Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1932-01-18
STOCKS ARE DULL
IN SMALL VOLUME
General Trend Is Uneven as
Trading Starts Week
Slower.
BY GEORGE T. HUGHES.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, January 18-The stock
market did not make much impression
on those who watched its movements
at the opening Of the week. 1t was
dull with volume getting back to the
small figures in the earlier part of the
month, while price changes were with
out significance It's general trend was
uneven and there was a disposition to
work lower in those stocks that most
influence trading sentiment.
New Developments Lacking.
Cause for the apathetic state Of the
market was to be found in the absence
of any developments since Saturday
that would provoke either professional
or investment buying The reconstruc-
tion finance corporation measure Is
now in the stage where compromises
must be made as between the features
in it that represent different view
points regarding the functiOning OF
this agency. The same is true Of the
conference in Chicago on the railway
wage question. This also has come to
the point where the preliminaries
have been covered and both sides are
expected to get down to concrete facts.
Impatient Wall Street hestitates to
make new commitments in the market
until the finance bill has been finally
Signed and it knows exactly the terms
on which the wage matters have been
adjusted.
In most Of the prominent industrials
there were fractional declines in the
first two hours, after an irregular
opening. The same was true OF the
rails. Auburn Auto advanced points,
while General Motors was lower. Amer
isan Telephone & Telegraph started
down a point from Saturdays closing
and then made moderate recovery
and was the only important member
of the public utility group to show
much change around midday. New York
City traction stocks made the best
gains of any one group during this
period
OF somewhat more interest today
than the fluctuations in stocks were
those in the commodity markets,
Wheat and cotton have been slow to
respond to the latest upturn in Gecuri-
ties or to the avowed intention of the
Federal Reserve officials to promote an
era of moderate imitation. Today, how
ever. wheat started forward and worked
I'D into the highest price range since
November 81 In october both wheat
and cotton had the advantage Of
strong speculative group, and wheat
particularly was at that time sharply
advanced.
French Francs Advance.
It's statistical position now is. rather
more favorable TO a rise than was the
case three months ago. The only re-
Election of the stronger grain market
was to be found in such stocks as J. l.
Case and International Harvester, which
advanced / to points by midday
The advance in French francs to the
gold point and cables from Paris which
indicated that the Bank OF France is
drawing balances away from New York
and other foreign markets was one OF
the interesting and significant incidents
of the day. 1t has a political as we'll
as a financial implication. AS was the
case with domestic developments, there
was nothing to indicate that decisions
had been arrived at over the week end
in the negotiations on short-term
German credits or as to the attitude OF
those who will attend the Lausanne
Conference.
Dizziness Continues.
The market continued irregular and
dull as the session entered the early
afternoon. United States Steel, how
ever, during this period shot up more
than points from its earlier low. The
shorts in steel who had their share Dor
rowings called during the morning, in
many instances had to pay premium
of IS per cent of $3.50 on 100 shares
for one day to secure fresh loans.
American Sugar Refining declined D
points to new low for the bear market
in the afternoon. This heavineSS re-
f1ected a further decline in the price
of raw sugar. Gables from Havana
quoted Chairman Babst Of American
Sugar Refining as stating that the raw
sugar market IN the United States had
been demoralized by imports Of refined
sugar from Germany and England and
that Cuban shipments of refined sugar
merely aggravated the raw sugar mar
ket in the United States.
Rails turned slightly reactionary as
union and carrier officials assembled
for their afternoon discussion in Chi
cago. Union Pacific yielded about
points on this move and Northern Pa
cific / New York Central and New
York, New Haven & Hartford were of
fractinnallV