21.   The drop came even after a U.S. Commerce Department report showed an unexpected rise in new home sales in June.

22.   The drop came in spite of astonishingly robust capital spending by businesses.

23.   The drop comes as indexes of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange and the major U.S. stock exchanges have been declining.

24.   The drop in output comes at the same time that London Metal Exchange copper stockpiles are declining.

25.   The drop in supplies comes amid an unexpectedly strong housing market.

26.   The drop came a day after rival Compaq Computer Corp. released strong first-quarter earnings.

27.   The drop came after analysts said CompUSA Inc., a computer retailer, is experiencing a slowdown in sales.

28.   The drop came after CSX Corp., a rival suitor for Conrail Inc., raised the cash portion of its offer for the Northeastern railroad.

29.   The drop came after home sales set records in August, September and October.

30.   The drop came after two reports Friday that raised concern U.S. inflation might accelerate.