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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 21, 1982)
MaranaaE national Battalion/Page 9 October 21, 1982 aids hea crisis’ impact discussed United Press International WASHINGTON —The 1980 jilver crisis carried the potential disrupting the U.S. financial orally or intravenwstem and threatened a chain he special interesiiBeaction that could have jeopar- ized lending institutions, a staff [eport by the Securities and Ex- hange Commission said Wednesday. The report examined exten- pvely the silver-hoarding activi- (es of the Texas oil billionaire Tint family and their impact on to lake ainrinont-pilver prices in 1979 and 1980. “For six days late in March i does, however, jiB980 it appeared to government ■ personal intern; Ifficials, Wall Street and the none research,"slit public at large that a default by a h ug is that at k suffers from been underjt lerapy treatment yM; though she said bj t rung and thedi mission, she would] ^ngle family on its obligations in (ie plummeting silver market light seriously disrupt the U.S. Snancial system,” the report iid. "Various broker-dealers car- ying Hunt accounts, among-the her studies, sites fcrgest firms in the security in notice a change If ustry, faced the possibility of ' dry substantial losses if this oup of customers had failed to lake good on its obligations,” le study said. “The potential fa- ery encouraged l» I see in the patiec mg with now. SI necessary for tone myself.lv ml. It reassuresm he drug is there' ition within a fev hen their hearts ficiendy again, it rculation right a* vital organs, ;-d. “It hits thefcl he patient notio he better. Some! on’t even know having trouble se it was a gradi i. icir moods becoi d it helps the mei se of increasedi ■ brain,” she said| starts making ilure of even one of these firms threatened a financial chain reaction that would have jeopar dized commodity clearing houses and their members, other broker-dealers and their customers and banks, public companies and their stockhol ders.” The report said “although a financial catastrophe was ulti mately averted,” the crisis showed the “fragility and inter dependence of the financial structure.” During this period, brothers Bunker and Herbert Hunt and other members of the family and associates amassed huge amounts of silver. The price of silver had climbed from below $10 per ounce on Aug. 1, 1979, to $50 per ounce Jan. 17, 1980. It later dropped sharply to the current $10 per ounce range. The financial crisis was averted when the Hunts were able to obtain a $1.1 billion loan from a consortium of 11 banks to pay their obligations. The report said the Hunts were able to purchase large amounts of silver by making a margin deposit on each con tract, a deposit that was small in comparison with the value of the silver the contract controlled. “The magnitude of the poten tial losses confronting broker- dealers upon the Hunts’ default is directly attributable to deci sions by senior management in those firms,” the SEC staff study said. “The size of the Hunt silver position, even at certain indi vidual firms, was so substantial as to endanger liquidity given sufficiently large adverse mar ket movement.” The study recommended that brokers and dealers limit their exposure to one customer in order to avoid future potential problems. It also proposed financial in stitutions require more credit in formation before undertaking large business transactions. “Before March 27, 1980, there was no public disclosure of the existence or magnitude of the Hunt silver positions,” the study said. Concerning the New York Stock Exchange, the report said the stock exchange “failed to obtain sufficient information from its members, failed to verify the information it did re ceive from its members, and failed to be alert to the potential of a crisis situation as it de veloped.” The silver crisis prompted the Congress and other public agen- Now you know United Press International NEW YORK — Unopened jars of peanut butter stored in a cool, dark place will last two years, according to the Peanut Advisory Board, a trade organi zation of peanut glowers in Georgia, Alabama and Florida. Once a jar is opened, the flavor deteriorates after three months. cies to inquire into various aspects of these events. The SEC sent the report to Rep. Ben jamin Rosenthal, D-N.Y., whose subcommittee has held hearings on the silver crisis. WATCH THIS SPACE FOR OUR SPECIALS aaa l LIVE ROCK N ROLL FRIDAY featuring FUSION Skaggs Center 8-12 no COVER 846-4809 USuXLi pNP growth rate ‘weak’ United Press International WASHINGTON — The na- |on’s gross national product few at an 0.8 percent annual tte in the third quarter, the overnment reported Wednes- i.d.iv — far below what econom ists say is needed to cure double digit unemployment. The Department of Com- lerce said the gross national Industry auto import limits ie patient becoim istic and it is iM ism because them ;tter.” ■ drug has b« to patients who heart damage oi ing chemotnenj , with such di tycin. ncer has to be sively. Sometinw aed that otherdi :lv results,” shea appreciate what are going throi t herapy for cai I’m interested, e April, a dozen eetl treated withl [ United Press International tiann Hospital.SM WASHINGTON — Amer- lave died, but N |an trade representative Wil- ic was encounwam Brock says he thinks a third death was the I 4 , par of auto import restrictions complications r by Japan will be necessary to ailure. irotect U.S. auto makers, e of the test cases 1 i, Brock made the claim in a s who had been f tier to Sen. John Danforth, R- y treated for cat head of the Senate subcom- dying. AmrinoB Jiittee on international trade. ) make them mot | The Oct. 8 letter represents before death,.' frock’s personal belief, a jpokesman for Danforth said, ut The Washington Post re- orted it’s also one the Reagan [dministration is expected to product, the total value at retail prices of all the goods and ser vices produced by a nation’s eco- nomy in a given time period, grew at a rate of $2.8 billion from June through September. Two of the last four quarters showed serious drops in the gross national product. The 5.1 percent decline for the first quarter of 1982 followed a 5.3 percent decline in the last quar ter of 1981. Economists generally consid er a 4 percent to 5 percent ex pansion in the nation’s economy necessary to keep unemploy ment from growing worse. Commerce Secretary Mal colm Baldrige told a news con ference the latest gross national product figure is an indication the economy is in a period be tween recession and recovery. Baldrige conceded the advance in the economy was small, but he said he still feels the economy will rebound in 1983. “We do not yet have clear signs that general economic re covery has taken hold,” he said. er limits on its auto exports. Japan agreed in May 1981 to a voluntary, two-year limit on ex ports when it faced the threat of legislation — sponsored by Dan forth and Sen. Lloyd Bentsen, D-Texas — that would have put a three-year limit on the ship ment of Japanese cars to the Un ited States. “The Japanese are seeking 35 to 40 percent of the American market,” Chrysler Corp. Vice Chairman Gerald Greenwald said. He predicted Japan would reach that goal within two years if current limitations lapse next March. Prescriptions Filled Glasses Repaired BRYAN 216 N. Main 799-2786 Mon.-Fri. 8-5 Sat. 8-1 COLLEGE STATION 8008 Post Oak Mall.. 764-0010 Mon.-Sat. 10-9 p.m. Texas State FALL FESTIVAL 3 DAYS ONLY MENS Buy 2 Dress Shirts Get a Tie FREE 20% OFF All Suits and Sport Coats (excluding Navy and Camel Hair Blazers) 20% OFF All Woolrlch Mountain Parkas and Down Vests 20% OFF All Corduroy Slacks 30% OFF THURSDAY-FR1DAY-SATURDAY WOMENS 20% OFF All Blazers, Wools & Tweeds (excluding Navy and Camel Hair Blazers) 30% OFF All Silk Blouses 30% OFF All Lanz Nightgowns and Robes 30% off All Womens Pants 30% OFF London Fog Jackets 20% OFF Crew Neck Shetland Sweaters 30% OFF Burgundy Pumps by Trafalgar, Tan Trafalgar Penny Loafer s is not a cure she said. “ItM ad as long as it ( : patients can tabl ar tests are undeHjMopt as a policy before the end ert Einstein ie in New York, of Pennsylvanii] i Rochester, edical School ai facilities nation: ionally, saidlei okesman for ic., the drug’s >f the year. The domestic auto industry is its worst slump in more than [0 years, and imports — most of them Japanese — accounted for 42 percent of August’s auto fales. In 1981, imports ccounted for 24 percent of all \S. auto sales. The industry has been press uring the administration to seek Tom Japan not only an exten sion of current voluntary re- :d Press Internali® 1 TON -TwoTf if the primesuspfj -Strength Tyl«> ( e been question? authorities, ie Leonard, of'j r of Theodore f md David Wilson’s brotl’ 1 ] been contact d by the FBI ini ~ Wilson and hq iid. n, who uses ! ncluding s linked by in' f extortion ietter ? [facturer of demanded $1 11 eatened > unless the ited in aChicagnl rd refused referred allqt^ . She isanursef ( partment of I public welfare 11 37, is presidenj t Center. He ”f He, but said: “I 1 : brother-in-ia :n’t seen him in*