The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1898-12-24
DUN'S WEEKLY
REVIEW OF TRADE
The Biggest YOlum3 Of Business Ever
Known.
ENORMOUS TRANSACTIONS
Over S7O,OOOOOO Excess Of Exports
Over Imports Tor Month.
THE CLEARING HOUSE PAYMENTS
Have Been 26.5 Per Cent. Greater Than
Last Year Revival of Industries
Throughout the Entire Coun-
try-The Iron Market.
THE CLEARING HOUSE PAYMENTS

New York, December 23.-R. G. Dun &
Co.'S weekly review OF trade will say to-
morrow:
ut is a year beyond parallel, and goes to
its close with the biggest volume of bust
ness ever seem Enormous transactions at
the stock exchange make some difference,
and heavy railroad earnings, but when all
the Transporting and speculative interests
are eliminated there is still a much larger
business than in any other month oil any
year. Last year the exports were in vol
dme greater than in any previous month
in the history of the country, but this year
the three weeks report shows an increase
of % per cent. against per cent. in i'm
ports, which would indicate much more
than $4,000 600 excess of exports this month.
The payments through clearing houses
have been for the week 26.5 per cent great
er than last year and PA per cent. greater
than in 1882, and for the month us per
cent. larger than in 1892. Until now no
greater volume of business has ever been
done in the history of this country than in
the closing month of this year.
shipments of wheat have been 3,2S5,I0i
bushels, flour included at Atlantic ports,
against 3,c93, 32l bushels last year, although
for three weeks %, OSS ,5S1 bushels against
Il, 309 929 bushels last year. a fact which the
believers in a small crop may well con-
slider. From Pacific ports the shipments
have been for the week 1,316,0l9 bushels
against $4,000 bushels last year. Consider
ing the enormous exports from July TO
date, exceeding last years, one can only
wonder that the outgo this year has been
large and the price has risen during the
week a cent and half Corn exports also
have been 3,S24S36 bushels against 4,540,613
bushels last year and for the month thus
far 11,O12,1SS against 1OS67,4 07 buhels last
year. The price has advanced about 23s
per cent, but the continued foreign de-
mand is astonishing.
The cotton manufacture has been much
expended by increased demands that
prices of nearly all goods quoted in our
report have advanced more or less, and
there is a feeling that with no unreason-
able accumulation of print cloths there are
bright prospects for all goods.
Sales of wool have been large, 1886, 100
pounds against 23,1152O0 pounds last year
and q $780, pounds in the same week of
1892 with small as well as large manufacture
ers buying freely, which indicates general
Improvement IN the demand for goods.
The story of the iron manufacturer is
like a dream. With $4,000 tons Bessemer
pig sold at Pittsburg for $1,000 and grey
forge al 1910 and Chicago sales limited only
by the capacity of the works and eastern
sales so numerous and so large as to raise
the price rs cents, there is a demand for
finished products which includes at Phila-
dephia 900 tons of plates for export to
South America, 5000 tons at Chicago where
works are crowded; $4,000 tons steel rails
by the Maryland Steel company for Asiatic
Russia; $1,000 tons FOR Australia, against
British billets at Pittsburg and about 10000
tons domestic at the east, $500 tons struc-
tural work at Chicago and Pittsburg and
5000 tons for car builders at Chicago, all
the works there being crowded with heavy
buying of sheets and wire rods and sharp
competition at the south In cotton ties, a
pending contract for 10000 tons cast pipe
for Yokohoma and sales of smaller quanti-
ties i'll each class too numerous to mention
Prices of iron and steel products have not
materially changed, although the tons is
everywhere stronger and for wire nails quo
tations have been advanced to $1.30 at Pitts
burg. But this country is beating the world
in this industry.
All this business is done with the full be-
lief that the next years demand will be
greater than ever before and it is creditable
to the steel and iron business that so little
advance in prices of finished products have
been made The range of prices is nearly
20 per cent lower than in 1892, indicating
an astonishing increase in the quantity of
products exchanged. How Europe will be
able to pay more than $50, 900 900 due on mer-
chandise account for the month of Decem-
Der besides the enormous balances due for
November and previous months is a ques-
ton which the country can afford to con-
slider al It's leisure and with comfort.
Failures for the week have been 25S
against 292 in the United States last year
and 81 in Canada against 80 last year.