Omaha daily bee., 1883-05-09
n STATE OF TRADE.

TAE STATE OF TRADE.
Although there was a decrease In
the number of failures last week, the
state of trade In the great CONNER.
cial centers Is tar from satisfactory.
The volume of business was small,
and despite the cheapening of
freights and the opening of canal
navigation there was little activity
in the markets. Extreme caution Is
noted In many lines and merchants
are inclined to view the future dis
t~rustfully In view of the unsettled
feeling In a number of industries
and the threatening condition of the
labor market. There Is an increased
conservatism In trade which tells
against all speculative projects and
restricts production to the actual re.
qulrements CT business.
In the grain market a stronger feel.
Ing has developed, especially In
wheat, while there has been no
marked increase In the price of corn.
At the last report the visible supply
of wheat had decreased about four
hundred thousand bushels, and corn
abont eight hundred thousand. The
export demand continues moderate,
consequently this decrease Is due to
the falling off In deliveries from the
hnads of farmers. There Is a fair
prospect for s~tiffening prices, owing to
the continued reports that the crop of
winter wheat will be less than 80 per
cent. The greatest shortage is In
states that usually have the largest
surplus owe home requirements,
this will have an important bearing
upon ths outward movement, and
consequently upon the prices to be
obtained during the crop year. There
is a popular belief In a short crop of
spring wheat, and for higher prices
as the season advances, options
for July, August and September de.
liveries continuing to rule higher than
for May and June deliveries. A lar.
ger area If corn will be put in than
usual, although planting has been
somewhat delayed by the inclemency
of the weather.
Local trade and business generally
throughout the week shows marks of
Improvement. Money Is generally
easier and collections are reported
brisk. For all lines of staples there
is an increasing demand. As the sur.
plus crop Is sold, money Is accumulat.
Ing In the hands of the farmers and
more or less of 1t at once finds
Its way to the country mer-
chants. There seems to be no
serious grounds for anticipating the
panic which the bears are attempting
to create In advance of Its arrival.
Bradstreet says that ''the slowness
with which the New York banks are
regaining their surplus Is pointed out
IS the main ground for the prophecy.
1t Is argued that just such a period of
extreme ~stringency in the loan market
as that occurring this spring took
place in the spring preceding the Jay
Cooke failure In the autumn of
1873. It appears, however, that In
previous years, when no crisis
Immediately followed, the strln-
gency In money was quite as
great, owing to the lateness of the
spring and the halting return of cur
rency from the country. There exist
good reasons for believing that trade
and finance In the United States have
already undergone as much, or more,
of a crlsis than will be encountered In
the immediate future There may yet
be more or less of a panic In the stock
market, but it Is believed that this in
Its effects would stop short of the gen.
eral industry and trade of the coun.
try"