European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 18, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 14 the stars and stripes Money matters tuesday october 18, 1994today s rates following Are fixed rates at which Community banking and credit Union facilities will sell foreign currencies to . Personnel for personal use British Pound. 1.65 dutch Guilder. 1.64german Mark 1.47 note the Rales above apply within the Host country. Agures 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 currencies Quot Ato to austrian schilling10.5935 Bahrain Dinar 0.37701 belgian franc .29.660 British Pound 1.6038 Canadian Dollar 1.3560 danish Krone 5.9070 dutch Guilder. 1.6840 French franc 4.926 German Mark 1.5060 greek drachma 233 italian lira 1,539.60 Kuwait Dinar 0.2968 norwegian Krone 6.5640 portuguese escudo. 154.13 saudi rial 3.7505 a Spanish peseta 125.10 Swiss franc 1.2555 turkish lira 34,970 note figures Are expressed in dollars to the a British Pound other currencies to the Dollar a. Gold quote $389.95 an ounce /. A /. A  $5.39 an ounce a a a a Quot. A sources merchants National Bank amp Trust co. Quot and the associated press. Stores Gussy for Christmas but await late sales push Wayne . Apr Christmas is creeping into stores and malls. But it May take time before Consumers catch the spirit. This past week at Willowbrook mall in this Northern new Jersey suburb Macy a Sterns and other stores were putting up decorations and setting up gift displays. V Home shopping channels already Are doing Christmas gift shows and retail chains like marshalls Are running Holiday commercials. Mailboxes Are groaning under the weight of Holiday Cata logs. Bit for the first time in years these Early preparations arc not a sign of desperation in Quot the retailing business although merchants live and die by the Christmas season. Much of the Industry seems to have finally found its Groove following the slump of the late 1980s and Early �?T90s. A / /.a. C v. Its just As Well that Stor owners have a somewhat Mellow attitude a Many con sur Nurs Ifould probably Yawn at the mention of Christmas right now. / / shoppers at Willowbrook paid Little mind to the budding Holiday activity around them although a couple of pc Pic did gingerly step around boxes and decorations to investigate dolls in Macy a still us finished Christmas shop. Consumers have my re immediate con corns a one of the Busy stores at Willowbrook was everything halloween a purveyor of masks and ghoulish paraphernalia. Of / retailers Are accustomed to the Dill dallying Holiday shopper Arthur Martinez chairman of the Sears merchandise group describes the consumer a attitude this Way �?o1 done to need it now so in a not going to spend it now a a. Sears and other retailers expect shoppers to do the bulk of Christmas buying m the seasons final Days. So Why put up the decorations now because it never hurts to get an Early Start to remind the consumer that your store is the place for Christmas. To that end toys r us inc. Circulated its first Catalon of the season a a pre Holiday Bonus Book a in newspapers last weekend. Moreover although the Economy is fairly healthy retailers can to afford to be confident. What if several big companies announce layoffs Days before Christmas unsettling Consumers suddenly worried about their Job Security what if every shopper eliminated just one or two items from their gift list it would add up to billions of dollars in lost sales. But at this Point Many Industry analysts noting that Job growth and person Ai income Levels ate increasing predict Christmas sales will be up a healthy 4 percent to 6 percent from last year. Many americans feel confident enough to increase their spending plans said Mastercard which commissioned a poll of 1,000 Consumers and found they plan to increase Holiday outlays an average of $63 each to $186. A it will be a Good Christmas a said Carol Farmer a Well known retailing consultant. She forecast the most popular gifts will be a products that produce experiences a computers big screen tvs bread machines a she said Consumers want things that improve their lives. Sears Martinez agreed. A Consumers Are spending on their Home rather than items for personal  besides big tvs he expected a can a new 18-Inch satellite dish which retails for about $700, to be a big seller. Farmer had bad news for clothing retailers a apparel As the gift of Choice is just not it. She said shoppers Are More Likely to buy gifts at stores like Williams Sorima and crate and barrel rather than at a specially apparel merchant. But according to the Mastercard Survey conducted by the firm Bruskin Gold ring clothing still leads a lot of wish lists. Fifty seven percent of the respondents said they wanted a gift they could Wear halloween theme Parks frightfully successful Berlin mass. Apr David Bertolino runs a halloween theme Park and Calls himself a a  a funny he its also profitable. Bertolino and the owners of a hand til of other Parks have hit it big in a business where scaring away customer is the idea. -. A we were overwhelmed right from the beginning said Bertolino owner of spook world the. Granddaddy of High concept halloween theme Parka. Spook world expected 10,000 visitors its first year and got 62,000. /. A there was a need in the marketplace. People do want to celebrate but trick or treat was kind of on the outs a a he said. / a a a a the Gates of spook world creaked open for the first time in 1991, alter Bertolino went looking for a Way to expand his wholesale props and costume business. With a Pun peppered promotional Campaign and appearances by Linda Blair and other stars of horror movies the Park is expected to lure a record 175,000 visitors this season. A tips a unique kind of product and a huge Market,1 said Steve Litzow president of scare grounds in Pleasanton Calif. The Park opened last october at the Alameda county Fairground and expects 100,000 customers this year. Americans spend an estimated $1.5 billion a year on halloween costumes Candy Home decorations cards and parties making it the biggest Holiday for business next to Christmas. A yet the Centrepiece of halloween a trick or treating a has been losing ground to crime and a people done to have anything to do really anymore for halloween a said Allison Campbell marketing director of Burnt Mills haunted Plantation in Aiken s.c., which Drew 18,000 people when it opened last year. A tips too dangerous and they come Here and Nave a wonderful time.�?T1 these Are not just vacant buildings with the windows blacked out and a few cobwebs hanging in the Corners v it a the my or halloween theme Parks operating this year have hundreds of employees special effects / designed by Hollywood consultants a monster malls11 of stores stocked High with horror items and corporate sponsors  As Tombstone pizza. Scary. Oke an even More frightening Brand of Karaoke in which customers provide the vocals to Well known songs is a big draw plainclothes Security officers patrol the Parks it visitors to Burnt Miles have come from As far As Atlanta a three hour drive. Spook world advertises heavily in Boston an hour away. Admission ranges from $7 for children and $10 for adults at the South Carolina Park to $15.50 for weekend admission to its Massachusetts counterpart. East Moline 111. Apr United Auto workers members have overwhelmingly rejected a contract proposal from Deere amp co. That would have sharply reduced pay and benefits for new employees. But Union members were expected to be Back on the Job monday at Deere one of the country a leading makers of farm equipment. Both sides indicated they would Inead Back to the bargaining table. The Union said its ready to resume talks and the company said it will continue a if  discussions would be  a for the time being the instructions to our members. ,. Are to continue reporting to work on their Normal shifts a Law spokesman Karl Manila said after sundays Vole. ,. A a the Law said the proposal was rejected by More than 90 percent of its members. Manila would not give specific numbers. A Deere and jaw negotiators suspended talks wednesday that were aimed at reaching a new contract covering 11,000 Deere workers at plants in Illinois Iowa and Kansas and parts depots in Minneapolis Atlanta and  contract would have installed a two tier wage system that would have reduced benefits and Cut wages about 30 percent for new employees. The three year pact also included a 2 percent raise in the secondhand third years. A Deere workers covered by the Law contract currently earn an average of $22 an hour not including benefits. Quot pets in Mexico up Chow made . Companies Washington apr sales of . Pet food arc soaring South of the Border the agriculture depart a ment says. A a.�?�. A. A./. A a a a. Quot whether its purebred chihuahuas hairless cats or. Just your average dog More and More pets in Mexico Are chowing Down . Pet foods a Usdan a a exporter Magazine reported this month a Mexico is a growing and almost exclusive Market for . Pet food  . Exports to Mexico increased fivefold Over the past four years from $3.6 million in 1990 to $18 million last year. Dog and cat foods accounted for most of the total. Mexico imported 10,719 metric tons of pet food in 1992, according to the a exporter article. Imports grew an an Nual rate of 30 percent Between 1990 and 1992 and Are expected to continue increasing about 15 percent a year to taling 41,000 metric Tonkin 2000. A metric ton is equal to about 2,200 pounds. In 1992, domesticated animals Iri Mexico consumed about 18,000 metric tons of prepared pet products. Domestic producers included mexican owned la Junta in Guadalajara and . Companies  As Quak or Oats Ralston Purina and Anderson Clay which have production facilities in Mexico. With the North american free Trade agreement phas my out tariffs Over the next 10 years and . Producers controlling the Market whether Domestic or import future pet food Trade with Mexico could be even More prof Itable to american businesses. Pact is rejected Union members said dual pay Scales would cause tension among workers. A a we re All in this together a said Kevin Wilson an Assembly line worker in Des Moines Iowa. A Twenty years ago these Guys who Are retired now fought for  a a Deere spokesman Bob Combs said he was Digap. Pointed by the vote. A we continue to believe that our offer was equitable m every sense and effectively addressed the needs of both employees and the company a he said. Some workers said they were worried that the Cori tract rejection could Lead to a strike at Deere. The Law is on strike at Caterpillar inc., the worlds largest maker of Earth moving equipment