Evening star., 1939-12-03
Stocks Narrow;
Traders Await
War News
Price Trend Uneven:
Ticker Tope Often
At StondstilI
What Stocks Did
BY FREDERICK GARDNER,
Associated Press Financial Writer.

BY FHEDEHlCh OAhDNEh,
Associated Press Financial Writer.
NEW YORK, Dec. 2.-The stock
market today ended generally un-
satisfactory week, with most leaders
backing into a corner and refusing
to emerge.
1t was one of the most sluggish
sessions In nearly six months.
Traders were inclined to go slow
and await fresh inspiration from
either the European war or domes-
tic business developments.
Slight price changes either way
ruled throughout the two-hour pro-
ceedings and, at the close. the As
sociated Press average of go stocks
was unchanged at SOB. On the week
the composite was of 8 of point,
its second consecutive weeks de-
cline.
The ticker tape frequently came
to a standstill and transfers amount
ed to 228 100 shares, smallest since
July IS, and compared with $685.
100 last Saturday.
U. S. Steel Improves.
Finishing with modest advances
were U. s. Steel, Sears Roebuck,
Glenn Martin, Sperry, Consolidated
Edison. Allied Chemical. Union Car
bide, N. Y. Central, Loft and Gen.
eral Electric.
Unchanged to lower were Gen.
eral Motors, Chrysler. United Air
craft, American Telephone, Kenne-
colt, Phelps Dodge. American
Smelling, Great Northern. Good
rich, Bethlehem Steel. Westing-
house and International Harvester.
The curb was equally indifferent.
Aluminium of America edged for
ward fractionally on top Of its sharp
upswing Friday. The company de-
clared a s6 dividend on the COM
mon and one share OF Niagara
Power Corp. For each three shares
of Aluminium common held. 1t was
the first dividend since 1928. I'M
proved were Fisk Rubber, Humble
on, Beech Aircraft and American
Gas. Gulf OIL and Republic Avia-
ton eased.
Scandinavian dollar loans again
weakened in the bond department,
but corporate issues were selectively
better. The Russian-Finnish war
was a depressing influence on the
foreign section.
Commodities emu1ated stocks.
Wheat at Chicago was unchanged
to up u cent a bushel and corn
down Il to y. Cotton was un-
changed to up 80 cents bale.
Pleased by Chrysler Report.
Wall Street appeared pleased with
the Chrysler earnings statement and
dividend and forecasts automobile
production next week would hit
new high since 1887. Steel opera
tions were expected to continue not
far from present record levels. De-
partment store sales widened their
gain over last year, and rail revenues
remained a bright spot on the mar
ket scene.
Stocks looked like they might go
places Monday, with rails taking
turn on the rising side, but the aver
axe cIucU Ill cNCll 0tCCAo eAAOA w
start a rally Tuesday. but got no
place. Tired traders edged from un-
der Wednesday and leaders dipped.
The same procedure was followed
Thursday, with losses about equally
those of the day before. After eight
successive sessions in which the AS
sociated Press average had been un-
changed or lower, the market put on
a moderate late advance Friday.
Talk of the administration and
banking circles inaugurating some
sort of a "cushioning" program for
the foreign selling of American Sc
curities provided temporary stim-
ulant during the week, but this was
washed up later by Washington
denials.
Analysts attributed the lengthy
market side-swing partly to disap-
pointment over failure of foreign
war buying to develop in sizable pro-
portions, to the pessimistic outlook
for American exports generally with
this country's ships remaining away
from belligerent seas, and to fears
the home economic bulge is due to
flatten out in the next few months.