New Britain herald., 1924-12-31


 United States Steel Corporation paid it's regular quarterly dividends Of l If per cent, and an adltional ex- tra of l'2 of on per cent each quart. CT, the stock selling at the highest level since 1917.
 Most of the oil shares lost ground, due 10 the unsettled trade conditions caused by the production of crude. The Pan-Amorlcan Petroleum & Transport Company. one of the largest of the independents, cut its common dividends In half, and sev- eral others were forced to omit their payments.
 Copper shares showed signs of activity and strength as the year closed after a long period Of relative depression, due 10 the inability of the producers to earn substantial profits because of the low prices of the red metal, and the stiff competi- . ton afforded by the African pro- duct. With Europe again a large potential buyer of copper, the out- look for the industry Is one of the best in years.
 A slight falling off in production and sales below the record breaking year Of 1923 combined with incrcas- ing competition, naturally had an adverse effect OH many motor shares, although Jordan, Nash, the Maxwell and Pierce Arrow issues developed considerable strength in the last few weeks, One of the principal de- velopments in this group was the sealing down Of tho number of shares Of General Motors through the issuance of a new common stock. which was exchangeable on the basis ot one share of new for four of the old.
 Textile, chemical and packing shares suffered as result of ad- verse trade developments, nocossit al. ing the omission of the American Woolon common dividend and the institution of receiycrship proceed. ings against the Virginia Carolina Chemical and the Wilson packing companies. Equipments continued to benefit from the largo orders re. ceive0 from the leading railroad sys. tems. Public utilities developed eX. ceptional strength in reflection of q progressive increase in earnings by most of the principal companies, and of economies effected through sev. eral mergers. Sugars were depressed because of the competition afforded by the European beet product, which was sold here at expressions below the prices quoted for the Cuban and domestic crops. Chain store anC merchandising issues recorded sub, etanlial gains during the year. SomC of the larger companies splitting UT their stock in order to secure bet. ter market and wider distribution,
 Stock dividends were not as mum. erous as they were the year before but the increasing agitation for th' taxation of undiStributed surplus, led to a belief in some quarters tha q number Of the larger industria companies would make some speCia distribution to stockholders in the coming year. An increasing disposi ton was shown during the year tC resort to stock financing, partlcu larly by the railroads, whose pooI earnings of previous years hac made such financing impossible.
 Among the active issues listed or the New York Stock Exchange, th' widest fluctuation took place il Nash Motors, which rallied from ; low of 96l5 to close to 200. I'm narrowest fluctuation was in Alaski Gold, which sold between 10 and 2 cents a share.
 Total stocks sales during the yea 1 approXimated ?76,000,000 shares a compared 235,o00,N0o in 1928; c6o, | 100000 In 1929; I'll, 1,o00,0O0 in 1921 ?2S, ,06o,o0 in 1928 and BOT. 7.00o.00 in the record breaking year of 131' when the postwar imitation boon was at it's height. Total sales in No vember exceeded 40,Q00.00O shsres making 1t the largest single month business since April 1921 whei sales ran above 42,00o.00O shares lr the wildly excited trading that pre- ceded the Northern Pacific panic,