Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1922-10-31
SLUMP IN STOCKS
! |SSL0WER TODAY
Market Irregular and Ner.
vous, But Shows Much
More Resistance.
I.y Special Leased Wire to The Star.


NEW YORK, October 31.-The
stock market continued uncertain
through the afternoon. Domestic OIL
stocks were under pressure, although
in instances like Marland Oil it was
the closing out of certain weak
speculative accounts under agrees
Sive bear attacks" rather than any
earnings reason that was RESPONSE
BILE for the decline.
The remarkable quarterly state
rnent of the Studebaker Company was
passed over temporarily because the
speculative coterie pretended IL was
= bad thing for the market that eN-
pectations of an extra dividend We're
not borne out. The drive against
SStudebaker stock had an unSettllnS
effect upon other members of the
motor group in the final hour. But
The uncovering of these few weak
spots, if intended to provoke further
liquidation in the general market.
was not successful.
Changes Either Way Small.
As rule. the net changes either
mp or down We're comparatively small.
With the statement for the third
quarter due after the close OF busl-
ness. shares of the Steel Corporation
acted in accordance with anticipation
that the showing would not be I'M
favorable.
Today's market actions could not
we'll be understood without reference
10 the position they were in when
trading ended on Monday.
The action of the general share list
in the final hour of Mondays trading
impressed experienced observers as
that of market in which speculative
selling was being overdone. There
WAS nothing in the outside business
XII % trlChtan
vestors into throwing over their hold
iugs.
stop Orders Held Decline.
The selling came manifestly from
overloaded speculative accounts. and
vas partly N the nature of forced
liquidation and partly represented the
Execution of the familiar stop orders.
But along with all this. operations Tor
the decline Ilayed very important
part. and the indications We're that the
short interests had been considerably
iacrea sd.
This was the technical position
which confronted the market at the
outset today Traders had bent
every energy to make the close on
Monday appear as weak as possible.
The idea, of course, was to brighten
the outside public and bring in a
Hood of fresh selling overnight. When
his anticipation was not realized
rush by dcmoraliZed spectators to
ling over their stocks short con-
tracts began to be taken in on a
large scale.
More Resistance Today.
The subsequent recovery was very
Irregular 1t was interSperSed by
weak spots suddenly appearing
among individual stocks and by fire.
auent fits OF hesitation in the general
list. But the essential thing was
that the greater part of the mark et
showed much better resistance than
the professionals, protesting to be
very pessimistic. had counted upon.
In the investment market the tend
ency was once more pretty much
mixed The new United States Az
following up their recovery. sold
close to par. The liberty group was
better all around. Some corporation
bonds We're higher and some lower
with particular weakness in bonds OF
some of the so-called weaker roads
Definite signs have not yet appeared
preSag1ng Il check to the reaction in
the bond market. which set in sin
weeks ago. although the decline had
evidently gone far enough to attract
more buying by investing institu-
tions.
Foreign Exchange Rally.
There was a rather curious diver.
gence between the movement of the
foreign exchanges and that of for
eign government bonds. Both French
and Belgian issues were quite weak
the French ~ down to within a point
of their lowest for all time. French
: exchange. however, rallied across the
F: &c level again and Belgian exchange
was stronger, too. Italian lire, re-
tiecting assurance regarding the po-
litical situation. had a really SHARP
upturn. selling at .O41O as against last
weeks extreme low of 03Si.