Help-wanted ads in late-'79 dip

The help-wanted advertising index dropped nine points in November after a strong rebound in September and October, the Conference Board reports. At 158 (1967 equals 100), the seasonally adjusted index is at its lowest reading since August and rests three points below the year-ago level of 161.

Want-ad volume declined in all nine areas of the country.The Mountain states showed the steepest decrease (11.7 percent), followed by the West South Central (5.9 percent), the West North Central (5.4 percent), and the Pacific states (5.1 percent). The East South Central region declined only 2.1 percent, the lowest in the country.

The help-wanted index measures the volume of classified advertising in 51 major newspaper across the nation. It is sensitive to changes in the demand for labor, as well as general business conditions.