Evening star., 1925-12-27
BOND SALES UNDER
| TOTALS FOR 1924
Less Trading in Government
lssues-ExpIains Decline.
Trend Still Upward.
RY GEORGE r. HUGHES.

RY GEORGE T. HUGHES.
Special Dispatch TO The Star.
NEW YORK. December 26.-The
holiday season began with prices for
investment securities firm and with a
little more activity but with no buying
that could he interpreted as accumu-
jatlon in anticipation of the traditional
January re-inVeStment demand.
" Wherever prices advanced ii was for
ko.tie reason connected with the par
t"ular security concerned and not be-
cSf'Se there was any upward tendency
an me group a whole.
he bond market has been inclined
To pay more attention TO the money
outlook than the stock market. And,
NIt.le it is not expected that any
period of substantially higher changes
1oI' credit is at hand, no one looks
Zoe extreme ease, so that any rapid
advance in bond prices is not prob
able. That being the case. there is
no reason on the part of dealers. for
rushing in to buy bonds in order TO
have something TO sell to real in
Vestors 10 days hence.
Liberties Less Active.
Traders have been complaining for
~ long time now about the dulneSS
Of the bond market but when the
statistics are examined II Is y am
that the inactivity is only relative.
Speculation has been conducted in
stocks in such a large scale, and the
price fluctuations have been 50 wide.
that it has made bonds seem unin-
terestinG by comparison.
Up TO the close of business on
Thursday of this week, total sales for
all bonds listed in the New York
Stock Exchange were more than
500, 100000 par value under the
transactions to the same date in 1924.
The loss, however. has all been in
United States Government obliga-
tions. Fewer liberties and treasury
issues have been bought and sold 50
FAR this year by s500,000.O00 than in
1924. In 1922 sales were between
four and five times as much as they
We're in 1925.
The fact is that there is no longer
any speculative trading in liberties
whatever Sales in other domestic
bonds and in foreign bonds have been
larger than at any time in the past
four years. though not large enough
TO make up for the drop in United
States Government issues. so that the
market a : a whole is in reality more
active than it has seemed.
Trend Slowly Upward
Much the same condition prevails
as 70 the price movement. This week.
for instance. changes were very
small but the trend is still slowly
upward and on the year the gain has
been considerable. The doubt that
has arisen as to the continuation of
the advance next month is not based
on any tangible development. but
rather on the proposition that prices
are high and that there is no good
reason for believing that they will go
much higher.
Now all this is based on the i'm
mediate outlook. over the longer
period. everything depends upon the
amount of capital available for invest
ment next year, and the course of COM
modify prices. If money is TO be sent
abroad during 1926. in any amount
comparable 10 the sum used in this
manner in 1925, which was about
$3.50 900, 900 if there comes to pass
any commodity price imitation. and il
speculation makes further demands
upon the total supply of money. it is
more than probable that the invest
ment market will suffer.
As TO these three points. the only
one about which II is safe to make
any prediction is that foreign financ-
Ing on a large scale will be kept up.
Roth Europe and South America are
sure TO be applicants for new loans.
the former 10 meet obligations as
sumed in connection with the funding
of the war debts to the United States
Government and to replenish depleted
capital supplies. and the latter to
utilize undeveloped resources.
Course of Commodity Prices.
Opinions about the course of COM
modify prices are widely at variance
and every one is at liberty to make
his own guess about stock specula ton.
AS far as trade activity goes. the in
dications are all favorable. The rail-
ways continue to carry merchandise
in record amounts and earnings
statements make gratifying showing.
November reports, which have begun
coming in this week, reveal larger
gross and larger net except in the
cases of those anthracite carriers
which have been hard hit by the
strike.
II is interesting to note that the
Improvement has been brought about
Notwithstanding the further falling
off in passenger receipts. 1t looks as
though the passenger traffic lost
through the automobile will never he
regained. but that volume of freight
is limited only by the growth of the
country Stocks have responded
readily hut bonds have been affected
hardly at all by these changes for the
better in railway affairs simply he
cause the opportunities for price ap-
probation were 50 much greater in
stocks than in bonds
rI- ~