The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1897-05-04

Gas. the former on reports of prospectivs
| labor troubles. Western Union declined
n further "a to 7sTs and Sugar lost ".
The only gains in the list were In Lcather
preferred. on covering. Pullman. Iacka-
wanna and Consolidated Gas. each OF
which rose y. The market closed unset
tied and irregular. The Coalers I'm stocks
and bonds have been occupied all week
almost exclusively with the gold export
movement which has set In. and have
manifested considerable uneasincSs at tho
proportions assumed by the shipments.
The gold movement has proved a puzzle
TO the best authorities and the inability
TO account for IL satisfactorily has been
IS much the cause OF ~staEnatton In stock
dealing as any positive apprehensions
CT It's effects. Last Saturday the opinion
was quite general that no exports OF gold
would he made until the then prevailing
rate OF exchange. which was GSI for
short sterling. should rise above that fig
ure. Yet, today: with the demand only
just steady at A.s7a. or i.c below tho
profitable point agreed upon by tho ex-
change houses. a shipment Of 100000 ad-
ditional gold Is announced from BOSTON TO
be made by next Tuesdays Steamer.
The doubt as to the gold shipment being
in response 30 tho exhaustion 81 our
credit balance abroad grows cant OF the
extraordinarily heavy excess OF our mer-
chandise exports over imports for the
nine months Of the fiscal year. an excess
aEcreEatinG So. etl.co. Those who argue
that the balance OF credits has turned
against us assert that this excess OF
exports must bc largely discounted on &C.
IL q iflItE NAALtNiNN OF imports 10
evadc customs duties. They point to tho
heavy importations Of the last two
months In anticipation. and the heavy
obligations incurred for still heavier i'm
, portations to come before the tarin goes
into effect: the larger volume OF our Sc
curities that has to he paid for. tho
charges We must pay To foreigners for our
ocean carrying trade; the credits carried
: abroad by American travellers TO be cx-
pended there. the withdrawal OF foreign
capital which WAS placed in loans I'm the
7 New Nnrk money market. and naNfnsnt OF
dividends and interest on American secur-
tiles still held by foreigners. An these
are received to amply account for tho
wiping out of the trade balance in our
favor and a legitimate exchange demand
for gold shipments.
On the othor hand. II is claimed with au-
thority that the sterling cNchagc on tho
basis OF H.Si4 for demand there Ia no
profit In gold shipments, which must be
due to the paymen OF something equiv
alent to n m growing out OF "A de-
mand for special causes. Austria has
sold a number of treasury bills In Lon
don which are payable I'm gold. thus in
creasinS her claims on London in much
the same way our government did to re-
plenish the treasury gold reserve. Japan
and Russia are also earnest seekers for
gold for currency purposes. Paris ox-
change on London Is ut n point TO require
gold shipments from London, owing TO
heavy sales in London Of securities held
in Paris. That this reflected demand for
gold is an element in the explanation OF
our gold shipment is reasonable to sup
1NSNH h'N' ~ IN fh'tA W. ~
gold has been shipped o Europe during tho
week and that 81, 900. coo more is already
announced for the week has discouraged
transactions in stocks and has unsettled
the minds of capital to an extent that
has brought the stock market into a con-
dition Of stagnation and has produces n
declining tendency in nearly all values.
The backwardness OF business generally
and the continued absence of demand for
the large stocks of idle money held ara
further influences to depress the markets.
With a large surplus reserve OF gold in
the United States this year and an un-
usually large stock Of the metal ia the
country outside the treasury. and with cur
rent receipts of the government In excess
of expenditures on account OF heavy GUS
toms receipts, confidence is expressed that
the i'll effects Of the outward gold move
ment will not be severe nor long con-
tinued, even IL the exports reach consid-
erably larger proportions and are con-
tiued for quite a time. In the stock mar
ket the stagnancy has restricted tho
changes In the standard shares to narrow
limits either way.
The bond market was devoid OF feature
during the week, and prices Of the leading
; issues show but little net changes. The
main trend of values was toward a lower
plane In sympathy with the influence
governing the share market. but the loss.
es are not extreme except In n few Of the
usually neglected mortgages. The total
sales Of stocks today were 81. 595 shares
including Sugar Refinery 1909. Western
Union 8, 100.