1.   After an hourlong meeting Wednesday with both banks, Gov. John Rowland said his state would try to exact concessions to offset the layoffs caused by the bank merger.

2.   Clinton exacted concessions from Congress in the final hours of arduous negotiations that set the stage for him to claim victory in his quest for a balanced federal budget.

3.   State officials, mindful of local opinion, have exacted concessions from banks in the past.

4.   With sudden urgency, U.S. and European Union diplomats, working with envoys of various religious denominations, exacted concessions from Arafat.