Evening star., 1940-03-31
War StocksLead
fresh Advance
Al Week S End
Aircrofts, SpecioIties
And SteeIs Close
Near Days Tops
BY FREDERICK GARDNER,

Associated Press Financial Writer.
NEW YORK. March 30.-Fresh
war buying entered the stock
market today and enabled the list
to- finish generally satisfactory
week we'll on the upside.
Steels. aircrafts and specialties
took the lead in the selective
advance which put many leaders up
as much as a point or so with one
or two isolated issues climbing
around 4. Profit taking occasionally
halted the march but favorites gen.
orally closed near the days best.
Utilities, coppers and oils were
narrow.
Although the President, at his late
press conference yesterday. revealed
none of the inside information
brought back to him by Envoy
Welles following the latter's fact
finding expedition abroad, his fears
that immediate" peace was not in
the picture bore out the opinion of
most in Wall Street.
While financial quarters expressed
some disappointment that the polit-
ical situation at home was not
clarified at the White House gather
ing. talk was still heard in board
rooms of some important" cam
paign announcement in the next
week or so.
Average Up Further.
The Associated Press average of
60 stocks was up 2 of a point at
SOB. with a net gain of 8 on the
week. A month ago the composite
stood at 494. and a year ago at
45.8. While the ticker tape was never
pressed. the turnover was the largest
for any Saturday sine December
30, last amounting to 571 $50 shares
against 392.47n in the preceding
short session. The weeks volume of
4 S37 $50 shares compared with O.
1872 049 the previous week and was
the biggest turnover for any week
since last November.
Aiding the steels were reports of
heavy exports of the metol to
neutral nations as we'll as belliger-
ents. Although home consumption
remained somewhat 6pathetic, there
were signs mill operations were near
the end of their decline Aviations
maintained quiet strength on expec-
tations the British French missions
would soon begin to sign on the
dotted line for several thousand
fighting planes.
Lockheed Takes Lead.
Lockhe"d paced the sircrafts with
a gain of more than a point at
new 1910 top Loft made 2 new hirh
but slipped at the finish. pror,'-ent
on the unswine were United St~tes
Steel, Bethlehem. Youngstown Sh~et.
Douglas Aircraft. Glenn Mortin,
Sperrv. Chrysler MONTGOMERY Word,
United States Rubber. Western
Union. Santa Fe Great Northern,
Pennsylvania. McKesson & Robbins
common and preferred and Coca
Cola.
Bonds exhibited selective strength
and commodities leaned forward
after early hesitancy. Wheat at
Chicago was up 4 to y cent a
bushel and corn unchanged to
ahead 3s. Cotton advanced Is to
IS cents bale.
In the curb Aluminium of America
ran up Az and lesser improvement
was held by Bell Aircraft. Brew
ster Aero, American Gas. Gulf Oil
and American Cyanamid "B."
Stocks on the big board eased
both Monday and Tuesday as scant
speculative inspiration was found
in either business or war develop
ments. After the close Tuesday, how
ever, markets received the best
news of the week when United
States Steel directors provided a
real surprise by voting a 81 divi-
dend on the common stock, first
disbursement on this issue since
December. 1887.
Stimulated by this evidence of
confidence in economic prospects,
the share department enjoyed the
best upturn since last October with
trading reaching nearly 100000
shares. There was a mild profit
cashing relapse Thursday, but the
forward trek was resumed Friday
when the long-neglected utilities
joined steels and specialties.