Evening star., 1921-02-02
ACTION IN MARKET
| FAVORS THE BEARS
Dominating influences Cause
Nervousness Among
Traders.
by STUART p. WEST.

NEW YORK. February Especially
Today's developments in the financial
situation were again very much mix
ed. This included some things that
were favorable and others that were
not, but the balance as reflected in
the stock market was on the adverse
side.
On the one hand recovery from yes
terday mornings severe fall in eX-
got back within 3 cents of it's eN-
treme high week ago. German
marks rallied over hals the ground
lost and the same was true of francs.
Cotton options. following. as usual.
the course of sterling. were firmer.
and the demoralized condition of pre-
vious days in the grain pit was re-
ileved by the news received after the
close of business yesterday that Italy
and Holland had entered the market
as large buyers of wheat:
On the other hand the call money
renewal was advanced to 8 per cent,
TIE highest since the middle of NO
vember. The slashing Of refined su-
gar prices. which has all the char
acteristicS of a nasty trade war. kept
on and Standard Oil companies in the
east announced further sharp cut
in oils and gasoline.
Selling Ii Professional.
days selling for the most part was of
Il poor sort. 1t came from profess
sional sources and to a large extent
represented offerings of short stock.
There was some dribbling liquidation,
of course. from recent speculative
buyers, but in the main it was a case
of bear traders picking away at the
price list and meeting with some sue
cess because there was no effort made
to prevent a decline.
The best opinion was that it was
merely a minor downward turn in a
trading market, and not the resump-
tion of a major decline. If there was
no important selling going on there
was no important buying. If the days
dealings could have been analyZed
found that quite respectable portion
consisted of one short selling to an
other.
Northern Pacific Action.
The statement was made yesterday
that Northern Pacific was acting in
the market much the same way as
Southern Pacific did prior to the an
nouncement of it's oil land deal. This
statement was even more applicable to
the behavior of the stock today. Like
Southern Pacific, some months ago,
Northern Pacific did not move with the
other railS--it was not sensitive TO
their heavness. Wall street is treat
ing Northern Pacific as a semi-oil
stock.
Under Pressure.
Such leaders of the January rise
as Crucible Steel, Baldwin Locomotive.
Rubber. Wool and International Pa
per were under pressure.
BY early afternoon the bid for new
money had been raised to 8 per cent,
and this was signal for a renewal
of bearish efforts against the share
list
The higher money rates were moth
ing more than preteXt, for it is
known that they are the result of
temporary conditions. and are not in
the least significant of the general
banking and credit situation through
out the country.
The 80 per cent reserve ratio, the
heavy reduction of the last month
in discounts and note issues and the
remarkable scaling down of Aleir
Indebtedness by the banks in the
agricultural regions-these are the
big things in the money situation.
1t is of comparatively trivial impor-
tance that part of this strengthening
of the position in the interior should
have been accomplished at the ex-
pense of New York. The New York
banks were getting ready today to
meet the government call for an
other s14O00.0GO When the extern
sive syndicate and federal financing.
which has been going on since the
first of the week, is over. prompt =
taxation in local money rates is alto
gether likely.
If by any chance it does not occur
the per cent rate on call finds is
bound to re2ttract the funds from
out Of <owr which were withdrawn
a fortnight ago when Wall street
lowered it's bid to per cent.