Omaha daily bee., 1906-05-17
NEW YORK STOCKSAND BONDS
Market is Unsettled and Hesitating in Tone
Most Of Session.
PROFESSIONALS TURN TO sPEclALnEs
Last Prices Are the Best of the
Day and the Close IL
Firm - Bonds Are
steady.

NEW YORK, May 16.-Freauent luctua-
lions in prices today indicated the unsettled
and hesitatng condition OF speculative sem
timent. When II is added that the f1uctua-
lions tended to become narrower and the
volume Of the markets activity to decrease
II will be seen that the expected period OF
guinness and sluggishness IN the market is
developing, according to precedent, after
the violent decline and the sharp recovery
which the market has recently passed
through.
There was marked disposition to turn
70 stocks of the class known as speciallties
for action on the part of the professional
in the stock market without regard to the
pfopittousness OF general conditions Of mar
kets ana Industry. Stocks which are subject
to peculiar influences Of their own trades
are selected at such periods. Often violent
activity and wide fluctuations can be eft
fected In such securities when the body Of
the market is profoundly inert and entirely
neglected. Sugar was the old time favorite
which was made especially prominent to-
day with degree Of activity which has
not been seen for many months. Tho
parallel movement In American beet sugar
was made to give semblance of important
developments Impending regarding trade re-
lations but no authentic Information was
given out on the subject. There was a
similar movement in Amalgamated Copper
and the copper group. This was professedly
based on the annual report OF the Ana
conda Mining company. The highly pros
porous conditions In the copper trade were
duly reflected in this report, which was
also elaborated with financial and operat-
was made of this fact as a promise of a
departure in policy on the part of the group
Of capitalists which the stock market ele-
ment dcsgnates as the Standard Oh
party" The money outlook was the sub
JeCt Of earnest consideration in the light
Of the borrowing by the Pennsylvania COM
pany yesterday of 100000 for eighteen
months on a basis OF rather more than 0
per cent. Funds in the time loan market
| lendable at a. per cent for periods up to
six months. For that maturity there were
some loans at per cent and for over the
end of the year periods per cent was re-
ported strongly bid with 81 per cent asked.
Discounts hardened In all foreign markets.
Some OF the exchange Offering In this mar
ket was said to be on account OF foreign
purchases of the Pennsylvania notes. The
statement of the country's foreign trade
for April and for ten months indicated a
strong position in the International eX-
changes, the merchandise balance in favor
of this country for April being SSi l64.Sl,
as against $33, 465 OS6 for April OF last year,
while for the ten months of the fiscal year
the excess value of exports over imports
has risen to A6I5l2, 1874 compared with $3.50,
O43O9 for the corresponding period OF last
year. Attention was attracted to the dis
Cussion of this extraordinary trade showing
in the last number of the London Econo-
mist at hand. This accepted authority Of
fers an estimate of the holdings of Ameri-
can finance bills now held in England and
| France as amounting to $400, 900 900 and eX-
presses the opinion that the meeting of the
maturities of these bills during the coming
months will operate to maintain money
! rates in New York in spite OF the heavy
] volume of merchandise EXPORT.
The influence of the Anaconda annual re-
| port was supplemented to some extent by
| intimations of a forthcoming statement
| from the Standard Oil company, from
| which a favorable effort on speculative sen
! timent was augured. The transfer through
| the subtreasury of over 100000 to San Fran
| cisco was attributed to special transac-
! ton and not to any resumption of the pre-
vious movement to that point growing out
| of the fire losses The market continued
| to show some irregularity throughout the
| day, but last prices were about the best
| and the closing tone was firm.
Bonds were steady Total sales, paI
value, 81, 900 United States bonds were
| unchanged on call.
Quotations on stocks and bonds were as
| follows: