The Carbon County news. [volume] (Red Lodge, Mont.) 1924-1931, 1927-10-06

The state of Montana today holds
the unique and enviable position of
being the only state in the Union
wholly included in the good busi-
ness" area plotted by Frank Greene
in his monthly review of general busi-
ness conditions in The Nations Busi-
+. ness Magazine of current issue. The
magazine is the official publication
of the United States Chamber of
Commerce.
Not only is the Treasure state the
only one in which there is general
advance in wholesale and retail trade
throughout its length and breadth,
but the total of square miles in
cluded in Montana's good business"
district far exceeds the total Of all
the similarly plotted territory in the
United States.
Mr.. Greene ascribes the improve
ment in wholesale trade, apart from
the element Of seasonableness, to the
strength of farm products. Sales"
and intensive advertising, he says,
account for the larger distribution
at retail.
Industry, apart from cotton
goods. shoes and affiliated lines,' he
writes, "did not show much life and
so far as apparent activity is con-
cerned, seemed, generally speaking,
to lag. At the same time, distribu-
tive trade was turning its face away
from the rather unsatisfactory re-
turns of the first seven months OF
the year toward what is really the
advent of new season.
collections, feeling very much
the same influences that affected
trade, improved, but not to the same
extent, because crop movement was
later than usual, and, in the cereals
at least, foreign buying was well be-
hind a year ago"
Crops, already plenteously sup
piled with moisture, were retarded
by cool weather. There was con-
siderable frost and rust damage in
northwestern spring wheat and the
boil weevil, forced by expressive mois-
ture, especially in the southwest, cut
the cotton yield badly.
.'Such was the history of August
in trade, industry and crops. Early
September seemed to show con-
tinuance of the same general trends
except that a slightly more optimis-
tic tone was manifest in few in
dustries, while higher temperatures
gave an impetus to the ripening OF
corn which, at the time of writing,
is still from one to three weeks late
and needs long warm fall to make
even a fair yield. Reduced crop esti-
mates caused another advance in cot
ton.
Glow far the rally in trade will
go is, of course, problematical, but
these things may be said: First,
trade entered new season, the
period of garnered crops; second,
human needs must be satisfied this
year, as in other periods, and the
crop outlook, while not of the best
from a quantitative standpoint, has
the merit, due in part to shorter
Yields, of offering better prices than
year ago, for most agricultural
produce.
'In any consideration of the out
look for the coming fall two other
things would need to be considered:
First the reaction in trade that dis
tinguished the second quarter and
summer Of 1926 seemed swifter than
it was this year. last year saw hesl-
tation in October and did not disap-
pear until well into December.
"While August was midsummer
month, it was far from uneventful,
It saw the third largest monthly
total of dealings on the New York
stock exchange, reflection of this
being had in high record August
toJals alike OF bank clearings and
bank debts. Most Of the gain in
both of these measures was at New
York.
"Wheat speculation was active at
declining prices, this based largely
on the prospect of big though not
record yield in Canada and better re-
ports from European crops, which
seem to have curtailed export buy
ing of American wheat On the 9TH
er hand, cotton, buoyed by low
Government estimate on August 8,
rose to new high on September
on a reduction Of the earlier esti-
mate to 12,700,000 bales, this latter
raising the price of middling to
$3.50 cents.
"This price was almost double the
low price on the crop of 1926 reach
ed early in December OF 12.l5 cents
and is % per cent higher than the
price ruling year ago at this date.
At the time of writing the advance
in price about balances, in percentages
at least, the reduction of 29 per cent
indicated in total yield for year ago.
petroleum production made new
high record output in July, as did
gasoline consumption, but consump-