The New York herald., 1922-06-30
FINANCIAL NEWS
AND COMMENT
Trading in Stocks Featured by
Selling Of Oil and Buying
of Rail Shares.

The stock market Yesterday was a
typical pre-holiday affair and aside from
general assault on oil stocks and a
concerted buying movement in the rails,
there was little trading of consequence.
The selling of the oils and the buying
of railroad shares furnished sufficient
business to make tEs volume for the
day somewhat larger than on Wednes-
day. but aside from these two features.
the entire market was Just as slow and
just as lacking in important price
movements as it had been on the pre-
ceding day. The same state OF apathy
prevailed in practically every market,
including grain. cotton. exchanges, &c.
The primary cause for the weakness
of the oil shares obviously was to be
found in bear operations. For several
days the market has been entirely in
the hands of professional operators and
what features have made their ap-
pearance could be traced directly to the
professional group. Certainly there has
been no change in the fundamental
situation of the oil industry to warrant
sudden and unexpected casting over
of stocks. 1t is probable that what
little real liquidation was present in the
market for oil shares yesterday was
induced by the spectacle of lower prices
and diminishing profits as result OF
the bears operations. rather than Of
any new developments in the industry
xa1v tn
tlement.
Railroad stocks, led by New York
Central and Great Northern, were well
bought all day. The strike news of the
day was absolutely ignored, and even
dispatches from Chicago that main
tenance Of way employees had already
left their stations without waiting for
the official call failed to halt the upward
swing of railroad stocks. Clear defiance
to the union leaders and complete con-
fdence In the ability Of the roads to
overcome the effects Of the strike could
be seen in the buying of the carriers
stocks. Then, too the earnings state
ments of the railroads for May which
| have been coming out from day to day
| tended to restore confidence in the
strength of the roads Coupled with
these factors was the report on Wednes-
day of another big decrease in the num-
| her of idle cars-all straws in the WIND.
Railroad stocks. it Is pretty certain, are
| being bought because of these funda-
mental factors and because of the fact
| also that they have for months been the
| laggards in the stock market.
With the exception OF the extreme
weakness of the German mark there was
| little feature in yesterdays foreign ex-
| change market Sterling was firm Al
| day and francs were somewhat easier,
| but the mark went once more to new
low record Of 26% as measured In
| hundredths Of a cent. Another increase
| of more than 4,000000,000 marks in
| circulation was revealed in the weekly
| statement of the Bank OF Germany
| bringing the total up to almost l5S.0Oo.- :
| 600, 900 marks, a staggering figure. This
| represents an Increase of about 45,OOo,-
100000 since the first of the year. one
thing seems clear, without a decided
rearrangement of the reparations terms
| or a huge international loan Germany
| financial structure. already in a terrible
state. will be completely wrecked. Marks
were not aided, either. by advices from
Berlin that the Central Committee of the
| Reichsbank was considering a plan for
raising the bank rate and imposing new
laws for the checking Of speculation In
! foreign exchange. =
Evidence that the accumulation OF
funds for midyear requirements had
been about completed vas the softening
| of the call rate to per cent. just before
the close. Bonds did little' and the cot
ton market, although orm most or the
day was exceedingly. quiet. The same
dullness marked transactions in grain.