About half of U.S. manufacturers depended on...

About half of U.S. manufacturers depended on exports to generate at least 10 percent of their annual sales in 1987, up from 40 percent the year before, a Conference Board study showed. Close to 20 percent of the 277 companies surveyed by the private business research organization said exports accounted for one-fifth of overall revenues last year, compared with 14 percent in 1986. Overall, close to half of the surveyed companies said exports increased from 1986 to 1987, the study showed. Only 23 percent of survey respondents reported a decline in exports.