BIZWATCH : MARKETS.

MARKET LOGIC: Stocks rose Thursday, halting a one-day slide with help from some strong earnings reports. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 44.33 to close at 7,886.76, bolstered by strong profit showings from General Electric and J.P. Morgan.

MEMO

ORION BEING SOLD TO MGM: Metromedia International Group shareholders Thursday approved the $573 million sale of Orion Pictures to billionaire Kirk Kerkorian's Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. MGM also gets Goldwyn Entertainment Co. as part of the sale.

?13- Associated Press

FIELDS AIRCRAFT HITS NEW HEIGHTS: Fields Aircraft Spares Inc., a Simi Valley-based distributor of aircraft cabin products, said preliminary second-quarter sales reached a record $2.9 million, an increase of 142 percent over a year ago. For the first six months of the year, sales reached $5 million, up 92 percent from a year ago and a company record.

?13- Daily News

MEDICAL RESOURCES BUYS BREA COMPANY: Medical Resources Management Inc., a Glendale-based publicly traded provider of mobile laser and surgical services and medical equipment, has acquired Brea-based Med Surg Specialties Inc. in exchange for common stock, officials said Thursday. The Brea company, which had approximately $1 million in revenues in 1996, will be merged into Physiologic Reps Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Medical Resources Management.

?13- Daily News

DDL PAYS OFF DEBT WITH LOAN: DDL Electronics Inc., a Newbury Park provider of electronic manufacturing services, has paid off its 10 percent senior secured notes for $5.3 million. About $2 million was borrowed from Thomas M. Wheeler under an 8 percent note maturing Aug. 31, 1998, which is convertible to DDL common stock at 75 cents a share. The note is secured by all outstanding shares of DDL subsidiary, SMTEK Inc. In addition, Wheeler received two seats on DDL's seven-member board of directors. DDL also agreed to buy Jolt Technology Inc., an electronics contract manufacturing firm in Florida controlled by Wheeler, for 9 million shares of DDL common stock.

CAPTION(S):

2 Charts

Chart: (1--Color) DOW INDUSTRIALS

(2--Color) BIZ FACTS

Latin expansion

Percent increase in output of goods and services (GNP) for selected Latin American countries, 1996

Knight-Ridder Tribune/PAUL TRAP