November 16, 1990

Secret Shuttle Mission The space shuttle Atlantis was launched after dark with a secret cargo believed to be a satellite to monitor the Persian Gulf. Page A20. Head for Children's Agency Robert L. Little, Washington's Youth Services director and a brother of Malcolm X, will run New York City's Child Welfare Agency. Page B1. Criticism of Gulf Policy Calling Bush Administration statements "reckless," the National Council of Churches condemned the Persian Gulf buildup. Page A13. New Anti-Bias Move in Golf The group that runs the United States Open has joined other golf organizations in barring discrimination at clubs holding tournaments. Page B11. Barneys' East Side Plans Barneys New York said it planned to open a big East Side store in 1992 with a Japanese partner. Page D1.

A solitary yellow-tipped drilling rig emerging from an endless horizon of green trees here is a sign that Brazil has finally struck oil in the Amazon region. An outpost of heliports, prefabricated dormitories and air-conditioned offices has been built in the forest around the first commercially viable oil and gas fields found in the Amazon region since exploration began in 1917. And at every step, Brazilian officials say they have taken great care not to damage the rain forests or the environment.

Companies The U.S. charged that Drexel was a culprit in the S.& L. debacle through "junk bond" market it developed. In arguing this case in court, the Government entered a new legal frontier in its attempt to recover some of the lost billions. [ Page A1. ] With backing from a Japanese partner, Barneys plans to open the largest clothing specialty store in Manhattan in years. [ D1. ] A jury awarded $45 million to three former Lockheed employees who claimed they were wrongfully fired after raising questions about the safety of cargo jets. [ D1. ] Eastern Airlines appeared to be weathering any damage done to its advance bookings by the creditors' liquidation request. [ D1. ] CS First Boston dismissed nearly all of the senior real estate bankers with its American subsidiary. [ D1. ] Pan Am disclosed details of its agreement to sell United its London routes for $400 million. United will guarantee $100 million worth of Pan Am tickets if Pan Am stops flying. [ D3. ] Rupert Murdoch said the News Corp. wanted to sell roughly $1 billion in assets over the next three years. [ D7. ] New York Telephone said 23 employees had been dismissed in its buildings department and 5 more had resigned. [ D3. ] The Economy President Bush conceded for the first time that the country might face a recession, but he said his economic advisers did not believe a long and severe one was in the offing. [ D1. ] Bush signed a major overhaul of the nation's anti-pollution law. [ A28. ] Cranston and DeConcini were "by far the most active" in pressing regulators to go easy on Keating, the Senate Ethics Committee's special counsel asserted. [ A1. ] Moody's expects Wall Street in the 1990's to be marked by "rapacious competition" that will lead to greater consolidation of the industry, it said in a report. [ D2. ] Business inventories grew 0.5 percent in September while sales had their biggest decline in five months, the U.S. said. [ D13. ] International Brazil has finally struck oil in the Amazon region, and Government officials say they have taken great care not to have drillers damage the rain forests. [ D1. ] If the trade talks break down over farm subsidies, trade wars are likely to break out. [ D12. ] Markets Stocks slipped after the Fed failed to signal a rate cut. The Dow fell 14.60, to 2,545.05. [ D8. ] Treasury securities prices dipped slightly and interest rates inched higher. [ D16. ] Oil prices closed nearly unchanged as war-sensitive traders stayed on the sidelines. Crude oil ended down 4 cents, at $31.12 a barrel. [ D13. ] The dollar inched higher in cautious, choppy trading. Gold prices fell overseas but advanced in New York. [ D17. ] Wheat prices fell sharply, plunging to near contract lows on mild weather conditions and a dearth of export business. [ D17. ] Today's Columns What will be the impact on the American economy of the Persian Gulf crisis? Theories vary, with the effect on oil prices a key factor. Leonard Silk: Economic Scene. [ D2. ] Ayer said it had completed a long-expected series of changes in its senior management. Kim Foltz: Advertising. [ D7. ] In its claim against Drexel, the U.S. says phony profits were created, then removed, at savings and loans. Floyd Norris: Market Place. [ D8. ]

For the management of The Daily News, the newspaper's three-week-old strike has been like a complex military campaign in which surprising initial success could not be turned into quick and complete victory, in part because the battle plan had a fundamental miscalculation that seems stunning in retrospect. It came as a surprise to News executives that most news dealers have been frightened into refusing to sell the paper.

The chorus of fiscal woe throughout the region crescendoed yesterday when officials raised the possibility of furloughs for state workers in New York, layoffs in New Jersey and higher fares for subways and buses in New York City. In Albany, where Gov. Mario M. Cuomo is struggling to close a $900 million budget shortfall, administration officials said he would propose mandatory furloughs for half of New York State's 250,000-employee work force. That would force workers to forfeit five days' pay between now and next March. One Cuomo administration official said this would save "in the neighborhood" of $100 million. Union leaders vowed to fight the furloughs.