Evening star., 1924-08-09
BY STUART p. WEST.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, August 9.-The past
week has been distinguished for a
number Of important happenings in
the financial and industrial situation.
ance by the German representatives
of the terms of the London agree
ment under which the Dawes plan is
to be put into effect, and thus, so it
is hoped, the first great step taken
toward the reconstruction Of Europe
Second, there was the reduction OF
the New York Federal Reserve re-
discount rate to per cent, the lowest
in the history of the new American
banking regime. Third was the Au-
gust report on the grain crops, show
ing a considerably larger probable
yield, especi ally for wheat, than had
been looked for, and thereby giving
a stronger. impression than ever or
the turn for the better in the agri-
cultural outlook.
Advance in Commodity Prices.
Commodity prices, which went
down steadily for nearly four months,
have been turning upward; The rise
of 20 to Is cents a bushel in wheat
since the end Of May and OF 80 TO 80
vance in hogs, from around 81 to
over $11 a hundred pounds. are facts
of extreme Significance. They have
revolutionized the whole position on
Very great addition to the buying
power in the grain States, whlch IL
bound to make itself felt upon tne
General business volume. At the
same time advances nave nave occuIGIb pc 1.-The ~.
copper and leather. 1t is fair TO lnier
from this that the recession Which
began in the third week OF MaIc1
eliminated in the middle OF July aho
that the change since tnen has oe"
real and lasting one.
Trade improvement Discounted.
Ru. when it comes to fifhting these
outside developments In win tne
movement on the stock excnaas the
stimulus of cheap money, ana look-
jng forward to business recovery
s,ocks went up continuously for Two
months- beginning with the hrst OF
June. There was an advance oi any
where from 10 to 10 points IN this
short interval, and it carried WIN ~
Undoubtedly good deal OF specuia-
80 excess. The way the market mas
halted during the last week. mas re-
fnsed to respond to the faVoraoIe
items in the news, and in gooo part
~ the list has at times shown pro,
nounced symptoms or reactlon, is
very noticeable. 1t suggests 'fa. far
wall street had let itselI gel 'oo oua ual
ahead Of the outside business move
ant IN the same manner as on other
nncas;ons in the last two and a halt
The neriod since the Spring OF 1917
has been characterized by 1ouI up
ward and three downward w;nn sWrns ore -
sOnther without any intervening rest
term. There was first the aaVance
fronn June to September, lS2E, sue
ceeded by q downward movement os
equal proportions la lasting eane 70 an a ABRUPT
reversal, eliminating in the snort
lived boom of Malch.-2923: The en-
snin9 reaction kept on. With only
brief interruption, until iate IN tne
following October, when the oecia r.
ton of the extra dividend by the
United states Steel Corporation start
ed the market on an upward TURF,
which was not checked until the fol,
iowinr Spring. We thereafter hao
the decline. accompanied py snaaP '
~ March until the first of June, which
nassed directly into the recent quite
Extraordinary advance.
Tendency In Stock Market.
The point in rehearsing these duo
tuations is to show the tendency OF
Wall street in the movements OF
the last two years to go to extremes
and to allow itself to become alter
nately too much elated and too much
depressed over conditions outside. The
question raised during the week just
passed is whether the upward swing
Of the early Summer has not implied
too enthusiastic view OF actual
conditions.
The federal reserve rediscount
action had little effect because 1t
had been too we'll anticipated in
the course of the money market. 1t
simply laid emphasis upon the fact,
already suniciently we'll known, that
never before in this country has there
been such an accumulation Of unused
money supplies. Now that there 10
fair prospect of settlement in
Europe and that British finances have