Evening star., 1940-08-11
) Billion Backlog
OF Defense Orders
Supports Upswing
Industry Sees Highest
Summer Level Since
1929 Boom Period
BY FRANK MAC MILLEN,
Associated Press Business Writer.

Dy fhANh MAJ MlILEN,
Associated Press Business Writer
NEW YORK, Aug. 10.--An esti.
mated $4,000 000, 900 in untitled Brit
ish war and United States defense
orders provided industry today with
big backlog to support its upswing
to the highest summer level since
1929.
Business analysts counted on fur
ther gains in various lines of manu-
featuring as Army and Navy con-
tractors got to work on recent
awards for ships, tanks, guns and
other military supplies.
Additional contracts announced
this week brought the total cleared
by the National Defense Advisory
Commission, as announced in WASH
ington, to above s1,700.000 900. Ac-
tual closing of many of these was
held up pending congressional action
on tax and profit questions but he
shift of manufacturing to war
industry basis gathered speed.
British orders, including contracts
taken over from the French, now
total between $4,000 100000 and
$2,50o, 100000. a spokesman for the
British Purchasing Commission an
nounced.
Bulk of Orders Unified.
Indicating that the bulk of these
orders remain untitled, the spokes-
man disclosed that only about 1900
of 1000 war planes ordered had
been delivered.
Financial quarters were reminded
of the accumulation of orders in the
armament field when the Curtiss-
Wright Corp, leading airplane en-
gine and fighting craft maker. re-
ported backlog of nearly s249 O0o.-
900. Previously Bethlehem Steel-its
orders swelled by naval contracts
announced rd-breaking untitled
business of close to s50000o000
The highest August operating rate
since 1929 has been achieved in the
steel industry under the lift Of ar
mament spending and efforts of con-
consumers in peacetime industry to
acquire metal stocks before the de-
fense program puts larger burden
on mill capacity.
Further Steel Gain.
A further small gain raised the
steel rate this week to 90.5 per cent
of capacity compared with go late
in April, before the administration
embarked on it's $4,000 100000 de-
fense plans and British purchases
were broadened after the Nazi in
vasion of Scandinavia, the low
countries and France.
Trade authorities reported Brit
ish steel purchases in this country
were running between 100000 and
100000 tons monthly, equal to about
10 per cent of current output.
eff the British are not defeated.
there is every prospect that near
capacity operating rates will prevail
in the industry over the remainder
of this year at least" said the Iron
Age, trade publication.
Slashing German air and sea
attacks on British supply lines
kept business circles pondering
Englands chances of victory and
the economic implications of as
saults on the far-spread interests
of the British Empire.
Since the closing of most Of the
European Continent to American
trade and the widening of British
war purchases here, foreign trade
figures revealed, the proportion of
American exports going to British
markets has increased to nearly
one-half from one-third before the
war
Wedged in Narrow Trade.
Remaining wedged in the narrow
trading groove it has occupied since
the surrender of France, the Wall
Street stock market seemed to pro-
long its wait for decisive action in
the battle of England and for the
Washington defense program to
move ahead. Stock market deal
ings in recent weeks have been the
slowest in % years, since the final
months of the World War.
Meanwhile, the heavy industries.
which dropped deepest into depres-
sion in the 1929-32 collapse, took
commanding lead Of the business
climb. Steel and residential build
ing-two of the most vigorous fields
of expansion in recent months
again contributed to a small rise
in the Associated Press index of
industrial activity to a new peak
for the late spring and summer
advance.
From 936, this index since May
has climbed to 1915 per cent of
the 1929-39 level compared with
93.2 year ago.
How defense awards are coming
to the front in heavy industry was
evident in the July report of con-
struction by the Engineering News
Record, showing the largest
monthly total since March, 1880.
Federal defense projects, the trade
publication explained, accounted
for about half the July total.
July Engineering Scars.
July engineering awards scared
to s347 100000 from $252, 100000 in
June and s181 100000 in July, 1899
despite the delay in large-scale
plant expansion in war industry.
blamed on the wait for congressional
approval of the plan to permit
rapid write-off of emergency invest
ments against profits in payment of
taxes.
Outside industrial centers shar-
ing the incipient armament boom,
trade reports pictured spotty con-
ditions. Some port and manufactur-
ing cities felt the loss of European
markets. Coffee, sugar, cotton seed
and lard prices weakened in COM
modify trading as surplus backed
up on western hemisphere markets.
Despite the rise of heavy industry
and prospects of increasing en-
ployment and pay rolls In some
manufacturing lines, dealers seemed
cautious about expanding stocks of
merchandise for the autumn and