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Friday, October 17, 1997     Page: 12B

SEMINAR AIDS EMERGENCY GROUPS:There will be an investment seminar for
volunteer fire departments, firefighters relief associations and ambulance
associations from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday at The Victoria Inns in Pittston
   
TownshipThe principal speakers at the seminar will be John Donahue of Dean
Witter Reynolds, Mark LeFever of The Provident Agency and David Cummings of
Utica National Insurance.
    The meeting is sponsored by Wilkes-Barre office of Dean Witter Reynolds and
Joseph J. Joyce Associates Insurance Co. of Pittston.
   
For more information or reservations, call John Donahue at 1-800-726-0905
!! cq!! or Joyce Insurance at 717-655-2831. !! cq!!
   
PEP BOYS STORE UNDER WAY:Representatives of the Pep Boys automotive parts
and service chain broke ground Thursday for a new Pep Boys Supercenter on
Route 309 in Wilkes-Barre.
   
The store and service center will cover more than 18,500 square feet, with
most of the area in Wilkes-Barre. The entrance to the site along Route 309 is
in Wilkes-Barre Township across from the Wal-Mart entrance.
   
The store will employ 31 people.
   
XEROX REALIGNS IN AREA:The Xerox Corp. has realigned its sales and service
organization, creating a new organization, Xerox of Pennsylvania, with offices
in Wilkes-Barre, Horsham, Harrisburg and Allentown.
   
Janice Feely, a 21-year Xerox veteran, will lead the new organization,
which will focus on areas of the state outside Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
   
In Wilkes-Barre, Xerox has about 45 employees and expects to grow over the
next year, the company said.
   
FACILITY TO MAKE DIESEL FUEL FROM COAL: A technology to convert coal to
diesel fuel could revitalize Pennsylvania’s coal industry and reduce the
nation’s reliance on foreign oil, economists and members of the coal industry
say.
   
Under a bill proposed by Rep. Bob Allen, R-Schuylkill, 15 percent tax
credits would be available to companies that employed the technology. Coal
companies say they need the tax credit to offer the fuel at a competitive
price.
   
A $300 million facility, proposed by a group of businesses known as the
John W. Rich Companies in east and central Pennsylvania, would receive a
credit worth $45 million and could be the first in the nation to convert coal
to fuel.
   
The synthetic fuel could be used as a blending agent to create other
products, such as gasoline, kerosene or heating oil.
   
Of the 67 counties in Pennsylvania, 40 are coal-bearing with 34 billion
tons of underground coal reserves, according to coal industry officials. If
converted to fuel, that could equal more than 160 billion barrels, or about
$5.7 trillion worth of the product at a $1-per-gallon price, supporters said.
   
The proposed facility, covering 25 to 30 acres about a mile from Interstate
81 in Schuylkill County, could be in production within three to four years and
could produce 5,000 barrels of fuel per day, said John Rich Jr., who is
spearheading the project.
   
COMMUNITY BANKS’ EARNINGS RISE:Community Banks, Inc. reported earnings of
$1.59 million or 52 cents a share for the third quarter of 1997.
   
That’s up from $1.46 million or 48 cents a share in the third quarter of
1996.
   
The company also reported earnings of $4.76 million or $1.54 per share for
the first nine months of 1997.
   
Community Banks, Inc. is the parent company of Community Banks, N.A., which
has 21 offices located in Dauphin, Northumberland, Schuylkill and Luzerne
Counties.
   
PROFIT WORRIES CAUSE DOW DROP: The Dow Jones industrial average slid more
than 100 points Thursday as mounting skepticism about continued profit growth
overshadowed some encouraging inflation news.
   
The Dow, which started Thursday morning with a 55-point gain, fell about
119 points to 7,938 after recovering from a 161-point plunge. The barometer of
30 big companies hasn’t been below 8,000 since Oct. 1.
   
Sears Roebuck and Merck led the slide, falling the equivalent of 40 Dow
points after the release of their latest earnings reports.