BUSINESS ABROAD: Amps in the Pants

For Japanese women, upset over a wave of purse snatchings, Japan's Matsushita Industrial Electric Co. fortnight ago brought out a portable burglar alarm that is carried in the purse. A wire around the owner's arm sets off the alarm when the handbag is grabbed. Last week the company came out with something for the boys: electrified pants. The hot pants, which have heating wires woven into the fabric, are designed for desk workers in unheated plants; the pants are simply plugged into an electrical outlet. At $14 a pair, the pants went...

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