Evening star., 1922-04-13
LIGHTER TRADING
ON WALL STREET
Easier Money Conditions
Abroad a Factor-Irregu-
larity in Values.
BY STUART p. WEST.

NEW YORK, April 13.-Reduction
of the English bank rate from Az to
per cent. a new high for the year in
French exchange. another huge total
Of investment business in the bond
market and a partial resumption of
the advance on the stock exchange
were the chief features today in the
financial situation.
OF course. the step taken by the
English bank has a mixed signifi-
canoe. 1t is. favorable. in the sense
that 1t indorses the fact that the
worldwide credit strain has almost
completely disappeared.
1t Is not so favorable considered
from the point of view that the de-
cline in the English money market is
the result Of slack trade and that the
principal object in reducing the bank
rate is to encourage business revival.
Has Favorable Effect.
Nevertheless an English bank rate
down to where II stood in July, 1914, is
a thing of great consequence in the
financial world. Whatever later stimu-
liant II may afford to commercial opera
tions, its first effect is to increase the
that the rise of the last six months in
investment securities has not been over
done.
The advance in French francs across
the previous high of month and
half ago is quite in keeping with the
latest returns of the French foreign
trade and the improved credit position
signifed by the rise in French govern
ment bonds both at home and abroad
How closely the movement is related
to the proceedings at Genoa and how
far it reflects anticipations on the sub
ject of German reparations. rs not so
clear. But at least it does not sug-
Rest any misgivings in regard to either
situation.
While the market today again was
broad one in the sense that an un-
usual number of individual stocks
came in for attention, it was not a
broad market in the old-time sense
that is, one easy to trade in--because
of the large volume of buying and
selling accompanying the various
fluctuations.
The public has come back to Wall
street, but not in the big way it was
interested two and three years ago.
The great bulk of the business from
day to day is provided by habttual
traders on the floor of the stock ex-
change and in the Offices. who are
quick to get in and out.
This means that when a move
starts everybody wants to buy at
once and there is not enough stock
to go around until prices have shot
| ahead or 8 points. and conversely il
ly thin market as soon as the first
symptoms of reaction appear. A no.
| table instance of this was Southern
Pacific. which broke on a few trans
actions yesterday from a high of 80
to a low of SS and on a still smaller
total returned Immediately this morn
ing to S9!s.
Oils the Favoritea.
The new Cosden pool gave good ac-
| count of itself, continuing to work
on reports privately received of very
favorable earnings, and the prospect
of an increase in dividends later in
the year. Sinclair pushed ahead on
| very heavy trading. The move in this
stock was helped by the announce
| ment that Sinclair has made con-
tract with the government for de-
veloping the naval oil reserve M. ,.
in Wyoming. the estimated capacity
of which is somewhere between
1s0. 100000 and 20o000,000 barrels
Union Oil, which has been rather
sluggish all along, finally gathered
strength enough to get across 20.
This stock of the Delaware COM
pany represents a quarter interest in
the Union Oil of California. which to-
day reported for the first three
months OF 1922 net profits after all
charges of s2.750.o0o. against $1,000
coo during the corresponding quarter
of 1921. Producers and Refiners went
ahead easily but Texas Company did
not do as well.