HEAVYWEIGHT TRAINS, almost three times heavier than new lightweight trains now in vogue, will be put on the road by the Santa Fe. Despite lightweight hoopla, Santa Fe will spend $13 million to equip its El Capitan streamliner with 47 "hi-level" cars two feet higher than conventional coaches, will seat passengers on a deck eight feet above wheels.

OCTANE RACE is getting hotter among gasoline producers. Socony Mobil Oil Co. will market at regular prices new "Mobilgas-R" with high enough octane rating for knock-free performance in most cars. In the premium field, Esso Standard Oil Co. will soon market special "Golden Esso Extra" with octane rating of more than 97. Sun Oil Co. in Florida is blending gas at the pump, giving drivers a choice of five grades of fuel. Top-grade rating: over 100.

FIRST WAGE SETTLEMENT of 1956 for a big, nationwide industry has been given clothing workers. Manufacturers have agreed to 12 1/2-c- hourly pay increase for 150,000 members (average pay: $1.65 per hour) of Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America. Added benefits bring package to about 16^.

TRANSATLANTIC RATE WAR is stirring up between Pan American and Trans World Airlines. Besides first-class and tourist flights, Pan American proposes a third cut-rate (no free meals, smaller seats, more stops) service for $458 round trip between New York and Paris v. $558 for its lowest current fare.

T.W.A. is countering with plans for a 15-day excursion flight from New York to London for $350 round trip. Big stumbling block to both plans: they must be approved by the International Air Transport Assn., whose European members are against any fare decrease.

STORE MERGER will put Federated Department Stores within a whisker of Allied Stores in the race for No. 1 spot among U.S. department-store chains. In an $18 million stock deal, Federated (Manhattan's Bloomingdale's, Boston's Filene's, Dallas' Sanger's) will take on Miami's Burdine's Inc., Florida's biggest (1955 sales: $42.8 million) department store, with four units in the state. In year ended Jan. 28, 1956, Federated, with sales of $537.7 million, was only $44 million behind Allied's pace, but now, with Burdine's, it is running almost even.

PEACEFUL PICKETS may not be punished if fellow pickets riot on the picket line, says the U.S. Court of Appeals. In a case involving strikers against the B.V.D. Co., the court overturned an NLRB decision penalizing peaceful strikers by not giving them their jobs back.

LOW-PRICED COLOR TV SETS (about $500) with 21-in. screens will be put on market this fall by Radio Corp. of America, General Electric and Philco to compete with Admiral's similarly priced set.

FIAT BABY CAR, even smaller than famed Topolino, will be put on Italian market to compete with motorscooter-maker Vespa, currently at the rate of 213,487 scooters annually. The $640 Fiat will have two seats, get 55 miles to the gallon and go up to 53 m.p.h.

NO TIRE PRICE INCREASE will be made in the near future, says B. F. Goodrich President W. S. Richardson. Synthetic-rubber prices have climbed about 4% to 23.9-c- a Ib. recently, but lower prices for crude rubber and nylon will keep tire prices about the same.

INSTALLMENT BUYING, once scorned as capitalist gouge, is cropping up in Communist bloc. To sell luxury goods ($500 refrigerators, $1,379 phonographs) to workers making less than $200 a month, Poland and Hungary are plugging plan with from six to 18 installments. In Hungary, down payments are 25%, interest charge 7% to 9%.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.