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National news * PAGE 11 - PLA1NDEALER-1WEPNESDAY..MAY |», lt*4 Gas prices drop; should continue By Mark 2. Barabak By United Press International LOS ANGELES -- Gas prices fell slightly in the last two weeks and the trend should continue into the heavy summer driving season as plentiful supply offsets concern about the Persian Gulf war, an in­ dustry analyst said this week. The overall average price of gasoline nationwide is $1.21.05 a gallon, down 0.13 cents from two weeks ago, said Dan Lundberg, who surveys 18,000 service sta­ tions nationwide on a bi-weekly basis. "It looks as though the summer run-up that had been so widely an- Ucipated is being offset by a con­ tinued oversupply of all petroleum products," Lundberg said in an in­ terview. "Americans are generally com­ placent about the situation in the Gulf and the law of supply and de­ mand continue to take precedence over the tendency of Americans to worry and start to stockpile." Iran and Iraq have escalated tension in the strategic Persian Gulf by attacking oil tankers as part of their 44-month-old war. Lundberg said his survey found the average overall prices at self- service pumps: •Fell .21 cents a gallon in the last two weeks, to 110.09 for regular leaded. •Fell .17, to 117.52 for regular unleaded. •Fell .11, to 129.65 for premium unleaded. At full-service pumps, the price for regular leaded, 129.50, was un­ changed. The price for regular unleaded fell .04 cents a gallon to 136.06 while the price of premium unleaded was 143.90, down .09 cents. The wholesale price of gasoline -- which excludes all taxes -- fell .59 cents a gallon, to an overall na­ tionwide average of 89.02 cents. Lundberg said the disparity bet­ ween that price and the cost at the pump results from the desire of service station owners to recoup some of the 1.7-cents-a-gallon loss they suffered during this year's first quarter. Pon*fr abandero basic industries, says Iacocca By Charles J. Abbot UPI Midwest Correspondent WASHINGTON - Industries like steel and automobiles are vital counterparts to the high technology enterprises that hold public attention and must not be abandoned by the United States, Chrysler Corp. chairman Lee Iacocca said. He told a news conference Mon­ day he disagrees with projections that developing countries will take over "basic" industries like steel and the United States should con­ centrate on developing high technology. He said the basic in­ dustries are needed in the United States for the high technology firms to prosper. "Steel and autos are their (high technology's) biggest users," Iacocca said. "There are five computers on our Laser sports car -- five." "I see great things if govern­ ment, labor and management can get together. That's what I've been advocating," Iacocca said. "It worked for Chrysler." Iacocca later said his recent proposal for a summit meeting to map action by labor, auto ex­ ecutives and government was dead. Iacocca raised the idea after trade ambassador William Brock criticized hefty bonuses to auto executives and said restraints on Japanese imports probably will end next year, as scheduled. "Well, yeah, it's be almost un- American to call it dead but that's my point of view," Iacocca said. Iacocca said he met with White House officials late last week, "asking their response and going over it in great detail." "This administration is ideologically opposed to doing anything cooperatively," Iacocca said. UAW president Owen Bieber has expressed interest in a sum­ mit meeting but there was litUe favorable public response elsewhere. Automakers say Japanese makers enjoy an unfair price ad­ vantage due to tax laws and the yen-dollar exchange rate. ..... i . ' • : NEW PRODUCT Omnimedical, Inc. and AT&T aire recipients of the second anrnial Governor's New Product Awards in recognition of in­ novation resulting in economic contributions to the state. Lower net cost due/ to used car price increase By Michdine Maynard UPI Auto Writer DETROIT -- The price of new cars may be at an all-time high, but statistics show used car values have risen even more than car prices, meaning the net cost of a new car may be less than ex­ pected. . "People are aware of the changes in the new car prices, as those prices are announced by the auto companies, but car owners often don't realize that used car values can go up even more, and that trading costs can come down," said Philip E. Benton Jr., a Ford Motor Co. vice president. In spring 1983, U.S. government statistics showed the average price of a new car was $10,339. This year, the price of a new car was $10,638, an increase of $299 or 2.9 percent. The average price of a one- to five-year-old used car last year was $4,646, compared to $5,138 this year, .according to wholesaler reports. This is an increase of $492 or 10.5 percent. Thus, in 1983, the difference for a new-car if a trade was involved was $5,593. In 1984, that difference has dropped to $5,500. Only two percent of new car buyers are first-time buyers, so almost every new car buyer benefits from the strong used car market, said Ford analyst L. Ray­ mond Windecker. The strong value of used cars is particularly apparent among im­ ported vehicles. Quotas on Japanese cars have sliced inven­ tories, and there have been many reports of dealers adding up to $2,000 on top of the sticker price of a typical Japanese model. Because of this, many people who would buy a new import are instead choosing used ones -- if they can find them. Among domestic autos, there is .a scarcity of late model used cars -- those two years old or less -- because of the slump in auto sales in the 1980-83 recession. In 1982 for example, only 5.75 million U.S. cars were sold. In the last boom year, 1978, U.S. automakers sold 9.16 million cars. However, Windecker said the typical used car is about four to five years old. Thus, this is the best time to purchase a car that age because of the 1978 auto boom. "It isn't going to get any better next year, and two years from now, the 1982 models will be com­ ing into a pretty heavy trading cy­ cle, and there just aren't very many of them out there," said the Ford analyst. "There's no ad­ vantage in waiting." Windecker said the old adage that a car is worth $500 less the minute it is driven off a dealer's lot may not be accurate in the cur­ rent market. Z ol s O | S O c| (A » </> Q s M S I? i 5 «o "= -a AS 'O So" i *>i ^ o A - so ci n or • S £ 3.f 3 8 M t 5 3 5 S. IS : 4A </»