ZAHLEN? o. T.

       Factory sector expanding moderately by Rex Nutting
 
       The U.S. factory sector expanded at a modest pace in January for the 11th time in
       the past 12 months. The Institute for Supply Management said its closely watched
       business index fell to 53.9 percent from 55.2 percent in December, indicating a
       slower pace of improvement. Economists were expecting the index to fall to 53.9
       percent in January. Readings over 50 percent indicate that a majority of firms say
       business is getting better. The new orders index slid to 59.7 percent in January from
       62.9 percent in December.
 
       
 10:00AM
       2002 construction spending slimmest in a decade by Rachel Koning
 
       Construction spending rose 1.2 percent in December to nearly $848 billion, the
       Commerce Department said Monday -- the biggest gain since last February. But the
       overall construction spending gain for 2002 was just 0.4 percent, the slimmest rise
       since 1991 - the last year for negative annual spending. Construction spending rose
       2.7 percent in 2001 and more than 7 percent in 2000. Private construction spending
       was up 1.3 percent in December. Thanks to four-decade-low mortgage rates,
       residential dwellings spending jumped 2.9 percent in December, the most since a 3