Evening star., 1935-12-22
WORRIED
BY PEACE CRISIS,
TRADE HOLDS PACE
Stock Markets Dull Despite
Continued Flow of
New Issues.
BUILDING AND MOTOR
INDUSTRIES IN LEAD
Two Given Major Credit for Pull
ing Nation Out of Depression.
Foreign Sales Good.
Special Dispatch to The Star.


NEW YORK. December 21.-Cables
and radio dispatches to Business Week
give the following survey of business
abroad for the week ending today:
LONDON.-"Fort the first time the
market is rejecting the fact that peo-
pie realize the seriousness of the peace
crisis. Stock markets are dull, though
the flow of new issues continues even
in the face of holidays, when trading is
usually very light.
November foreign trade Is good,
exports being we'll ahead of imports
and manufacturing goods bulking
large in outgoing shipments. Settle
ment of the coal strike seems TO be in
sight, with victory for the miners.
'One of the industries which, with
building, has helped Britain out Of
the depression is the automotive line.
survey of British motor transport,
makes this neat summary:
"'Between 1921 and 1885 the total
number of motor vehicles in use in the
United Kingdom has increased from
5000 to 2,047 900. OF the present
total, T3 per cent are private cars, %
per cent are goods vehicles (trucks)
2 per cent are taxis and the remain
ing per cent are passenger vehicles
in the omnibus, motor coach and
trolley-bus categorieS.
Output Rises Sharply.
"'The British motor manufacturing
industries turned out 306,365 private
cars and 80, ,485 commercial vehicles in
the IL months to September 80, 1885,
against 1885 and 23,604, respectively,
in the calendar year 1923.
1.-The industry consumes annually
something like $50 900 tons of iron and
steel, 22,240 tons of non-ferrous met
ais. 100000 square feet of glass, 97,-
600 tons of rubber and about 1850
million gallons OF gasoline and OIL
What has been the secret of this
phenomenal progress? One explana-
-tion may be- found in the index pre-
pared by the Society Of Motor Manu-
facturers and Traders, which shows
that the price Of the average car in
1894 was no more than SO per cent
and that the average commercial
vehicle no more than 62l15 per cent
of the corresponding prices in 1924.
In the meantime, the standard of
comfort and mechanical efficiency has
been progressively enhanced
French Study Budget.
PARIS.-"France is completely ab-
sorbed in the budget discussions which
are progressing rapidly. 1t seems
likely that they may be finished and
the budget passed early next year.
THE new Franco-American trade
pact which has been in progress of
negotiation for most of this year is
expected to be signed early in Janu-
ary. High lights will probably be SO
per cent duty cuts on French wines
and liquors entering the United States,
in return for increased import quotas
for American automobiles.
Business is more active, with steel
suddenly showing new activity. Wheat
stock hanging over the market con-
tinues to Idepress farm prices. Bonds
and rentes are weak, but industrial
shares are again in demand, particu-
larly chemicals. Money rates are
high, but the discount is expected to
be lowered soon and general rates, in
turn, should settle at reasonable
levels"
Reich Faces Hard Winter.
BERLIN-"Germany is beginning a
hard Winter. Unemployment has in
creased sharply in recent weeks.
Security prices are sagging. and the
turnover is negligible. The November
export surplus of 5l,000,000 marks is
not indicative of an improved trend,
since rising import prices and falling
export prices can quickly reverse this
tendency.
"The sharp decline this week in the
gold reserve is due to the shipments
abroad to pay for urgent shipments
of food. While supplies of various
products are being rushed into the
country, the critical situation has not
disappeared. Just what is happening
is illustrated in news released recently
on hog slaughterings at 48 packing
plants in large German cities. In
October the total was 119,733; in Sep
tember, 147.907, and in october, 1884,
544, ,631, decrease of 78 per cent in
a year."