ALSO. . .

* The National Assn. of Securities Dealers will propose letting dealers on the Nasdaq Stock Market cut the number of shares they must trade in a transaction to 100, rather than a minimum of 1,000 shares, Chairman Frank G. Zarb said.

* Continental Airlines Inc. reached a tentative agreement with its principal pilots union on a five-year contract that would smooth its planned alliance with Northwest Airlines Corp. Details of the accord with the 5,200-member union were not released.

* Union Pacific Corp.’s faulty operating and safety practices contributed to a series of rail accidents that killed 11 people last year, the Federal Railroad Administration said in releasing its investigations.