New Britain herald., 1930-11-18
Stock Market Becalmed Today By Sluggish Trading Held Due to
 lrregularity In Many Shares
Wall Street Appears to Be
 Marking Time Pending
 Commodity Price Trend.

New York, Nov. IS (P)-Thc stock market was becalmed today, save for a few ripples Of liquidation left by yesterdays selling wave. Further selling in the first hour depressed about a scofe. of issues
 to i points, but these were, in the main, more than regained, as the list crept irrcgularly higher thereafter. Trading was sluggish. Losses of a point or two in L. S. Steel, American Telephone, Radio, American Water Works and Bethle- hem Steel were recovered. Eastman K odak converted a loss of points into gain of like extent, but Allied Chemical substantially more than recorded a 3-point loss. Sears Roe buck, Gillette, Howe Sound, Nation al Lead and air Reduction gained . points or more. Some of the rails were heavy, notably Northern Paci- fic and Union Pacific the latter los- ing points.
 Market Marks Time
 The market appeared 10 be mark ing time, pending clearer signs O.: the trend III commodity prices. Ef- forts 10 stabilize wheat, copper anI steel prices are being watched in Wall Street with keen interest.
 The stock market now has had substantial technical rebound after it's two-month decline, and a secon- diary reaction of air proportions oc- cured yesterday. l. now appears 10
 be in a position to reflect outside de- yclopments rather than inside mar hct conditions.
 The days corporate news includ cd announcement Of the declaration of the regular stock dividends on Sears Roebuck. in addition 10 cash,
 which accounted for the strength in that issue, as there had been some ! apprehension that the stock dis ! hurscmcnts would be abandoned. Some of the food stocks may have i been helped by an increase in the
 annual dividend rate of United Bis . cult from $l.60 to g..
 Uneasy Over Grain Wall street was naturally q little uneasy over the grain situation. with ! q vide-open break in wheat at Win
 lipcg, and the Grain Stabiization l Corp. again making heaYy purchases m the Chicago market. The fact i that domestic prices were substan-
 italy above the foreign markets lent
 an clement Of uncertainty to the sit
 uation.
 Copper producers still held to . their recently established price Of liz cents. Buying was light, partic- ularlv domestic buying. as consum- CTS were anxious 10 test the nc"
 price. Some copper was said to be
 available at lower prices than T.
 cents. but it appeared to be meta
 offered for resale by spectators who had purchased at the recent price of
 q. cents.
 It was reported in steel trade cir
 clas that some middle western pro duccrs were advising their custom 1 CTS that current prices cannot he
 expected to hold after Janu&r. l. when increases arc planned. ! In q survey Of the commodity prIcc situation. Standard Statistics l C,o. recommended that as q general
 policy. needs through the winter O. carly spring months be covered at current prices. It pointed out that
 nriccs have followed an unbroken | downward trend for 13 months
 which is roughly the equivalent ot the declines in 1893 and 1921. II emphasized. however, that it did no; look for a sharp or sustained ad-
 vance at this phase of the move mcnt.
 Money was a little frmer- Call
 money held at per cent officially
 but little was available outside at less than 1 1-2. against 1 per cent
 yesterday. Scattered loan calling
 was reported,