Evening star., 1921-06-29
MONEY IS FIRM;
STOCKSSTRONGER
Good Demand for Industrial
Leaders-RaiIs Make Some
GainS-Notes.
BY STUART p. WEST.


in the call money renewal to 81 per
cent. a somewhat sharp reaction in
sterling exchange and highly irregu-
lar fluctuations In stocks and COM
modify prices made up today's rec
ord in the markets. There was moth
ing, of course, at all significant about
the slight rise In the money rates.
The banks have been called upon to
meet large government Withdrawals.
while at the same time providing the
funds to finance the 1st OF July divi-
dend and interest payments. This has
temporarily reduced the supply of
funds for Wall street purposes. but
inaSmuch as the Wall street demand
is at an absolute minimum-the low
est. in fact. in recent years-the eff
feet upon quotations for money Is
comparatively trif1ing.
The decline in sterling carried rates
back over half the ground gained
since the start Of the week. The first
German indemnity payments, made in
dollars and arranged in great hurry.
put the market down 80 cents in the
pound in less than fortnight.
1t would have certainly been ex-
rected that with this operation over
and with the assurance that the sec
ond instalment OF the reparations
money was to be accented In foreign
currencies. there would have been
very much more expansive reaction
in the value of the dollar than has
actually occurred.
AS it stands the sterling has made
up barely cents out OF its 3O-cent de-
cline, and this would seem to indi-
cate that the routine factors IN the
exchange market are not the same
as they were month and half
ago The exchange market then was
getting the support of the heavy
gold transfers. whereas now this
movement has fallen of. At the same
time the demand for exchange drafts
to cover purchases of our grain and
cotton is much larger than 1t was.
stocks stronger.
Action in the stock list. starting
slowly. made small progress until
midway in the second hour OF the
session. when strength developed here
and there throughout the industrial
list. with large trading in General
Motors. and sharp advances IN steer
we'll Steel common sold up to 74b.
with the indications rather favoring
firmer closing.
Many of the industrials gained Y to
y of point.
on the common and points on the
preferred. with large transactions.
Some of the rails showed better
tone in the early trading. but the
advance was checked and the rail
group as a whole was slow.
Rails Gain Strength.
In the second hour of the afternoon
the rails became ffrmer. influenced ny
tho display Of strength elsewhere.
Chesapeake and Ohio was exception
ally strong following the May report
published yesterday, which showed
the remarkable gain over last year
of s1.34o.0oo in the gross. with a net
against sl,15s.0oo last year. The net
for the five months was still behind
the the stock represented the feeling that
continuance of the improvement as
shown in last months returns would
Uncertainty as to whether the rail-
way brotherhoods would side with the
shopmen and refuse the IL per cent
wage reduction kept down new buy
ing in the rail shares generally. but
there was no selling on this account
steel Common.
People who have been buying Steel
common at the low prices of the last
week have shut their eyes absolutely
have been buying on the ground of
asset value-namely, that the Steel
Corporation. with its huge cash sur
plus and large security investme nts
and with its enormous reserve FUNDS.
has an intrinsic value that would f1g-
ure out we'll above the present selling
price. even il not a single furnace
were in blast or single mill work
ing.
Moreover. there is always in the case
Of Steel common the technical argu-
ment that the stock is fast disappear
ing from the street. and that with
the annual purchases for employees
going On at the rate they have been
it will not be many years before it be-
comes a strictly investment stock and
retires from the speculative arena al
together.
In keeping with this view were the
latest figures of stockholders publish
ed today. When the books closed for
the June dividend the total registered
list was 105.310. a new high record.