Worlds markets lashed together in wild ride.

Byline: Dan Vukelich TRIBUNE BUSINESS EDITOR

THE YEAR IN 1997 BUSINESS

THIRD IN A SERIES

STORY OF THE YEAR BUSINESS

Despite the strong U.S. economy, the drop proved the global marketplace is interconnected

The stock market's roller-coaster ride and the U.S. economy's surprising strength stand as the nation's top business stories during 1997.

The ever-climbing Dow Jones industrial average, which peaked at 8178.31 on Oct. 7, got a jolt of reality Oct. 27, when the miracle of double-digit Asian economic growth was revealed for the bad-loan- and junk-bond-fueled mirage that it was.

As markets in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Korea and Tokyo tanked, reverberations echoed across exchange floors in Germany, Britain and finally the United States.

The …