Evening star., 1946-08-16
0PA Grants Increases
OF BIO. o.12oo in Prices
On Consumer Goods
BY the Associo'ed Press

OPA hung a price rise tag of
well over S150,000,000 a year"
on radios, stoves. washers and
many other household items to-
day-and ground out still more
bad news for consumers.
On top of price increases ranging
from to u per cent on 20 groups
Of mainly home essentials, the
agency announced:
l, An immediate increase OF l to
2 cents for draught and bottled beer
served in bars. restaurants and
hotels
2. New price ceilings for used
automobiles made this year or in
I945.
8 White sideWaH tire ceilings I2.5
per cent higher than maxium prices
on other tires.
d Higher prices for stationery
and book paper
In addition. OPA officials said.
ceiling increases for virtually all
kinds of building materials will be
announced soon, as required by the
new price-control law.
To Restore Frofit Margin.
In announcing the increases yes
terday on a long list of consumer
goods, OPA Administrator Porter
stressed that they were required
by new pricing standards laid down
by Congress.
He was referring TO provision of
the new act which requires OPA to
restore dealer profit margins to the
level of last March 81.
The price increases covered viz
tually the entire field of So-called
consumer durable goods. except re-
frigera tors Prices on refrigerators
will be raised about 25 per cent
soon.
Here are average retail increases
which will go into effect as soon as
dealers receive new shipments.
Radios and electric phonogra phs,
3 per cent; washing machines. I
per cent; vacuum cleaners. 7 per
cent, small electrical appliances,
such as toasters, irons. space heat
ers, coffee makers and shavers, 4
per cent.
Stoves on List.
Household chlnaware, 7 per cent:
box springs, II per cent, electric
stoves, per cent; gas stoves. per
cent; coal oil and wood stoves. 5
per cent, aluminium cooking uten-
sis. per cent, metal bed springs,
4 per cent, metal cots and double
deck beds, 3 per cent: window
shades. 10 per cent.
Clocks and nonieweled watches,
s per cent; portable typeWriters.
per cent.
Other increases included 35 per
cent on bicycles, 3 per cent on dry
batteries, per cent on metal Office
furniture, 6 per cent on photo
graphic equipment, such as cameras,
small projectors and light meters.
and per cent on outboard motors.
On all of these items OPA had
required dealers to absorb all or
part of price increases previously
granted to manufacturers.
An OPA official told a reporter
who inquired about the cost to the
public:
The increases amount to Well
over S15o.000000 a year
The higher ceilings on beer served
at bars and restaurants match in
creases granted few weeks ago for
take-home beer. Prices go up cent
for glass and for to II ounce bot
ties, and 2 cents on 32-ounce bottles.
OPA attributed these increases to
cut in beer production. a recent
rise in brewers ceilings. and an in
crease in freight rates.
The new ceilings fixed for used
l945 and 1916 automobiles. effective
August d, are generally close" to
maximum prices on new cars. OPA
Bid. Heretofore the ceiling on these
used models was the price the seller
paid.
Here are some examples of the
new ceilings on used 1856 MODELS
in the East and Central part of the
country:
On an as is" basis-Ford four
door de luxe sedan. s946, as COM
pared with a retail list price of
sl,068 for a comparable new car:
Chevrolet Stylemaster four door
sedan, $500 compared with 81 .0O5: /
Plymouth de luxe four-door sedan, /
81 l009. compared with s1.142.
West PAYS More.
Ceilings on all used cars are
slightly higher in the Far West and
part of the Midwest In all cases,
the ceiling on 1856 models goes up
Is per cent when the car has been
reconditioned and guaranteed by
dealer.
In fixing ceilings for white side
wall tires at l2.5 per cent higher
than ceilings for other tires, OPA
said this is the same price differen-
tial that prevailed before the war.
Production of white sidewall castings
was resumed only recently.
OPA raised manufacturers CELL
ings on lower priced book and writ
ing paper ST TO S24 ton and said
this increase will be passed on to the
public. The agency did not estimate
the retail increase.
Winding up, for the moment. OPA
removed price ceilings on rubber
bands and on II specisl-type trail
ers, including automobile transport