Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-07-01
SEVERE COMPETITION is GREAT
FEATURE OF HEALTH IN INDUSTRY
Largest, Strongest and Better Financed
Companies Report Substantially Better
Earnings in Most Lines

aviation field This was stimulated t
an extraordinary extent by the darins
and successful flights achieved by Amer
lean aviatorS and also by the disastrous
flights which we're attempted in GER
tain instances. The airplane mail serv-
ice was put on a sound, stable bash
/ with a reduction of rates which prom
Uses TO yield huge volume of business
/ in the future Scores of new aviation
companies were formed to transpor
both passengers and freight and some
/ of the greatest railroad carriers IN the
/ Nation affiliated themselves with a com.
bined airplane and train service acros.
/ the continent.
/ Naturally. one of the main supports
1 of the business structure has been the
steel industry Steel suffered a some.
what severe slump as the calendar year
of 1927 drew to a close but the pick.
UP was immediate and impressive
/ Usually the peak Of production for the
/ year is reached in March. This year
/ 1t was delayed until April and the
! decline as the fiscal year comes to q
close. from peak levels, amounted tc
no more than 5 per cent for the indus
try in general.
General Motors Year.
These bright prospects are being sup
ported by the condition of the building
and the automobile trades. Unques-
tionably the outstanding feature Of the
automobile industry has been the ire
mendously prosperous period expert
enced by the leading interest. This
concern has apparently swept all be-
fore it and has piled up profits at a rate
never before equaled by any corporation
in the history of the world
The industry has been engaged in
probably its most severe period OF COM
/ petition. This was indicated By the
merger which involved the Chrysler and
Dodge concerns
The manufacture of passenger auto
mobiles, however. with the second in
terest counted out, showed a gain of 80
per cent, as compared with the first six
months Of 1927. Profits did not grow
as rapidly for many concerns and other
! mergers are in prospect.
Trucks did not share in the great
prosperity OF some of the passenger
car producers. Competition was even
keener in this line and the indus
| try was burdened by an excessive
/ volume Of used vehicles which still re-
main to be disposed of before the path
/ is clear.
Rubber Uncertainty.
| Automobile part and accessory manu-
/ facturers had splendid six months in
/ 1928. Original equipment sales are
running at a record@breaking rate and
/ replacement and retail distribution is
extraordinarily heavy There is a pos
| Sibility that this will drop off during
the third quarter of the year but is
expected to revive again with the Fall
The tire industry offered an excep-
ton to the general rule as laid down
earlier in this article. stating that the
big concerns did the best business
Prices of crude rubber dropped with
sickening rapidity when the British
government decided to remove reStric-
tions against the export of crude rub
ber from the Straits Settlements. the
main source of American supply.
The building industry has been so
good that the men engaged in it them
selves could hardly realize 1t. Most
weeks since the first of January have
shown a decided improvement IN the
actual volume of construction contracts
let as compared with the corresponding
period of the previous year. The money
value Of heavy construction. which in
volved principally public utility and
municipal and governmental work,
showed an increase Of approximately
5000 900 900 to total of 81 500 900 600
This has been supplemented by ONCE
building, home building and farm build
ing, and by multitudinous repair work
which involved huge sums.
Mixed-up Railroad Year.
In the latter half of 1927 railroads
did only a fairly satisfactory business
and the pickup did not come until well
along in the first quarter of 1928. Since
that time, however, both passenger and
/ freight business have shown marked i'm
provement. 1t has been miXed-up rail-
road year. however, with the Interstate
Commerce Commission Juggling merger
prospects and financial proposals in a
most dazzling and myStifying manner
The Chicago. Milwaukee. st. Paul
& Pacific Railroad was taken out Of the
| hands of a receiver and immediately
commenced TO do a fairly satisfactory
| business. Its response was so rapid as
/ TO be astonishing TO many investors ana
! observers. The proposal of l.. F.. Loree
/ for a fifth trunk line system across the
continent was definitely ended with an
! agreement reached TO acquire certain
Of his holdings by the Pennsylvania
Railroad The Van Sweringen inter-
ests were prohibited from merging the
Erie with the Chesapeake g. Ohio, the
Pere Marquette and the Nickel Plate.
bat no economists have yet been able 10
I work out lust what effect the decision
/ Of the Interstate Commerce Commission
| VIII have on the Van Sweringen system
and on others in Eastern trunk line
| territory.
| Railroad Equipment Dull.
! IT Is estimated that the full peak Of
/ freight trsffic will be 2 to per cent
| larger this year than last. with CORE
| spending increase in profits to share
f. holders
| The railroads Of the country have
been in such splendid physical condi-
| ton and the efficiency of their operat-
! ing forces has gained to such an extent
! that the railroad equipment industry
! has experienced a most uncertain sea
| son. Aggregate orders for freight cars
placed in the first four months Of 1928
/ were Al per cent less than the total for
/ the corresponding period Of the pre-
vious wear II Is very likely indeed that
the railroads Of the country will be able
] 10 handle the peak Of the Fail trafic
! without reSorting 10 extensive new car
/ purchases or 10 the ordering Of large
numbers Of new locomotives Locomotive
production has fallen off until the
leading interest Is working less than
20 per cent Of capacity Tn the first
four months of the year locomotive
! orders involved only 30 engines on
/ compared with 203 for the previous cor.
responding period There Is, however
a possibility ri a decided increase IN
the orders for safety appliances as the
calendar year draws to close.
Jones Bill Aids Shipping.
The ocean freight market Is decidedly
lnaCtiaP hut the ahinnif1p aud 10,