September 18, 1996

American Express Co, scrambling to regain market share, has shifted focus from charge-card business to more popular credit cards, introducing variety of new cards in last 18 months; has signed up hundreds of thousands of new merchants and reversed decline in number of card holders, sharply increased loan balances and raised overall profitability of its cards; gains have not kept pace with those of leading card issuer; vice chairman Kenneth I Chenault cites plans to speed growth; will let banks issue own American Express cards; table; drawing; photos (M)

Opening statements begin in Federal trial of J David Smith, former Gtech Holdings Corp executive who is accused of defrauding his lottery company by taking kickbacks from New Jersey consulting firm (New Jersey Daily Briefing) (S)

Number of fish raised on farms has doubled in last decade; Federal and industry experts say that salmon is farm-raised in nearly every country with access to cold, deep water, and half shrimp eaten in country comes from farms; treasured bay scallops, found wild in a limited area between Long Island and Cape Cod, are exported by the ton from farms in China; photo (M)

Former Vice Pres Spiro T Agnew, who was forced to resign in 1973 after pleading no contest to income-tax evasion charges, dies at age 77; cause of death not disclosed; his career in politics, from local politician in Baltimore County, Md, to post of Vice President in Nixon Administration, discussed; photos (L)

Report that 8 of 12 Federal Reserve district banks favor rises in discount and Federal funds target rates to curb inflation deflates stock and bond markets and again shows conflicting pressures buffeting Federal Reserve as it prepares for key policy-making meeting; report, if true, is rare leak; Federal Reserve reports industrial output rose 0.5 percent in Aug and capacity utilization rate rose to 83.5 percent from 83.3 percent in July; gains add to pressure to raise interest rates; graphs (M)