The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-03-22
TRADE STILL ON A BOOM.
RAILROAD EARNINGS FOR MARCH
BEAT THE RECORD.

/ a Gain in Bank Clearings at All the
! Large Cities - Actual Shrinkage in
Corsump zion Confined to a Few Lines
Only-The iron Market Alone on the
Verge Of Decentralization.
/ New York, March 2l.-R. G. Dun &
( Co weekly review of trade was issued to-
I day. 1t reads as follows:
The business Of to-day is large, but the
signs are not entirely fattering as TO bust
ness tomorrow. Another belated fragment
of winter, which would have been welcome
IN January, came just in time to disturb a
/ little, but the volume of business is indis-
putably larger than in any previous year at
this season. The railroad earnings thus far
reported fer March exceed those of any
previous year.
BANK CLEARINGs.
The bank clearings at New York show a
gain over last year of 3 4 per cent. at Bos-
ton. Philadelphia and Chicago of II per
cent, and at all other cities of IL per cent.
All signs prove that the actual shrinkage of
! consumption is confined to a few lines only,
principally those affected directly by the
absence of winter, but that in other
branches the consumption is larger than at
any former time. In some cases, as in iron,
the only difficulty or danger comes from the
fact that the consumption, clearly the lar
gest ever known, is probably surpassed by
production far beyond all records.
TRADE FAIRLY SATISFACTORY.
Reports from every part of the country
| represent trade as fairly satisfactory. Com
plants of slow collections are more general
Those who latored SO long to convince
| themselves that the price of iron and its
products must rise, in spite Of the unprece-
dented output, now admit that prices are
lower and the market unsettled aud close
on Generalization. Offers of southern iron
are the obvious cause; No. l at $lS 20
here, and gray forge at SIG 80. Lower
prices by % to 80 cents per ION are made at
Pittsburg. with 81 lower for rails, So lower
for blooms and billets, and manufactured
| iron The fact of greatest significance re-
peatedly noted here, has been the slacken-
| ing in the demand for finished products, and
| some concessions are now made in the east
ern markets on rails for billets. There are
| few sellers and no buyers, and bar mills are
running short of orders. Ia general. the
consumption is larger than year ago, but
clearly shows a reaction from the great rush
of last fall.
DRY GOODS DEALERS CAUTIOUS.
| In dry goods, the prevailing feature is the
| extreme caution of buyers, except from the
| south which does larger business than
ever, but the state of trade on the whole is
| not encouraging. Another important fail
ure comes at a time when banks had begun
to seek commercial paper more freely. I'm
| porters are rushing in goods in anticipation
/ of a change in the tariff, but in dress goods
| it Is between seasons. In mems WOODEN the
trade is limited and many mills are not
supplied with orders; and in cottons, while
sales are fair in volume the present high
price of material affects profits.
THE MONETARY SITUATION.
The monetary situation has changed for
| the better more dis inctly than any other,
the treasury having found means to pay
during the week $4,000, 900 more than it has
taken in. Foreign exchange has risen one
half cent because of the scarcity of com
mercial bills, but the exports for three
weeks from this port show an increase of
| 100000 over last year, or s per cent,
while the increase of imports Is nearly
| 100000, or 81 per cent
| The stock market is afflicted with dizziness
and the average price of stock, exclusive OF
the 'industrial' lot, has declined about SO
outside public now uses the market only for
the purpose of selling when there is any
rally, aud the impression is growing that
there must be decided decline before much
| activity will be seen. Railroads are doing
| a large business, but most stocks are so held
and SO managed that the public is not in
vited.
The business failures occurring through
out the country during the past week num-
Der for the United States 215, and fol
Canada 40, against 260 last week.