Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 35, Number 96, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 August 1903 — COMMERCIAL AND FINANCIAL [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

COMMERCIAL AND FINANCIAL

* “I "The tenor of the disnßK York. P atcli es from nearly every ■ ■■■* section of the country indicates that there is'less than the customary midsummer dullness in business, and collections are more promptly met than usual. A large proportion of the unions have signed a working agreement with, the employers in the building trades of this city, and fully one-half the men have returned to work. Earnings o$ railways reported for July exceed last year’s by 12.9 per cent, and-those of 1901 by 24.2 per ceiit. Farm work still retards retail distribution of merchandise in western sections. Foreign trade at this port for the past week shows a gain of $2,569,000 in value of imports ns compared with the same week last year, while exports decreased $502,022,” according to R. G. Dun & Co.’s Weekly Review of Trade. Continuing, the report says: Good news as to the progress being made toward settlement of labor disputes was neutralized by the decline in securities in so far as the iron and steel industry is concerned. There were many indications that the interruptions from strikes would be less frequent in the immediate future, and tlifere was a general disposition to fully sustain prices. But the heavy liquidation and new low record prices for steel issues had much influence on conditions in the actual business. Nearly half a million tons of Steel rails have been ordered for next year’s delivery, and other heavy steel shapes are attracting close attention. The trade will benefit by the greater stability of prices secured through the revival of the billet pool. Bessemer has steadied, bringing out new orders, but there are still evidences of weakness in other classes of pig iron. General resumption of structural wwrk in New York is the moat important element in the steel industry at prepent. The unexpected happened in the market for wocic-ns. It was confidently believed that new lines of staple pieeed.vej goods would be opened nt fully maintained quotations, but the American Woolen Company reduced prices to about the same level as existed a year ago, despite the material increase in raw wool and several other items in the cost of production. The cut was evidently made to secure business rather than because of any weakness in tlie market.

. There are no Slgiji§ of —bfrlM business paralysis.— The elimination of water in Wall street has no 1 ! put a damper on straight business. The real decline in stocks began when the .court hauded .down the decision in the Northern Securities ease which showed that there were limits to what even the kings of finance could do, and since then the influences for decline have been many. But tb* first gieat blow at confidence was struct when the public began to see that the men who hold the trusteeships for the smaller investors were managing the affairs of the country’s greatest corporation for theiriown purposes. Then the small investor began to ask himself what sort of a show he stood. The lapse of speculation has been indicated this year by the collapse of several purely speculative organizations and the unwillingness of the speculative public to give the United States Shipbuilding a boost, while the failure of Keene’s Southern Pacific deal, after running up the stock to 80, is a case in point. • • VvDo present conditions mean that, bo* fore very long, a shadow is to tall again on Industrial and commercial condition* now so promising? It does not look much like it. The refuhding operations of Secretary Shaw have added some $34,000,000 to the circulation since April; the period is commencing for sales of sterling bills against the autumn exports of grain, cotton and other products and Europe’will readily furnish any funds needed to meet possible money stringency. The West and South are better prepared than New York for the cropmoving period, ns they havo balances to take ,up there and loans to call in which were made in the spring.