Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1932-12-04
POLITICS IGNORED
. ASRE|CH INDUSTRY
/. RETAINS ADVANCES
Changes Bring No Furry, but
Fall in Pound Watched
Closely.
FRANCE HAS WORRIES
IN ADDITION TO DEBTS
Economic Conditions Are Not Good,
With Unfavorable Exchanges
Threatening Franc.
Special Dispatch to The Star.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, December 3-Cables
and wireless dispatches to the Business
Week give the following survey of BUSH
ness abroad for the week ending today:
BERLIN.-Business Is still indiffer-
ent to the political situation. When
Won Papen resigned there was no furry
on the security markets. Executives
were concerned only that This" eco
nomic program be carried through.
Evidently they felt certain that 1t would
be, no matter who carried on as chan
cellor
When Hitler was summoned to Berlin
and invited to form a cabinet business
seemed wholly Indifferent, despite the
fact his proclaimed policies are anti
capitalistic.
In Berlin 1t has been evident all week
that business Is paying much attention
OF late to various signs Of economic i'm
provement. Two factors have at
tracted particular attention. The first
is the easy condition In the money
| market, which is beginning to have its
influence on the long-term market. The
second is the very cheering evidence
that industrial improvement is spread
| ing to wider range Of industries.
Bond Index Gains.
The best indicator Of the former trend
is the fact that the official bond price
index has advanced from June when
Won Papen took oflce) to the middle of
November from 6043 to 1925. Indica-
tive also is the parallel decline in the
yield of per cent bonds from 993 per
cent in June to 8.57 per cent in October.
This latter figure Is still high compared
with private discount rate of 81 per
cent tofhcial bank rate per cent?, but
the tendency toward leveling out of the
high spread between short-term and
long-term rates is unmistakable
This favorable tendency of the money
and capital markets was to a large
extent due to the fact that practically
no calls have been made by the Reich
on these markets since the beginning
OF the fiscal year april, 1882. Nor
are any issues expected to be necessary
| before January. This, in turn, was
due to the balancing Of federal revenue
and expenditure during the first half
OF the fiscal year. A change Is foreseen
for the last quarter (January- March, ,
| when a deficit of 100 millions or more
Is anticipated. Consequently, the Reich
will then probably have to call on the
market for funds. This might interrupt
temporarily the trend toward easier
conditions.
The real worry to Germans in the
debt question now is the effect 1t Is
| having on sterling At $3.50, Germans
were finding it difficult to compete on
foreign markets with British products
selling under the advantage of a de-
prec1ated pound. At the new low under
$500, Germans doubt their ability to
maintain their place In many markets
Debts Payment Opposed.
PARIS-Nothing all week has &C.
cupied the attention of Frenchmen tc
the exclusion OF the war debt problem
The entire population. with the gov
eminent, is bitterly opposed to payment
of the Sl9000,000 due the United
States on December Is. Over here II
is perfectly evident that the French feel
they are no longer tied to the revised
debt treaty Of 1926, which specified that
/ France pay this amount In December
| 1882. Were there not reservations in
that treaty, cries the Frenchmen. which
voids future French obligations to the
United States at any time Germany
IallS 70 pay reparauonS.
Economic conditions in France are
not good. This week all gold exchanges
began to move noticeably against the
franc. Dollars almost touched the gold
export point. France is increasingly
aware Of new problems just ahead
With tax returns diminishing, trade
refusing to show the same signs OF
recovery which have persisted for some
weeks in most other neighboring coun-
tries, and the dwindling prospect Of
tourist expenditures recovering at al
In the next year to help meet the
country's unfavorable balance, the
shipment of even $19,0o0,o0o in golc
to New York might weaken to thu
danger point confidence In the franc.
Business. strictly speaking, shows
almost no change this week. Only the
textile industry has improved noticeably