OTHER NEWS - Oct. 23, 1996

Britain’s Cable & Wireless and three North American companies--Nynex, BCE and Le Groupe Videotron Ltee--have joined forces to create an $8.8-billion communications operator that will let them better compete in Britain’s multimedia market. . . . Nichiei Finance of Japan, loaded with nearly $9 billion in debt, filed for what is believed to be Japan’s largest postwar liquidation. . . . Michael Milken has agreed to a six-month extension of his probation while the Securities and Exchange Commission continues to investigate whether he is complying with a ban from the securities industry. His probation was scheduled to expire Friday. . . . Calling the existence of sweatshops a moral issue, Labor Secretary Robert B. Reich said 36 religious groups have volunteered to help combat the problem. Baptist, Episcopal and United Methodist groups, the U.S. Catholic Conference and various Jewish organizations agreed to carry the anti-sweatshop message to their congregations. . . . W.R. Grace said it plans to sell off four units--Grace TEC Systems, Grace Specialty Polymers, Grace Cocoa and Amicon--to focus on its packaging and specialty chemicals businesses.