BIZWATCH : EARNINGS.

MARKET LOGIC: With investors seeking safety in big-name issues, the Dow took back some of the 300 points it lost over the two previous sessions and closed Tuesday with a gain of 27.57 at 6,611.05. Broader stock indicators hovered near Monday's closing levels, ending the session mixed.

ARCO MAY BOW OUT OF COAL BIZ: Los Angeles-based Atlantic Richfield Co. on Tuesday said that it may exit its worldwide coal business by possibly selling assets in the United States and Australia. Company Chairman Mike R. Bowlin said that the company no longer regards its coal assets as part of its core operations. Arco's U.S. operations in Wyoming, Colorado and Utah may be spun off into a stand-alone company. Australian operations could be sold or taken public in that country.

PHONE MERGER FINALIZED: The third-largest merger in U.S. history was completed Tuesday when two former Baby Bells merged to create the nation's second-largest local telephone company. The California Public Utilities Commission had given final approval earlier in the day to the merger of Pacific Telesis into Texas-based SBC Communications, a $16.5 billion deal. The PUC conditions included a refund of a modest $213.5 million over five years to customers of Pacific Bell, Telesis' phone subsidiary. It also included a commitment by Pacific Bell to provide $50 million over the next 10 years to fund efforts to expand telecommunications services to the state's underserved.

READY FOR BATTLE: Northrop Grumman Corp.'s B-2 bomber has been declared ready for combat by the U.S. Air Force, Pentagon spokesman Kenneth Bacon said. Los Angeles-based Northrop Grumman has been delivering B-2s to the Air Force's Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri since 1993. Since then, the planes have undergone a series of operational tests to make sure they perform as expected. There are now 13 B-2s at Whiteman. The Air Force will spend about $45 billion for 21 of the wing-shaped, radar-evading bombers. Each B-2 carries 16 to 20 nuclear or conventional bombs, and can travel more than 11,000 miles with one aerial refueling. Seattle-based Boeing Co. and Fairfield, Conn.'s General Electric Co. are Northrop Grumman's primary subcontractors.

TODD-AO REPORTS GAINS: Todd-AO Corp. has not completed its acquisition of Burbank-based post-production specialist International Video Conversions Inc. on schedule. The deal, reflecting Los Angeles-based Todd-AO's expansion beyond its core business of sound services, had been announced in January with the closing expected at the end of March. International Video Conversion had no comment on the announcement. Todd-AO made the disclosure in its earnings report, showing profits of $1.52 million, or 14 cents a share, for its second quarter ended Feb. 28, compared with $507,000, or 6 cents a share in the year-ago period. Sales were up 47 percent to $19.3 million.

MRV STOCK FALLS: Stock of Chatsworth-based MRV Communications fell more than 10 percent after the computer networking company said it would restate earnings for its last two quarters of 1996 to add $4.4 million in charges to comply with a ruling by the Securities and Exchange Commission. MRV said the charge is related to how it accounted for the convertible debentures it issued in acquiring Fibronics Ltd. In September, MRV completed a private placement of $30 million in 5 percent debentures convertible to common stock to help finance the Fibronics purchase and the SEC ruled two weeks ago that such debenture transactions must be charged to interest expense. MRV stock fell $2.25 to $20 on the Nasdaq.

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Biz Facts: Farm States

Top five states for exports of food and farmproducts, according to 1995 estimates in billions of dollars