IN BRIEF.

VALLEY INDEX CLIMBS: Shares of companies in the Daily News Index were mostly higher Monday, led by Xircom Corp. of Thousand Oaks and Chatsworth's MRV Communications Inc. Xircom gained $3.1875 to $25.6875. MRV gained $2.0625 to $12.0625.

- Daily News

JOB FAIR: Just call it one-stop shopping for job seekers. The Daily News will sponsor the '99 Career Fair today from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Universal City Hilton and Towers, 555 Universal Terrace Parkway. The fair will offer seminars and a resume review service in addition to exhibits from a host of participating companies that include 20th Century Industries, Countrywide Home Loans and Northridge Hospital Medical Center. Admission is free. For information, call the event hotline at [phone].

- Daily News

BUY BACK: In separate announcements, nutritional supplements maker Natrol Inc. of Chatsworth and Woodland Hills-based Syncor International Corp., a supplier of radiopharmaceuticals to the medical industry, said they will buy back their own shares to increase shareholder value. Natrol said it will purchase up to $10 million in stock in the coming months. Syncor said it has not determined the timing or value of its buy-back program. Shares in both firms fell Monday, with Natrol losing 25 cents to close at $6.50, while Syncor dropped 12.5 cents to $23.375.

- Daily News

SALE: Ventura-based Biopool International Inc. said the company has completed the sale of its blood bank reagent business to Imnmucor Inc. of Norcross, Ga., for $4.45 million. Biopool still owns the plant, property and equipment in West Chester, Pa., and will run the facility on behalf of Immucor during a transition period. Biopool International develops, manufactures and markets test kits to assess and diagnose some blood disorders and measure the accuracy of drug tests.

- Daily News