September 25, 1986

The Soviet Union has announced ambitious measures to decentralize and enhance its foreign trade, giving almost 100 ministries and enterprises the right to make deals directly with foreign partners. Until now, trade has been conducted largely through the Ministry of Foreign Trade and affiliated foreign organizations rather than with manufacturers or end users. That unwieldy process consumed considerable time and offered little incentive for Soviet enterprises to sell or buy abroad. Under the new measures, outlined in Tuesday's issue of the newspaper Sotsialisticheskaya Industriya, or Socialist Industry, more than 20 ministries and 70 major enterprises will have the right to operate directly with Western and developing countries and to maintain their own accounts in convertible currencies. The change takes effect Jan. 1.

The Government has at least three mystery witnesses in its corruption case against Stanley M. Friedman, the Bronx Democratic leader, and four co-defendants. It also has two pages of material from an unidentified witness that would be harmful to the Government's case against the five defendants, and it is trying to withhold that material from the defense until the last possible moment, according to statements made at a conference tonight. The Government's effort to keep the identity of the witnesses a secret and to withhold some materials from the defense occupied most of the morning today as lawyers for the defense and the prosecution met behind closed doors with Judge Whitman Knapp in his chambers in the Federal courthouse at the edge of the New Haven Green. Decision Protested by Lawyers But some of the nature of the discussions became public at a conference of defense and prosecution lawyers this evening as defense lawyers protested the Government's decision not to turn over the disputed material. ''Mr. Giuliani said one of the reasons for not giving us the material is that it would 'cripple the Government's case,' '' said Mr. Friedman's lawyer, Thomas P. Puccio. ''That's precisely what discovery is all about.''

LITERACY HIGH BUT LIMITED Americans have a high basic literacy rate, a national study said, but many young adults have a limited ability to use reading in daily life.

''The tragic events in Istanbul, Karachi and Paris prove once again that terrorism has become the systematic weapon of a war that knows no borders or seldom has a face.'' -Prime Minister Jacques Chirac of France. [ A10:5. ]

John Gotti and Diane F. Giacalone both have ties to Ozone Park in Queens. There the similarity ends. Mr. Gotti, accused of being the boss of the Gambino crime family, and six co-defendants will be in Federal Court in Brooklyn today as opening arguments begin in their racketeering trial. And Ms. Giacalone, assistant United States attorney, will be there trying to put them behind bars.

Last month, the London brokerage house Phillips & Drew began offering its employees a double-edged benefit: breakfast. The meal, served from 7 to 8:10 A.M., provides not only sustenance, but also a none-too-subtle reminder to everyone at the firm when work starts these days. ''It's a good proper English breakfast - eggs, bacon, sausages, mushrooms, the works,'' Paul Neild, a managing director of Phillips & Drew, said, defending the practice. ''Besides, we start at 8 A.M. now.'' Less Wine, More Sandwiches An early start and a faster pace have become the order of the day, as London's brokers and banks plunge into a more competitive world of freewheeling markets. By now, the 12-hour day and the working weekend are familiar to many, while the wine-drenched, two-hour lunch has given way to the sandwich at the desk.

Fashioning its own hodgepodge of budget ''gimmickry,'' the House of Representatives today overwhelmingly approved a package intended to reduce the 1987 deficit by $15.1 billion. The package, approved by a vote of 309 to 106, includes the sale of Federal assets, bookkeeping maneuvers, revenue from improved enforcement of the tax laws and a new customs fee. It also imposes widespread, unselective spending cuts totaling $1 billion, half of which would come from the Pentagon's budget. The legislation calls for about $2.9 billion in new spending, including expansion of Medicare and Medicaid coverage and increases in housing programs. Veto Is Threatened The White House threatened a veto by President Reagan because of the new customs fee, several Medicare provisions, the housing provisions, what it sees as an excessive sale of loans from the Export-Import Bank and the cut in the Pentagon budget, which would trim a fixed percentage from each military program.

Mikhail S. Gorbachev signaled a shift in the Soviet position on the 1972 antiballistic missile treaty in a letter to President Reagan last week, Administration officials said today. In the letter, according to the officials, the Soviet leader moved toward a possible compromise on the period for which the two sides would adhere to the ABM treaty, thus delaying deployment of the United States' space-based missile defense program. The American officials said Mr. Gorbachev had proposed adherence for up to 15 more years. The previous Soviet position was 15 to 20 years.

A table on Sept. 18 with an article about universities with the largest endowments described the figures incorrectly. The endowment totals were in millions of dollars.

The Economy The Fed chairman said the dollar has fallen enough against other major currencies. Paul A. Volcker told a House subcommittee that policy makers should rely on other tools to redress imbalances in the world economy. The remarks seemed to put him at odds with the Reagan Administration. Just last week Treasury Secretary Baker all but threatened to drive the dollar still lower if the nation's trading partners did not move more aggressively to spur their economies. [ Page D1. ] The dollar eased slightly on Mr. Volcker's remarks. Gold was unchanged at $431 an ounce in New York. [ D20. ] A measure to reduce the 1987 budget deficit by $15.1 billion was overwhelmingly approved by the House. The package includes the sale of Federal assets and bookkeeping maneuvers. [ A1. ]

INTO the prime-time world of ruthless vintners, resurrected oil tycoons, ardent young doctors and big-city lawyers, at long last the decorators have come. This was the recent scene on the set of Stage 26, where ''Designing Women,'' the first television show set in the decorating world, was getting ready to make its debut: The four comely actresses who make up Sugarbaker & Associates, an imaginary interior-design firm in Atlanta, are standing onstage amid cut-crystal accessories and color-coordinated chintz fabrics. Offstage, male crew members are busy inspecting a magazine centerfold. It is not Playboy. It is ''Architectural Digest Visits Natalia Makarova.''

THE rose is in the news right now, it seems, although interest in roses goes back to the very earliest days of gardening. It is one of the oldest flowers in cultivation, starting in China some 5,000 years ago. In medieval Europe it was the symbol of Divine Grace, made visible in the rose windows of Chartres. One kind of rose or another is already the official flower of the District of Columbia and the states of Georgia, Iowa, North Carolina, North Dakota and New York. And now a resolution approved Tuesday by the House of Representatives sits on President Reagan's desk, awaiting the signature that will make the rose the national floral emblem. The rose, the resolution says, stands for ''love, peace, friendship, courage, loyalty and devotion.''