Evening star., 1941-11-30
Business Waits
For j. ). Action
On Problems
Planning Is Postponed
While Government
Weighs Policies
Special Dispatch to The Star.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, Nov. 29-Business
and businessmen are in a state OF
suspended animation, according to
report in Business Week today.
That's because Washington, the
place where business policies are
made and unmade overnight, is it
self suspended between political
jockeying and legislative action, the
magazine states.
Until the administration and Con.
gress pull themselves together on
such basic problems as 1D a price
control law, % labor legislation, and
80 taxes, every time the business
man makes a decision on prices.
wage rates or inventories he is more
or less buying a pig in a poke.
BY all odds. a price-control bill
is one of the most far-reaching
items on the Government future
books. Not only will price law
directly affect all buying and selling,
but also it will determine wage pol
icies. If the bill includes a pro-
vision setting up system for de-
termining wage rates, then business
men will be able to predetermine
labor as percentage OF future pro-
duction costs,
But If wage clause IS omitted.
then they will know that labor costs
will be determined. as in the past.
by collective bargaining negotia-
tions They will know also that
any increases in profits will tend
to stimulate demands for wage in
creases. For in times such as these,
labor is always reaching for an in
crease in its proportionate share In
the national income.
Four Months Gone.
Already, the price control bill has
kicked around the halls of Con-
gress for four months: it is still a
wide-open question both in Wash
ington and in manufacturing whole
sale and retail Offices throughout
the country And chances of push
ing bill through before the end
of the year seem slim.
Meanwhile, Price Administrator
Henderson has been handing down
price-ceiling orders-this week on
railroad equipment, mattresses. bed
springs, etc, and paraffn-in an
effort to control an unrulv market
structure without formalized au-
thority. Which doesn't make it any
easier for businessmen to deter
mine either their buying costs or
selling prices.
Moreover, Henderson has yet to
tackle his main problem-retau
prices. To date. Washington has at
tempted to get retailers to go easy"
on advances.
Now, however. manufacturers and
wholesalers are up against concrete
fact; Output of such durable goods
as autos. refrigerators, etc. is down:
therefore. production costs per unit
are up, because overhead is spread
over fewer units.
Auto Ceiling Prepared.
This week Henderson's department
took tentative step in this direc-
ton by preparing schedules fixing
maximum prices on automobiles.
Question: VIII such price schedule
mean anything when most auto
prices are set not by the list price,
but rather by TIE turn-in value on
the customers used car? Thus, Hen
derson and even the auto manufac-
turer may propose, but the dealer
by adjusting upward or downward
the used-car auoWance-disposes.
This is only one of the many diff
ficulties which get in the way of
effective price regulation in retail
ing. Prices can be raised subtly by
lowering quality; price-fXed item
may be sold in combination with a
non-price- fixed article, and son on.
Even If there we're no such lodges.
policing the wide range of goods
consumers buy at retail would be a
monumental task, and to do so with
out legislation is almost impossible.
Yet some set policy on retail prices
ultimately becomes all-controlling in
our economy, first. because 1t will
help to check inflationary advances.
and second, because retail selling
prices ultimately back up and de-
termine prices all along the line from
wholesaler to manufacturer of the
finished product. and even-in many
cases-to producers of raw materials.
Defense Boosts Index.
In the meantime. defense has
pushed the Business Week index up
above the 162-point mark, around
which it has held on plateau for
five months. Apart from how long 1t
takes Washington to make up its COL
lective mind about longer-term price,
and labor and tax policies, the trend
in business is definitely up-under
the prod of armament orders.