European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 19, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 16 the stars and stripes Money matters wednesday january 19,1994 today s rates following Are fixed rates at which Community banking and credit Union facilities will sell for eign currencies to . Personnel for personal use German Mark. 1.71 British Pound 1.53 dutch Guilder 1.91 greek drachma 242.8774 note Tho rates above apply within the hos country. Figures Are expressed in dollars to the British Pound other currencies to the Dollar following Are Interbank rates that fluctuate and should be regarded As the approximate value of the . Dollar to foreign Curren cies italian lira 1,703.25 turkish lira 14,944.70 Spanish peseta. 143.17 portuguese escudo 176.40 austrian Schilling 12.334 saudi Riyal 3.7492 Bahrain Dinar 0.37675 kuwaiti Dinar 0.2979 norwegian Krone .7.5365 danish Krone 6.794 British Pound 1.494 German Mark 1.7552 Swiss franc 1.4755 French franc 5.953 dutch Guilder 1.9612 belgian franc 36.54 Canadian Dollar. 1.3158 note figures Aro expressed in dollars to the British Pound other currencies to Tho Dollar Gold quote $392.50 an ounce. Silver quote $5.32 an ounce new York Exchange new York Kupij the 15 most Active stocks in Newyork Stock Exchange composite trading on monday. Stock sales Latt net chg. Chrysler corp. 2,234,500 61 v up Archer Daniels 2,168,300 25 % up 1 a Sunshine mining 2,129,100 2%. Up i Citicorp 2,091.400 41. Unc medical care am 1,867,000 2314 off Wal Mart stores 1,823,200 25 w off i Etc corp 1,787,800 2.0 up % get corp. 1,621,400 34 / off ism corp 1,528,100 57 i off 1 w Philip Morris 1,496,800 56 it off 1 Westinghouse Al 1,462,600 13 % uncut Elefonso de my .1,443,500 65 a up Humana inc. 1,403,200 18 it up i american Exchange new York up the ten most Active stocks in american Stock Exchange composite trading monday. Stock sales list net chg Echo Bay mines 1,653,000 14 to up tic corp. 775,500 6% up w Beta Well Sivc 629,300 12v off2 Olsten corp 458,900 30 Offutt Royal Oak mines 438,000 5 unc greyhound lines 356,100 12 it up it Salomon Lii Bro 331,000 4 unc Pegasus Gold .327,100 24 i up Cheyenne softer 313,300 29 a up to Amdahl corp 313,200 6% up i Dow Jones new York up Dow Jones dosing Range of averages on monday. High Low close change30 industrials 3896.75 3833.71 3870.29 up 3 09 20transmits .183009 18m.oo 1822.58 Olf 12.23 15 utilities 22205 21819 22021 Oft 1 18 of stocks .1421.92 m00.90 1411.71 Olf 3.53 Grumman to close Long Island Plant Calverton . A Grum Man corp. Will close its military aircraft Plant in Calverton on Long Island by the end of 1995, officials said monday. The move will cause about 400 layoffs. Production will be moved to a Grum Man facility in St. Augustine Fla. The Steps Are  of a major restructuring of the defense contractor spokesman Rob Ert Harwood said. Of 1,500 workers employed at Calverton 100 Are expected to be transferred to Florida and about 400 will be let go. The rest will be moved to Grumman s engineering and computer Center in Bethpage ., he said. Some workers Hove options when government cuts jobs by Mike Causey the Washington Post Washington efforts to reduce the size of the Federal government could mean thousands of younger employees and older workers who Lack seniority or arc no veterans will be fired Over the next several years unless workers with seniority retire in Large numbers. If Congress gives other agencies the buyout Early out authority letting them  up to $25,00.0 to quit or re tire that the defense department Al ready has downsizing can probably be done with a minimum of layoffs. If not the newest hires Are in line to be the first fired. But some retirement age workers any one 55 with 30 years of service 60 with 20 years of service or age 62 with five years of service will also be forced to retire As jobs Are abolished and offices closed or consolidated. Involuntary retirement called Dis continued service retirement or Der can be a Good Deal. Workers can elect to take a full pension or a reduced pension with a tax deferred Lump sum pension payment that payment is an amount identical to the amount of Money the worker contributed to the civil service retirement fund. For most employees that is about 7.5 percent of lifetime salary a Good chunk of change. Lump sum payouts were available years ,.but they were generally not a Good Deal because they were immediately taxable. Effective last year Congress limited the Lump sum payout to workers taking dvrs or to those taking no disability retirement because of a life threatening ill Ness.  ". The Der workers can now Roll Over most of their payment into an individual retirement account or some other tax deferred pension plan but that option will end oct. 1. Workers who want to take advantage of the rollover have to be off the payroll by sept. 29 to qualify. Workers who take dvrs cannot get Severance pay because they Are retiring and they cannot qualify for buyouts voluntary separation incentive payments because buyouts Are a voluntary option. A buyout is a one shot payment that is the lesser of $25,000 or the individual s Severance pay entitlement. Severance pay however is not a buyout. Severance can be Worth More As much As one year s salary in the Case of Long service employees but sever Ance is not paid in a Lump sum. Workers get payments every two weeks just As if they were working until the Benefit is exhausted. The differences Between voluntary buyouts and the involuntary Severance and discontinued service retirement Are Tricky and the option the employee gets or choose Sis very important. Mobile Home safety rules assailed Miami a Mobile Home makers said monday that new Federal standards requiring Homes in Hurricane prone areas to resist winds of up to 110 Mph would make them too expensive. I think it s overreaction and Complete disregard for affordability said Frank Williams executive director of the Florida manufactured housing association in Tallahassee. It s going to Price some people out of the housing Market and they will have get some Type of subsidized  Williams said Industry executives will Likely meet in the next 60 Days and May ask a judge for an injunction against the new standards which were handed Down Friday by the . Department of hous ing and Urban development. We think Hud Reade a lot of proce Dural errors and violated the Federal Law Williams said. I think under Feder Al Law they have to equally consider affordability and safety and that did not Hap pen  under the new standards Mobile Homes sold after july 13 in certain areas of the United states must resist steady winds of up to 110 Mph. The Rule is close to the Tough South Florida standards for conventional Homes. The areas include 26 counties in Florida Southern Louisi Ana and coastal North Carolina. Manufacturers said the stricter Stan Dards would raise the average Mobile Home Price 35 percent nationwide from $27,300 to $36,855. But Michael Charles manager of regulatory affairs for the american society of civil engineers in Washington said the increase would be More around 6 percent and can be easily managed by mortgages. They have exaggerated the Cost in creases Charles said. And in any Case safety is Paramount  the changes come nearly Ivi years after Hurricane Andrew rumbled Over Dade county in South Florida destroying 97 per cent of All Mobile Homes in the Hurricane. " file photo Mobile Homes such As this soon will have to meet tougher standards if they Are sold in areas prone to hurricanes according to new Federal guidelines. Zone according to Federal surveys. These Homes were shredded by the winds and also became dangerous flying missiles inflicting More property damage on neighbouring structures Hud said Friday in adopting the civil engineers society Standard. Hud offices were closed monday in Honor of the Martin Luther King or. Holi Day and Hud officials were not Avail Able for additional comment. The 110-Mph Standard also applies to All of the alaskan coast Hawaii Ameri can Samoa Guam Northern Mariana is. Lands puerto Rico and the . Virgin islands. The new rules also upgrade the Hurri Cane standards to 100 Mph for Homes sold near coastal areas of Alabama North and Central Florida Georgia Louisiana Maine Massachusetts Mississippi North Carolina South Carolina Texas and Vir Ginia. Other areas remain at the Hud Stan Dard adopted in 1976 of 80 Mph. The new standards do not affect exist ing Homes or the Sale of existing Homes Between private parties. Pepsi pops Coke in Syria town Competition 1navalh, neb. A coca cola appears to have lost its Pepsi Challenge in this tiny Nebraska town. The Battle began in september 1992, when someone stole the Pepsi machine from its spot in front of the garage owned by Brothers Dennis and Garth wont Worth on . 136. It was the Only soda machine within seven Miles of the town of about 100 in South Central Nebraska. Coca cola bottling co. Officials from Wichita kan., stepped into the void by installing one of their machines. Then the Pepsi cola bottling co. In Hastings installed a replacement machine. The Wentworth said they paid for electricity to run both machines and expected a commission from each Case of soda to offset their costs. Coca cola Only paid a $17 commission the first month while Pepsi kept the checks coming every three months Den Nis Wentworth said. A coca cola official in Wichita said monday that he would have to research the question before commenting. Dennis Wentworth said that when he could t resolve the commission Issue he got Coke to take its machine out. And besides he said the Pepsi machine outsold the Coke machine 3-to-l. This is definitely a Pepsi town he said