BIZWATCH : MARKETS.

MARKET LOGIC: Stocks fell sharply Thursday as reports of big strides in the nation's economy fanned investors' fears of inflation and higher interest rates.

The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 64.73 points to 5,647.65.Declining issues outnumbered advancers by more than 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange.

MEMO

CNBC BACKS DORFMAN: CNBC says a network-sponsored review of commentator Dan Dorfman unearthed no evidence that he broke any laws amid allegations he was under investigation regarding his market-moving reports.

``Dan will continue working for CNBC with the complete and ongoing support of the network,'' said Jack Reilly, vice president and managing editor of CNBC Business News. Meantime, Dorfman is reported to be the target of a federal probe into his relationship with a stock promoter and into whether he profited from his commentaries by trading on them or tipping others in exchange for favors.

DAMAGES AWARDED: A Los Angeles movie marketing company was ordered to pay $1 million to a Japanese-American and an African-American man who said they were racially harassed.

Lance Kobayashi, 39, and Darrell Hampton, 37, were awarded $500,000 each in a series of decisions last week after a Superior Court jury found they suffered ``malice and/or oppression,'' their attorneys said in a Wednesday statement.

The 1994 suit against National Research Group, Inc., which provides market research to movie studios, claimed that the men were taunted with racial slurs and stereotypes by white supervisors from 1991 to 1993.

NRG will appeal the decision, said attorney Howard Knee.

NOVELL CHAIRMAN QUITS: Robert Frankenberg has resigned as chairman, chief executive and president of Novell Inc., ending a turbulent 2-1/2 years in which he failed to capitalize on the billion-dollar spending spree of his predecessor.

Frankenberg inherited the task of integrating several other companies, most notably WordPerfect Corp., into Novell. Early this year, Novell sold WordPerfect and some other assets at a fraction of their cost. Novell last week reported a profit of nearly $59 million for the quarter that ended July 27, down 42 percent from a year earlier, largely due to the sale of the WordPerfect operations.

HEARING HELP: Cineplex Odeon Corp. has told the Justice Department it will provide more listening devices for hard-of-hearing moviegoers.

It was the first formal agreement the department has reached under the Americans with Disabilities Act involving movie theaters and the hard-of-hearing. In April, United Artists Theater Co. agreed to disperse wheelchair locations throughout its auditoriums, rather than having them only in the back, so disabled people could sit with their families.

MISCELLANEOUS: Glendale Federal Bank has agreed to acquire OneCentral Bank of Glendale. The cash transaction is valued at $11.4 million. . . .Starting Sunday, fines will quadruple to $60 for drivers who leave cars unattended curbside at Los Angeles International Airport. Police have been issuing about 5,000 citations a month.

CAPTION(S):

2 Charts, Photo

Chart: (1--Color) DOW INDUSTRIALS

(2--Color) BIZFACTS

POOR PROSPECTS

Percent of executives polled who plan to increase management or professional staffs over the next six months by less than the national average

Knight-Ridder Tribune Graphic Network

Photo: (Color) No caption (Robert Frankenberg)