Evening star., 1939-12-17
Rush for Farm
Staples Draws
Attention
industrial Demand
logs, but BockIoqs
Support Activity
BY SMITH REAVIS,
Associated Press Business Writer.

/
Associated Press Business Writer.
NEW YORK, Dec. 16.-New busi-
ness for the Nations industrial pro.
ducers dropped little this week,
but a spectacular increase in the
prices of agricultural commodities
turned attention somewhat away
from this normal year-end let
down.
Manufacturers still had, however,
enough business booked from the
fall ordering rush to keep factories
and mills going at the fastest pace
in years.
The scramble to buy farm staples
mere reflected worldwide demand,
as traders in many lands began to
worry lest a shortage of ships later
In the European war might make
commodities hard to come by abroad.
AS result, in the futures mark
cts where contracts for delivery
ahead are made, wheat passed the
dollar bushel mark for the first
time In two years, cotton went well
ABOVE ii cents pound, a peak
since 1887 and silk, rubber, hides,
sugar, cocoa, and cottonseed oil
moved higher. Cash wholesale
prices also gained sharply.
Buying Power Raised.
To businessmen the interest Law
IN the prod the advances would
give to rural purchasing power, en-
abllng the farmer to aid retail
trade, buy new Implements add to
electrification and thus do his share
toward the support of the expanded
industrial program of the last few
months.
There was some difference among
analysts to the causes for the de-
cline in new orders. Some said it
was seasonal, that many fabrica-
tors and wholesalers abstained from
booking so that inventories would
not be too heavy when year-end
statements are compiled. 1t is
usual at this time, they asserted
10 wait until after the holidays to
make more commitments for goods.
Others thought the flood of early
war time buying in September and
October had stocked consumers for
several months and that new pur-
chasing would be deferred until the
goods already ordered had been de-
hvered and worked off.
AT any rate. production itself
gained over the preceding week and
was at its best level since Novem-
Der, 1929. The Associated Press in
, dex of activity jumped to ll2.1 per
cent of the 1929-3O average, COM
pared with 1109 per cent a week
before and 93.4 per cent a year ago.
: The Importance Of this, said the
analysts. was that the steady en-
ployment and higher factory pay
rolls added purchasing power in the
industrial centers to that of the
farmers, making it more likely that
the recovery from the recession
which set in last May and was stim-
: ulated by the expectation of a busi-
ness increase to result from the
war, would be sustained, despite
variations in the rate of production.
Retail Trade Boosted.
The widened ability of individuals
to buy was reflected in retail trade
which maintained a dollar volume
to 10 per cent above last year. de-
spite what storekeepers in many
sections of the country called un-
seasonable weather.
Luxury lines such as furs, higher
priced jewelry and the like made
large gains in some centers. In
others the average unit sale of pop
ular gift articles, such as lingerie,
gloves and hosiery was said to be
about the same as last year.
In some of the drought regions
, buying was sharply curtailed and
trade declined under last year.
Heaviest percentage gains over 1898
were in the New England. Southern
and Eastern regions.
Warm weather in many sections,
the National Retail Dry Goods As
sociation reported after a tele-
graphic survey. had kept sales in
many sections from reaching expec-
tations. but there were indications
that surge Of purchasing would fill
the remaining days before Christ
mas.
However, the association said. "in
many cities buying was going for
ward at an unprecedented pace and
some individual stores were shat
terlng not only 1929 records but all
records in their history"
WholeSaling was restricted, as it
always is. just before Christmas.
Steel Rate Eases.
In the heavier industries, the rate
OF steel mill output dropped slight
ly for the second successive week.
but was still at IL per cent of theo-
retical capacity, fast pace.
Said Iron Age:
with speculative factors removed
from the market by the virtually
unchanged price structure, a closer
balance between production and
consumption is likely to be arrived
at in the coming few months. during
which time the trend of operations
may be slightly downward. How
ever, the size of backlogs for the first
quarter OF 1910 precludes the
possibility of a sharp decline.
80 Present volume of new busi-
ness Is estimated by some companies
as equal to IS or 10 per cent of
operations, but there may be a fur
ther recession in the next few weeks
owing to year-end inventory con-
siderations."
Automobile production for the
week reached q high for 1899 and
lnC Il l.
satisfactory than for any similar
period since 1896. Domestic orders
for machine tools, most vigorous of
the war-stimulated goods, fell of
moderately. but foreign demand
continued strong and there was some
difficulty in making deliveries.
Both soft and hard coal produc-
tion declined, due to the mild wea-
ther. and papermaking activities re-
| Ceded somewhat nOw that the do