Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1920-09-11
Lower PRICES IN
CLOSING MARKET
Weeks Reactionary Movement
Running True to the Sep
tember Record

New York. Sept. 11.-Fractional
opening declines we're gradually widened
to a point and over in the active stocks
in today's closing stock market. While
the industrials were the softer spots of
the market the railroads did not escape
as Reading and other recent active
favoritcs moved in the same way. The
lowering Of prices apparently resulted
largely from profit taking as there is
apparently a large element in the coun
try that feels constrained to sell stocks
on every forward movement in order to
find funds to meet current expenses. and
instead Of public buying coming into
the market. it has just now 70 stand
moderate degree Of public selling.
The familiar week end evening IN
operations of the professional trading
element undoubtedly also played an i'm
portant part in the reactionary move
ment as were the fears of an unfavor-
able showing in the bank statements to
be published after the closing. Coupled
with further weakness in foreign ex
change.
Prices yielded to lower levels by easy
stages although there was increasing
selling pressure. Some of the some re-
cent active industrial specialties ap-
peared to be especially vulnerable, but
the yielding tendency practically ex
tended to all quarters with the final
prices generally at or close to the bot
tom prices Of the day.
September, has the record of being
n reaCtiOnary month in the markets and
from the manner in which the present
month started out this week it looks as
If the precedent would be closely fol =
! lowed. In all events the budding bull
market of the preceding week was side.
| tracked, or at least the engineers of the
/ constructive movement found it appar-
emily advisable to postpone further dem
! onstrations until money conditions as
| sumcd more normal aspects. Cndoubt-
| cdly II the active leaders could be as
sured that money would continue easy
for considerable time there undoubtedly
would be a basis for real upward
movement. but as this is impossible the
| best that can be looked for for some
! little time to come is a trading market.
There has been no lack of bullish am =
munition. on the contrary. many deve-
| lopements during the week could be
rghtfully regarded AS constructive fac
tors. At the same time quite few of
! less favorable conditions which are now
coming to the surface, particularly CON
Ccrning the business and industrial sit
uation, have unquestionably been. al
ready discounted from market view
point. But there has been no real
change in the money situation. The
easing of call rates has proven to be a
simply temporary condition. influenced
to large extent by expanding or con.
tracting requirements of stock market
Accommodations. which in turn were gov
rrncd by the rising and falling of specu-
lative activities.
Assuming that the peak of the strain
for the movement of the corps has not
yet been passed. it would seem alto
gether reasonable to assume that rather
than looseniug the purse strings OF the
! banks they were likely to be tightcn"d
within the next six weeks. which
would preclude any material extension
of speculative activity.