The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-07-29
BY ]. c. BOYLE.


New York, July z9.-Four Of the
large producers OF medium priced
automobiles expect to cut prices on
or soon after Aug. l. As q result
the whole automobile industry with
all Of its aniliated lines and the
subsidiaries which feed it are sit
ding up and taking notice. Distrib-
utors and automobile merchand1s-
ersi throughout the country are
nervous over the situation because
the extent Of the cuts In prices are
mot yet known and indeed In some
cases are not yet fully determined
upon.
The automobile industry is facing
tho most anomalous situation it
has ever known. The majority OF
automobile companies do not need
to cut prices to stimulate sales.
Two-thirds of the manufacturers
are oversold. They can not pro-
duce the cars already ordered and
are working at capacity. Ford Is
making more cars than ever before
and yet the Ford factory is 100000
cars behind on closed car orders.
Dodge. Hudson, Overland, Chevro-
let. Maxwell and many other rae
tories have Just closed the best half
year they have ever known from a
sales standpoint But there are
some strong concerns that for pc
culiar reasons have not shared TINS
4 unprecedented prosperity. These
makers expect to adjust their own
problems by naming lower prices
They hope by this method to main
i tain volume Of sales during tne
period of the year which is normal
!: " one of declining sales activity.
i No General Price Cuts.
/ No general wave of price cutting
is expected Aug. /. The projected
revisions downward are expected
by many in close touch with afalr'
to average about 121h per cent. Blu
il these reductions reveal TOO grea
a differential as compared with car
selling at the same present pric'
range, slashes by other makers ma.
be expected. There exists, there
fore. a situation in which two-third
Of q great industry is oversold an
: facing rising costs while one-thlr
is cutting prices to get business. .
j Business responded immedlatel
} : to the improved situation as re
CARDS the great railroad and coz
3 strikes. This improvement in tn
}. various lines Of trade and CON
{ merce were natural enough in vie
of the tensity which the situatio
was assuming. That tensity wa
t thoroughly revealed in bushes
dispatches received within the la
"a hours which recorded the initl'
move in certain sections to restrl
the sale Of food products. as ";
done during war days One b
, string Of chain groceries in Il
, middle west declined to sell mo
than 10 pounds OF sugar to eat
customer, There is not one poul
y Of sugar in the wholesale houses
,, one section of the southwest.
y Prosperity Only Waits.
d steel plants auA AoSeo1
Ie profitable orders on their books a
IS closed down, and on the other SIX
n of the picture it is estimated tn
70 the anthracite miners alone alrea'
d have lost over $75,000,000 in wage
" All of which, taken into consider
70 ton with the response of busIne
nf even to. a probability of agreemel
goes to show the renewed actlvl
). and prosperity which will folle
~ the settlement which now seer
70 not far distant
-, The building industry, which b
10 been the mainstay Of commerce
and industrial business, has be
~ saved from curtailments largely
e producers and distributors OF bul
~ ing material forsaking the old "a
II road maxim of charging "all
er traffic will bear" Brick, GENE
re lime and plaster all have been
q! tremendous demand, but the prlt
no have maintained a steady le'
y which would permit continuance
es operations. Orders for lumb
as which has suffered a check as
Sc result of the rail strike, again
demanding freely with buying
ne evidence for export as well as