Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-04-02
BUSINESS EDITORS
SEE TRADE GAINS
Predict Bright Outlook for
1880 in Addresses Broad
cast to Nation.

General recovery of business condi-
tons from the recession that followed
the period of deflation in the stock mar
ket last November gives basis for the
conviction that 1880 has a bright out
look, although its record should not be
expected to equal that of 1929, editors
of important business publications serv-
ing basic industries told the country
last night in addresses broadcast by
the Columbia Broadcasting System
through chain. of SO stations.
Their reports were broadcast follow
ing conferences with President Hoover,
Secretary of Commerce Lamont, Secre-
cary OF Labor Davis, julius Barnes,
.nairman of the board of the Cham
Der of Commerce and director of the
National Business Survey Conference,
and julius Klein, Assistant Secretary
of Commerce.
The six spokesman for the business
press who were introduced by Paul
Wooton, Washington correspondent for
the McGraw-Hill publications and the
New Orleans s-Picayune. were c..
D. Grain, jr., of Chicago, president Of
the National Conference Of Business
Paper Editors and editor and publisher
Paul /. Aldrich, editor of the National
ProviSioner and publisher of the New
Era in Food Distribution; w. w. Ma
con, editor of Iron Age; L.W. w. Morrow,
editor of the Electrical World; Norman
G. Shidle, Philadelphia, vice president
Of the National Conference of Business
Paper Editors and directing editor of
Cl1ilton-Cla Journal Co., and DR..
Virgil Jordan, economist of the Bust
ness Week.
Feels Pretty Optimistic"
The editors voiced praise for the steps
taken by President Hoover in mobilizing
industries of the country to launch well
considered plans for types of expansion
for which there was need.
In answering the question "How's
Business?" Mr. Grain declared that as
a result of the conferences with the
government leaders I'VE feel pretty
optimistic. Employment is improving"
DR.. Jordan declared: Business has
not come back-if coming back means
returning to the levels of this time last
year, or even to fairly normal levels in
most lines. Last year at this time we
were near the peak of a boom. and
there will be no more booms like that
last one for long time to come, thank
Heaven.
I'VE are now entering a season Of
Spring expansion, and business will
undoubtedly feel some of the stimulus
Of this season, but probably not as much
as usual. There will be probably an
other period Of slackness in Midsummer,
as there usually is.
Food Sales Decline Checked.
Discussing food distribution, Mr.. AID
rich reported that there had been evil
dences in the past two weeks of a
check in the decline of commodity
prices all along the line The wheat
price slide, he said, had been checked.
He added that reports show sales be-.
low normal in November and Deem
Der, substantially greater in January
than a year ago, a falling on up to
the first week IN March, then slow
but steady pickup to date.
Mr.. Macon, Iron Age editor, reported:
''For the past three months ending
yesterday, the showing of iron and steel
is surprisingly good. It is not the quar-
ter-year's performance that has caused
concern. What has raised recent
doubts is the fact that the rebound
from the recession of last December
spent itself in about seven weeks. In
short, we have been having a decline
in a period when the steel plants are
ordinarily busiest. AT the moment
there are indications that the recession
in production has been arrested, al
though none of the evidence at hand
can be regarded as conclusive"
Mr.. Morrow, for the Electrical World,
stated that at present business is
good" in this line. In electrical manu-
featuring, the sales of products for the
first quarter of this year were 10 per
cent greater than those recorded in
the first quarter of last year, he said.
Prospects are equally good for the re-
mainder of the year, he added.
Mr.. Shidle said automobile produc-
ton. increased somewhat in March as
compared with January and February,
but that the total output for the first
quarter Of the year ran something like
30 per cent behind the same period of
1929.