New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1920-07-26
Trade and Finance
Developments of the Week
and Their Bearing ON
the Outlook

rather Improbable and wholly unex-
citing pursuit. Wall Street has sell
dom seen as dull and uninteresting a
securities market as at the moment.
Stocks follow no definite trend and
the market Is an enigma, even to the
professional traders of long years. ex-
perience. The attitude of the average
trader Is to wait and sec what is go
ing to turn up next. For with bust
ness conditions more or less uncertain,
money rates at abnormally high levels
the foreign exchanges again unsettled,
an unfavorable European situation and
labor still in a truculent mood in many
lines of industry, it would indeed be
a trader of courage who would care
to add heavily to his holdings of spec
ulative securities at this time. This,
Of course. is the explanation for the
hesitation in speculative circles 1t
may we'll be that business and industry
have gone far in their REIMBURSEMENT
to changing conditions, but the imme-
possibilities along the same line.
When the Railroad Labor Board
handed down it's decision last week
granting the railway workers wage in
creases aggrcgating $600,000,000, one
more element of uncertainty was re-
moved from the financial and indus
- ~ no
the award, although it fell short of
their demands by approximately S400,-
100000, the danger of an aggravation
of present railroad troubles by a walk
out of the men automatically disap-
Feared. This was indeed construct
i've development, and ono which under
q different set of circumstances might
have been the signal for an enthusiast
tic rally in security prices. AS it hap
pened, however, it failed to stimulate
buying, and aside from creating more
hopeful sentiment in financial circles
old not figure directly as market
influence. 1t was again a case of no.
body being in q mood to buy stocks or
sell stocks. The next important de-
velopment expected in the railroad
situation is the decision Of the Inter
state Commerce Commission relative to
the increase in freight rates sought by
the carriers to give them the income
allowed under the provisions of the
ment is expected momentarily. A large
enough increase will have to be al
lowed of course, to take care of the
huge addition to the payrolls of the
railroads by the award of the Rail
road Labor Board
Railway officials and bankers con-
versant with the management of the
transportation lines last week took a
much more hopeful view Of the rail
road outlook than they have in many
months. The feeling seemed to be
growing that the carriers have seen
the worst Of their troubles and that
the corner Of adversely has been
turned. Traffic conditions are said to
have improved considerably of late,
making for freer movement Of fuel
and raw materials The situation,
with regard to car shortage, is still
extremely serious, however, and is
hampering operations at the iron and
steel mills and in other basic indus
tries. Some railway executives ex-
press the belief that the higher scale
of wages to be paid to railway work
ers may help in a measure by enabling
the roads to compete more success
fully with other industries for labor
supply. This has not proven the case
in most lines, however, where each
successive increase in wages has
seemed to reduce the general efficiency
of working forces. In this connec-
ton the observations of E. H. Gary,
head ofs the United States Steel. Cor
poration, on his departure for Europe,
are striking. He said that labor at
the various plants of the great steel
making organization had been gain
ing In efficiency for several weeks, and
is more efficient man at present
than at any time during the last five
years.