The Washington times., 1912-02-18

observance of Lincolns birthday, but
the rank and file in the brokers offices
made no complaints over the ahbrevia-
ton Of the trading opportunities, for
the market was IN inConsequential af-
fsir throughout, both in point OF deal
ings ard price changes. so far as pub
lie participation was concerned, the en-
tire business of the interval might have
been accomplished in single session,
and the commission houses would not
have been Overworksd at that, for there
was very little outside buying.
Professional traders hal things prac-
tically to themselves, a monopoly which
they did not thoroughly enjoy, for un-
less fresh recruits come into profess
sonal market from time to time, the
ultimate outcome OF dealings, confined
wholly to traders, Is little shcrt of can
nihalism. To all intents and PURPOSES
they cat one another up. Th+ situation
was compared by one clever trader
during the week as similar to that
which prevails in the Chunnci Islands
where the Inhabitants "ekcd out q
scanty subsistence by taking in one an
others washing"
Diverting Movements.
About the only relief in the monntony
of the market itself was concentrated
drive against the short interest on
Tuesday and a pool aLd clique move
ment in Copper stocks. The movement
ageinst the shorts forced some covering
and rather sharp advances in Union Pa
cific. Reading, and United States Steel
common, but this Nas not followed by
fresh Euying, and prices relapscd again.
The movement In the Copper stocks was
better sustained and was quite effective
IN AmSlgamated shares. II was based
on the recent reduction in the surplus
supply of copper and tn" frmer price
for the metal both at home and in Eu-
rore.
Although the general list showed in
considerable changes, as a rule, at the
last of the week, stocks, on the whole,
developed heavy tendency toward the
close. For want of a better eXplana-
| ton, perhaps, the trading element hit
upon the theory that this was due to
the lull in new buying of Steel and the
shading of prices for certain finished
forms. The poor annual report of the
LaCkawanna Steel Company for the
year ending December 81, last, served TO
revive the feeling of uncertainty con-
cerning the future of the industry. The
total income OF the concern was only
| So 035, ,0S2, a decrease of $29l4,19f or 40
per cent, and the balance after fixed
| charges, fell to 81, ,202, 239, a decrease of
| s., ,934, 1865 or II per cent. The surplus OF
the company. after deductions. amount
ed to only So, S03, a decrease of s., $50, 302.
Lull In Steel Buying.
In well informed banking circles the
very poor report of the LaCkawanna
Steel Company was attributed to price
cutting last summer and autumn and,
| of course, it bears upon past business,
but the bearish element in the Street
treateS the report as though 1t were
indica1ve of present conditions in the
| industry, which, of course, is absurd
| There is, no doubt. a great deal of dis
appointment in financial and business
circles that the heavy buying that de-
veloped in iron and steel in the last six
weeks of 1911 has not been sustained.
and that the manufacturers have not
been able to maintain their price ad-
Vances, but competent trade authorities
assert that the industry has not fallen
back into the depths of depression
which prevailed in the autumn.
The Iron Age, in its review of the
industry for the current week. at
tributes much Of the present disap-
| over the extent of the recovery in the
| early winter, when II was made to ap-
| pear that a boom In the steel trade had
| set in. That authority asserts that the
extent and effect Of the present lull are
| as much exaggerated as was the recent
| buying movement which has now halt.
| ed. 1t attributes this check to the Sc
we're winter which naturally prevents OF
| curtailS out-of-door work. When the
weather moderatcs with the coming OF
| the spring the Iron Age looks for ar
| expanding demand due to the natural
sea sonal activity in building and con-
| StruCtiOn.
Expanding Merchandise Exports.
| Although the lull in iron and steC
buying Is reported as finding some
slight detection in diminished domestic
purchases of copper, It has not affected
the price of the red metal and al
easing off in demand there is only
natural in consequence of the intimat
relationship of the two metals in many
lines of manufacture. Other large in
dustries do not appear to have suffered
| from the slowing down in iron anC
| steel, and so far as textiles are con
is clearly progressive, and there ap
pears to be more buying of an antiCi
patory character in cotton goods thar
in any other department of genera
| While industry Of a purely domestic
| nature displays cross and cOunter-Cur
rents there certainly is no doubt of th'
character and tendency of foreign trade
| This is strikingly illustrated by the inter
national trade statement for January
which made it's appearance during tho
| week Total exports for the montl
amounted to 500, ,5S6.074. the larges
with but one single eXception-January
| 1908, when we exported $206, ia, ,7lS-ir
the country's history. The total i'm
ports for the month amounted to $l43
557 222, which is unprecedented: exceed
ing the next highest for January, those
of 1910, by $1O,000.OOO. The heavy imports
naturally reduced the balance some
what but the excess of exports ovel
imports reached the wholly satisfaC
tory total of S59,02S,S52.
| If Wall Street were in a differen
mood much would have been made o.
| this evidence of our ever-eXpandinl
credit balance abroad, but the fin'
statement passed during the week will
scarcely a comment and certainly with
out influence on securities. This, how
ever, is true of practically all favorable
developments. and one may enumeTat,
as of this character easy money, evi
dences of conservatism on the part o.
the House majority in the matter o.
the Money trust" investigation, ant
the clearing of the political atmospher,
abroad. particularly in the matter o
the Anglo-German understanding, whicl
was highly satisfactory feature of tn,