GUARANTEED ANNUAL WAGE will go into effect for 1,000,000 United Automobile Workers on June 1 as scheduled, now that nine states have okayed the plans to supplement state unemployment benefits. Workers can collect in Michigan, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Delaware, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Florida and California, but not in Ohio, which ruled the plan illegal.

WOLFSON ALLY Alexander Rittmaster resigned from the Montgomery Ward board only one month after Louis Wolfson himself quit. Wolfson's sole remaining Monkey Ward director: Advertising Consultant Bernice Fitz-Gibbon.

NEW MINIMUM WAGE of $1 hourly will put an extra $560 million yearly into the pay envelopes of 2,000,000 workers after it goes into effect this week. But the new law will hit Southern industry hard: of the South's 780,000 textile workers, 34% earn less than $1 hourly; of its 400,000 furniture workers and lumbermen, 67% are paid less than the new minimum. Some prices will go up to cover the higher wage costs, and some marginal operators may be forced out of business.

G.M.'S AEROTRAIN which missed its first date for revenue operations because coaches were too noisy and bumpy (TIME, Jan. 30), broke down on its maiden run with paying passengers aboard. While trying to clip 1 1/2 hours off the Pennsy's nine-hour.

New York-Pittsburgh run, the Aero-train almost pulled a coupling apart 75 miles out of Manhattan, forced the engineer to limp into Philadelphia, where the passengers were transferred to an old-style train.

STOCK EXCHANGE SEATS have reached a 19-year high. Last week a seat sold for $100,000 v. $95,000 only a fortnight ago. For the first time in a quarter-century, not one of the 1,366 memberships in the New York Stock Exchange was for sale.

RAYON BOOM goes on despite hot competition from Dacron, nylon, etc. Rayon production last year topped 972,800,000 Ibs., a 10% jump over 1953's previous record and 9% more than all other man-made fibers combined. Rayon's biggest new customers: tiremakers, manufacturers of industrial hose, belting and carpets.

LUFTHANSA, the West German airline reborn less than a year ago, is growing up fast. This spring Lufthansa will expand its 66 intercontinental flights weekly to 488, double schedules to England, France and Spain, switch from five-weekly to daily New York service, add Rio and Buenos Aires to its routes.

TRUSTBUSTER BARNES will soon announce more consent decree settlements in major antitrust cases being prosecuted by the Justice Department. Among companies negotiating for terms: RCA, United Fruit Co., Pan American-Grace Airways.

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