The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1918-10-24
FINANCIAL NEWS
AND COMMENT
Stock Market Upset by Doubt
as to Aims Of Money Com
mittee Meeting.
PRICES REACT, THEN RISE
Fear Of Tighter Restrictions in
Speculation Causes Check
in Selling.

Tho attention Of the financial COM
munity shifted largely yesterday from
the matters with which Il has been pre-
occupied for the last two weeks to the
money situation and the considerations
which were suddenly brought to the fore
ground by the meeting Of the money
committee Tuesday afternoon, attended
ny the president OF the Stock Exchange.
The market waited all day for some an
nouncement as to the Significance OF the
conference. but Il was not until the ses-
sion was well advanced and the COM
m!ttee had held another conference that
any intimation was forthcoming as to
exactly what the objects of the extraor-
binary sessions were. The result was a
highly Irregular market throughout the
day, with a well defined reactionary ten
dency, which made substantial proPress
until tho last hour. T en- word came
that the action of the committee might
not be such as Wall Street had ex-
pected. and tho market rallied slightly
all around.
What the market feared Of course was
that the committee intended to take fur
Their steps in the way Of money restric-
lions to curb speculation. Exactly what
this action would be or what form It
"Oulu tdht wan Slrctt uto HOg tp5Ne ule
slightest conception. But the mere fact
that the committee had been In session
with the president OF the Stock En-
change was disconcerting enough to undo
much that had been accomplished on the
preceding day. both in the railroad de-
paTtment and In tho industrial list.
With the adjournment OF The committee.
however. at noon the selling subslded
largely. and word was passed unofficially
around the Street thar the committee
was cons derinl the renova OF the pres
ent restrictions on the money market
and the establishment OF a free market
with respect to call funds Whc h r
or not this report had any foundat lon
could not be ascertained during the re-
mainder OF the sess on, but Il was e.
tective In checking the selling. and
tended to bring about O somewhat more
optimistic feeling about things In gen
eral. 1t was felt that II this is the
plan OF the committee II would at least
assure a supply Of money, although al
higher rates
This apparently was the theory on
which traders acted in the last few min
utes. for large buying orders made their
appearance In Baldwin, which advanced
above SO. and the rest OF the list I'M
proved In sympathy. Whatever the rea-
the speculative element that the COM
mttee had no intention Of imposing ad-
ditional regulations on money. which
would only tend to further unsettle a
situation that Is already delicate, to say
the least. On the contrary. the fnan-
cial district was inclined to believe that
a free market In money would tend to
influence. after the complicated financial
transactions in connection with the Lib
erty Loan have been completed. a more
satisfactory situation with respect &c
speculative funds. Certainly 1t would
DO a hard matter for the committee to
do anything that would produce mors
uncertainty than has existed in Wal
Street circles for the last two months
the recent upward swing in stocks to the
contrary Notwithstanding.
Foreign exchange rates were again
without great change except for q
slightly firmer tendency in a few de.
scriptions, notably those rates which
have been under the most severe pres
sure recently. There were some inter.
esting statistics announced as to the ex.
ports for the month OF September. which
were $500 900 900. the largest for any
month this year with the exception oil
May. and the weekly trade publication,
disclosed further significant information
rs regards that industry after the war
But with the financial community alb
sorbed in the doings OF the money com
ul.ttee II was not to be expected tina,
such considerations would find reflection
marketwise.