Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1916-01-24
THE STATE AND OUTLOOK OF TRADE.

Wholesale trade in spring goods,
Opening earlier, than usual, Is satisfac-
tory; road statesmen report marked
success in booking orders; filing lin
business keeps up well; cold weather
has enabled retail dealers to make fur
ing apparel; leading manufacturing
lines are being urged to the utmost to
make deliveries; collections are good;
bank deposits at various center are
tiles are very high, while rates for
money are exceptionally low, and the
outlook for thriving business is such
as to evoke but few dissenting notes.
Scarcity of this or that product as well
as of labor is plainly in evidence, and
! it is equally certain that stocks of
merchandise over wide area of the
country are exceptionally low, while
the purchasing power Of the masses,
thanks to good wages and active en-
| ployment, is at a high notch. In some
3
take orders, but the situation is such
that further orders are not being
courted pending a clearing up of the
matter of deliveries.
The reports to the commercial asen-
!cies which take weekly and daily re"
ports of the business temperatures are
assuring. To Bradstreets:
Burlington, VT. reports textile mills
operating to capacity. Bridgeport re-
ports business excellent and skilled la
Dor scarce. and one corporation is
erecting 800 houses to allow of increas
ing housing facilities. Philadelphia
reports dry goods trade satisfactory,
some merchandise scarce and hide and
leather prices at record heights. Pitts
burSh reports retail trade active, lum-
Der improved. a large amount of build
Ing in prospect. steel mills at capacity
and car shortages complained Of in coal
and coke sections. Altoona reports
silk mills and railroad shops operating
tull time and coal mining normal. Buff
alo reports jobbing trade active. large
orders for autos and aeroplanes and
railroad buying active. Cincinnati re-
ports cold weather helping the house
noid coal market. A strike of miners
is scheduled for April /. Cold weather
helps retail trade. Detroit reports ac-
tVity In all metal trades, in automo-
Diles and in building. Retail trade is
tar ahead of a year ago. Helena re-
ports cold weather and snow retarding
retail trade. Great Falls Mont, is
building another 1000 barrel -four mill.
San Francisco reports trade active.
oakland reports rains and cold weather
affecting trade, but business is better
than year ago. Cold weather retards
retail trade at Portland, Ore, but
wholesalers are busy shipping spring
goods and collections are improving.
Omaha reports spring trade at whole
sale opening well, and the weather Is
milder. Milwaukee reports that the
past weeks zero weather helped retail
trade; spring orders are good, indus
tries are active and Skilled labor is
scorce. Kansas City reports spring
trade opening well, and jobbers antici-
pate an unusually prosperous year
ChlcagO reports that trade and indus
try are active, but there is not the rush
10 buy that was noted in December,
Coal supplies have been cleaned I'D by
cold weather Railroad business has
slowed down somewhat Retail trade
mas been retarded by zero weather. st.
raul reports warmer weather helping
trade. and there is increased activity
IN all wholesale lines Grand Rapids
furniture sales exceed last year by 80
per cent. st. Louis reports that the
icol1 snap last week enlivened bust
nEsh and there is difficulty in getting
Nipments from eastern mills, owing to
shortages in dyestuffs. Montgomery
reports the cold wave as helping trade
IN heaVy goods. Mobile reports spring
Orders exceeding one and two Years
ago. and lumbermen complain of car
shortages Atlanta reports wholesale
trade good. but retail only fair High
prices of potash mean high priced fer
tlllzers II this product enters in. New
Orleans reports jobbing trade not, m
to earlier expectations. Dallas reports
trade good. -four manufacturing brisk
building lncreasi sing and retail trade
helped by cold weather.