Evening star., 1931-12-30
ADVANCE IN STOCK
MARKET RESUMES
List Shows Good Resist
anCe to Further Tax
Selling.
BY GEORGE T. HUGHES.
,ecial Dispatch to The Star.

Special Dispatch to The Star
NEW YORK, December 3O.-The best
that could be said about today's stock
market was that it put up a good resist
ance against such additional tax selling
as appeared. This selling was in large
measure absorbed by short covering,
with the net result that stocks ranged
slightly higher. At the same time, vol
ume was so low that the days opera
tions threw no light on either the near
term or longer outlook.
The most encouraging piece OF news
developing overnight was the announce
ment that the shop employees of the
Southern Pacific had agreed to accept
10 per cent cut in wages. This
heightened the hope that other rail-
ways will be able to make similar agree
ments with their organized employees.
During the first hour a mild rally in
the railway shares took place, with
Southern Pacific, the leader, up at one
time 2 points Atchison was strong
temporarily, but gains in the rails were
not well sustained
The active industrials followed the
example Of the rails. They were mod
erately higher in TIE early trading and
then came down again. The weekly
summary Of conditions in the steel
trade put out by the Iron Age made
production for the country at large %
per cent of capacity. against 81 per
cent week ago, which was favorable
as far as it went. Operations, however,
are at such a low point that it is diff
cult to base optimism on so slender
gain. United States Steel common was
well supported around the previous
close and that was true also of U. S.
Tobacco shares were more active than
most of the other induStrialS. Traders
were divided between concern over the
probability Of increased taxation and
the attractive prices at which the
stocks were selling, earnings and yield
considered Ingersoll Rand rallied
briskly from its recent low, General
Baking advanced another point and
various low-priced stocks made bet
ter showing There was no uniformity
about the pivotal issues Neither Allied
Chemical nor American Can mace any
pronounced response to Tuesdays diVi-
dend action. Auburn Auto was higher
most Of the time. but seemed to have
lost part Of its following.
Opening Prices Higher.
Gains predominated at the opening.
A block OF 1000 shares of United
States Steel common came out at 383s,
up "a. General Electric at 251s was
up p. Allied Chemical rose 7s to 6S
and American Can was shade higher
at 61 General Motors was up Il at
22&, as Chevrolet production was
higher than originally estimated.
The weekly steel reviews reported
that operations were up slightly, that
a determined effort was being made
TO check price declines and that some
gains were noted in sheet and strip
bookings. Freight car loadings were
down 1901 cars Crude oil output
declined 1877 400 barrels. but gasoline
stocks rose 1,263,00O barrels. Sterling
opened here at $33934, off cents.
Fractional advances were scored by
Baltimore & Ohio at 1914, Chesapeake
& Ohio at 28A, Erie at So, Illinois
Central at 1923. New York Central at
297s, Southern Pacific at 27l4. South
ern Railway at 712 and Great Northern
at 1872. American Telephone at 1854
was unchanged but American g. For
eign Power at gained fractionally as
did Consolidated Gas at 59a4. Electric
Power 81 Light at 1874, North Amer
lean at 323s, National Power g. Light
at l47s. Southern California Edison
at 81 and United Corporation at 33s.
Standard Oil of New Jersey rose %
to 273s. Auburn Auto at l3l ad-
vanced "a. Du Pont at 545s and Elec-
tric Auto Lite at 3014 each gained %.
Tobaccos were uniformly higher.