11.   Bell Atlantic was the latest Baby Bell to report surprisingly strong profits.

12.   Besides Kodak, other companies reporting unexpectedly strong profits included Sun Microsystems Inc., Cypress Semiconductor Corp. and Novellus Systems Inc.

13.   Bogota stocks rose for a second day, buoyed by optimism for strong profits at leading companies like Bavaria SA and Banco de Bogota.

14.   Both banks have shown strong profit growth in the last year.

15.   Both Southern Electric and National Power have recorded strong profit growth since they were privatized.

16.   Both UAL and AMR have the financial strength to buy USAir, analysts said, and both carriers are expected to show strong profits in the third quarter.

17.   A raft of strong profit reports from the likes of Intel Corp. and General Motors Corp. helped to boost shares.

18.   A surprisingly strong profit report from Cisco Systems set the tone, analysts said, helping to lift three initial offerings of Internet companies to huge gains.

19.   After all, rising productivity in the service sector, which generates so much national wealth, should mean a strong economy and strong profits.

20.   Airlines also have been reporting strong profits in recent quarters, record highs in some cases.