The Washington times., 1934-06-19

keep cropping out, and statistics
are still more or less facts.
Steel production has continued
under the influence of buying to
anticipate the effective date OF
price mark-ups and possible strikes.
It increased week ago. The fin
ishing mills, however, are produc-
ing largely for stocks, and with
less fear of strikes considerable
decline in activity in the near fu-
ture seems certain.
Price cutting in the automobile
trade has stimulated retail sales,
and factory output made better
than seasonal showing last week,
This, however, is about all that
the cold facts show in the way of
activity gains. Even electric pow
er production seems to have be-
gun to lag.
The textile industries are quite
flat. Cotton manufacturing is
curtailed and shipments Of cot
ton to the mills have declined
sharply. Wool manufacturing is
very dull, especially in the high
er grades.
Above all, railway carloadings
have shown an ominouS down
trend, considering the season.
While ore, coal, and coke ship
ments continue notably high, the
movement of less-than-carload
merchandise, grains and grain
products, livestock and forest
products is below year ago.
The volume of bank checks IS
running only about the same as
last year, despite the higher
prices and larger payrolls.
Commodity prices averaged ir-
regularly higher for the week.
Corn and oats, hogs, hides, sugar
and rubber were higher. But
wheat and rye, beef, cotton, silk,
zinc, tin and coffee were lower.
Gasoline wholesale markets were
under pressure, and retail gaso-
line prices were SlaShed in Chi
cago territory.
It is of interest to note that as
of June / the retail prices of
things mostly sold by department.
stores, showed a decline from May
l, the largest reductions coming
in women'S apparel.
It has been some time now since
we have heard any New Deal talk
about the more equitable" prices
of 1926. You see, it seems all right
to run prices up for producers, but
then the consumers have to pay.
Looked at sectionally, I judge
from current reports that in the
following trade areas business is
not only rather backward, but
also hardly as good as a year ago:
Boston, New York, Buffalo, Min
neapolis, and San Francisco. This
is due to a combination of finan-
cial uncertainty textile overpro-
duction and high prices, drought
and strikes.
On the other hand, business
seems to be holding up well and
more active than year ago in
the Dallas, Atlanta, New Orleans,
Cleveland, Detroit and Seattle
areas. dallas reports that $40
600, 900 is the sum being doled out
by the Government to cotton
farmers in that territory0
Other main areas seem mostly
to be about the same as last year,
but some reports suggest slipping
off in Philadelphia and Kansas
City, while st. Louis seems a
little more optimistic along with
the Southwest.
On the whole, the labor Situa-
ton and the drought were both
relieved last week. The A. F. OF
L. is in the attitude of biding its
time, and it remains to be seen
how the new Federal labor ma
chinery will work. Unfortunately
however, the drought has now
done great and irreparable dam
age. Despite some recent show
ers, current reports tell of further
damage to wheat, barley and oats
in the Northwest, and the poorest
crop condition on record in sew
eral sections, as in Ohio.