November 26, 1982

After years of unfettered spending, Nigeria's leaders are seeking to lower the expectations of their citizens, and have warned that the economic future can no longer be computed on high oil production levels or high oil prices. The implication for American business executives, a Western economist said, is that ''this may be the time to survey the market'' rather than to embark on new investment. For, like many other OPEC members, Nigeria has been caught in a recession caused by the abundance of oil on world markets, the increased proportion of competitive non-OPEC oil available to buyers, improved energy conservation in the West and the general slowdown in Western economies. Nigeria is America's second-largest supplier of imported oil after Saudi Arabia and a substantial buyer of United States foodstuffs. Its income has been steadily falling since 1980, when production of highpriced oil was the main element in export earnings of more than $26 billion. The projection for this year among Western economists is that export earnings will be about $16 billion.

A state law on construction bidding is costing New York City $40 million to $70 million a year in unnecessary building costs, according to city officials and some independent experts. The officials say that the statute, known as the Wicks Law, has also delayed construction and repairs of vital facilities, such as sewage-treatment plants and schools, for up to four years. And the critics contend that the statute has led to numerous multimilliondollar lawsuits against the city that ultimately inflate overall construction costs. Mayor Koch, noting that the city faced new budget deficits and cuts in Federal aid for construction, said that he would make ''a major attempt'' next year to persuade the State Legislature to amend the Wicks Law. The law was enacted in the 1920's with the intention of lowering costs by increasing competition among contractors. The main complaint against the law is that it requires the city to use four prime contractors, instead of one, for most new buildings and renovations. The statute, in effect, makes the city responsible for coordinating work schedules between the four contractors, and liable for unexpected budget increases and cost overruns.

This year's Putnam-Killingly high school football game was like many in the last 60 years: close, hard-fought and, ultimately, heartbreaking. Putnam led in the early going, fumbled away the lead in the second half and fell short in the final minute with first and goal to go. Final score: Killingly 8, Putnam 7. The loss, Putnam's sixth in a row, evened the series. Next year, however, there will be no tie-breaker because there will be no game. When Peter Jordan's field goal attempt fell short and to the right and the clock ran out, more than an athletic contest had come to a close. An entire era of the town's history, one more prosperous and optimistic than the present, had symbolically ended as well.

Markdowns on women's apparel at leading department stores across the country are exceeding those for any Christmas season in the recent past. Retailers are expressing concern about what the trend bodes for merchandising, and some even suggest it could change the face of fashion retailing. According to sellers of moderately priced and high-priced women's apparel, the retail climate appears to be worse than that in the recession of 1975. They attribute the situation to markdowns of 20 to 40 percent that were taken as early as August, in advance of the usual sales periods, and to what they see as a chronic decrease in consumer purchases. Many say they are fearful that they face what may be the bleakest holiday season in 25 years in view of third-quarter sales decreases of 10 percent or more from last year. Even though the stores do not preclude the possibility of a turnaround during the holiday season, they are increasing the scope of markdowns to keep up with last year's sales.

The Reagan Administration, searching for ways to deal with continuing high unemployment, is studying such proposals as taxing unemployment benefits and lowering the minimum wage for teen-agers for the summer. White House officials are also considering giving tax vouchers to employers who cooperate in hiring the long-term unemployed.These ideas, which drew immediate opposition from a key Democratic Congressman and from the A.F.L.-C.I.O., were described by Larry Speakes, the White House spokesman, as study proposals that the President has not yet considered or accepted. Aim to Reduce Record Deficit A Presidential council of Cabinet members is fashioning a package of options for dealing with unemployment. The ideas will not be presented to the President until sometime after his trip to Latin America next week, according to Administration officials.