Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1900-01-15
FINANCE and TRADE

Stocks-The strictly professional lin
its of the trading on the stock ex-
change was we'll illustrated by the al
most complete ob%literation of the
mornings advances in the movement
to take profits after the appearance of
the bank statement. This exhibit was
in itself a favorable one as were all the
other incidents of the day and it con-
formed closely to the preliminary esti-
mates on which the buying had been
based. The selling to take profits was
responsible for the advance in prices
and war, per contra sufficient to bring
prices back to about the starting point.
The activity in sugar certificates con-
tinued, the price rising an extreme
three points against the shorts, whose
covering demand helped on the ad-
vance. The bears quickly detected the
realizing after the bank statement and
forced sugar down Az. Brooklyn
Transit and Tobacco showed close
lost a point or over. A decline of 15s
in New York Central showed some spe-
eial pressure against that stock. Other
wise gains had been fractional and the
reaction did not exceed them. There
was some selling for London account
as prices ros above the London parity.
A fractional recovery in London dis
count rates and a jump of three pfen-
nings in the sterling exchange rate at
Berlin were without explanation. The
bank statement fully accounts for the
increased disposition of New York
bankers to place time loans at present
rates and their temperance as buyers
OF commercial paper. The decline in
money rates is also bringing renewed
demand for railroad bonds from some
of the great insurance companies.
Some heavy individual transactions in
bonds are recorded.
The central fact in the situation in
the stock market is that the buying de-
mand is ~listless and narrow and with
out stimulation by any favorable de-
velopments in the immediate outlook.
Even the investment buying has al
most ceased either because prices are
above an attractive level OIL because
the available funds from dividend or
interest disbursements have found in
vestment. The market has suffered
from the Generalization in special
stocks in addition to the withdrawal
of the influence of investment buying.
The volume of foreign selling was not
large and would have been easily alb
sorbed in an ordinary movement for an
advance, but as the foreign selling
grew out of the needs of the London
money market and served to increase
the pressure for gold on New York
there was no disposition to hold up
prices to afford a market for London
sellers to make profits. Notwithstand-
ing the small demand for stocks. the
supply was scarce and railroad stocks
have responded quickly all week to any
sort of buving demand. Statements OF
the New York clearing house banks as
we'll as those Of the great foreign
banks show that spectators the world
over have been selling their holdings,
paying off loans and withdrawing from
the field. Many commission houses
and brokerage Offices in Wall street
which found busy occupation all of last
year have ceased to invite custom,
pending developments of new factors
in the outlook. This closing out of
accounts, now safely attained, has in
yolved some heavy losses and no
small bitterness of spirit. which is re-
fected in the discussion by brokers Of
industrial combinations and their flo
tations in a spirit far from compli-
mentary. This feeling was deepened
by the strong official intimation at the
stockholders annual meeting of the
American Sugar Refining Company
that the business was not prohibitive
in presence of the new competition and
that dividends would probably be re-
duced or suspended during the coming
year. Professional operators thereup-
on fell tooth and nail upon the sugar
certificates as well as other industrial
stocks and sold them by the thousand
shares.
The market for bonds has been
small, but prices were we'll maintained.
U. S. new As registered declined q
and do. coupon IS, old As and IS II in
the bid price.
Alchison ..--.....-.. dsit
Baltimore and Ohio $685.
Chesapeake and Ohio ................. 2qss
Chicago Great Western ........ IL
Chicago, Burlington and Quincy
Chicago and Eastern UlinoiS...-..... So
Chicago and Northwestern 1907
Delaware and Hudson NORTHUMBERLAND
Delaware, Lackawanna and Western. .176
Erie ............ ILL.,
Do first preferred 325z
Great Northern preferred ..16S