Omaha daily bee., 1889-03-10
The SPECULATIVE MARKETS.
May Wheat Sinks Below the Dollar
Line.
CORN CLOSES Dull AND LOWER.
Another Active 'Ddy III oa,s-a Small
Decline in Provisions-Little
Change in Caatle-Hogs
Close Strong.
CHICAGO PRODUCE MARKET.

CHICAGO, March Especial Telegram 10
The BEE. May wheat got below 81 to-day,
and July was broken to S6lSc. The market
opened about lie of as compared with yester-
day, the excuse for the over night break
being the financial panic in Paris. The
bears were alert and aggressive. They d.
rected their attacks first TO the distant flu
lures, which were VIGOROUSLY weak ON crop
reports. This started May down, aud il was
not long before the crowd discovered that
that delivery was not well supported.
Hutchinson, who was the largest buyer
yesterday, figured to-day as the principal
seller. He helped to start the break and nj
the best was a moderate buyer after prices
got down. The receiving houses had a good
deal of wheat to sell for May delivery
to-day. Indeed the sales by the receiving
houses have been on an increasing scale ever
since the weather began 10 give promise of
an early spring. This would seem to midi
cate that there is little wheat accommodating at
the country points In readiness for shipment
to Chicago. Tn fact that the prices now
ruling for May are proving so attractive for
country holders may be one of the causes
leading to the disinclination of the bull lead
ers to sustain the market. 1t has been plain
for several days that the Fairbank party had
not been lending the market any material
support. 1t has been left to run itself, so far
as Fairbank has been concerned, for all that
anybody could detect. Hutchinson is at the
'front.' once more as II personality worth CON
sldering. lie is quite as much talked about
as Fairbank, and in his great role as a dis
turoing factor he may conclude not to let
May go down to a point low enough to stop
the country target practice, which some peo-
PIE think is what the Fairbank party would
like to see. There was excellent buying of
July wheat on the break to-day. There has
neen seemingly a good deal of selling Of that
future in this and other markets, on the
theory that the 1889 crop of wheat
was not only going to be the largest
on record, but that it was going to be har-
vested next week. The conservative opera
tors, who do not lose their heads easily. are
looking upon July with ver~ friendly eyes at
the prices now ruling. They hold to the
theory that in any event, no matter how
large the next crop may be, the reserves of
old wheat at the end of the crop year will be
drawn to a lower bedrock level than
has been reached in years, and that the first
months receipts will go into immediate con-
sumption, thus rendering the accumulation
of the stocks during the month of July al
most an impossibility. For that and other
reasons they are disposed TO think that the
selling of the crop that has not vet been
raised, for delivery i'm July. may be carried
too far. Hence this class of operators are
as charY Of shorting July as they are
at sl.ol1f, with sales Immediately at
Sl.Olas. 1t then ran UP to Sl.02 and in
successive breaks declined to $3.50, the bot
tom being reached just about l O'clock. Raj.
lies OF 4W19c were frequent, but the market
gave way AT any pointiunder a pressure of
free offerings. There was active trade in
June, and the price at one stage was down to
93}sc. The transactions in July were on a
larger scale, larger probably than in May.
July opened at SSt, sold off to sT11c, up to
S71Sc, and by irregular jumps or ierky move
ments to S619c, June 934e and July Sj1kc.
AS compared with yesterday this shows a
decline of 3sSc in May, Sc in June and l2lc in
The weakness in the other markets af-
fected the speculative branch of the corn
trade to a limited extent, but the small re-
celpts, which consist IN the main of grades
below No. 2swere in active request for ship
ment and are working gradually to a
closer approximation to their consumptive
value, as COMPARED with the price of con-
tract grade. The opening was firm on the
small arrivals, here and elsewhere, but for
the reason already named, the offerings be-
came freer and trade lapsed into dullness.
The local operators did the bulk of the bust
ness, orders to buy or sell on outside account
being reported by commission houses as
scarce. TIL market held up well IN the face
OF the serious and disouieting financial con-
ditions reported from Paris. which had such
a depressing effect upon wheat, May closing
a shade better than it did yesterday, but all
other futures were from l-16 to sc lower.
In oats another active day was recorded,
with the decline in the speculative market
unchecked. The further weakness was due
to the continued pressure to sell evinccd by
a number of large operators, and in addition
to the reputed unloading of long oats, at
least one trader was credited with selling
short TO a liberal extent. The lnteresj was
chiefly in May, which opened steady at 26asc
and later declined to 251sc, with IA subse-
quent partial recovery, while there was
rather more doing in June than recently at
a narrower discount of 4@aec. The cash
market was quiet and quotably 4@asc
lower, with No. 2 regular around 2434c.
In provisions fair activity and a compare
lively strong market were the features of
the day. Notwithstanding the closing
a small decline from Yesterdays last
figures, the bulk of business was transacted
at an advance, during the morning. when
the greatest animation was witnessed, and
pork sold up 25c, lard &c and short ribs 10c
from the first quotations made. Later, how
ever, the market, under free realizing, broke
badly and the early advance was more than
lost, the resting prices for the session show
ing an actual decline of SC on pork and lard
and 5@1Hc in short ribs.