Evening star., 1921-04-04
STEEL SHARES ARE
UNDER PRESSURE
Market More Active, But In
cIined to HeavineSS on
EnqIish News.


English News.
NEW YORK. April 4.-rhe week in
the financial market began with two
new considerations for the investment
community to reckon upon. One was
the tentative vote of sympathy with
the striking coal miners Of England on
the part of the railway men and trans
port workers, which brought a gigantic
tie-up of British industry into closer
prospect.
The other. of obviously opposite sig
nificance, was the best set of federal
reserve bank statements that has yet
appeared for a single week this year.
With a combined ratio of reserve for
the banking system as whole up to
sos per cent to 52.4 per cent-the lat
doing Of the impairment in the general
banking position during the last three
years-and with the ratio for the New
York district recording the extraordi-
nary jump from sos to 56.7 per cent,
the assurance Of a comfortable money
market situation was greater than 1t
had been at any time SO far.
AS it turned out however. neither
of these developments cut much figure
in the markets Of today. further
reaction Of over a cent in sterling
exchange was a response to the news
from England, but this decline was
not large enough to suggest any very
serious concern.
Had English banking circles taken
the view that the three big unions
were about to unite in a strike that
would do incalculable harm to the
tAovn hFHv IN
dustry, the exchange would certainly
have been very much weaker. The
security markets in London were un-
settled. but without any important
weakness. There was some selling
here in stocks which are active on
the London exchange. But these in
cidentS hardly had much OF bearing
upon the share list here. Neither for
that matter. did the week end bank
statements.
What our market was chiefly con-
cerned with was the course of trade
developments at home: Stocks of
companies like the steels. which are
believed not to have completed their
readtustment. were weak from the
start
On the other hand. oil shares were
relatively steady. with the exception
agrees with the president of the Texas
Company. who stated last week his
belief that oil prices had seen their
lowest, and that the turn is at hand.
Hopeful OF Conditfons.
The street refused to be reassured
By the efforts of the administration at
Washington to expedite settlement of
the railway wage question or by the
conference in this city between labor
representatives and representatives of
security owners.
Pressure continued against the rail-
way list, giving them a heavy appear
ance. even although they we're not
to large proportions in the motors.
served to keep these stocks fairly
firm.
On the other hand. sugars were
wax; partly becauss OF the question
recent created commission formed to
handle the sale Of the new Cuban crop,
but moro hEgely In sympathy with the
pa@Se Of the dividend on American
TAR On Steel stocks.
Tho principal effort of the bear
party WIS directed against the steel
stocks The main speculative argu-
ment was that the steel Industry has
not yet gone through with its full
share Of Feadjustment, and will not
turn the corner definitely until the
Steal Corporation has seen At to low
s9eels have lowered theirs.
There are some who think that an
nouncement of q reduction of prices
By the Steel Corporation would be
taken favorably. in that it would
news which has long been over
hanging the situation. and which once
out Of the way would be looked upon
- . signal for trade recovery to
However this may be. sellers Of the
Steel shares had in mind not only the
IhDIfhood Of further price-cutting but
Of Q highly unfavorable series of earn
ings statements for the first quarter.
Independent steel companies have
been operating at only Is to 20 per
business At figures where 1t is Ques-
tionable whether there was any profit
at all 1t may be imagined. therefore
that the three months showing will be
pretty dismal
Bashes. Drops Oh.
Tho Steel Corporation began the first
quarter operating at about an aver
age of so per cent. Within the last
few weeks this has dropped to from
larger volume of business compared
with the Independent steels and with
prices the same as they have been
since 1917. the Steel Corporation re-
port for the three months ended
March 81, viii be nothing like as bad
as those of it's competitors
On the other hand. the big holders
Of stocks like Republic. Lackawanna
and Bethlehem B are not selling, be-
cause in their view the proper VAL
uAtion for steel company stocks
should not be the earnings for a
single three or six month period. but
the average earnings over a series
of years. They maintain that with
the utmost allowance for bad busi-
ness in the first half of 1921. taking
the results Of 1920 and 1921 together,
the average will be a very fair one
There 10 no doubt, also, that it is