Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1921-02-12
WALL STREET EYES
EUR0PE'S DO|NCS
Financiers All Cautious Pend
ing Settlement Of Repara-
tions Questions
TRADING MARGIN NARROW

New York. Feb. 12.-Thc New York
1lcrald's financial review of the week
today reads:
Tho last week presented several
conspicuous features. not the least 30
being extreme slOwness in securities
dealings Without any sign whatsoever
Of public interest the floor traders quite
obviously wearied of the futile give and
take of professional operations when
fluctuations in the main were confined
10 fractional limits. It was nm alto
gcthcr proIitlCss business, and less and
less spirit was shown in conducting it.
Wall street has already pretty thor
oughly analyzed the domestic situation
and hns como to the conclusion nppar-
emily that prevailing inertia represents
prudence with n basis in the view that
this country can proceed only so far
in commercial and industrial revival
until it can be known with some degree
of certainty what relation the ultimate
adjustment Of the Versailles treaty pro-
visions shall bear 10 Europes rehabili-
tatiOn. 1t would also like to have some
concrete idea as 70 what the new ad-
m'nistratiOn at Washington will do by
way of foreign policy.
The Supreme Council will meet in
London on March !. and the Germans
will be represented there by statesmen
with proposals to make. The ncgo-
tiations will doubtless extend over n
long period. although ii il entirely pos
sihle that tho issue will be revealed be-
fore full agreement on indemnities and
reparationS shall have been reached.
Wait and SEQ was the watchword.
Meanwhile Wnll street can scarcely be
in position 10 discount probable hap
pcn!ngs. tndcr the circumstances the
stock market may be said to have be-
haved very well. 1t was neither weak
nor strong. The technical position fav-
ored firm undcrtonc because Of n
large short interest and the absence of
offerings in volume. Whenever there
was decline the list was bought we'll
enough to suggest that stocks were going
into fairly strong hands. Other than
THIS buying initiative was feeble. The
probabilities were that stagnation will
continue into the early days of next
month since that term will bring in
the Harding regime with all that such
an important change involves psyche
logically, and the actual treaty nego-
tiations with their daily influence on
sentiment.
Credit Burden Distributed
\ new angle was presented in the
country's credit situation. Prior TO
this week New York bore the brunt OF
tight money conditions and this was
renccted in the hardening of money
rates. The interior drew heavily on
this center, but Indications now begin
10 point to more equitable distribu-
tihn of the burden. There was some
evidence that funds were directed this
way where they could be loaned on call
at per cent in the first part of the
week. On Tuesday the call rate was
marked down to Z per cent and some
outside loaning operations at as low
as per cent were reported. Loans
were made at : per cent all day on
wednesday and the same on Thursday
and Friday. Transactions were not
large. Signs in no one financial center
could b" taken rs representative of con-
ditions throughout the country.
Credit was still strained in the
United States whatever the momcntary
| manifestations might be in New York.
Chicago. Philadelphia or Boston. That
q large amount of liquidations will be
forced by the end OF February was tho
opin ion Of bankers here. Agricultural
| needs constituted the keynote. As the
planting season approaches applications
| W '"E DhhhS LOI lllC stuSOuul utCOlll
modation begin IN come in. These ap-
| plications, according to reports from
| farming communities. are none too
readily granted for the reason that
farmers have found themselves unable
to meet Indebtedness already incurred
The steady decline in Federal Re
| serve note circulation and the large
| amount Of financing reported from day
to day supply ample explanation for
the caution of the banks. The immedi-
! ate outlook for relief is not promising.
The government offered new issue OF
treasury certificates of indebtedness for
, 500 600. 900 or more at - per cent.
! \ syrdtcate Of bankers bought $40. e
600 600 Of Copper Export Association
! notes D"arnC : p"r cent to run SER .
ally for a maximum Of four years, SO
! cured by 400 .OOu. .OrO pounds of the red
metal AZ a vr,uation Of ton cents q
pound, which is 10 be trusted and with o.
drawn at not less than 12I. cents n
| pound, thus removing the metal from
surplus stores and in effect establishing
a minimum market price at 12l2 cents,
Copper Shares Advance
The companies composing the asso .
citation were thus relieved of the bur
den of carrying that stock and perhaps