Evening star., 1939-10-22
Factories Work
AtTopSpeed
During Week
Trade Pace Murred
Only at Auto and
Textile Plants
BY FRANZ MacMILLEN,
Associated Press Financial Writer.

BY FRANK MacMILLEN.
Associated Press Financial Writer.
NEW YORK, Oct. 2l.- United
States business marched along in its
recovery quick time this week, the
pace marred only by stumbles in the
automobile production and cotton
textile ranks.
Most good-repair factories worked
at top speed or on a double or three
shift basis to handle the orders that
faced them, many of them not
slated for delivery until the first
quarter of next year or later. Book
ings ahead leveled of, but were
still, in the majority of instances. at
the best rate in more than two
years.
While beiligerent nations did not
rush to buy, because of the diff
Guilty of obtaining shipping to carry
goods through the war zones, vari-
GUS industries reported an increase
in purchases by European neutral
countries, the Far East and Latin
America. This especially was true,
1t was said. of steel. electrical equip
ment, cement. machine tools. medi-
cines and pharmaceuticals. Canada
was a heavy buyer. France placed
large order for trucks.
Prices of finished products showed
little change from the preceding
week, although in some lines mild
advances were made. No announce
ment was forthcoming of the all
important steel prices for the first
three months of 1910 and orders
were being booked subject to the
figure then prevailing Recent de-
clines in the cost OF steel scrap were
being taken into consideration by
the steelmakers.
Wholesale commodity prices tended
little lower.
Warnings Reported.
Caution against speculative price
movements and an undue aecumula-
ticn of inventories was again sound
ed by leaders. Secretary of Com
merce Hopkins in a formal state
ment said the piling up of stocks
might have a temporary effect in
creating business but could not pos
sibly continue as stimulating fac
tor. adding that to the extent stock
ing was of speculative character
it constituted a constant threat to
prices and production.
DR.. Harold G.. Moulton. president,
Brookings Institution, and a mem.
ber Of the War Resources Board, as
serted that advances in industrial
prices at this time should be re-
sisted to the utmost" Undersecre-
tary of the Treasury John w. Hanes
pointed out that the present up
swing has not come directly from
war psychology and should not be
divested wholly from domestic fac
tors"
For the first time in IA weeks the
Associated Press index of industrial
activity dipped a little, due to
slight decease in automobile output
caused by labor difficulties in Chrys-
Ter plants and slackening in cot
ton mills to make production meet
apparent consumption. The index
was at 1864 of the 1929-30 average
compared with 1867 the preceding
period and 80.7 year ago.
Other Lines Gain.
The other components appeared
in a healthy state. Steel. produc-
ton, at 90.3 per cent Of capacity,
compared with 886 per cent the pre-
ceding week and 494 a year ago,
was at its best level since May "a,
1887. Electric power output for the
week ended October IA was the
highest on record end railroad
fright carloadings in the same period
jumped to the top figure since No
vember, 1890. Much of the increase
in the latter, it was said, was due to
the movement of goods to the sea-
coast for shipment abroad.
The gain in employment contin-
ued, with many workers returning,
to RAILROAD jobs especially.
With new blast furnaces being
blown in at the rate of about one
each day, the steel industry found
itself booked many months ahead.
Appeals for immediate delivery
poured in and mills faced the
necessity of using more obso-
lescent facilities, including hand
tinplate mills, to keep up with de-
mand. In the trade, it was. said the
bulk of production was going into
consumption. Export business in
creased and some companies were
demanding a price premium on cer-
tain classes of steel above the do
mestic level. So crowded were 9TH
ers that they let orders go begging,
it was reported. No sales to the
fighting nations were announced.
Carriers Order Steel.
Heavy users of steel were the rail-
way equipment makers and the
roads themselves. The boom in this
industry was enhanced by the jump
in carloadings and the necessity Of
providing against bottlenecks in
movement of the Nations goods. Soft
coal production gained.
The Dun & BradStreet Review
said: with the growing need for
the expansion or reconditioning Of
productive facilities, capital goods
moved more into the spotlight. The
volume of factory building showed
a steady increase. Demand for heavy
electrical equipment ran 20 to IS
per cent above year ago and ma
chine tool orders were only slightly
below the September volume, esti-
mated the largest for any month for
which records are available" .
Engineering construction awards
for the week ended October II were
IA per cent below those for the 1898
comparative, but private awards,
upon which great emphasis is laid,
gained 18 per cent over those for
last year.. It was the sixth consecu-
tive period in which private con-
tracts had topped 1888 values. Resi-
Dental building continued at q rate
higher than seasonally expected.
Auto Sales Improve.
Although automobile output was