The New York herald., 1922-07-22
FINANCIAL NEWS
AND COMMENT
Irregular Price Movements in
Stock Misunderstanding
Is Done Cautiously.

The stock market disclosed rather
plainly yesterday the choice of traders
to step aside and watch proceedings
in the railroad and coal strikes with
out any hampering thoughts about fhe
market vagaries of securities. In con-
sequence. fairly substantial rally of
steel issues in the first half hour of
business was soon converted into
decidedly irregular array of prices. Pro-
fessonal short sellers helped unsettle
the situation by pressing-.do hard
upon Studebaker. Crucible Steel. Mexi-
can Petroleum. Piece Arrow, u. S. Rub
Der and Vanadium, among others, and
net declines OF a point to points
among them aided in making the list
appear quite weak at the close.
Broadly speaking it was not the in
dustrials which gave the tone of deal
ings. however as the rails were studied
more closely for the detection Of market
tendencies. Pennsylvania ability to
reach new high record for this year
at 40 attracted much attention and
aroused suspicious that the movement
forecast an early end of the strike.
The Pennsylvania. 1t was recalled, had
weaved it's way safely through strike
problems by making it's own settlement
with it's men. AS news dispatches
quoted the head OF the shop workers
union as saying that private settle
ments by Individual roads would be
satisfactory, provided that the men got
what they wanted. spectators were
more than ready to believe the strike
tension less than the day before.
But that hope did not apply to the
coal strike. The movement of troops
into Pennsylvania and Ohio fields
seemed to intensity the deadlock be-
tween miners and operators and Gov
ernment plans to distribute coal through
program of priorities denoted appre-
hension lest industry begin to suffer
severely rretty soon.
1t could not be said that stocks re-
treated because Of fresh depression
oil speculation. rather. the days results
were the product of efforts to be on the
safe side until the outlook cleared. A
number of industrial specialties, includ-
ing North American. went into new
high ground and stayed there. Call
money stood at per cent. for all loans.
Again easy money stimulated invest
nlent operations. All of the Liberty
AZ per cent. edged upward to new high
points. There was considerable give
and take among railroad bonds. but
speculative buying supported the Sec
ondary railroad issues and foreign Gov
err ment and municipals were firm
Contrary to whatNmight have been
expected in the foreign exchanges, in
the light of that bulge of rates early in
the week when cut of German. repara-
tions was discussed favorably by French
and British authorities. there was only
a moderate hardening of quotations
yesterday on news that a moratorium
for Germany was practically assured.
The market presumably is waiting for
the report of the GUARANTEES Commits
sion. which went exhaustively into
German fiscal conditions last month.
The report is expected next week and
promises to disclose reasons why Ger
many should have a breathing spell in
debt paymynts.
The action of cotton futures showed
that traders were less confident of
weather effects in Texas and Oklahoma
where reported damage by heat and
drought worked to force prices upward
last week. They declined 30 to "A points
yesterday. becoming sensitive to irfor-
nation that dry weather was retarding
ravages of weevfl. Grain prices were
irregular.