INDUSTRY-BY-INDUSTRY OUTLOOK : The Year in Preview

California came several years late to the nation’s economic recovery party, but the state should be celebrating all through 1997.

Here is what key industries will be up to:

MARKETING: Look for a resolution of the issue of hard liquor advertising on TV, the subject of inquiries by two federal agencies. The industry is airing commercials for the first time, but critics worry about their effect on kids. Even without hard liquor ads, advertising spending in the United States should grow between 5.6% and 7.8% in 1997, staying ahead of inflation. Fewer celebrity endorsers will be featured in ads, as companies look for new ways to grab consumer attention.