The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1923-06-28
BUSINESS IN
NORTHWEST UP
RICH REPORTS
Situation at End of May rs
Compared with April Is
Shown to be Favorable
Blu YING is BETTER X
Seasonal Changes in Retail
Sales Show an Increase as
Compared to April

minneapolis, June 2S.-Ihe volume
of business in the Northwest during
the month of May showed notable
increase of more than percent over
the preceding month, although there
normally is a decline, John II. Rich,
Federal Reserve Agent for the
Ninth district, said in his monthly
review Of business conditions, made
public today.
"The volume of business as indi-
Gated by these figures was 81 per
cent above our estimated normal
for the month as compared with a
volume of 90 percent above normal
in April" he said. "The May vol
ume this year was larger than the
volume in May of 1919, 1921 and
1922 and was only 6.3 percent lower
than the volume in May, 1920, which
was the peak year in the dollar
amount of business in this terri
tory"
Crop conditions were reported
generally favorable. The prices of
the chief products of the farm at
terminal markets showed mixed ten
denotes during May. The majority
of the grain medians declined and
the majority of livestock medians
increased, but livestock prices were
weak at the end of the month.
Projected building activity in
creased during the month, as COM
pared with normal seasonal trends
based on the experience of the past
four years. However, the number
and valuation of permits was less
than a year ago for the same month.
If allowance be made for price
changes, the total valuation will be
found below both last year and a
month ago, the report says.
Influx of Funds
Regarding financial conditions
the report says:
Financial conditions as reflected
by changes in the balance sheets of
selected banks in the larger cities
show that there was an influx of
money funds of about 10 million
dollars net during the last half of
May, of which the greater part was
due to loan reductions and certain
tax collections, and of this about 8
million dollars was utilized during
the first half of June to meet the
steady decline in deposits which has
been almost continuous since the
end of January, and to reduce bor-
rowings considerably at this Federal
Reserve Bank.
Interest rates increased slightly,
according to the average computed
by this office for 13 standard varie-
ties of paper handled in the Mime
apolis market during the month
ending June Is. This was due large
ly to commercial influences, as the
cattle loan rate meanwhile declined
one-fourth per cent"
Retail Sales Higher
Retail sales of general merchan-
disc and of lumber showed changes
between April and May which
amounted to good increases when
purely seasonal influences are eli
minated, the report said. General
merchandise sales were / percent
smaller in May than in April, but
the normal decline is slightly more
than this. Retail lumber sales were
40 percent above the previous
month.
The Federal Reserve Bank exper
fenced in May an increase of more
than four millions in borrowings
by member banks, which was parti-
cipated in by the banks in all the
states of the district. At the same
time member bank reserve deposits
increased one billion and holdings
Of purchased bills were reduced
more than one-million and security
holdings were increased more than
third of q million.