February 8, 2003

Bus carrying 30 people en route from Manhattan (NYC) to Atlantic City (NJ) casinos overturns after skidding off Garden State Parkway during snowstorm, killing two and injuring 28 passengers; photos (M)

Unemployment Rate Falls, But Analysts Are Cautious The job market showed unexpected signs of improvement last month, relieving worries that the country could be slipping into a new recession. The jobless rate fell to 5.7 percent in January, from 6 percent in December. Employment in January grew by 143,000 jobs, the biggest monthly gain since 2000, the Labor Department said. The gain nearly erased December's decline. Still, analysts are not convinced the economy is recovering as strongly as the numbers may suggest. [Page A1.]

St Vincent-St Mary High School (Ohio) basketball player LeBron James, who will likely be selected first in NBA draft, is allowed to finish out season; James was suspended and ruled ineligible after accepting $845 in jerseys, but can continue to contribute to school by bringing endless media attention, television revenue and successful season before leaving for NBA; photos (L)

Number of private initiatives providing free or low-cost AIDS drugs has slowly but steadily grown in South Africa, offering rare rays of hope in country with highest number of people infected with HIV; vast majority of AIDS patients in South Africa die because they cannot afford drugs common in West; most people treated with drugs show dramatic improvements, gaining weight and strength to fight off killer diseases; Doctors Without Borders runs largest free program; number of people getting AIDS drugs through their insurers has doubled in last two years as drug prices have begun to fall; map; photos (M)

DeLay Disavows Letter Tom DeLay, House majority leader, disavowed a letter bearing his signature that accuses ''labor bosses'' of seeking to expand their power at the expense of national security. PAGE A11 20 Die in Colombia Blast A bomb rocked an exclusive club in Bogotá, killing more than 20 people, leaving about 100 injured and setting the 10-story building on fire. PAGE A6

Pres Bush puts nation on 'high' terror alert for only second time since Sept 11 attacks, warning Al Qaeda may be planning attacks on hotels, apartment buildings, other vulnerable United States targets; raises threat status to orange, second-highest level, after meeting with top national security officials; Sec Tom Ridge, Atty Gen John Ashcroft and FBI Dir Robert S Mueller III announce move, televised news conference; authorities order extra security measures around nation; FBI officials alert agents in New York City and Washington to be on special guard; warn of possible attacks on Jewish sites; State Department warns of potential terrorist threats against Americans in Jordan, Israel, Lebanon and Syria; table of added steps being taken by federal agencies (M)

Newly released blurry Air Force photo of space shuttle Columbia and complex, cryptic series of sensor readings bring renewed focus to theory that damage to orbiter's left wing led to its destruction when it re-entered atmosphere; NASA officials say theory, if correct, does not fully explain what went wrong with shuttle; experts speculate on how wing could have been damaged; diagrams; photo (M)

French Pres Jacques Chirac and Chinese Pres Jiang Zemin, after phone talks with Pres Bush, reject his bid for support for use of force against Iraq within next month or two; their resistance makes clear difficulty United States faces in winning explicit United Nations Security Council authorization for military action; Bush says Council will have to decide soon; is confident Council will uphold 'to the fullest' its demands that Saddam Hussein's government disarm; British and US diplomats begin weighing language and options for new UN resolution; military buildup in region continues, with US sending fifth aircraft carrier to Persian Gulf; Iraqis show reporters missile site singled out by State Sec Colin L Powell in presentation to Security Council, offering benign explanations for site features Powell presented as ominious (M)

Robert B Zoellick, US trade representative, pursues ambitious, broad agenda to reconfigure American economic relations; will play central role in deciding whether people in sub-Saharan Africa have access to inexpensive drugs to fight host of diseases; may well be attacked by European consumers if genetically modified food shows up on their supermarket shelves without labels and against their will; will be chief referee in global fight between heavily subsidized American farmers and their much poorer rivals in Africa and Asia, who say subsidies are ruining their livelihoods; Zoellick's agenda also includes free trade zone that covers Western Hemisphere and network of other free trade deals with southern Africa, Southeast Asia, Australia and others; Zoellick declares that long-term war against terrorism has to include trade, openness and development; photo (L)

Prospect Park (NYC) is one of Brooklyn's most densely populated bird watching spots, with at times more than 115 species visible in 526 acres of forest and wetlands, prompting founding of Prospect Park Audubon Center, nation's first urban Audubon center; photos (M)

George Vecsey Sports of The Times column discusses new life of Martina Hingis, who, at 22 years old, is retired from professional tennis, and now rides horses, spends time with family in Switzerland and takes English classes; photos (M)

Robert J McCann resigns as head of Merrill Lynch's investment research department and will be succeeded by Candace Browning; string of recent departures at department stirs concerns among Merrill's brokers about department's viability, but Merrill executives dismiss those fears; photo (M)