September 29, 1994

Summit Pact on Weapons President Clinton and President Boris N. Yeltsin of Russia agreed to speed destruction of nuclear weapons but made only limited progress on other issues. Page A10. All the White House Women As Naina Yeltsin tried to keep up with Hillary Rodham Clinton's frantic pace, Washington debated whether women were slipping in the White House hierarchy. Page A18. No Action on Haiti Amnesty The Haitian parliament convened in Port-au-Prince under U.S. guard but took no action on amnesty for the military leaders. Page A16. Banker to Help Run Schools A newly created post overseeing day-to-day management of the New York City school system has been given to a former banker, drawing criticism from the Mayor. Page B1. Religion in the Kennedy Race A tight Senate race in Massachusetts between Edward Kennedy, a Catholic, and Mitt Romney, a Mormon, has both men accusing the other of religious intolerance. Page A22. If Medals Were Votes . . . Senator Charles Robb of Virginia accused his opponent, Oliver North, of deceit. The issue: Which candidate is the real Marine. Page A22.

President Clinton vowed today to keep Congress in session for as long as it takes to approve the global trade agreement after a key Senate Democrat, Ernest F. Hollings, threatened to block a vote on the pact. Failure to approve the accord could imperil the President's economic diplomacy and would be another legislative defeat after health care's demise. Moving quickly to prevent that, President Clinton used a news conference with President Boris N. Yeltsin of Russia to argue for quick passage of legislation carrying out the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and to make clear that he was ready to adopt extraordinary measures to insure that it happens this year.

With this country's presidential election only five days away, its front-runner, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, promised today to break up Brazil's longstanding state monopolies and attract foreign investment in oil, mining, telecommunications, and highway and dam construction. "We have 16 hydroelectric dams paralyzed," Mr. Cardoso told foreign journalists here, and said this tied up the equivalent of $2 billion.

Orders for big-ticket factory goods in August made their largest gains since late 1992 as new-model cars and trucks dominated the Census Bureau's monthly tally, suggesting only a modest slowing of the economy. Although last month's 6 percent jump followed a 4 percent decline in July, analysts said the economy was proving remarkably resilient in the face of efforts by the Federal Reserve to restrain its growth.

The Economy U.S. approval this year of the new world trade accord appeared imperiled after a key Senate Democrat, Ernest F. Hollings, threatened to block a vote on essential related legislation. But President Clinton vowed to keep Congress in session as long as needed for approval it. [ Page A1. ] Mr. Hollings, of South Carolina, has never liked free trade pacts. Man in the News. [ D7. ] Orders for factory goods made their largest gains since 1992 last month, jumping 6 percent. The advance suggests that the economy is slowing only modestly. [ D1. ]