September 12, 1999

Pres Clinton and China Pres Jiang Zemin, in Auckland, New Zealand, for Asian economic summit conference, declare end to months of frozen relations following bombing of Chinese Embassy in Belgrade, and their trade ministers begin meeting in hopes of closing deal that will get China into World Trade Organization this year; Chinese officials are pleased that Clinton has been critical of Taiwan Pres Lee Teng Hui for his statements describing island as separate state (M)

Peter Passell assesses Plymouth Prowler, modern interpretation of 1950's hot rod; photos (M)

Article on Times Square 2000, the Global Celebration at the Crossroads of the World, once-in-a-lifetime, 26-hour extravaganza, estimated to cost at least $7 million; executive producer Peter Kohlmann comments; cast and crew number nearly 1,000 and 1.5 million spectators are expected to attend as more than 1 billion television viewers watch; drawings (M)

Laundering or Tax Dodge Some Russian businessmen insist that many of the transactions under investigation can be attributed to Russian importers dodging Russian tariffs and taxes. PAGE 10

IF the media and telecommunications giants have their way, decades' worth of Federal rules intended to guard the marketplace of ideas may soon fall, all in the name of the Internet. In the last few days, top executives from four of the information industries' largest corporations -- Viacom, CBS, AT&T and Mediaone Group -- have asked the Government to give them a break from tight restrictions intended to prevent cable and broadcast television from falling into too few hands.