in february 1992 �?33 percent More than in february 1991, the British Airport authority said. A More meaningful comparison can be made with february 1990, when traffic was 3.4 percent less than it was last month a Baa statement said. Business Sam hungarian venture produces opel Astra Auto from wire reports Budapest Hungary a general motors first hungarian made car the opel Astra rolled off the Assembly line in Szen Gotthard on Friday the result of a More than $300 million investment. The opel Astra is the product of a joint venture Between pm which owns 66 percent of the engine and car Assembly Plant and a number of hungarian companies. Those companies include the Gyor based Raba truck factory with a 21 percent stake and the state development Institute with a 12 percent  r us earnings up Paramus . A toys r us inc. Said this week that its fourth Quarter earnings Rose 10 percent. The company said its fourth Quarter earnings Rose to $261.5 million or 88 cents a share from $237.5 million or 81 cents a share in the same period last year. Sales for the Quarter climbed to 2.860 billion from $2,548 billion a year  hikes averted new York a an attempt by the nations largest airlines to raise fares again was thwarted by two carriers operating in bankruptcy Twa and America West. United airlines the Chicago based Meg Carrier that began the attempt to raise Domestic fares by 2 percent across the Board said thursday that it was withdrawing the higher prices in every Market where it competes with either Twa or America West. American airlines and Continental airlines said United a withdrawal effectively killed the Deal so they were backing off