The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-09-11
NEW YORK EXPERT
 RE EVIEWS SITUATION IN NFlNANCIAL WORLD

GA Barron Financial News Service-o
 w york, Sept. 11.T The most er- courag,ng development in the fnssn- cial situation since the closing oH the Stock Exchange is the decision to re- sume dealings in bonds. This infor- natfon was conveyed in a letter to lo- cal Investment bankers from a con17 naitfee of seven, which has been act- ing for these bankers and under whose S1irection transactions in bonds have for weeks past been wholly suspe1ued The letter makes it clear that eercaan restrictions will govern the market particularly with relation to trans actions with bargain hunters The letter recommends that the placing of Eecufities owned by dealers with their private customers should be approved where the securities can be sold Wlth out disturbing the collateral loan sit slatfon. Anything tending toward pub- lie quotations or creating the impress ion of an active market the com rnittee will strongly disapprove be- cause Of the danger of disturbance to the loan sitHationz Dealers are urged to eo-operate to the end that prices will eoz7fornn to the spirit which has pre- vailed during the past few week res- pgnizing the support which banks and other lenders of money have given to dealers in securities. The letter also recommends that the proceeds Of se- rurffies sales be applied to the liquid alton of loans. New York cityss hnan- cial needs have been satisfactorily taken care Of the letter says, thereby considerably clearing the foreign ex- change situation.
 Before corHdftions in the copper trade show definite Improvement it is Companies will be forced to suspend or reduce dividend payments. Already several companies have adopted one 0r the other of these expedients, includ- Ing the Ray Consolidated, Nevada Con solidaed and Chino companies. The first named two deferred dividend ac- lion. and Chino declared a 50 cent div ider which is reuction of 25 cents from the regular rate The Phelps-Dodge Co., did not have to resort to the re- duction of the regular dividend, amounting to 2 21-2 per cent quarterly, but the usual extra dividend was omitted With many of these copper companies fl, is not a question of abi1- Ity to pay regular dividends, but rath- CT an effort to conserve financial re- sources pending return to normal conditions in the trade.
 The August unified tonnage state ment of the United States Steel cor poration reports orders on hand Au- gust 31 amounting to 4,213,331 tone, an. increase of 54,742 tons over the figures or July o1- The unnlied tonnage on June 30 was 4032,s57 tons; May s1, 3.99S ,16o tons; April 30, 4.277,06e tons: March 21. 4.653.s2 tons, and August 31, 1918. 5,223, ,46s tons.
 The fortnightly bulletin of the Amer ican Railway association shows that on September 1 there was a net sur plus of idle cars on the lines of the United States and Canada of 163, ,326, compared with 172,145 on August IS, a decrease of 8.s19. The gross surplus was 165 244 against 174 ,z6o; while the gross shortage totalIed 1.198 compared with 2,115 During the two weeks the net surplus of box cars increased from "A, 1e2 to 74.992. btu the surplus of coal cars fell from 56, ,o64 to 56. O75 There was a small increase in the flat car surplus, the total of 7,233 compar- ing with 7,os5 on August 15