Evening star., 1923-04-27
WEAKNESS IN OILS;
OTHER SHARES FIRM
Motor and Rubber Issues
Hold Extra Well in To-
days Market.
ny STUART p. WEST.

NEW YORK. April 27.-It looked as
If traders short of stocks were taking
advantage today of the weakness In
the oils on the stock exchange to
cover in other directions. While the
oils like Marland. Sinclair, Pan
American and Producers and Refiners
were going off point or more In re-
sponse to the cent-a gallon cut in
gasoline, stocks like Studebaker and
Baldwin Locomotive. in which the
short interest is credited with being
particularly heavy. not only held
steady. but at times advanced
The strength in Studebaker was
especially noteworthy in view of the
fact that dire tors meet next Monday
to take action on the dividend. Opin-
ions differ to what will be done.
Some think that there will be a 80
cent extra, and others that there will
be none at all. Dupont came close
to its high and General Motors was
heavily traded in 1t and just above II.
An IS dividend on Dupont is now
taken for granted. while the way Gen
tral Motor eainings are running ana
promise to run for the rest OF the
.-ear d further small increase in the
dividend Is hot improba BILE.
Rubber Storks Advance.
The pool in Cuyamel Fruit put it's
speciality to a new high of 81. The
claim here l. that earnings justify
substantial dividend, which. in turn.
will amply warrant current selling
prices Of the stock.
United States Rubber and Kelly
Springfield were bid up for a while.
and Keystone appeared to have dis
In the 1922 report Weakness was
again conspicuous in American Cot
ton Oil ard in the Virginia Chemicals,
for reasons that have been so often
pointed out that they need not be re-
peated.
The two incidents which might have
been expected to most affect the
markets of today were another cut In
gasoline prices and the rather sharp
advance in call money rates.
The gasoline cut was the second in
the space of week and accom-
panied figures showing that crude
oil production in March had broken
all records and that surplus supplies
had been piling up at the rate of
more than 100000 barrels a day. This
does not necessarily mean decrease
in the profits of the oil refining com
panies, because presumably they are
compensated by the lower cost Of the
crude product. Nevertheless, senti-
mentally 1t was point against the
Oil shares and was so regarded in
the days stock trading.
The interesting feature in the stock
market was that. whereas on other
occasions where oil cuts were an
nounced the general list has followed
the oil stocks down. today it did not.
Quite likely this indicates a clearer
recognition than Wall street had a
week and two weeks ago that the
oil industry is not typical Of condi-
tions in other industries. But at the
same time it is proof Of the stronger
position within the market itself.
Rise i'm Call Money.
In old times the sudden jump in the
call loan renewal from ~ to sA
per cent. with as high as s per cent
paid on new money. would have
caused uneasiness and quite likely
led to unloading Of speculative hold
inSs. But today scarcely any notice
was taken of the incident. 1t is
fully appreciated that the rate on de-
mand loans in no measure whatever
Of credit conditions. that it reflects
nothing else than the huctuation from
day to day in the supply of money
offering for stock exchange use. and
that this supply is governed chiefly
by Treasury operations.
The real test of the credit position
lies in record of rediscountS and OF
deposits by member banks with the
federal reserve institutions When
federal reserve holdings of discount
od paper in the New York and Bos-
d.
they did during the last week. 1t
certainly shows the opposite from
anything like strain upon credit re-
sources. resulting from operations in
the financial markets. The reduction
OF over $4,000 600 in members re-
whole Is equally significant as re-
CARDS the effect of the general busi-
ness expansion upon the banking
position.
Mathieson Alkali Active.
Special buying in Mathieson AIkaE
today was in anticipation of the pub
= .ication of the first-quarter report on
earnings for the first three months at
the rate of approximately $40 a share.
Although the $4,000 back dividends
on the preferred stock Is expected to
be wiped out during 1923, leaving the
way clear to distribution on the com
latter this year is not looked for.
Warner today was set down as being
short covering. New York traders
with much favor. and, have preferred
TO try to get OFF some short stock at
what they believed the high figures
rather than follow it on the long side.
The main trading in Stewart Warner
is done in Chicago 1t will sell ex-
dividend $3.50 a share.
1t was perhaps. the stupidest day
of the year, from the standpoint of
price changes. In the last hour SELL
ing was renewed in the oils, and
many of these stocks made new lows
for the day.
Sterling exchange recovered a bit.
francs were steady. and marks held
around what is supposed to be the
new peg" price of "a ten thou
sandths of a cent.