Evening star., 1923-08-29
CHEMICAL STOCKS
IN WILD JUMPS
Favorable Reports Send
Shorts to Cover-Shippng
Shares Also Strong.
BY STUART II. WEST.

Special Dispatch TO The Star
NEW YORK, August 29.-The
strong features in the market today
were stocks which were special points
of-weakness all through the decline.
Among these particularly were the
fertilizer and chemical shares and the
stocks of shipping companies.
Wall street. despite recent reports
about the turn for better in the
fertilizer industry, was taken COM
pletely by surprise when the annual
report of the American Agricultural
Chemical came out with surplus
of $501.4 $50. This was the first credit
which the company has had in three
years. and il Immediately gave ere
dence to unofficial estimates of the
earnings of other similar companies
like Virginia Carolina Chemical,
which have shown ii very marked i'm
provement the first six months.
Shorts Rush to Cover.
lot of money has been made on
the short side of these chemical and
fertilizer shares, and so confident have
the bears been that these concerns
were facing a drastic overhauling of
C; pltal account that they have been
slow to take in their paper profits. AS
result. the short interest was out of
all proportion to the supply of stock
available for covering purposes.
Inc sequel was ten-point jump al
most on running sales in Virginia
Carolina Chemica! preferred. accom-
panied by sharp upbidding of the
American Cotton Oils. the America n
Agricultural Chemicals and the Inter
Rational Agricultural stocks. Dawson
Chemical continued its remarkable ad-
vance.
With this clear proof that opinion
regarding the fertilizer group had
undergone a decided change the
rn M l,oia Al, h,tSi
ness with the farmers naturally came
in for favorable attention. among
them Sears Roebuck and Montgom-
cry Ward.
agricultural depression" had been
very much overplayed as a market
factor.
shipping Stocks Taken Up.
The violent awakening of the short
interest in the farm supply stocks
intimidated the shorts in one or two
groups where bear operations had
been conducted Particularly was
this true of the shipping stocks.
There has been no Improvement in
the ocean freight trade and the sea-
SON is at hand when revenue from
the passenger business begins to fall
off. Hence there was no motive for
the rise today in stocks like the Mer-
camille Marines. Atlantic, Gulf and
West indies and American 1nterna-
pressed down too far, and had accu-
mulated a short account which found
considerable difficulty in covering.
The Oil Situation Today.
Observations of the current pro-
duction figures of the petroleum in
dustry and the action of certain of the
oil stocks have led many to believe
that the predicted Improvement in
the oil situation has actually set in.
The usual weekly statement of do
mestic production and imports on
Thursday, it is thought, will indi-
cate important decreases.
Latest Information regarding the
business of Associated Dry Goods and
its subsidiary companies, chiefly Lord
d Taylor, indicates continuance of
the satisfactory profits which have
been reflected in the noteworthy
strength of dry goods stock. 1t is
predicted agafI. that the dividend will
be Increased to Sc before the end of
the year.
The foreign exchange market and
the market for foreign government
[ bonds were watched with particular
interest on account or reports that
Germany was about to abandon its
F., policy of passive resistance in the
'Ruhr.
Whatever basis these reports may
prove to have had, they were not taken
very seriously by the financial COM
4
| victory in the economic struggle of the
last seven months would certainly have
meant a violent rise in French and Bel
J gian currencieS and sharp advance
I in the public loans. AS it was. both
French and Belgian francs not only
failed to go up. but actually came
down, while their bonds were very lit
tie changed on the day.
Much Taking of Profits.
1t was not surprising after so steady
and SO extensive a rise as the stock
market has had that there should have
been more of disposition as the day
ulative purchases Many of the lead
ers of the list are up ten to fifteen
points from where they were selling
at the end of July. Quite a number
have regained anywhere from a half
to three-quarters of their entire loss
since the 1st of April.
The two most interesting contribu-
tions in the way of trade news came
in the midweek steel reviews and the
figures on railway car loadings.
Steel mill activities fell off somewhat
further during August. The Steel
Corporation is operating now at 50
per cent of capacity, as against 80
last month, while independent COM
-panies. which We're operating above
80 four months ago are down to be-
tween rs and so. But this is merely
completing the necessary readjust-
ment In accordance with the falling
off for time in new orders. That
this readjuStment has been completed