The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-02-25
HIGHER REDlSCOUNT
!. RATE REACTIONARY
TO TRADING CIRCLES
Slight Declines Shown After
lnduStriaIS Attain New
High Marks.
By w, s. COUSINS.

By w. S. COUSINS,
NEW YORK. Feb. 24.-It is prob
J, :lematical whether the advance in
, the rediscount rate. of the Federal
reserve bank of New York from 4
!. TO AZ per cent, was reason or an
j excuse for the reactionary tenden-
cies which assorted themselves in
the stock market in the latter part
OF the week after the industrial
average had attained the highest
point in the current bull movement.
There was very little significance
IN this development from the stand
point of the stock market, except as
It might have been employed Senti-
mentally by those who are always
q ready to take advantage of such
y incidents to depress the market. The
y rediscount rate of per cent has
3 been out Of line. both with that Of
{ the other reserves banks of the coun-
8 try and with the open discount mar
3 ket and the directors of the bank
8 have by their action served notice
g that they are not in, sympathy with
j. any movement that would lead to
undue initiation of credit at this
: critical period,
3 49,. Foreign Situation.
- AS. in the preceding week, the
Foreign situation failed to exert any
{1nnuence on our security markets,
J The uncertainty of the outcome Of
2he Ruhr invasion being counter.
lsbalanced by the favorable develop,
pents in the economic situation in
Great Britain, as partly evidenced
Eby the rise in the pound sterling
SO above 472.
Begi, ming the week with turn
aver OF 1,500, 900 shares, the largest
Ia any single day for six months.
!. the trading on the stock market
gradually dwindled to smaller pro-
portions, and later again exceeded
!. by only a small margin the million
i share days that have been featuring
the market since the middle OF
!. February.
5 Groups Move Upward.
The upward price movement con-
] tinued in the copper sugar, oil,
z equipment, motor and motor &C.
cessory, railroad and steel stocks,
: the industrials establishing another
: peak in their averages since the end
! of the bear market in August, 1891.
{ The rails have not yet duplicated
: their previous high average registered
: I'm September of last year, hut it is
) expert opinion in the Wall Street
Z district that they have by no
means discounted all of the favor
able prospects which are contained
in the remaining ten months of
! this year.
There was steady gain in mar
! kef prices of prime industrial
{ dividend stocks like American
Wooden and the Can stocks. In
: dependent steels and rails were
!: more conspicuous for their strength
: than for their market activity,
I while the spectacular developments
!. were confined chiefly to the motor
!. accessories, Stromberg and Bosch
: Magnetic.
. The effect of the advance in the
3 discount rate of the New York
Federal Reserve Bank was more
!. the stock market in the latter part
!. Of the week, and Government war
: bonds declined quite sharply on the
/. announcement. Foreign govern
: ment bonds, on the other hand,
!. received the stimulus of the adj
. vancing market for foreign ex-
Z change, and prices were generally
!. inclined to higher levels.
8 New Offerings.
The feature of the new bond Of
!; ferings this week was the large in
. crease in railroad bonds, which
!: amounted to nearly 10000, 900 of
: an aggregate of $64.O00,000 for the
: week. The new issues included
: $13,447. 900 mortgage 5 per cents of
!: the Illinois Central, $6,300,000 equip
!. ment trust AZ per cents of the
! Louisville and Nashville, SIS. SOC, 900
I equipment trust 51z's of the West
ern Pacific and S4,5O0,000 equip
: ment trust AIS of the Northern
Pacific. All Of these offerings were
well absorbed by the investment
. market.
:: There were fifteen new municipal
and State bond issues aggregating
: $16,250,000. three public utility is
sues in the total sum of $6,250 900,
touE industrials aggregating $1,000
! 900, and three farm loan issues ag-
: gregating S5,000,000.
! In keeping with the continued up
ward movement OF their respective
commodities and the advance of
. three stocks in the listed market,
I. bonds of the important sugar, cop
: per and oil companies also advanced
4 in good form this week. Railroad
/. bonds showed a reactionary ten
:. dency, particularly in the so-called
speculative group, though even here
foh