The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-01-03
LOSSES AND GAINS
 WERE ABOUT EVEN

NEW YORK. Jan. 2-Confused ! price movements took place in to- days stock market, the first session fof the new year, with losses and gains lsj about evenly divided.
 Vs Brokers reported heavy offerings 2 From traders who had built up large paper profits in the last two months < but deferred converting them into I cash until after the turn of the. year fxsC that they would not be subject to tr1Sz8 income tax laws. This selling was conteracted to some extent by the repurchase of stocks sold to es- tablish income tax losses month
 Speculators for the decline also sold certain stocks freely on the < theory that the technical condition of < the market warranted at least tenn were reported in a number of special ! ties, some of the outstanding strong spots in this group being American Chfcle preferred. which jumped 16 ' points and Advance Rumely pre- ferred. American Ice, Congoleum. Du- pont, Jones Brothers Tea. United Drug and Woolworth, the gains rang ing from to points.
 There was a dearth of trade news during the day. Considera ble inter- test was manifested, however, in the weekly steel trade reviews. Iron Age reports that activity in finished steel .xts more pronounced and that reports from principal centers agree that good mill operations are assumed for the first quarter in practically all prod tets, with the exception of plates and bars, and prospects for the latter have improved.
 Coopers, which have been tagging sSbehind the rest of the list since the current upswing started two months ago. were heavily bought on the i'm uroved trade nrOSnectS for 1924 American Smelting was pushed up Z f% to 60A and net gains of & point or more also were recorded by Cerro De Pasco. Gandby, Inspiration and Magma.
 Davison Chemical was offered freely during the morning on reports that it was being discriminated against as brokerage loan collateral, but 1t rallied from 63s to 6S, closing slightly below the top for a net gain of 115 points. Weakness of Atlantic Gulf which sold as low as 13a as compared with high of 17N on Mon day, was in direct reflection of the receivership proceedings against its subsidiary. the Ward line. Other shippings were not affected. Max well Motors A again jumped into the limelight, touching 5 F. or more than points above Mondays final price. Buying of this issue was attributed to reports that 1923 earnings would
 
 expectations of benefits likely to &C., crue from the new Chrysler car.
 Rails moved up slightly in the early dealings but fell back again before the close. Strength of some of the northwestern issues was ascrihed to the repurchasing of stocks sold last month for income tax purposes.
 Call money opened at 5A per cent. eased to 51k just after noon and thence to where it closed. The s-time money market was quiet with business on a per cent basis. Com mercial p0per moved slowly at "A and per cent.
 Weakness of sterling. which dropped Az cents to $4.2S was at tributed to selling of bills abroad on the fear that tbe labor party would come into power and signalize it's victory with a levy on capacity. French francs broke 12 points to 4.97 cents, a new low for low for all time. Other European rates yielded in sym pathy.
 Total stock sales S37.D00 shares.
 Twenty industrials averaged 95.63; net gain .01.
 High 1923, 105.3S; low S5.76.
 Twenty, railroads averaged S3.59; net loss. 13.
 High 1923, 9051; low 79.53,