The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-04-22
FINANCIAL NEWS
AND COMMENT
Market Holds It's Strength as
Trading Expands to Years
Largest Scale.
NEW FAVORITES APPEAR
Activity Is Well Distributed
Specialties and Individual
Issues Lead Rise.
NEW FAvORITEs APPEAR

Trading expanded in the stock market
yesterday to the largest scale of the year
and the market suffered no loss Of
strength. There were dealings IN more
than a million and a half shares. and
the activity was rather evenly d,strub-
uted throughout the five hours of busi-
mesa The rise was led by specialties
and Individual shares. Just as has been
the case all along. although relatively
speaking there was a great deal more in
terest manifested in the standard shares
than there has been In most sessions of
late. In this respect the market offered
more normal appearance The promi-
hence OF Steel common. which again went
above par. and the continuation of a
good demand for some of the other
standard industriais ENCOURAGED senti-
ment, whereas the concentration of ac-
tivity In limited number of specialties
recently had caused much misgiving as
being utterly abnormal. There was some
disposition to take profits In the last hour.
out on the whole the market held its
early. gains as we'll as could be expected
under the circumstances.
In so far as the standard steels were
concerned there were no indications of
anything like the development of a broad
movement, that Is to say, in these par-
ticular issues alone. The fact that Steel
common itself came in for more activity
was due solely to the news of the day
ana to the annual meeting of the corpo-
ration. which Ia always an occasion for n
sharp squirt in the market Nevertheless
there was some interesting information
disclosed by Judge Gary For one thing.
IT was gratifying to stockholders to know
that In spite Of all the controversy over
prices that the head of the most impor-
tant steel concern in this country, IL not
IN the world, has not changed his mind
as regards the prospect for prospective
SO far as his remarks concerning the
dividend were concerned, they might
nave just as we'll went unsaid for all the
good they were from the stock market
viewpoint They were, In fact, OF abso-
lutely no value for this purpose, although
close examination OF Judge Gary's re-
marks would have confirmed previous
predictions that the Steel dividend, or
rather the extra dividend. is due for a
considerable reduction when the direc-
tors meet next week. This is expected
however. and all the remarks did yester-
day was to recall TO those who are still
holding out hope of continuation OF the
dividend the fact that this is unlikely IL
IL has to be paid out of current earnings
AS In most OF the preceding sessions
traders maintained their policy of bring
In order to keep the market boiling. so
10 speak Among these issues yesterday
were International Paper and United
states Realty and Improvement. These
issues. while they have experienced some
improvement In prices, have been rela-
lively neglected in comparison with the
attention which Wall Street has given
TO other specialties. However, none of
the motor. food shares or shipping is
sues, which recently have held a good
part OF speculative attention, lost their
favor. Nearly all of these issues were
higher In the early part OF the day, los
ing. however. part of their early gains
In the reaction In the last hour. Steel
common and the other steels had
sharp squirt IN the forenoon, but along
with the rest of the list lost practically
all OF its early gains in the last few min
utes. There were, on the other hand,
several fairly weak spots among the
higher priced specialtes, where the ad-
vancing movement had been carried to
point where It induced more than the
ordinary amount of profit taking. Con-
spicuous among such issues were Next
can Petroleum and American Interna-
tional Corporation.
There was no change in the money
situation, call money continuing easy
by the way of rejecting the i'm
provement in the bank statement last
Saturday. Nor was any great amount
of attention paid to the opening of the
Liberty Loan campaign in so far as the
activity of the market was concerned
The speculative fraternity took the view
that this IL s good as sold, and that
any movement Of prices toward dis
the favorable outcome of the |
loan cannot possibly go amiss.