March 6, 1997

New York State Department of Labor reports that New York City's unemployment rate shot up in January to 9.9 percent, the highest monthly level in nearly three years; increase is more than one percentage point from adjusted level of 8.8 percent in December (M)

Clinton Administration officials say Margaret A Williams, chief of staff to Hillary Rodham Clinton, accepted $50,000 donation to Democratic Party in 1995 in White House from Johnny Chung, California businessman who has emerged as central figure in criminal and Congressional investigations into improper fund-raising by Democrats; donation by Chung through Williams to Democratic National Committee is first known instance in which campaign check was handed to Administration official at White House during last four years; Democratic Party recently announced that it has returned 12 contributions of $366,000 from Chung and his company, Automated Intelligent Systems, because it could not verify source of money; Williams photo (M)

Alan Greenspan, chairman of Federal Reserve, offers slightly more soothing comments about future of stock market and investors latch onto them to drive stock and bond prices sharply higher, speech to National Association of Business Economists and testimony before House Banking Committee; Greenspan says he does not know which way stock prices are headed and that the market will be overvalued only if analysts' projections for substantial earnings increases in few years prove wrong; Dow Jones industrial average closes up 93.13 points, or 1.36 percent, at 6,945.85; Greenspan does not provide any new indications that Fed will raise interest rates anytime soon; graph (L)

Market Place column on growth stocks focuses on new index, the Montgomery Securities Growth Stock Index, which is based on 500 stocks for which Wall Street expects greatest profit growth in coming five years or so; says index is down 11.7 percent since end of January, a period in which Standard & Poor's 500 index is up 2 percent and Russell 2000 is down 1.5 percent; search for growth stocks discussed; graph (L)

Colombia, world's largest producer of cocaine, suspends all aerial eradication of drug-producing crops in sharp rebuff to US; move is unexpected reaction to Clinton Administration's decision to include Colombia on list of nations that are not fully cooperating with US in fight against drugs; US considers flights cornerstone of Colombia's anti-drug programs; anti-drug czar Joaquin Polo says Colombia is reviewing any further cooperation with US on programs (M)