P530 Teletext 530 Mar30 00:54:13 ————————————— REPORT —————————————————— DOW JONES STOCK AVERAGE at CLOSE 5,587.14 -43.71 The Dow Jones industrial average dropped sharply near the close as money managers locked in profits before the finish of a powerful first quarter. The barometer of big US companies, up nearly 10% since the start of the year, has meandered in a narrow range for most of the week with little in the way of economic news to stir the market. ——————————————————————————————————————— City headlines 500 Index 501 COMMS/PC APPOINTMENTS SEE p641 Europe SharesA-I SharesJ-Z FUSE