International Business : Global Markets and Economic Update

MEXICAN STOCKS

* Worries about competition in two key industries threw the Bolsa index for a loss of 33.81 points Tuesday. It closed at 2,659.90, after hitting a record 2,693.71 on Monday.

* Telmex lost $1.25 to $68.50 in NYSE trading, tracking its loss in Mexico City trading, after banking giant Banacci allied itself with MCI Communications to provide long-distance competition when the Mexican phone market is opened in 1996.

* Also, NYSE shares of Grupo Dina, a bus and truck maker, plunged $6.375 to $23.875, mirroring a 19% drop in Mexico City trading. Dina said airline competition is reducing demand for buses in Mexico, crimping new orders.

Source: D.A. Campbell Co., Times wire services

SPOTLIGHT: ZIMBABWE

President Robert Mugabe renounced communism two years ago in favor of an austerity program--including cuts in subsidies, a devalued currency and cuts in the money supply. The reform program has created high unemployment. Inflation remains high because of government spending policies.

Sources: Bank of America, World Information Services