The Des Moines Register from Des Moines, Iowa • Page 15

iicciistcr Dow Jones Industrials closed Thursday at 1,107.66 UP 10.71 (STORY: PAGE 6S.) Fit, July 27, 1984 5S retail! 5 ffl oo i on Brenton Banks earnings fall, loan loss provision up Branstad happy with indicators By DEWEY KNUDSON R9ftttr SMI Wrttw For the fourth straight month and fifth out of the past six, a set of leading economic indicators provided evidence of an improving economy in June, a report from the Iowa Office for Planning and Programming said. Strong home-building activity, spurred by increasing use cf adjustable-rate mortgages in lending, was primarily responsible for the increase, state officials said. "We are seeing significant progress, and we really need to build on the momentum," Gov. Terry Branstad said in Iowa index 144- of leading 10-J ornnnmir 132 128 124 1967100 explained that because the four-member regulatory agency could not unanimously agree on a purchaser, a bankruptcy court in Illinois might have to act on its own. The commission had been asked to study the acquisition proposals involving Milwaukeee Road, known formally as the Chicago, Milwaukee, St Paul ic Pacific Railroad, a Midwest line that hauls grain, western coal and other freight The four commissioners considered purchase proposals by four firms, including the Chicago Milwaukee which currently holds more than 90 percent of the stock of the railroad.

The offers of three other prospective purchasers Grand Trunk Soo Line Railroad and Chicago Northwestern Transportation Co. also were weighed by the four commissioners. Iowa Southern Utilities earnings up for quarter Iowa Southern Utilities Co. of Cen-terville, la. had earnings of $4 million for the second quarter of 1984, up from $3.8 million in the same period last year, according to figures released by the utility.

Operating revenues for the company were $29.8 million in the second quarter this year, increasing from $28.9 million in last year's second quarter. Second quarter earnings per share were not available. For the first six months of 1984, Iowa Southern Utilities' earnings increased to $10.2 million or $3.24 a share, from $9.1 million in 1983, or $2.88 a share, last year. Operating revenues for the company's electric and gas divisions for the first six months of 1984 were $75.4 million, up from $68.4 million in the same period last year. Restructuring costs turn profit into loss for Pepsico Pepsico Inc.

said Thursday its operating profit rose 29 percent in the second quarter, but charges for restructuring its business resulted in a net loss of $42.5 million. The loss, which amounted to 44 cents a share, compared with a profit of $74.8 million, or 79 cents a share, in the second quarter of 1983. Pepsico said income from the sale of a transportation subsidiary will more than offset that loss, but cannot be reported until the government formally approves the sale. The soft drink, food and recreation products company said it had revenue of $1.89 billion in the three months ended June 16, up from $1.68 billion a year earlier. Before the restructuring charges, operating income in the second quarter rose 29 percent from a year earlier to $93.1 million, Pepsico said.

Source: Office for Planning and Programming Corn falls below $3 By DON MUHM RttfsMr Farm Editor Recent rains and improved crop prospects helped cause Central Iowa corn prices to fall below $3 a bushel Thursday, marking the second time this year that grain bids have sunk that low. That's a 14 percent dip from the year's high of $3.46 paid for cash corn just about two months ago on that same market. Prices had advanced to that level from a brief February dip under the $3 a bushel level. Corn prices last year peaked at $3.34 a bushel in north central Iowa as the 1983 crop was crippled by a searing, mid-summer drought that ravaged fields across about a third of Iowa. Prices moved up as a record idling of cropland took place under the government's payment-in-kind (PIK) program ahead of the drought, however.

Corn prices were $2.10 a bushel ahead of the PIK announcement in early January last year. The cash range in corn bids in central Iowa Thursday was $2.98 to $3.10 a bushel, with the market slumping something like 14 cents a bushel this week under the weight of improved crop prospects and this week's rains. Prices also fell below $3 elsewhere in Iowa, with a $2.93 cash market report coming from both northwest and southwest Iowa. The state's top corn bids came in south central Iowa, at $3.23. The low range in south central Iowa, however, was $2.96, according to the Iowa Department of Agriculture.

The slump in corn prices, however, doesn't match the sharp sag in cash soybean prices in central Iowa. The bid Thursday was $6.25 to $6.26 a bushel, down $2.40 a bushel from the year's high paid May 21. That figures out to be a 28 percent price skid for beans the past two months or so from the $8.65 bid in central Iowa the third week of May. That price was close to the past year's peak in bean prices that was reached just ahead of the drought-hit harvest of last fall. mortgages closed in May in the five-state federal region including Iowa made use of adjustable rates, which carry a lower initial interest rate than fixed-rate mortgages.

"Recent increases in the index of leading indicators suggest that the economy may soon resume the expansion which was interrupted briefly earlier this year," the state agency said. Among other leading indicators in the OPP index, only one other initial claims for unemployment compensation benefits showed marked improvement in June. The Standard and Poor index of 500 common stock prices dropped during the month, while fatm crop prices and overtime hours have remained virtually unchanged for the past several months, the report said. REGISTER CHART BY OAVIO SILK Deere releases patent to firms MOLINE, ILL. (AP) Deere patent for a transmission safety valve that prevents tractors from being improperly started is available at no cost to farm equipment manufacturers.

Deere released the patent in the "interest of safety" to prevent people from starting tractors without using the starter. Deere spokesman Bob Shoup said the practice has resulted in injuries because tractors, once started this way, are in gear and able to move. "It's the best thing the company has developed to stop this from happening." Shoup said. The special transmission valve, which fits only on tractors with hydraulic transmission, prevents the tractors from moving until the clutch pedal is depressed and released. Shoup said he was unable to estimate the number or types of injuries that have occurred due to tractors started improperly, or estimate how much providing the patent free of charge would cost Deere.

Gibson City, 111., while the reserve honors were won by Jason Kuhlmann of North Platte, Neb. Oklahoma, home of the show's two top heifers, won the best state group of four head competition followed by these states in order Illinois, Missouri, Minnesota, North Dakota and Nebraska. The picking of the champions ended a week-long meeting for the young cattlemen that featured various activities ranging from a speech contest to a scrapbook contest. Historic Site A highlight of the week was the designation of the Gammon Farm near St. Mary's as a national historic site.

The first matings leading to the development of the "hornless Hereford" breed were made in 1901 in a barn on the Gammon Farm by Warren Gammon, the Des Moines lawyer who founded the breed and served as its first full-time executive secretary and registrar. His Polled Hereford breed became the first, and only, cattle breed having its origin in the U.S. where today nearly 20 beef breeds are raised. The bulk of those breeds came from England and Europe. Teleconnect expands phone service to four Iowa cities The Teleconnect Co.

of Cedar Rapids now is offering discounted long distance service to residents and business firms in four more Iowa cities Ana-mosa, Burlington, Decorah and Ot-tumwa. With the addition of these four cities, Teleconnect now serves 18 Iowa cities. The company also expects to expand their Illinois services soon. The first cities scheduled are Rockford, Peoria and Springfield, HI. discussing the economic survey at a Thursday press conference.

Citing other signals of improved economic health, Branstad said employers are laying off fewer workers while the Federal Reserve Board is working to stabilize interest rates. But the governor said Iowa's economy needs a long period of sustained improvement to overcome recent trends of people moving out of state to look for more attractive working climates. "You don't turn around years and years of outmigration and problems overnight" he said. OPP credited a "somewhat surprising" 6.2 percent expansion of residential construction starts for the jump in its index of leading economic indicators. It said nearly 80 percent of the ids, Marianne Neel, Pleasantville, Ohio.

Class 4 Walter McKellar. Senato-bia, Beth Hinderks, Amity, Mo. Class 5 Richard Ramsey, Greenfield, Thomas Kiritsis II, Mooresville, Ind. Division champion Richard Ramsey; reserve Walter McKellar. Division II: Class 6 Aaron Cole, Republic, Ohio; Dan Yoesel, Falls City, Nebr.

Class 7 James Almy, Georgetown, Kim Schiffbauer, Tonica, III. Class 8 Patrick Wertz, DeRidder, Kurt Tjardes. Gibson City, III. Class 9 Beth Bates, Kewanee, Matt Sims, Elgin, Okla. Class 10 Jamie Yoder, Eureka, Charles E.

Boyd II. Mays Lick, Ky. Division champion James Almy; reserve Kim Schiffbauer. Division III: Class 1 1 Brian Klippen-stein, Maysville, Arlene Schock, Vi-da, Mont. Class 12 Greg Billing, Little Falls, N.

Cindy Blakely, Hennessey, Okla. Class 13 Donna Lee Peters, lllio-polis, Jason Kuhlmann, North Platte, Nebr. Class 14 Laura Tessier, Laytons-ville, Lori Schumann, Lawrence, Kans. Class 15 Patrick Wertz. DeRidder, Keith Lane, Keller, Tex.

Division champion Brian Klippenstein; reserve Greg Billing. Division IV: Class 16 Glen Waters, Northborne, Brendan Crowley, Norfolk, Neb. Class 17 Carl E. Olson II. Ar-gusville, N.

Patrick Wertz, DeRidder, La. Class 18 Blue Mackey, Norfolk, Arlene Schock, Vida, Mont. Class 1 9 Matt Sims. Elgin, Marti Jo Va-lek, Agenda, Kans. Class 20 Rindy Willoughby, Ada.

Todd Herman. Mill-brook, N. Y. Division champion Rindy Willoughby; reserve Matt Sims. Grand champion heifer Rindy Willoughby; reserve Matt Sims.

Heifer Champ The grand champion bred and owned heifer was shown by Walter McKellar of Senatobia, while the reserve in this competition was entered by Amy Cox of Ozark, Mo. The grand champion cow-calf pair was exhibited by Kent Tjardes of Unemployment tumbles for 5th straight month By GENE ERB RMtattr hitmi Wrtfcjr Iowa's unemployment rate dropped for the fifth month in a row in June, declining to 4.5 percent from 4.7 percent in May and 5.8 percent a year earlier. The June rate was the state's lowest since last October, when it struck a low for 1983 of 4.4 percent It reflected a steady improvement in the state's employment picture since the first of the year, with the unemployment rate declining nearly 2 percentage points from the 6.4 percent rate in January. Job Service of Iowa officials attributed most of the May-June decline to seasonal increases in construction and agricultural employment But factory employment, boosted by a recall of 600 workers at the Hormel plant in Ot-tumwa, also improved, with 1,500 more manufacturing workers on the job in June than in May. 11,500 Return to Work Using federal calculation methods, which differ from the state's, the unemployment rate in Iowa was 6.5 percent in June, compared with a national unadjusted rate of 7.4 percent.

About 11,500 Iowans returned to work in June, increasing total employment to 1,338,600 from 1,327,100 in May. The June figure reflects an increase of 17,300 jobs from June 1983, when 1,321,300 were employed. The number of unemployed Iowans also improved, declining to 62,400 from 64,700 in May and 81,000 in June 1983. However, the labor force the state's employed plus unemployed declined by about 7,000 to 1,401,100 from 1,408,100 in June 1983, an indication that some have dropped out of the -workforce or have left the state to seek employment. Larry Venenga, Job Service labor market economist said the state's agricultural employment rose 18,500 in June to 186,500, and construction jobs, hit hard during the recession, rose to 43,300 from 39,700 in May and 38,800 in June 1983.

More Gains Manufacturing employment in in- dustries supporting construction showed gains, too, with workers in stone, clay and glass industries making the largest employment advances in durable goods manufacturing. The number of jobs in nondurable goods manufacturing primarily food products, increased by 600. However, the state's farm equipment industry, seemingly mired in an interminable depression, bucked the positive trend by registering a decline of 300 jobs in June, and more bad news is expected in August, when Deere Co. will begin laying off 600 of its Waterloo workers due to a cutback in production of large farm tractors at its manufacturing complex there. The summer slowdown in education dominated employment in the non-manufacturing sector, outstripping gains of 5,900 in non-school government posts and 3,600 in construction.

Services, including private education, lost 4,700 jobs. The net loss in government jobs was 6,900. Winnebago Improves Unemployment ranged from 2.0 percent in Winnebago County, where Winnebago Industries Inc. has increased its workforce to meet a surge in demand for recreational vehicles, to 8.4 percent in Monroe County, where Chamberlain Manufacturing Co. recently closed its Albia plant, leaving 115 employees without jobs.

Unemployment rates in Iowa's metropolitan areas were: Cedar Rapids, 4.8 percent; Council Bluffs, 6.1 percent; Davenport, 5.2 percent; Des Moines, 3.7 percent; Dubuque, 5.3 percent Sioux City, 5.1 percent and Waterloo, 7.0 percent. Venenga said the unemployment rate calculated by state officials represents data obtained from a survey of Iowa employers and from job insurance claims. The state's calculation also includes estimates of job insurance exhaustees who remain unemployed, persons who delay filing claims for unemployment compensation, persons who never file, self-employed Iowans, agricultural workers and other unemployed workers not covered by unemployment insurance, and new entrants and re-entrants to the labor market. U.S. jobless claims steady WASHINGTON, C.

(AP) New applications for unemployment compensation insurance benefits held relatively steady in mid-July, remaining generally within the range that has prevailed throughout this year, it was reported Thursday. The Labor Department's Employment and Training Administration said that after adjustment for such seasonal variations as scheduled plant closings and weather, an estimated 384,000 Americans applied for unemployment in the week ended July 14. The first-time claims total for that week was 6,000 below the revised total of 390,000 for the previous week, the agency said. Brenton Banks, Inc. of Des Moines, a 16-bank holding company, reported earnings (or the second quarter of $1.4 million, or 55 cents a share, down from $1.5 million, or 58 cents a share, for the same quarter in 1983.

Earning for the first six months of 1984 were $2.8 million, or $1.04 a share, down from $3 million, or $1.12 a share, for the same period in 1983. The per share information for 1983 has been adjusted to reflect the three-for-two stock split effected in November, 1983. The company's provision for possible loan losses contributed to its earning decline, said Board Chairman Wil- THE BUSINESS TIDE Compiled by ANA BRITTAIN BltHf SwlMM WfW liam H. Brenton. The loan loss provision for second quarter was $1.1 million, more than triple last year's provision of $326,324 for the same period.

The provision for the first six months of this year amounted to $1.9 million compared to $837,24" for the same period last year. Subsidiaries of Brenton Banks Inc. include Brenton Mortgages, Brenton Insurance Services, Brenco Automation Center Brenton Agri-Credit Corp. and Brenton Funds Transfer System Inc. Anheuser-Busch earnings rise in quarter, six months Second quarter earnings for Anheuser-Busch Co.

rose to $113.4 million or $2.13 a share, up from $8.5 million or $1.84 a share in the same period of 1983. Sales increased to $1.69 billion in the second quarter of 1984 from $1.56 billion in the second quarter of 1983. For the first six months of the year, Anheuser-Busch had a net income of $191 million, or $3.58 a share, compared to $167.2 milVion, or $3.12 a share, last year, in the same period. Sales also increased, growing to $3.16 billion in the irst six months of this year frorrj billion in the first six monthisof 1983. No ICC recommendation on Milwaukee Road offers The Interstate Commerce Commission failed to recommend to a bankruptcy court which of four companies should be permitted to purchase the financially troubled Milwaukee Road.

Agency spokesman Dennis Watson roponents By JERRY PERKINS Rftfsttr AgribuilMU Wrttor Partners in a controversial plan to acquire farmland in Iowa and other states declined to comment Thursday after meeting for several hours with a lawyer for the Securities Division of the Iowa Insurance Department. "We're in the middle of some things that won't allow us to comment," said Richard Hollerud, a New Hampton farm broker and general partner in Consolidated Family Farms, a Chicago-based venture that is seeking to acquire 300,000 acres in 14 states. Under terms of the proposed plan, farmers would turn over title to their farm to the partnership and lease back and farm the land from the partnership. Farmers who participate would receives shares based on the equity in their farms, meaning that farmers who had more debts would receive fewer shares than farmers who are relatively debt-free. Authorities in several states, including Iowa and Kansas, are looking into the plan to see if it violates state security laws or corporate farm ownership statutes.

Attorney General Tom Miller has scheduled a news conference for today to announce his opinion of the legality of the proposal. On Thursday, Hollerud and James Rudnick, the group's managing partner, met with Brad Osmundson, a lawyer with the state's Securities Division. Hollerud called the meeting "good and informative." He declined to answer other questions. Osmundson said the partnership had filed for registration as a security offering in the state. Osmundson said the examination of a filing "usually takes a series of weeks." Osmundson characterized the proposal as "unique.

It's a novel securities offering so there are a lot of questions that have come up because it's so unique." Meanwhile, criticism of the partnership proposal continued. Marty Strange, co-director of the Center for Rural Affairs in Walthill, said farmers should "beware" of 6 Farmland-buying plan Oklahomans win national honors grow quiet the "partnership scheme." Strange said the plan "sounds like a good deal for some farmers who are nearing foreclosure or forced sale of their farm, but there are a lot of questions they should ask before jumping into the arms of this partnership." Strange said his analysis of the Consolidated Family Farms prospectus "reveals some flies in the ointment." First, Strange said, "there is no guarantee that the partnership will sell the farm back to the farmer or that it will sell it to someone else first, before the farmer is on his feet financially." Second, there is no apparent market for the securities the farmer receives in the partnership, although the securities "are supposed to be salable for cash through stockbrokers. They could be worth little on the open market," Strange said. Third, the partnership has full control over how the land is farmed since it has title to the farm, Strange said. Even though the farmer rents the land, he has no guarantee he'll be retained from one year to the next, he said.

Fourth, Strange said, it is questionable if farmers' bankers can hold the shares of the partnership as collateral for loans. And, he said, "the most questionable aspect of the whole scheme is whether Consolidated Family Farms can legally own farmland in states like Nebraska and Iowa, both of which have restrictions on corporate and limited partnership ownership of farmland." Miller's press conference today is expected to answer that question for Iowa. Hollerud said he didn't know the press conference was scheduled. He declined to comment on Strange's warning to farmers. Hollerud said the partnership has received "inquiries" about the plan from farmers in 30 states who control over 1 million acres.

The "overwhelming" response to the plan has caused organizers of the partnership to consider expanding its scope from 300,000 acres in 14 states. By DON MUHM Rtgttttr Farm Edttw Two young cattle enthusiasts from Oklahoma walked off with top honors Thursday at the 11th National Junior Polled Hereford Heifer Show at the State Fairgrounds. The grand champion was shown by Rindy Willoughby, 10, of Ada, a youngster competing in only her second national heifer show for this cattle breed developed by a Des Moines lawyer, Warren Gammon and his son, B. O. Gammon, in the early 1900s.

Rindy is the daughter of Paul and Tonya Willoughby who have been raising this breed of cattle for about 15 years. Previous Champ The reserve grand champion was exhibited by Matt Sims, 13, who took top honors in this national event two years ago in Milwaukee, and who a year ago in Reno, had the second-best bred and owned Polled Hereford heifer. He is the son of Eddie Sims, and was competing in his sixth national heifer show. The Oklahoma youngsters exhibited the top cattle in a field of 400 head hauled to Des Moines by young Polled Hereford breeders from 35 states and Canada. It took two days for the judges to place the animals that competed in 20 heifer classes.

The only Iowan to win a first-place award was Martha Sue Atkinson of Oxford, who was exhibited a heifer bred by one of the state's premier Polled Hereford breeding concerns, Triple Ranch of Burlington. The best showing of the day came from Patrick Wertz of DeRidder, who exhibited a pair of first-place heifers and one second finisher for the two days. The Listing Here are the top placings by class: Division 1: Class 1 Martha Sue Atkinson, Oxford; Kelly Beck, Bainbridge, Ind. Class 2 Ronald Wirth, Strasburg, Mark Blankinship, Waynoka, Okla. Class 3 Shawn McDonald, Grand Rap.