The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1920-09-22
CLEWS' WEEKLY review
ON TRADE CONDITIONS

dustria1 districts has eased the situa-
ton which existed at the close of last
month and has checked such danger
as existed that employees savings
would become exhausted and that la
Dor forces would be scattered or
would lose their morale. The present
prospect favors full employment at
good wages during the autumn and
winter and predictions to that effect
are freely made by auth critics both on
the side of capital and on that of the
labor organizations. Rumors of i'm
portant cancellations of orders in steel
and other. lines of Industry are, how
ever, sufficient to produce feeling of
conservatism in stock circles.
Crops and Prices.
The continuance of the downward
m ovement of prices has caused some
anxiety in the agricultural districts It
is only natural. however, in the price
reimbursement which is now under
way in all parts of the world, that it
should be shared in by the farming
community which cannot expect to
escape the effects of widespread
tendency of this sort. Nevertheless
both grain and cotton quotations are
still at very high levels. and there is
no reason to doubt that producers
most cases. The action of the Fed
eral Reserve Board in refusing to fur
nish larger and easier credits on
warehoused cotton. despite the pleas
that were made to that body by the
cotton interests them sleeves. are in
line with what had been expected and
may be regarded as representing de-
termination not to change the policy
of credit restriction in any particular.
! This seems to insure steady move
ment of crops to market and the same
| policy Of liquidation in the agricul-
tural regions that has already been
| enforced in the financial markets as a
| result of a similar policy.
| Distinct easing of the money situa-
| ton is now noted by close observers.
| Some country banks which have been
| receiving on deposit the result of
| ton to put funds into the money
| market and have been doing so in
some cases, while in others they have
been purchasing acceptanceS bearing
prime names in fairly good volume:
| Crop moving demand. however, will
| not slacken for some time to come.
| The exchange situation continues to
| reflect trade and money conditions
| which have prevailed here. While no
| doubt some part of the tendency to
| weakness in foreign exchange is to
| be ascribed to the fact that artificial
| support of the market in connection
/ with the Anglo-French maturities is
| now removed, a more considerable
1 factor is doubtless seen in the cir
cumstance that such unprecedentedly
! large balances in favor of the United
States are being carried on the books
| of banks and commercial establish
ments abroad. Exchange recovery is
likely to be matter of slow develop
| ment and will require radical cur
rency and banking Improvement in
the various foreign countries if it is
to be anything more than temporary.
Market Review.
| Market operations have been dur
ing the past week upon a distinctly
higher level than in the preceding
period. Interest in the railways has
4 been somewhat slowed up and has
4 been shifted to various promising in
dustrials. Good rails. however. con-
tinue to be picked up and hold out
greater inducement to buyers for
i profit making with a minimum
/ amount of risk. The tendencies in
70 have apparently been approx
by those in control of oil inter
ests and as result decided advances
in oil shares have occurred. Uncer-
, tainty still exists. of course, as to the
volume of business to be done in the
industrial field. The passing of the
dividend by the National Cloak e Suit