The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1921-11-02
FINANCIAL NEWS
AND COMMENT
Stock Prices Are Irregular
Bonds Are Strong and
Exchanges React.

Dealings in the stock market yester-
day consisted chiefly of professional
efforts for quick profits. Consequently
the list at all times showed forth a
great deal of irregularity and at the
close several industrial issues recorded
losses for the day of IL to points.
while others were point to 2 points
higher than they were on Monday. The
removal from the market of the latest
factor of broad application to specula-
traders to search for influences which
could be used to move particular stocks
about The tobacco group experienced
considerable pressure. the result of COM
ment about signs of price cutting In
some quarters of the industry, and those
issues declined. Oil shares gained
ground and there We're fairly sharp
bulges in SUCH unrelated specialties as
Corn Products. Colorado and Southern,
5. s. Kresge, Laclede Gas and Otis Ele-
vator The market seemed to reflect
nothing except speculation based on
some things known about the state of
industry and trade and on other things
merely guessed about
Bonds again were a more fruitful SUBJ
Ject of study in respect to the operation
of fundamental forces than were stocks
as the persistent strength and fairly
large activity of the former was a meas
ure OF underlying credit conditions. The
Federal Reserve Board sees in progress
such easement of the credit situation
that the financial community is led to
believe that further reductions of re-
discount rates in the East will be or
dered soon. AS the cost of funds to be
used as working capital by corporation
recedes IL would be natural to look for
recedlng selling prices for goods. and
the movement in urice cutting is evil
denced almost daily in announcements
by many producers. But the great
barrier against the return Of goods
prices rapidly to a normal basis is the
high average level of wages, and the
plain attitude OF organized labor re-
mains strongly opposed to any conces-
sions without a contest.
The recent movement of grain prices
indicates that the farmers. constituting
one Of the largest classes of consumers
are caught between the millstones of a
falling return for the goods they sell
and high price for goods they buy.
December wheat in Chicago sold yester-
day at $1.02 a bushel. a new low price
for the season and fall OF 6 cents
for the day. Corn lost ground. The
dominant influence in the present grain
market is the decidedly light demand
for export. The prices of future OPP
lions reflect this, as well as do spot
quotations, and last months receding
movement seems to show pretty clearly
that spectators are seeking to find the
price level on the downward side, where
surplus American grain will be able to
compete with the crops of other coun-
tries in the major consuming markets of
the world. Cotton declined for a time
in yesterdays dealings, but recovered
with speed in the last half hour of bust
ness and was about on Mondays level
in its final transactions.
The foreign exchanges were reaction
airy throughout the day. sterling sliding
off to S.91A to the pound, with a net
decline of u cents. The quotation was
as cents lower than the autumns
maximum, which was reached on Octo-
Der 20. The German quotation got down
to SO cent per mark. a new record for
all time. Call money lent at So and
) per cent