The sun., 1919-03-28
FINANCIAL NEWS.
AND COMMENT
General List Closes Stronger,
With Trading on Relatively
Lighter Scale.
MONEY RATES STILL FIRM
Copper Issues Improve Despite
Unfavorable News After
Day of Reaction.

Various influences combined yester-
day to diminish, for tho time being at
least, the strain which the stock market
has been rejecting for the past few
days. There was no fresh overnight de-
velpoment of an adverse character nor
any other occasion for a continuation OF
the reactionary tendency which has
marked trading on the Stock Exchange
all during the past week, and the stock
market was strong throughout the best
part of the day. Transactions, how
ever, were on relatively light scale.
the bulk of the business being concen-
trated in the first and last hours. These
were periods of very general strength.
with advances in prices which consti-
tuted all around rallies of about q
point or more from fridays low levels.
Short covering seemed to be chiefly
responsible for the upturn. for there was
no manifest inclination In Wall Street
quarters TO Increase or make long COM
mitments for a rise at this particular
time.
To some extent the recovery was
also due to a slightly better feeling
which prevailed in Wall Street circles
as result CT overnight Developments
In the first place traders found that,
as usual the bear side of the steel sltua-
ton had been rather overdone, and that,
moreover, there was nothing particu-
larly alarming in the rise In call money
rates at the closing of the market on
the preceding day. In the second place
It was felt that the ceaction had been
carried about as far as II should be
under the circumstances, and that the
selling which has been going on in the
steel shares in the last few days has
not been as significant as most people
have been led to believe. More i'm
portant than these considerations un-
doubtedly was the failure of the passing
of another copper dividend and the cut
ting OF the Inspiration disbursement to
have any material effect upon the trad
Ing. These developments coming after
a day of reaction might have been gen.
orally supposed to have created further
unsettlement in at least the copper
group, but nothing of the kind actually
occurred. Instead of a further break, the
copper shares actually improved on the
announcement, a circumstance which re-
f1ected the oversold condition of the cop
pers. and which at the same time indi-
Gated that Wall Street was taking cog
nizance of the steady improvement re-
ported in the copper metal market.
The principal gains in tho days busi-
ness occurred in the higher price special
ties. which previously had had enough
of an advance to attract a considerable
short interest. Among the most impor-
tant features in this connection were
Kelly-Springfield. Mexican Petroleum.
General Motors, some OF the tobaccos
and the copper shares. All of these is
sues have been sold rather heavily all
the way up on the recent advance and
had finally settled into a rather oversold
position. The strength in the steels and
standard industrials was not as impor-
tant as was the strength OF some OF
the other departments, but there were
improvements, nevertheless, averaging
about a point all around. The only par
.icular weak points were the rails. The
continued heaviness of these issues was
disappointing TO the rank and file OF the
financial community. which has believed
all along that conditions warranted more
serious consideration in speculative
sense for the rails Their weakness was
not due to any particular developments
but merely to the unsettlement which
has been in back OF these issues for the
last month or more.
The money market, while still firm
was not an important factor in the day &
trading Rates still held above the av-
erage OF recent sessions. and the gen.
ereal expectations in brokerage quarters
Is thht tney Will continue 80 until tnt
next loan is we'll out OF the way, bu,
this was to be expected. In tho foreign
exchange market weakness in sterling
and francs continued to attract atten
ton of the financial community. Both
OF these exchanges went lower yesterday
Sterling cables sold down to, 4.5s and
| francs sold to a new low level for Tho
current movement OF $50. Lire went tc
| 7.s0 and all of the neutrals showed ar
easier trend. although business continued
| largely nominal