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New cars and light trucks sold at a blistering pace in Maryland last month, more than double the rise in national sales, according to figures released yesterday by the state Motor Vehicle Administration. "It's mind-boggling," Chuck Boyle, president of Boyle Buick Inc. in Abingdon, said of the 35.4 percent increase in vehicle sales last month over February's sales in 1999. Boyle is also chairman of the Maryland New Car and Truck Dealers Association, which represents the majority of Maryland's 350 new-car dealers.

Chapman Holdings Inc., a Baltimore brokerage and investment bank, said Tuesday that its fourth quarter and annual profits surged in 1999. For its fourth quarter, which ended Dec. 31, the company reported a net profit of $1.2 million on revenue of $4.3 million. By comparison, Chapman Holdings booked a net loss of $825,000 on $689,000 in revenue in the comparable three months in 1998. For the year, Chapman Holdings said it earned $364,000 on revenue of $8.5 million. Revenue increased 180 percent compared with 1998 when Chapman Holdings lost $1.1 million on revenue of $3 million.

Aether Systems Inc.'s stock finally paused to catch its breath yesterday after four torrid trading days last week lifted the company's share value by 48.6 percent. Shares in the Owings Mills wireless data company dropped by 75 cents yesterday to close at $182, having risen from $123 from last Tuesday through Friday. This boomlet was just the latest flush of success in the brief but heady history of Aether's stock. Aether -- which makes software that allows Palm Pilots and other hand-held computers to receive up-to-the-second customized stock information -- went public Oct. 21 at an initial share price of $16. By the end of the day, the stock's value had more than tripled.

Many investors share a hope: that Washington will someday allow them to put unlimited sums into tax-favored accounts. But for now, they are stuck with rules that limit annual contributions to $2,000 for IRAs and $10,000 for 401 (k)s. If only more could be put in! Imagine the gains that would be realized with no tax on profits for decade upon decade. Actually, you can do just as well in an ordinary, taxable account if you manage things right. In fact, you could do "better" in a taxable account, according to a study by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. That's because some of the tax-deferred accounts come with strings attached.

YOU probably didn't notice it last summer. But your personal financial balance sheet as a homeowner would have reflected it: The market resale value of houses across the country rose at the highest quarterly rate this decade during the three months that ended Sept. 30, according to new federal data.In scattered areas, the increases in values -- and presumably in owners' equity -- were astounding. In the District of Columbia, for instance, the third-quarter value gain on the typical single-family house was 5.9 percent, or a 23.9 percent annualized rate.

It looks as though Ciena Corp. has clawed its way back into Wall Street's affections, at least for now.The Linthicum telecommunications-equipment company issued strong financial numbers for its fiscal fourth quarter yesterday, sending its stock up $10.3125 to close at $71.875.The company had been viewed as one of Maryland's most promising start-up companies until a series of disastrous reversals beginning in the second half of last year.But yesterday Ciena posted net income of $4.5 million for the quarter, or 3 cents per diluted share.

On paper, it's hard to picture.Guy in rumpled Geo Prizm drives very slowly through neighborhoods in Montgomery County. Guy aims beat-up VHS recorder out the window of car. Guy videotapes a half-hour of houses. Guy then turns his video into a weekly cable access show called "A View From a Car." People watch it not knowing what they're watching.But watch closely."It's a look at their homes, a look at their neighborhoods and a look at themselves. People forget to look at their own neighborhoods," says videographer Jeff Stroud.

IF CONGRESS wants evidence about how federal tax policy can transform consumer behavior, it need look no further than a forthcoming report on the current state of the American home equity loan.Whereas barely 30 years ago second mortgages were considered a backwater of consumer credit, aimed primarily at people who had no other way to raise cash, today they are a product for the creme de la creme: Home equity borrowers have higher incomes than the average American household, they pay much less for their credit than people who take out ordinary consumer loans, and they default on their obligations at a very low rate.

Gadget allows access to e-mail away from PCIf you're looking for low-cost access to e-mail when you're away from your computer -- or maybe you don't have a computer at all -- Vtech's e-Mail Postbox ($99) is a worthwhile solution.The small, lightweight computer (under 2 1/2 pounds with batteries) has a full-sized keyboard and a small, eight-line LCD screen. Like other gadgets of this type, it makes me wonder whether seniors and others will have trouble with the dinky screen and small characters.

USinternetworking Inc., an Annapolis company that offers business software over the Internet, has become Wall Street's latest upstart high-tech darling.In its first day of public trading yesterday, the company saw its stock zoom from an opening price of $21 to close at $57.50 on the Nasdaq market. USinternet-working was the 10th most active stock on U.S. markets, with 12.68 million shares changing hands.This near-tripling of USinternetworking's value came in spite of the fact that the company was founded just a year ago January and has yet to turn a profit.