November 11, 1992

The Cooper Companies, once a leading producer of eye-care products, was charged yesterday in a Federal indictment with participating, along with its former chairman, Gary A. Singer, in an extensive criminal scheme to profit from insider tips on junk bond trades. In announcing the charges in Manhattan, Otto G. Obermaier, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, said Mr. Singer was "central to the scheme," which was said to involve bribing a Boston mutual fund analyst to get tips about the fund's proposed junk bond purchases and then trading in advance of the fund, both through the company and through family accounts.

As is his style, David Bonderman is not saying much publicly about his plans with Air Canada to take control of Continental Airlines and pilot the nation's fifth-largest airline out of bankruptcy and into the heavens as a competitive global carrier. He does have some thoughts, however, about his habit of wearing bright socks. "There's little enough color in men's lives," he allowed through a spokesman. Mr. Bonderman, a Texas takeover artist with the sharp tongue of a trial lawyer and a professorial eye for detail, has never suffered from such a shortage. At age 49, he has bounced through five different kinds of jobs, quickly achieving milestones that some people chase through their careers.

International Matsushita of Japan reached an agreement with the I.R.S. on a formula for calculating its American taxes. Gov. Bill Clinton and others have claimed some companies artificially deflate the profits that are subject to United States taxes. [ Page A1. ] Francois Mitterrand faces a tough choice on world trade. He can incur the anger of France's most important ally, Germany, or enrage the powerful French farmers' lobby. News Analysis. [ A1. ]

Sol Wachtler, the Chief Judge of New York State's highest court, resigned yesterday, hours after a Federal judge ordered him detained in his home, monitored by electronic surveillance and private security guards. He is to remain under guard until his Federal trial on charges of trying to blackmail a woman who broke off an affair with him. The resignation from Judge Wachtler came in a telephone call at 1:30 P.M. to the senior associate judge of the State Court of Appeals, Richard D. Simons, who has assumed the duties of administering the state's court system in Mr. Wachtler's absence. But until Gov. Mario M. Cuomo appoints a successor, the court will operate without a chief judge.

Prices received by American producers edged up only one-tenth of 1 percent in October from the month before, as the weak economic recovery continued to keep inflation at bay, Labor Department figures showed today. Smaller than usual increases for passenger car prices helped offset higher prices for gasoline and other energy components of the Producer Price Index for finished goods, which are products ready for sale to final business and individual users. The index had risen three-tenths of 1 percent in September.