The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-06-17

lSZZ. GoVernment issues nave been notably strong.
 Of course lower money rates have helped, but there has been a distinct change in sentiment in a number of of ficial circles.
 In this country there are always en- terprising leaders who are prepared to take advantage of very cheap money. First the New York and Boston federal reserve banks lowered their rates to 312 per cent and later in the week the Chicago and Cleveland banks cut their rates from 41s to f per cent.
 In Wall Street day to day loans were obtainable at the lowest rates in half dozen years; time loans were marked down, bankers acceptances were quoted at the lowest rates ever recorded here and lower even than Lon- don's figurs-an entirely novel situa- tion. The federal reserve system re- ported another gain in it's percentages of reserve.
 Watch for mergers, both railroad and industrial.
 An abundance of money at extra ordinarily attractive rates, combined with a keen and capacious demand for securities, prods financiers into action. Big deals can be put through under such conditions. While there are no railroad Napoleons stalking across the continent today, there are both banking and railway men of sufficient calibre to effect important mergers, and since the government urges such action, the country will probably witness great deal of it. And mergers nearly always appeal to the imagination of the finan- cial community.
 Cnquestionably. poor prices for wheat have been the most serious brake upon progress and prosperity in this country. Last week brought sharp change, almost n transformation, in grain price. Wheat has advanced some 10 cents bushel, pulling in its train corn, oats, rye and flour. True, this has been caused by the backwardness of the spring season. But Secretary of Agriculture Wallace makes this timely statement:
 There is always tendency to over estimate the effect of bad weather, but there is no occasion for alarm and I trust no one will sound any note of alarm
 The director of research in the Ma tional Transportation institute of Washington. Dr. David Friday. pre- diets SIPS bushel for wheat before election day and $1.35 before Christ mas.
 Cotton has been selling above 30 cents in New York, price regarded even by growers as quite profitable. Sugar has advanced. Both butter and eggs rose rather sharply during the week Lard is higher. Coffee is firmer. Wool has held it's own.
 This improvement in agricultural prices has occurred simultaneously with weakness in metals. Iron has been re- duced. Some steel products are lower. Copper again has sagged.
 Rubber has srown fresh weakness and one of the leading tire companies has lowered prices. Japanese raw silk is down to $5 pound, a slackening of the business pace is calculated to affect markets for building materials.
 Please note that the broad tendency is for agricultural products to advance and for manufacturers to decline, a development which all along has been recognized as desirable if not abso- lulSlN HeCeSSdry sound prosperity could be established.
 Exports during May were not only larger than in last May, but in last April, June, July and August. I'm ports during the current year have been running below the first half of last year. For the eleven elapsed months of the current fiscal year we have rolled up an export balance of fully 723,OOO,00O against $176,000,000 at this time a year ago; exports have exceeded $4.000.000, ,000 compared with $3,637 100000 year ago, while i'm ports have fallen from $3, ,460, ,000,0 900 to $3, ,2S2, 100000. During the same period we have received n net gold bal ance of $3S2, 100000 contrasted with $216,000,000 year ago.
 The likelihood is that before very long Europe will be placed in a finan- cial position to order more freely from this country. Everything still points to the adoption of the Dawes plan.
 The principal European exchanges last week did better, following the breaking of the threatened govern mental deadlock in France. The prin- cipal government bonds also advanced.
 It is significant that an American hank syndicate already has advanced S25,000.000 credit to Germany's new gold discount bank, established as a preliminary to the functioning of the Dawes plan.
 Now that money has become cheaper here than in London, there will be stronger inducement than ever before for our international bankers to has ten to granting for financial assistance to European borrowers. The likelihood, indeed, is that this movement by and by will reach very large proportion, especially as American bankers feel that the British have been stealing sev- eral important financial marches upon them across the channel.
 The financial and business commun- ity are well satisfied with the republi- can nominations. The dynamic Dawes personality is counted on to appeal to certain types of voters not captured by the Coolidge type of personality.
 But, of course, chief interests cen ters in next weeks democratic candi- date choosing.
 It reamains to be seen whether the lead taken by Wall street towards more cheerful sentiment will spread throughout the country and be trans mitted into cheerful business action. But at least it is encouraging to have this ray of sunchine in land that was giving itself over unnecessarily to pes simisn.