Evening star., 1936-12-31
CONTINUE
STEADY ADVANCE
AT 5yEAR PEAKS
Many Billions Are Added to
VaIues-SeI|ing at Year
End Restrained.
BY CLAUDE A. JAEGER.

NEW YORK, December 31.-The
stock market swung farther up the
recovery train with business in 1896
reaching the highest levels in five
years and adding many billions of dol
lars to quoted values.
The pace Of the advance slowed,
however, after carrying we'll into the
Spring under momentum of the sus-
tanned 1885 rise.
Another squirt to new peaks for the
major bull movement in Midsummer
and after the November presidential
election were followed by a minor let
down in the final weeks of the year.
But year-end selling, in comparison
with other years, was restrained. For
markets had the benefit of a bright
business background, a spectacular
shower of extra dividends, bonuses
and wage increases and booming holi-
day trade before the curtain fell on
the old year.
Control Plans Watched.
With the approach Of the new year
Wall Street became increasingly abb
sorbed in discussion of moves by Fed
eral authorities to control credit ex-
pansion to prevent another volatile
speculative boom.
Speculation, however. seemed to
have veered from securities toward
commodities. Wheat, rubber, indus
trial metals and other basic staples
took the spotlight from stocks with
sharp advances in the final stretch Of
1886, while share prices dragged in
quiet trading.
Under increased margin require
ments ordered by the Federal Reserve
Board early in the year, the stock
market had to get up steam for fur
ther advances without aid Of much
credit. Some traders, in fact, got in
the habit Of calling it cash and
carry market" because the 1896 spurts
were accompanied by little expansion
in loans against securities.
On the other hand, it was fed by
a heavy flow of cash from abroad,
dubbed "hot money" in Washington
because Federal authorities feared 1t
might complicate their problems Of
credit control and leave markets open
to sudden withdrawal of foreign cap
ital sent here for speculation and in
vestment.
Commodity Issues Climb.
Soaring quotations for copper, rub
ber, wheat and other commodities
turned attention in trading circles to
stocks in line to benefit from rising
demand for raw materials. As an off,
set, the share market faced q success
sion Of labor controversies in the auto
mobile and allied industries and
threats Of strikes in steel and else
where.
Moreover, war alarms continued to
sound late in the year and to divert
in some measure attention from do
mestic revival in buying Of industrial
equipment and forecasts of broadening
improvement in construction and heavy
industries in the new year.
Nevertheless, the stock market rode
through the year-end liquidation with
little damage to the gains amassed on
the prolonged 1885 upswing.
Rails Have Setback.
Rail shares had q setback on re-
fusal Of the Interstate Commerce Com
mission to continue emergency freight
rate increases. Along with utilities,
they also were confronted with pos
sible increases in operat ting costs as
result Of the rising trend Of commodity
prices. Against these, however, bulls
weighed prospects for continuation OF
general business gains into the new
year, as predicted by many analysts.
Twice during the year the Fedora
Reserve Board stif1ened margin re.
quirements and on August IS pushed
up the reserve requirements Of membe,
banks, eliminating more than 81 ,000..
000, 900 Of idle bank funds which
might have been used as q basis o.
credit expansion.
Nevertheless, prices continued I,
rise as cash buying poured into tht
market. On December J., total Dor.
rowings by members Of the exchange
at 1894 .004. .702. were up only $685..
600, 900 from q year earlier. Durini
the same period the total quoted valu,
of listed shares swelled to $60,0l0,'
557. 1877 from $44 $50, ,590, ,351.
The stock exchange said in its De
cember bulletin that the rise In thl
market in the last two years had ap'
(see STOCKS STEADY. pm 1.39