Damon Corp

Until a few years ago, the only health-care diagnostic device in most home medicine cabinets was the lowly thermometer. For anything more complicated than confirming a fever, most Americans had to consult their doctor. Thanks to advances in biotechnology, there are now simple at-home tests to detect pregnancy, monitor blood-sugar levels and detect signs of colon cancer--all without seeing a doctor.

* The stock market roared ahead, lifted by falling interest rates and a receding inflation menace. * The yield on the Treasury's key long-term bond fell to a second consecutive low, which strengthened its price. * The dollar settled mixed in moderate, uneventful trading. Stocks Stocks advanced steadily throughout the day, encouraged by the bond market rally and the accompanying drop in yields.

Damon Corp. on Monday accepted a revised, $223-million takeover offer from a group led by American Magnetics Corp. in Sherman Oaks, apparently ending Damon's seven-month battle to remain independent. However, the companies' agreement also allows Damon, a Needham Heights, Mass.-based operator of clinical laboratories, to solicit alternative offers for 30 days.

The stock market declined slightly in slackened trading Wednesday as Wall Street's year-end rally sputtered for a second straight session. The Dow Jones index of 30 industrials, down 6.61 on Tuesday, slipped another 1.43 points to 2,164.64. Declining issues outnumbered advances by about 6 to 5 in nationwide trading of New York Stock Exchange-listed stocks, with 659 up, 798 down and 556 unchanged. Volume on the floor of the Big Board came to 147.25 million shares, down from 161.

Stock prices closed lower Thursday, breaking a three-session winning streak as Wall Street's "Gorbachev rally" showed signs of fading. The Dow Jones index of 30 industrials, which had risen 61.35 in the week's first three trading days, dropped 11.92 to 2,141.71. Declining issues outnumbered advances by about 9 to 5 in New York Stock Exchange trading. Big Board volume slowed to 124.15 million shares from Wednesday's 148.36 million.

For weeks, Mitt Romney has gotten off scot-free in Florida because his cash-starved GOP rivals lack the financial resources to attack him on TV. Now a Democratic labor union is about to fill the void, attacking Romney's business record in a new ad, accusing him of what it calls "corporate greed" and linking him to Medicare fraud at a company where he once sat on the board of directors (see video below).   AFSCME has purchased airtime in Florida for the 30-second spot, which bends the facts to link Romney to Florida's Republican Gov. Rick Scott, another businessman-turned-politician who once ran a company that paid $1.7 billion in fines, penalties and damages for Medicare fraud (still a record)

Stocks closed higher in a rally built on strong gains in high-profile shares such as General Motors, Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing and Allied-Signal. * The dollar surged by nearly a yen in an extension of Friday's powerful rally, as expectations persisted for political uncertainty in Japan and economic stagnation in Germany. * Treasury bond yields sagged to six-week lows, strengthened by positive sentiment toward President Clinton's deficit-reduction plan and the dollar's further gains.