January 1, 1992

Icon and a Church Divided The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese is casting doubts on the Weeping Icon stolen from a dissident Greek Orthodox church in Queens. Page 33. Gays Assail Decoy Unit A police unit to end "gay bashing" in the West Village has been attacked by homosexual groups. Page 35. New Yankees Executive Daniel R. McCarthy was chosen as the Yankees' managing partner. The Commissioner is concerned. Page 41. Yugoslav Peace Move Gains Cyrus R. Vance won formal agreement from Serb and Yugoslav officials for a plan providing for United Nations peacekeeping forces. Page 3.

As 1991 was drawing to a close, Mariya Y. Vrublevskaya went out shopping in a faint snow for a pine tree so she and her two young granddaughters could decorate a traditional yolka to cheer up their spare New Year's celebrations. What the 62-year-old retired factory worker discovered was that the trees, like everything else connected with this eerie holiday, had soared in price, costing 10 times more than last year and way beyond the means of grandmothers trying to bring up two girls on a combined pension and part-time pay of 250 rubles a month.

Transit officials, after scrambling to put together a makeshift, tentative financing plan, officially voted yesterday to raise New York City's subway and bus fare to $1.25, from $1.15. The new fare took effect at 12:01 A.M. today. Tokens bought before the new fare went into effect will be accepted for an unspecified time, transit officials said.

A year ago, few on Wall Street predicted the yearlong bull market to come. Stock prices had slumped amid the apprehension of a nation poised for war, and the economy was in recession's clutches. But when war came in the Persian Gulf in mid-January, it gave stocks their first lift, with prices rising sharply in the six weeks of fighting. And even though economic recovery remained as elusive as a desert mirage for the rest of the year, ever-lower interest rates gave stocks a magnetic ability to attract cash and hold on to it. 20% Gain for the Dow

Because of holiday production requirements, The Times is printed today in two sections. The Living Section begins on page 25, Business Day on page 45; Health is on page 64.