Evening star., 1923-07-23
DRY GOODS PRICES
NOW BEING FIXED
Opening of Spring Lines
Very important Factor in
Commercial World.
BY j. C. ROYLE.

Special Dispatch to The Star
NEW YORK, July 23.-To wait or
not to wait? That is the question of
buying policy which will be definitely
settled for hundreds of producers,
manufacturers. jobbers. and mer-
chandisers this week. The greatest
factor perhaps in determining this
policy was the opening today of the
1924 spring lines of the American
Wooden Company and the wooden and
\ dress goods lines of the Atlantic
mills.
Price advance by both concerns
were fully expected. In fact Presi-
dent Wood of the American Woolen
Company made plain announcement
TO that effect some weeks ago on his
return from Europe but the moderate
extent Of the increase was sur
prise to many manufacturers and
consumers.
Prices to be Far Reaching.
The effect of the ANNOUNCEMENTS
Will be passed right dawn the llne;
The American WOODEN Company VIII
open its line of fancy suitings in the
, next few days and will follow with
r.omen's dress goods. Announcements
OF other wooden cloth manufacturers
cannot he long delayed. There Is
every reason to believe that they
will wait only for the hrst mint or
the ,huying response to the American
WSolen announcements before nam
ing their own prices.
For il will be remembered that by
following a policy of waiting when
the heavyweight season opened they
lost the cream of the trade TO the Dig
company, which was able 10 withdraw
its heavyweight suitiaGs and over
coatinES from the market within a
few days after the opening.
The fixing of goods prices and the
buying response which follows Will
have an immediate effect on the raw
wool market. 1t will determine the
requirements of manufacturers and
the limit of the price they can and
will pay for raw wool
Wool Prices Mt Stake.
The American Woolen Company is
known already to have covered its
raw wool requirements fairly well.
The prices paid. II is understood.
Were excellent from the growers
viewpoint, although we'll under the
peak Of the year. Moreover, much OF
the wool obtained was bought direct
from the growers on the ranges, thus
eliminating the profits of the dealer.
Other mills are not believed to be
we'll supplied. If there is salts
factory response from cloth buyers,
the manufacturers probably Will come
into the raw wool market In good
, This is expected TO stiffen the al
I ready strong position of the growers,
many of whom have sold enough al
rood profit to enable them to hold the
remainder for the price they have set.
Wool buyers, meanwhile, have their
bags packed to jump to the ranges
from whence they were recalled SIX
weeks ago, when the refusal of manu-
facturers TO pay the prices demanded,
and the equally firm refusal of the
growers to shade their demands,
brought about an impasse. In the
background of any advances in raw
wool prices is always the price level
at which it would pay manufacturers
TO import Australian, British and
South American woods into this coun-
try.
Conservative Policy Seen.
Goods prices also will determine to
.some extent the policy of the clothing
manufacturer, the wholesaler and
1obber and the retailers. A fair In
dication of what these policies will be
will evolve from the gathering here
tdoay of merchants and buyers from
all over the country for the merchan-
disc fair. The volume of buying done
by these representatives of the vari-
Gus sections will show manufacturers
just how the men in closest touch
with the buying public expect their
customers to react to present eco
nomic conditions and future price
levels.
These merchants expressed little
doubt today that a policy of extreme
conservatism would be followed by
wholesalers and retailers of the
= wheat growing states. and the same
attitude will be taken in the south, at
least until the next two weeks have
made more evident what the final
butcome of the cotton crop will be.