The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-01-18
STOCK MARKET
 VERY APATHET|C  Public Seems to Show Little
 Interest in Trading MONEY MARKET IS EASY ssa
 Traders Bought Few Stocks In An 4icipation of Good Showing or me
 Banks, But Attempts to sB8 Take Profits Failed,
MONEY MARKET IS EASY

I
 thy toward the stock market was ine.- cated today by the effect or the pupii- fation of the very faVoraple oahA seoee- ment. Traders had bought a IeW slochs in anticipation of the good sho"ihs ps the banks, but their attempt to tahe nrofts after the publication caused melting away of gains and in some cases their total wiping out. The Known movement of currency from the state ment of banks themselves indicated gain of $s,OoO,0Oo to $9,OOO.oOo in the cash item, but the actual gain by the average system of computation shows a rise of upward of $12,000,O0O. Last weeks state- ment understated the amount of the ac- tual cash gain by about the amount that at6dayfs statement overstates it, which is not unusual where a heavy movement comes late in the week. Today's large loan increase is nominal to the season but this has been no evidence or the employment of so large sum as S14.- OOO.00O In the market this week, and 1t f is supposed that syndicate operations un- known to the people have figured in this item The increase of the surplus amounts to $406. .s25 The comparative ease which has been reached in the money 6Amarket left only a languid interest in the bank statement. Only Missouri Pacific, ' Atchison, St. Paul. Chicago Great Vest ern Louisville, Great Northern preferred gand' American Car made any noticeable show of strength and their gains were not well maintained International power was run up points but dropped back ss}5 The market closed irregular. The stock market has shown a reactionary 1itendency this week without any distinct ly unfavorable developments in the busi- mess situation to account for the change 7ifn sentiment of the week when before operators seemed to feel a great conf- dence in higher range of prices and in the usual January boom.
 The action of the market Is seemingly aas.stoathe technical causes. The spec ulative pools have desisted from their efforts to boom prices or have found that such further efforts are made do not attract a large outside following.
 The money situation seems clear. but the consideration have averted to invest ment values with result of causing some cessation in the buying. There seems to be some divergence of agree ment also among the so-called pools them selEes.S The make up of the pools is never iA matter of well defined knowledge, but the dominant clements in them are known sto be capitalists and wealthy. men of ann ple resources. The most influential class
 
 srtions include not only railroad and cor poration ownership, but influential own ership also in the great banks and trust companies upon which the country 8 money market is largely dependant An tHother class is made up of men of wealth without such widespread connections in affairs, whose stock market operations Fare singly designed for the profit of a achange in the price level whether up or down. The pools made up of the latter dJlass were under considerable pressure during the money scarcity last fall by the banks and large money lending insti- tutions and were admonished in effect that the money situation made it dan gerous to make large speculative com mitments and that the time was not pro- pitious for pushing f1otations or project involving new capital issues. The dis i closure of the purchase of control of the Reading by the Pennsylvania and Vanderbilt interests indicated that the purchase of new aims had not been sus- pended by large capitalists even during the period when the activity of the stock market cliques was sought to be repress- ed The renewed activity of this class following the announcement of the Read ing deal, is believed to be tinctured with fsome resentment over the time lost for themselves in disposng of holdings while available money supplies were employed by more powerful interests for furthering their progress
 The upward course of sterling exchange during the week has fixed attention on ethe probability of an outgo of gold. It is known that an outgo in December was averted only by extension of obligations then maturing with foreign bankers. It was even suggested that foreign bankers were cooperating with the bankers pro- tactiNe pool here, which subscribed $50,- 100000 for emergency in the stock mar ket, by agreeing to defer their demands for repayments. The present heavy out go.s of grain and some buying here of stocks for London account serves to ease sthe exchange situation. But it is be- lleved the coming requirements of the foreign money markets for the flotations ofs government loans will demand some shipments of gold from New York. The heavy government disbursements at New York on contracts believed to be about completed so that the New York money market is not expected to bene- fit the same extent from sub-treasury operations as it has since the first of the year. There have been some demand for lower grade and speculative bonds.
 United States 2s have advanced F and the old 4s and 5s fl per cent. while the 3s coupon and new As coupon have declined 7M per cent on call during the week.