The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1931-11-20
INDUSTRY SEES
HOPEFUL SIGNS,
BANKERS TOLD
Leading Automobile Unit Elk.
poets to Employ More Men
This Winter Than Last
MOTOR SUPPLY IN HANDS
OF PUBLIC FALLING OFF
Twelve Million Years Less Transporta-
ton in Nations Car Inventory Than
Considered Normal, Manufac.
turer Tells Financiers

ESTIMATING that transportation in
L. the form of automobiles now in the
hands of the American public is twelve
million "car-years" below normal. and
that this deficit will eventually have to
be made up. Richard H. Grant. vice
president of the General Motors Cor.
poration. recently told the American
Bankers Association convention that
employment in his company may be
greater this winter than last year.
employment during the. winter
months is very important thing"
Mr.. Grant said. $50 far as our corpo
ration is concerned. in November. De
cember. January and February we will
be employing at least as many and
probably more men than we did this
past year.
In order to gauge the outlook for
next years marke. his corporation.
he said. attempts to set up sales in
dices based on intensive scientific
studies in addition to observation and
common sense.
I'VE are in the habit of looking
upon an automobile not merely as an
automobile but as transportation" he
said. I'VE figure each automobile
produced as six years of Transports.
ton. Then by following up records
of production yearly. we get graph
which indicates what ought to be
norpooI ;pvautorv ~ t,opSnorto tfon IN
the hands of the American people, and
whether there are more or less miles
than might be expected. According
to our figures. there are about twelve
million years less transportation in
this inventory at the present time
than has been considered normal since
1926.
The Outlook for Business
Consequently, If we retain the same
purchasing power in this country. 1t
is quite evident that on the first up
turn of business there will be a rush
to replace that inventory. In develop
ing this graph. 1t has come out very
strongly that every third year is q
big automobile year. The biggest
automobile year was 1929 when 400.
900 cars were produced for American
consumption. This year the industry
will produce somewhere between l..
100000 and 100000 cars. AS 1882 is
three years after 1929, If economic con-
ditions were normal we could be sure
we would do tremendous business,
because the third year is the time when
the bulk of the replacing takes place"
He added that there are factors at
work that make it uncertain how pig
the year will be, instancing that
money is being boarded from lack
Of confidence and this takes away
some purchasing power that we would
otherwise have. while family budgets
are being cut on account Of changes
in income conditions, which again
means. that purchasing power for the
automobile, like a good many other
things. will be knocked down." As q
result, he said, 1t was necessary to
measure what statistically would be
sideration of the curtailment of ex.
/ penditures which is going on and de-
termine how big the year will DO
under these circumstances.
From a long haul standpoint, re-
CARELESS of how many automobiles are
business for the future" Mr.. Grant
said There will be fewer automobiles
sold in 1881 than will go to the scrap
heap. With 100000 car-years out
Of the inventory, nine percent more
gasoline was used up to August l,
1881, than was used in 1880. With
fewer automobiles. the people must
have been running them faster and
longer to consume the additional gaso-
Inc. This means that we have some
22.000,000 people working hard to
make a fine business for our industry
when there is an economic recovery.
No False Optimism
Il am not attempting to create any
false optimism-I am not speaking
without a statistical background. Us.
ing the best sense we can. we have
drawn conclusions from the figures we
have. and am willing to make the
statement that as far as the conduct
of our business for the first half OF
1882 is concerned, we shall set the
induces somewhat higher than the &C
Qualities Of 1881. We are willing to
set our advertising budgets and our
selling expense ON that kind Of indices.
With economic conditions as they are,
and since the obsolescence is so great
and we have sunk SO low in this years
sales, we figure that the first half Of
1882 must necessarily be better than
was the first half of 1881"