Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-02-04
STOCKS IRREGULAR
!. ON SMALL VOLUME
Market Maintains Fairly
GoodT one in Face of Un-
favorable News.
BY GEORGE t. HUGHES.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, February 4.-Price
changes in today's stock market were
but the advantage again went to the
forces working for the advance.
The outside news gave few indlca-
tions of business revival. The weekly
reviews of the iron and steel trade were
highly conservative, one of them stating
that steel demand has lost momentum
and is increasingly uneven, with some
market centers reporting that improve
ment has been definitely arrested"
Copper prices were lower, with business
reported to have been done at 915
cents a pound. The price of lead was
reduced today The W ky report on
car loadings showed a decrease greater
than normal. 1t was not background
on which to inaugurate broad upward
movement in stocks.
Carriers Sell OFF.
Nevertheless it was the bears that
showed the uneasiness and not the
bulls, except perhaps in the railway
list. Carrier stocks were heavy, es-
pecially New York Central, an, estimate
of the 1880 earnings showing about
S720 for the stock, against the pres
ent So dividend. The Rock Island
directors met and announced that ac-
ton on the dividend would not be taken
until the March meeting. st. LouiS-San
Francisco, which is a large holder OF
Rock Island, was weak.
Elsewhere in the list, however, the
market was surprisingly firm. Ana
conda gained point, the bad news
from the trade to the contrary not
withstanding. J. I. Case was bid up
fbic fif11o with tho eXDlqnati0n
that a better outlook for the wheat
market justified 1t. AS a matter OF
fact the chances are the move was
at the expense of the short interest
Amusement stocks were very strong, as
they had been Tuesday, with new highs
for the year in Fox, Paramount-Publlx
and Radio-Keith. Merchandising stocks
were strong, especially Sears Roebuck.
with Montgomery Ward also moving
ahead.
Among the investment issues Ameri-
can Can was conspicuous with gain OF
a point, although that is one OF the
stocks which operators for the decline
have been advertising as "a good sale"
General Motors held around its high
of the year. The earnings statement
and dividend action on motors was cue
to be announced after the close. United
States Steel was steady in the face OF
was no weakness in either Westinghouse
Electric or General Electric
It is true that the oils did not make
a good showing and that some OF the
independent motors sold of, including
Hudson. which went to a new low, but
these were particular cases.
Early Market Lower.
The market turned irregularly lower
after firm opening. At the same time
trading was Of a selective nature and
individual influences, such as earnings
reports and industrial statistics, seemed
to have more effect than has recently
been the case.
Hudson Motors, which Tuesday re-
ported 1880 earnings of only 20 cents
per share, dropped fractionally to new
low. Ohio Oil, whose directors will con-
fer for dividend action today, also
touched a new low at 1884 On the
other hand, Fox Film A and Paramount
Publix made new 1881 peaks and Radio
Keith-Orpheum equaled its previous
high.
Money renewed unchanged at IL
per cent. During the first half hour
trading amounted to about 100000
shares.
United States Steel was "a higher at
vious close of 1909. Active industrials,
like Byers Pipe, Eastman Kodak, Cen
eral Electric and Worthington Pump,
were lower. Case Threshing was over 2
points better. Anaconda was the only
active mine stock, gaining a shade In
the rails Chesapeake Corporation, Cana
dian Pacific and st. LouiS-San Fran
cisco were lower. Utilities and oils were
quiet and mostly fractionally off.