The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-11-01

pression. This should not be necessary, for it is wasteful duplication of chan nels which carry ample goods to the Nsumer except when unwiSely blockeda as at present
 It is also becoming. evident that trade dullness and the large stocks of goods ih the hands of retailers and middlennen are increasing their demands on the banks and intensifying the credit stringency. Crop moving needs are at their peak, and on the stock exchange call loans hung around 10 per cent nearly all last week. The continuing tightness of money, remarkable in view of declining prices and of the record amounts both of bank leans and of reserve notes in circulation, has many supplementary causes which are not generally realized. For one thing nearly all the money circulating in Mex leo at present is American currency. The old paper money of the Mexican republic is practically worthless and demonetized, and while the present government is en- deavoring to coin gold and silver, it is really too poor to buy it, and most of the mine owners are dealing with Amer ican smelters and shipping their product to the United States. The amount or American money in circulation on the Canadian side of the border is also ab- normally large, so that the very superb 'ority of our currency cramps credit here.
 There seems to be no limit to the amount of new bond and note issues the securities markets will absorb. In the past two monhs considerably more than $40o 100000 has been offered and the total of new financing and foreign loans at present projected is around $200, GOO eco. Despite this evidence of investment strength the bond market has neverthe- less only held it's own. The stock market, dull and mainly professional affair has lad To ward movement just as definitely as it failed to react to bad news last week. The same sluggishness has been apparent in the foreign exchanges, sterling appear ing absolutely nsensible to such favor able news as the termination of the min CTS strike Expectation of the outcome however, and the hope for stimulation of our exports, was sufficient to bring about recovery in cotton. Grains are also higher. The dry goods markets are slow ly picking up in activity and merchants are distinctly more hopeful.
 Bank clearings for the week, geported to Bradstreets, bear out the current evi- derce of trade dullness, showing a loss of 6.5 per cent from this week last year though outside of New York a gain of 2.1 per cent was reported. Failures totaled 21e, against 249 last week and 1A in 1919 The report of the Credit Clearing House showed an increase of ? per cent in wholesale purchases.
 RAILWAY EARNINGS
 Statements of railway earnings for the month of September, eagerly awaited be- cause they are the first affected by the rate increase, in some instances show smaller improvement than had been an ticipated. Decreasing traffic is reported from the west and third of the states are still preventing the operation of the increase within their borders by intra- state regulation. Car movement con tinues to climb to greater heights, and of the past everywhere, finally has been selves. Coal prices are moving lower as are iron and steel and in the latter in- dustry curtailment is steadily though not spectacularly increasing.
 An interesting event this week is the opening of the first labor bank and the first cooperative commercial bank in the the United States, in Cleveland. Noven- Der l :, by the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers. The potentialities of labor barks are enormous. There are between 100000 and 100000 members of labor dnions. If their savings were gathered into cooperative banks and expanded into credits they could do much for labor The sum available to invest in foreign credits and help maintain our export trade would be sufficient to keep many thousands of men at work who otherwise may feel the pinch of unemployment which seems likely to come unless finan~ cial Instructions to our trade, both for eign and domestic, are removed.