New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1886-01-04
MONEY And BUSINESS.

! MONEY AND BUSINESS.
With the change from the old to the new
year, hopeful feeling is apt to prevail mt FIRST,
whether destined to disappointment or not.
! This is especially the case when movements for
month or more before the close OF the Old
year have been based upon the belief that the
new year would bring improvement. Hence.
/ il is more important than usual at this time to
! Judge whether the bright anticipations which
/ are generally cherished accord with the facts.
! About the first of January there is always
| much buying for investment, though of late
years the real investors have formed habit OF
| buying before rather than after that date, in
order to escape the manipulated advance which
usually grcets their advent. Last year the
stock market opened (see the market report for
January - with pyrotechnic brilliancy,' but
prices declined 4l2 cents on the dollar during
/ the first month, when il was seen that the in
vestors had already made their purchases. The
considerable advance during the past two weeks,
! and the great advance during the past six
months, might have deferred some investors
fIom buying prior to the opening of the year,
and accordingly the purchase OF bonds on Sat
urday amounted TO $3,1 900. against
| 81 ,534, 900 on January Q last year. But 1t Is
TO be observed that considerable part Of these
dealings was of speculative character. The
stock market OH Saturday was not particularly
brilliant and while some favoritos In specula
ton were advanced, the general average closed
at 81 . Is against q 1873 Thursday for sixty
active stocks. Thus there is still room for
doubt whether the investors have already
made most of their purchases in anticipation of
the new year, rs they did late in 1882 and
1888. The closing for sixty active stocks
compares with 44.56 at the close of the
previous year, an advance of 81 per cent. 1t
is undeniablc that the circumstances are more
favorable for railway securities than they were
"A year ago. But some still doubt whether the
range of prices has not advanced as much as
the actual Improvement in business warrants.
In other markets, the year also opened with
out clear indications as to the future. Wheat
was half cent higher at the close than at the
close of tho previous week, and corn n cent
higher, and oats 13l cent higher pork was II
cents a barrel higher, and lard cents per 100
pounds, cotton a sixteenth, and crushed sugar
au eighth, aud oil one cent higher though
refined was an eighth lower. Lard was also
about cents per 100 pounds higher, and coal
cents per ton, though the market was called
demOralized at Philadelphia. Bar iron was II
cents higher, while nails seemed weaker and it
was reported that the regular price was
shaded or ) per cent in some sales. Other
markets were generally unchanged, though tin
was Il cent lower. But 1t is evident that
anticpations Of an advance after January /
have influenced the prices in most markets for
some time. In pig iron these anticipatons are
chilled by the announcement that Thomas No.
foundry will be- sold at $lS, as before, ana in
coal the improbabilty of agreement seems a
barrier The enormous Increase in hog packing
tends to prevent rise in pork products, aud
the fact that the British wheat market closed
the year with the lowest average known for
more than n century, considerably below the
prices at which American wheat is offered, does
not encourage speculation here for IN advance
in grain. The price of cOrn il low, but it WAS
lower after the crop Of 1881. though that was
more than 200, 900, 900 bushels below the crop
of 1885, according to the report of the Bureau
issued last week, aud the exports of provisions
are now only moderate in amoInt.
The larger facts which Indicate tho general |
condition of business are conflicting. On |
on" hand, the failures during the last quarter of
1885 were unexpectedly numerous. The COM
mercial agencies in recording tho fact, men
ton that business has not improved Of late as |
mech as was expected. The average liabilities |
of firms falling are quite small but this may !
only Indicate that, while few great financial !
concerns have gone down, the proportion of |
legitimate trading houses that have found |
business disastrous is unusually large. AS to
the railroads, it appears that the shipments |
from Chicago last week were 34,213 tOus,
about 1872 per cent. below those OF the same
week of tie previous year, though the move I
mcnt was then considered remarkably small.
The charge that the Baltimore and Ohio has
been emitting rates is not to be overlooked, but |
will be investigated.
PeShaps the most potent influence in the
Street is the impression that the call for bonds
by the Secretary shows that. all danger from
silver coinage is ont of the way The Financial
Chronicle seems to desire to strengthen this
impression, for it says. "The Secretary has
again secured control of the gold current"
IL would be more accurate to say that the gold