The islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1891-1899, 1896-10-01
THE TRADE REVIEW
Downing, Hopkins & Co.'s Weekly Mar
ket Letter.
Portland, Or, Sept. %.

Downing, Hopkins & Co.'s Weekly Mar
ket Letter.
Portland, Or, Sept. %.
While the conservative investor has
been waiting for the skies to clear the
trade on change has made heroic ef-
orts to put prices on higher plane.
and to infuse new life into speculative
transactions. These efforts have met
with partial success. Two very seri-
GUS obstacles have been constantly in
the way of success. First, the general
public, frightened by the cry of hard
times, fights shy of all forms OF trad
ing. Second, the overproduction OF
the whole agricultural world has caused
q depression which has been most dis
couraging to those who attempt specu-
lation only on the buying side. But the
local trade has made good fight.
Prices have gone lower and lower until
bear plupgers found themselves at
tempting the impossible in forcing fur
Their declines There has been long
period of narrow markets at close to
the lowest prices ever recorded on the
Chicago exchange. The past week
brought the first upheaval in any quar-
ter Natural conditions have favored
buyers to an extent that attention has
been withdrawn from the political
field. There has been fresh vigor in
the pits by reason of the return of
many speculative leaders from abroad
and from the summer resorts. These
have taken hold with more confidence
than those who have been through the
tiresome trade of the summer months.
But the changes in the routine news
and statistics, the all important laws
of supply and demand have favored
buyers and helped prices. The latest
government estimate on the crop totals
places wheat, corn, and oats at much
lower figures than established by popu-
lar Judgment. While the trade dis
credited the totals in a way the mar
kets were relieved because the official
exhibit was not excessive. The Wash :.
ington report came when markets were
making Roadway and the influence
was negative one-it simply was not
bearish and depressing. The advances
scored are encouraging. Wheat shows
improvement of cents from extreme
low point.
The export sales at the seaboard have
been heavy. Chicago has been on an
export basis. St. Louis, in the center
of the winter wheat belt, has been
kept busy supplying very urgent mill
ing demand from the interior, and re-
ceipts at that point have fallen off
sharply.
There are evidences that New York
carriers are putting big money into
wheat in the Northwest and that a
great volume will be taken to the sea-
port for carrying profits and to meet
any emergency abroad during the long
term when lake navigation is impos 81
BILE. This tends largely to effset the
very heavy receipts at Minneapolis and
Duluth. which are largely the result Of
tight money. Country elevators will
not carry the farmers grain this win
ter. The forwarding of this great
volume of grain to terminal markets
will increase the visible supply, but
the grain will be in shape for an urg-
ent foreign demand, which European
trouble may force at any time.
Exports of wheat, -four included as
wheat, from both coasts of the United
States last week amounted to $685.
326 bushels. against $1,000 bushels
the previous week, and as compared
with 1888, 900 bushels two years ago,
and 4, 1877, 900 in the like week of 1893
The American visible supply of wheat
increased 2,O53, 900 bushels, and now
totals 40, 655, 900 bushels.