Also . . .

President Clinton signed into law the Homeowners Protection Act of 1998, which automatically cancels private mortgage insurance once a borrower attains 22% equity. Currently, homeowners pay PMI to protect lenders from defaults on mortgages.

* Ralcorp Holdings Inc. agreed to sell its struggling, 67-year-old Beech-Nut baby food business, the second-largest behind Gerber Products Co., which was spun off from Ralston Purina Co. in 1994, said it plans to focus its attention on building its market-leading private-label cereals, cookies and crackers.