Evening star., 1940-09-01
Stock Market Keeps
Advances Despite
Profit Taking
Majority Of Leaders
Moderately Higher
At Weeks Close
By FREDERICK GARDNER,
Associated Press Financial Writer.

Associated Press Financial Writer.
NEW YORK, Aug. 31-The stock
market held its own today, despite
extensive profit selling on Fridays
bulge, and the majority of leaders
finished a general recovery week
pointing slightly higher.
Bolstering the list, brokers said,
was growing confidence of financial
quarters that the British would be
able to ward off the Germans; in
creasing optimism for the business
outlook at home, and hopes the ma
tional tax program and other con-
structive legislation would be pushed
through Congress at an early date.
The rally of yesterday flattened
out at the start as many traders
cashed in for the Forthcoming
lengthy holiday. The exchange will
be closed Monday for Labor Day.
The aviation group exhibited mod
crate strength throughout, but pi-
votal steels, motors, rails. utilities,
oils and coppers milled over a mar
row range.
A. p. Average Up Slightly.
The Associated Press average of
60 stocks succeeded in showing a
net advance of / of point at 436,
and on the week was up 13 points,
the second successive weekly gain.
A month ago the composite stood at
42.9 and a year ago at 46.7.
The days activity was accentuated
by the appearance of a number of
large blocks of low-priced issues.
The result was turnover of 1868, 800
shares, best for a Saturday since
June IS. 1t compared with 49, $3.50 a
week ago. which was the second
smallest two-hour aggregate since
1918.
Aircrafts were stimulated by Gov
ernment orders amounting to hun
dredS of millions for engines and
planes. SteelS were unable to get
far ahead, although a sharp re-
bound in production was looked for
after recession next week due to
holiday shut-downs.
A brisk upturn in last weeks de-
partment store sales, as summarized
by the Federal Reserve Board, was
encouraging.
Wright Aeronautical, a 10-share
| trading unit, duplicated its 9-point
jump of the preceding session on a
little more activity. Prominent avi-
alton gamers were Boeing, United
Aircraft, Glenn Martin, Sperry,
Lockheed and Curtiss-Wright.
Small Gains Recorded.
Modest improvement elsewhere
was registered for New York Gen.
tral, liveliest performer of the week:
Santa Fe, Pennsylvania, National
Distillers, Westinghouse. Johns
Manville, Montgomery Ward, Ana
conda, American Telephone. West
ern Union, Yellow Truck. Bethle-
hem Steel. Youngstown Sheet and
United States Rubber.
Graham-Paige came out on
block of $4,000 shares, unchanged at
so cents. 1t subsequently added 1-16
Of point to this quotation.
Slimness of price movements was
indicated by the fact United States
Steel ended unchanged, Chrysler
was of 1s. General Motors up u.
Consolidated Edison unchanged and
American Smelling down u.
In the curb small plus signs were
attached to American Cyanamid
B. Brewster Aero, Lake Shore,
Beech Aircraft and E. w. Bliss.
Volume here was around 10000
shares, against $4,000 last Satur-
day.
Stocks were virtually stalemated
Monday and Tuesday as shifting
war tides tended to confuse poten-
tial buyers and sellers. Strong re-
sistance to intensified Nazi bomb
ing of England, together with coun-
ter-attacks on axis territory by the
R. A. F.. helped touch off a re-
covery Wednesday. The market re-
turned to its do-nothing position
Thursday. Friday witnessed one of
the broadest upswings of the month,
as the foreign news seemed more
cheerful and domestic industrial
trends, ignored to a considerable
extent lately, came into the lime
light.