Evening star., 1935-11-03
BAR0METERSPO|NT
TO STEADY CLIMB
IN TRADE AHEAD
Retail and Wholesale Pace
Hampered by Adverse
Weather Conditions.
GENERAL AVERAGE HOLDS
ABOVE LEVEL YEAR AGO
Sales at Industrial Centers Lead.
Advance Buying of Holiday
Goods Increases.
BY RAIDER WINGET.

Associated Press Financial Writer.
With major signals flashing full
speed ahead, business and industry
last week turned into the Winter sea-
son Of trade.
| Automobile manufacturers still were
the pace makers with production IA
cilities tuned to an output substan-
TALLY higher than the previous week
in anticipation of public demand which
motor makers feel confident will en1a-
nate from the auto show now intro.
ducing new models.
General industrial activity as meas
ured by the Associated Press weekly
index reached a new high level for
this year at 804 per cent Of the 1929
80 average compared with 1873 per
cent during the previous week.
Retail and wholesale trade labored
under adverse weather conditions
again last week throughout several
| important sections of the country.
With the exception of a few cities,
however the general average was
higher than for the same period Of
|
lation appeared to lead because Of ad-
ditions to pay rolls and employment.
Advance Orders Placed.
There was increasing evidence OF
advance buying in good volume Of
| holiday merchandise, and several dis
tributors found the movement well
above this time last year.
The Department of Commerce In its
weekly survey of trade in "a key cities
for the week ended Wednesday stated:
Retail trade was in larger
volume throughout the greater part
of the country than during the corre-
spending week of last year.
I'm many places. however. continued
warm weather cut trade volume to
levels lower than the preceding week"
Analysts found one cause for the
upswing in consumer buying power IN
The report of the Department Of Labor.
which stated industrial employment
in September was at the highest point
since November. 1880. and pay rolls
the best since May, 1881.
Since that time, they point out,
there has been no reason to believe
serious curtailment has set in.
For the South and East the increas-
ing tempo of cotton textiles spelled
an approach to profits for both en-
ployer and employe.
Cotton Mills Buster.
In the Associated Press index cot
! ton manufacturing activity moved to
99.2 per cent of the 1929-30 average
from 95 per cent the previous week,
and in the Eastern markets some lead
ing lines of textiles exhibited an up
ward price trend.
Steel production held its own last
week at SIG per cent Of capacity, up
OIL of one percentage point.
Reports of an impending price rise
on semi finished and finished steel
Street and the steel sections. the frst
strengthening signs in the price struc-
ture in many months.
Added costs of raw materials.
coupled with recent sustained demand
for steel, gave basis to the reports.
Electric power production for the
week ended October 26 again reached
the highest volume in the history OF
the industry with rise of II per cent
over the previous week and Is per
cent over the same week OF 1884.
For the same period freight car
Ioadings slumped slightly to 7o7,826
cars from 32,e47 cars the previous
week Observers credited the drop to
smaller loadings of miscellaneous
freight caused by slower movement
of goods into the hands of consumers.
Earnings Move Higher.
Industrial earnings now being re-
ported for the third quarter and the
first nine months Of this year con-
tinued to confirm gains OF recent
months. and several large corporations
declared extra dividends or increased
the regular rate.
Approval by farmers of the Federal
corn-hog control program was well
coined in agricultural centers and by
those who sell merchandise in the
rural areas.
An adjustment to place the lending
of money on a ''living wage" basis
was taken by the New York Stock
Exchange and New York banks with
the raising of the call money rate
to OTIS of / per cent from o.25 of 1
per cent. No change in either the
demand or supply of funds attended
the alteration.
Detailed reports from individual
Federal Reserve districts follow:
BOSTON-Retail trade continued
unchanged In Boston. The wool mar
ket, opening quietly, ended the week
with considerable momentum, but
leather interests were perturbed by
reports that q portion of the Federal
owned hides and skin supply would
be sold shortly.
NEW YORK-Weather conditions
forced retail trade in the metropolitan
area some to per cent under the
same week Of 1894. Machine tool
orders in October were the best here
since 1929. Wholesalers were active
and foreign buying appeared.
PHILADELPHIA store
business increased seasonally, but
Jagged because Of high temperatures.
Manufacturers reported conditions fair.
and the Federal Reserve Bank declared
industrial production for the State
increased considerably"
Steel Demand Grows.
| CLEvELAND.-Added demand for
steel sent production higher in the
fourth district and was reflected
favorably in other lines with general
industrial activity holding well. Retail
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