Evening star., 1923-03-21
STEEL TAKES LEAD
IN STOCK MARKET
Many Other Issues Also See
! Higher Levels in Today's
Busy Session.
BY STUART p. WEST.

BY STUART p. WEST.
Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK. March 21.-Steel
shares held the center of the stage
during the greater part of the time
today.
Bringing forward United States
Steel common was a very popular
move because one of the chief criti-
cisms leveled against the market as
a whole has been the backwardness
of this stock. The street was great
ly impressed with the showing made
in the balance sheet accompanying
the 1922 report. With steel COM
mon crossing 109-a new high for
the year-other steel stocks were
taken up.
In Republic Iron and Steel the short
interest up to this morning was still
considerable, but it was pretty well
driven In today. Bethlehem Steel B
and Crucible Steel went along with
Republic. and Gulf States Steel had
another violent jump. the fact that
the company is doing the same
amount of business now as it was
when the stock was paying 10 per
cent making d powerful appeal to
speculation imagination. A newly
formed pool was getting busy in Otis
Steel.
Railway Shares Improve.
Railway shares continued to do
better, but their progress, as a rule.
was slow. Canadian Pacific touched
$50 for the first time and Union Pa
cific sold above 143, as against 142
the previous close. New York Cen
trail drew close to par
1t was another field day for pools
In specialtieS. American Steel Foun-
dries was taken up on the ground
that 1T had not had its proper share
in the advance in the equipment
group. Electric Storage Battery
rushed up another three points and
Beechnut Packing was bid up over
two points. Profit-taking was going
on very noticeably in most of the
oils and in the sugars, however.
Review and Outlook.
NEW YORK, March 21.-Today's
stock market consisted of another
stocks. followed in many instances
by partial reaction. 1t was still a
market in which. compared with other
campaigns of equal extent. public
interest was small. Professional
operators and pools. however, con-
tinued to find it easier to put stocks
up than to put them down, and.
therefore, kept on working upon this
side.
In the meantime the investment
market once more showed signs of
softening. This was especially true
of United States government bonus
most of which touched new lows for
the year. The Treasury Ans, brouht
out at par last October sold below
80. This was a fair measure of the
change in the bond market from it's
peak six months ago-a change
brought about by the diversion of
FUNDS from investment channels into
trade, constantly increasing CONNER
DIAL demands, and the consequent
rise in money rates.
Wnge Advance Important.
The two most interesting occur
rences, as they bore i'm opposite direc-
tions upon the financial outlook, were
a further rapid rise in French, Bel
gan and Italian exchange, and on
the other hand, the announcement by
the American Woolen Company that
1t had yielded to the demands of it's
men and would institute o 12k per
cent wage increase.
Even more significant than the fact
that French francs were selling 81 Of
q cent above their price of little more
than a. week ago was the unwilling
ness of the banks to offer drafts on
Paris in any but a small and cautious
way.
This left no doubt that the real
feeling in banking circles regarding
the Franco-German situation is that
both sides are anxious for an agree
ment.
Action Big Surprise.
The wage increase by the leading
woolen manufacturers of the coun-
try is the more notable in that the
owners have been quoted all along as
saying that they would prefer to
shut the mills rather than give in to
the employees. 1t certainly was not
n mn inf tn, ha
kets of the day. But looking fur
ther ahead one must visualize the
possibility of similar wage demands
and similar concessions in many other
industrial lines.
This in turn may be the start of
another vicious circle of wage ad-
vances involving increase in living
costs and such increase involving still
further wage demands or reproduce
ton of the most serious feature in the
inflationary era of 191S-1920.
Tires Resume Advance.
The upbuilding of Kelly-Springfield
and United States Rubber, the lead
ers of the tire group, to new high
prices for the year today was regard
ed as belated response to the i'm
provement in the business of these
companies and to the upward trend
of the tire prices. Buying of these
stocks recalled the favorable esti-
mates of earnings which have been
current in Wall street in the past few
months. with respect to the rubber
and tire concerns.
Heavy Selling Near Close.
The stock market was broader than
on previous days in the sense that
more issues participated in the move
ment. But at the same time as the
afternoon went on realizing sales
became heavy enough to check the
advance in most quarters and bring
a I
was a difficult market to deal in for
everybody but the nimble floor trader
with no commissions TO pay, for the
individual moves were short lived
efforts were made to sell out.