Jasper County Democrat, Volume 6, Number 31, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 November 1903 — COMMERCIAL AND FINANCIAL [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

COMMERCIAL AND FINANCIAL

~ ; R. G. Dun ft Oo.’s HeV York. Weekly Review of Trade I gays: Industrial activity has increased somewhat, many plants resuming and others preparing to reopen Monday. Several pending labor controversies have reached amicable adjustment, adding to the aggregate of wage earners employed. On the other hand, strikes ar« ordered and some mills will be dosed by lack of new business, while the struggle for control of the copper properties has thrown thousands out of work. While there le evidence of a setback in the steel industry and some hesitation in textiles at the East, the general tenor of these reports is encouraging for a continuance of prosperity, particularly in the sections where agriculture ia the chief occupation. Collections are causing some uneasiness, and financial conditions are unsettled. Merchandise ia freely distributed; earnings for October thus far surpass last year’s by 5.0 per cent and those of 1901 by 13.4 per cent. Purchases of iron and steel products are still restricted to Immediate requirements as a rule, although the decline in quotations appears checked. Some trade authorities anticipate an avalanche of business when buyers are convinced that more attractive terms cannot be secured, but other experts believe contracts wiU not be freely placed until financial conditions improve to such an extent that the railways and other big consumers can serve funds readily. Some increased interest is noted in structural material for office buildings, warehouses and bridges, but orders are insignificant when compared with last year's business in this line. Fsr the first time this season it is possible to record a distinctly better tone in the market for cotton goods. Print cloths are firmer, occasional small advances being quoted, nnd the market for staple and fancy prints is strengthened by the paucity of supplies. A slight increase in sales of woolens is not sufficient to recover lost ground, nor is supplementary business up to the volume that should be coming forward at this time. Although the eurtailCnicaoo. nlent of production in flna ished iron and a partial strike of packing house workers for more wages has created a disturbing feeling, but little appreciable reaction appears in the aggregate volume of current business’ Freight traffic shows no fnlling away. The distribution of merchandise through wholesale and leadiug retail channels compares favorably with a year ago, and there are larger dealings at the banks and in foodstuffs. Weather conditions have favored the progress of seeding and farm work, and the marketing of crops adds to a wider circulation of money throughout the interior. Tha prices of agricultural products maintain unusual firmness. Machinery and hardware factories are kept quite busy, some of the latter working hard to overtake old business. Mercantile collections make a satisfactory showing, and the number of reported failures for the Chicago district does not exceed same week of 1902. Grain shipments for six days, lnclud ing 2,757,330 bushels of corn, aggregate 5,550,740 bushels, and are almost 29 per cent over the previous week nnd fully double those of a year ago. The general demand has been fair and prices well sustained compared with closing a week ago. Live stock receipts, 324,528 head, are slightly over the corresponding week of 1902. Sheep advanced 15 cents per hundred weight. Choice beeves declined 15 cents and hogs closed weak with 50 cents loss. Dealings in provisions showed best on domestic buying, and closing quotations were unchanged in ribs, 5 cents higher in lard and 32Vi cents better in pork.