The Portland daily press., 1895-04-13
BRADSTREET'S REPORT.
Cattle, Beef and Petroleum Ruled
the Markets.
ADVANCES MADE
IN THE PRICES OF THESE.

Outside of These, Business Has Been Quiet
but Healthy Many Failures During
the Week-A Slight Decrease in Bank
Ciearings Considerable Activity in
the West.
| New York. April H. Bradstreets will gay
| tomorrow. A feature in trade circles is
found in the prices movement, more par
ticularly those for cattle. dressed beef and
petroleum. Droutb, low prices and hard
times within two years have resulted in a
shorter supply of cattle that is prospective
| ly thirty per cent less than last year. Live
cattle arc 160 higher per one hundred
pounds than last year. and one dollar high
er than the lowest point this year. Dressed
beef is . l.2 cents higher than Tho average
last year. and the highest since 1885. The
comparative scarcity of high grade cattle
| is emphasized by the fact that present
quotations, when made in previous periods
of scarcity never failed to bring supply
when one existed. Petroleum sold at S157
l-s Thursday, or 81 cents higher than Janu-
ary I. and IS cents higher than year ago,
which is more than three times the lowest
price of 1892, the highest quotations since
1878 The reduced production and increased
|
produces excitement in the market. Other
advances are of leather, hides and footwear.
Lard is higher and cotton is up 3-l6 cents.
Recent gains in prices for bessimer iron and
steel billets are maintained but the request
at Pittsburg and Chicago is checked. Cof-
fee and sugar are firm at previous prices.
| The list of reactions includes fractional
declines only in wheat, scorn, oats and
pork, the latter ON lower prices of live hogs.
There were 225 failures in the United
States this week against go last week, and
eli in the week a year ago.
Less activity is reported from almost all
Eastern cities, general trade being fair or
quiet. with prospects for Improvement
bright. Central Western cities, notably st.
Louis, Chicago. Cincinnati, Cleveland, Lou
isville and Detroit, report an improvement
in business and con fdence to the future
The greatest activity is noticed in dry
goods. hats, shoes and leaf tobacco. willis
the recent rains produced a cheerful feel
ing in the agricultural region tributary TO
Kansas City. Omaha, Des Muines. Milwxu
| kee. ST. Paul, Minnea polls and Duluth. The
conseq uent Improvement is not is great
as was hoped. because of activity in plant
| ing. The movement of iarm machinery. dry
goods groceries. hardware. paints and oils
| is most active
| IN THE SOUTH.
Among the more important Southern cit
les reporting ae tual gains in the novepep.
of merchandise. are Augusta, Atlanta
Savannah and Galveston. The improve
| ment there is slight. Tho outlook is regard
| ed more cheerfully at New Orleans, where
| the sugar bounty disbursements are expect
ed soon. At Jack sonville and Birmingham,
general trade is quiet and some lines are
slow. Nashville and Memphis retain the
imp ovemert previously recorded. and i'm
proved weather helps trade at Charleston.
At Chattanooga, dry goods and hardware
are relatively mere active.
BANK CLEARINGS.
The total bank clearIngs covering the six
days ending April II, amount to S953. .7O9.-
466, falling away of six per cent from the
| previous week. a normal variation. hut an
Increase of seven 'per cen. over the total
fer the second week OF April, 1894. Con-
| trasted with the corresponding aggregate
| in 1895, about month before the out ibreak
OF the panic. this weeks sbrinkage is fif-
teen per cent a falling off of in tie same
proportion compared with 1892.
| Compared with February, March returns
| of gross earnings of one hundred and thrifty
railroad companies may be construed as
| favorable, an increase over March of 1891.
| being of one per cent. This is to te
contrasted with the February decrease this
year FROM last of 2.5 per cent, and of jan
uary falling off cthis year from last, of half
| Of one per cent. When it is recalled that
the gross railway earnings in March. 1894.
| fell off thirteen per cent from. the total
of hat month in 1893, the increase of last
month from Marc 1894, of fifth of one sra
cent cquires significance.
| WHEAT EXPORTS.
| Exports of wheat from both coasts of tho
United States this week, -four included as
wheat. hold up to the high average of 1884,
119 bushels against 2,S53, 1888 the prevons
week, 1855 $40 the second week of April,
1894. and 2.94S.042 the week in 1898. Tie
maintenance of generally higher range of
clearing totals, the improved outlook for
manufacturers in staple lines. the spread
| of the feeling of confidence that the vol
ume of business will increase the improved
crop outlook in ives ern and northwestern
grain states, are among the more signicnni-
| ly favorable features.
| 1t should be added that the leading North
| Pacific coast markets, Portland, Seattle,
| Tacoiua. Spokane and Others, claim through
the recent freight rate reductions that they
will control the jobbing trade Of a largely
increased proportion of Washington. Idaho
and Oregon, where to this time competition
by eastern iobbers has been heavy.