European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 1, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 1b the stars and stripes wednesday april 1,1992 Money matter shoppers steer toward bargains with smart cart by Cliff Edwards the associated press Chicago a you re in the supermarket you left the coupons on the Kitchen table can to find the Sun dried tomatoes and have a bewildering selection of pasta to choose from. Just Plain frustrated and done to know what to do Many Consumers in stores across the nation will soon be Able to simply glance Down at the shopping cart press a Button and let vide cart a 6-by-9 Inch computer do the work for them. The information is displayed on a screen. The so called a smart cart relies on in store sensors and radio Waves to Tell the user what son Sale where to locate items and even which products Are offering electronic Coupon savings. With both the supermarket Novice and the shopping maven in mind vide cart Aims to meet Consumers changing habits. Gone Are the Days of shoppers who just wander the aisles food companies and analysts say. A customers have two Basic questions when they go shopping what do you have on Sale and where is it located a said Rich Simpson a spokesman for Chicago area Dominick a supermarket Chain which has tested vide cart at four suburban stores. Quot vide cart answers those questions for them a Simpson said. A a we be gotten a Good response from our  the smart cart tested in 60 stores nationwide for about two years has advertisements and a map of the store and even offers nutritional advice that can help in choosing certain products. It can also help while away the time in line with news weather updates trivia and movie reviews said Bob Froetscher vice president of marketing for vide cart inc. In Chicago. Vide cart executives Hope to have it in 500 stores by the end of the year reaching a potential 8.5 million shoppers. A vide cart displays recommended specials for customers buying groceries at a store in Buffalo Grove Iii. One dad out shopping for the first time with the children recently said vide cart is a Welcome Relief for the reluctant shopper overwhelmed by a stores cavernous size. A a it a great especially when you re in a hurry a said James Webb of suburban Arlington Heights. A you Stop in to look for things go to vide cart and you can pick it right up after finding where its  Quot i think its really useful but its also fun too a Webb said. Marie Desantis of Buffalo Grove said she could find things on her own but used vide cart to remind her of Sale items and while she was waiting for checkout. She complained however that the display screen located on the right hand Side gets in the Way of tossing items into the cart. Each store pays about $125,000 to install the system which includes sensors in the ceiling input terminals and the terminals on the carts Froetscher said. An analyst who follows food merchandising said vide cart has found a new marketing Niche that a Likely to grow. A the Good thing about vide cart is that it la make shoppers think twice about buying something they Hadnot before a particularly the electronic Coupon feature said Susan Olson president of the Olson group inc. In Chicago. Sales increased significantly under the electronic Coupon system tested at a single store in the Midwest Froetscher said. That feature will become available to All vide cart equipped stores in june he said. Electronic coupons which manufacturers pay vide cart to display Are available at the press of a Button. As a shopper Heads Down an aisle the screen presents coupons for items in that aisle. The customer selects the Coupon the computer stores the information and automatically transmits it to the Cash Register when the shopper enters a  Mutual funds display March madness by the new York times new York a american investors Are continuing to pour Money into Mutual funds in huge amounts fund managers said monday. The Quarter just ending is Likely to be the Industry a Best Ever in terms of new Cash being invested. Although some funds that sell directly to investors reported some slowdown in March others especially those that sell through brokers said business was continuing to get better. A a it a like the basketball fans say a said Victor Golyn president of the Enterprise group of funds a a it a March  investors guide 4 for John Hancock funds which Are sold through brokers and insurance agents a net sales for the first Quarter Are probably greater than for the last three years combined a said Troy Shaver the fund groups president. Although february is the shortest month Stock funds took in More Money this february a net $7.5 billion than in any other month in history the investment company Institute a Trade group reported monday. That broke the record set in december when $7,4 billion came in. In january the inflow was $6.7 billion. With Bond oriented funds taking in $8.3 billion in february figures released by the Institute showed that a total of $15.7 billion came into All Long term funds Topping january a $15.2 billion and making february the Best Overall month since january 1987, with its record of $18.7 billion. In the years first two months almost $31 billion was invested in the funds just under the $31.1 billion invested in All of 1989 and 1990 together. Last year saw a net inflow of $105.6 billion. The figures include sales redemption and net transfers Between funds but exp a Bill Doyle q. You have suggested buying . Treasury securities through a Federal Reserve Bank by opening a Treasury direct account and conducting transactions by mail. That seems to be viable investment method. What is the minimum Purchase an individual can make with a Treasury direct account is this Type of account acceptable for an individual retirement account do you have any suggestions concerning the availability of literature about Treasury direct a. Minimum denominations for Treasury securities Are the same whether you Purchase in a Treasury direct account or in a commercial account at a brokerage firm or commercial Bank. The smallest pieces you can buy Are $10,000 in Treasury Bills $5,000 in Treasury notes maturing in less than five years $1,000 in Treasury notes maturing in five to 10 years and $1,000 in Treasury Bonds. The last named come in maturities of from More thao 10 years to As Long As 30 years. A Treasury direct account cannot be used As an Ira. As the words indicate the Holder of a Treasury direct account has direct ownership of the securities in the account. The securities in an Ira Are registered in the name of a trustee who holds the securities for the Benefit of the Ira participant. If you want to have Treasury securities in your Ira you must set up a self directed Ira at a brokerage firm or commercial Bank. When you go that route you pay an annual custodial or fiduciary fee and also a fee every time you buy a Treasury Security and when the Security matures. There Are no Doyle fees when you have your own Treasury direct account. All Federal Reserve Banks and their branches 37 in total have detailed literature about Treasury direct. Your local Bank can Point you toward the fed Bank or Branch serving your area of the country. Q. Suppose i open my personal Treasury direct account and buy Treasury Bills notes or Bonds then later elude reinvested dividends. The Money has been coming in across the Board. For the first two months of this year among the 19 fund categories Only precious metals funds reported a net outflow of Cash. That group has turned in a poor performance As Gold prices have dropped. The surge of Cash has come despite uninspiring markets in both stocks and Bonds. Share prices jumped Early in the year but have since slipped Back and the Standard amp poor a 500-Stock average is slightly below where it began the year. Need for have to sell them because of an emergency Money. Is there a Market for those securities a indeed there is. The . Treasury securities Market is the world s most Active with tens sometimes hundreds of billions of dollars Worth traded every Day. However you cannot sell Treasury securities directly out of your own Treasury direct account. To accomplish the Sale the securities must first be transferred out of your personal Treasury direct account into a commercial account at a brokerage firm or Bank and then sold. Q. Is there a penalty for cashing Treasury securities Early a. You can to a Cash Treasury securities Early. The . Treasury department redeems each Bill note or Bond at face value Only on the particular Security a maturity Date. However As described in this columns previous answer you can sell an Treasury Security before it matures. There will be no a penalty a similar to the Early withdrawal penalty on a certificate of Deposit. Doyle welcomes written questions but he can provide answers Only through the column in care of the stars and stripes. C King features