Evening star., 1946-05-19
Business Briefs
General Rus;ness Act;v;tv

l. uCuCTdI DuSlncSS ACtlVlty Is Qc'
clining, according to the index O.
Business Week, which stood at 1872:
IN the latest week VS.. 1857 in tn,
previous week, 1867 month ago ant
227.9 q year ago.
Consumer Spending in April set ,
new record for that month, advanc
ing 300 over year ago-Dun &
Bradstreet. The firms trade indie,
climbed to 250.8 a gain of 3.4% from
the previous month.
Short Interest in Stocks listed OF
the New York Stock Exchange ros
to 1,022 1893 shares on May Is vs.. 994,
375 month earlier.
Paper output for the week endes
May II declined to 102.8% of capa
city VS.. 107.3% in the previous weel
and 85.4Ho year ago-Americal
Paper g. Pulp Association.
Soft Coal Production has been Gu
"a, 100000 tons by the strike-Soli,
Fuels Administration. In the weel
ended May II, output was only 470,
600 tons, less than one-twentieth tn
rate of a year ago. Anthracite pro
duction, unaffected by the strike
reached new peak of 1,443, 900 ton
in the week.
Philco Corp. stockholders approve,
an increase in common stock from
1900, 900 to 2,500, 900 shares and crea
ton of 250,000 shares of new 500 pa
preferred for expansion purposes. !
March quarter deficit of $69, All con
trasted with a profit of $846,l09
year ago.
Panhandle Producing & Refinin
Co. stock control battle ended wit
the election of G. Edward Buxtol
as board chairman and r. E. Mil
Ter as president. Stockholder
formed committee to oust the oil
management headed by Gerhard N
Dahl.
American Gas e. Electric Co. wa
denied SEC permission to bid TO
common stock of Columbus
Southern Ohio Electric Co. on tn
ground that the acquisition woul,
enlarge Americans system beyon,
the limit favored by the SEC.
United Gas Corp. asked SEC per
mission to lend 100000 to it
subsidiary, United Gas Pipe Lin,
Co., for new construction. The LOAF
would be evidenced by 4es insecure,
promissory notes.
Baltimore 4 Ohio Railroad re-
ported a deficit Of $780,, sos for tn,
March quarter VS.. net income O
$5,157 1857 in the same 1945 period
Louisville & Nashville Railroad
earned $3,s17,310 or $1.63 a share IL
the March quarter VS.. $5,30l ,s52 o.
$2.26 a year ago.
Reading Co. net for the Marcel
quarter was $579,395 VS.. $l,876, ,96'
IN the same 1945 period.
Union Electric Co. Of Missour
earned S9,646,61s in IL months endes
March 81 VS.. s9,14s,3l2 in the pre-
vious year.
Thompson Products, Inc, defici
for the March quarter was s75s, ,88.
VS.. profit of s722,4 in the sam
l945 period.
Holly Sugar Corp. earned $3.50, So
or Sl.36 in II months ended Marcl
81 VS.. $70l Sol or $1.13 in the pre-
vious year.
United Carbon Co. profit for tn,
March quarter was $67s, ,30l or 81. n
VS.. $4s6,958 or SIPS in the sam
l945 period.
Kellogg Co. earned 1891 ,25s O
s1.7S in ls45 VS.. s3,o73,O73 or $1.4,
in 1914.
American Stores Co. sales fo
April totaled $24.862,713, a gain o
l6.4eo from a year ago; for fou,
months, $s2,764,sSo, an increase O
216%.
Hudson Motor Car Co. reported
daily production of 480 cars unde]
stepped-up rates expected to reach
$50 day in about two weeks.
Arabian-American Oil Co., owned
jointly by Texas Co. and STANDARD
Oil of California, is negotiating fol
sale OF 100000 barrels of Arabian
oil to Argentina over an l8-montt
period.