Evening Star Newspaper, October 13, 1931, Page 16

" A—16 THE EVEN NG__STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, TUESDAY, OCTOBER 13, ENGINEERS SCOUT DEPRESSION IDEA Butomotive Experts Have Been Perfecting Plans for Better Machines. BY EDWARD W. MORRISON. Wpecial Dispatch to The Star. DETROIT, Mich, October 13.—The motor industry has yielded the stage the last few days to the Soclety of Automobile Engineers, which has been holding its production n Detroit. Although many of the program dis- cussions of the society were phrased in technical terms, the members of the 6. A. E. spoke an understandable lan- guage on one point: So far as the en- gineering departments are concerned, there is no depression. There has been no gap at all, in fact, pf the engineers to sho: meetings he indu the way to swifter, smoother motor cars | them. | Engineers’ Explolts. | Tracing the course of events of the ! 1ast 18 months, one comes to the con- | | cluston that the major share of laurels |elongs to the engineers. At a time when | the sales and production departments | have been struggling with problems incident to adjusting distribution to reduced demand, the engineers have | introduced the merits of free-wheeling, | syncro-mesh and other transmission | improvements, as well offering lessened vibration in the car by en- | gine mountings and by adjustable con- | trol of shock absorbers. The engineers | have carried on. Further changes in transmission con- | trol are to come, if one may believe | the S. A. E. members. Recent im-| provements are the forerunners of | others, they assert. The gear shift as| the motorist has known it is doomed, they say. The operation of an auto- | mobile is to become more and more a | swift, silent function of automatic | precision. | Production for the automobile industry | for the month of October showg signs | of tapering off, which may bringa new | low for the year. There may be indi- | vidual instances against the-trend, but | 1931 is 1,875,000, made by R. L. Polk & | in the efforts | most of the manufacturers have no|Co. of Detroit. plans for increased schedules until next month, when models for the New York or more efficient methods of producing 'show will reccive attention. Buick has resumed activity at Flint, after its annual recess for inventory. Willys-Overland will undertake a pro- gram of manufacturing in excess of normal demandg during October and November to furnish as much em- ployment as possible during these or- dinarily slack months. s Sales Tmproving. Graham-Paige has been experiencing the benefit of an upturn in sales, whiie Dodge Brothers officially denies any plans to close two weeks for inventory, 5 had been reported in Detroit. Busi- ness for the Dodge Co. has continued at a satisfactory level and demands from dealers would make it impossible | to close, according to B. E. Hutchinson, vice president of the Chrysler Corpora- tlon. Ford production no doubt will be lower for October than it was in September. The same may be true for Chevrolet. Each company i placing orders for sizeable steel requirements for the first of the year. to have been sufficient to clear the way for any manufacturing adjustments necessary for substantial changes in the model A. The latest estimate of total sales for This a decided lon of similar est is September activity at the Ford, plant is believed | in the year, when it was assumed sales would not drop below the 2,000,000 mark. The sharp decline in sales is well revealed, however, by figures showing that for the first eight months of 1931 sales reached only 1,527,196, against 2,111,354 for this period in 1930 and 2,964,746 in 1929. Estimate of Sales. Previous to 1929, the eight months | from January to August accounted for about 75 per cent of the sales for the year. On this basis sales would ap- proximate 2,036,000 for 1931. However, in 1930 the first eight months accounted for 80 per cent of the total sales for the year. Statisticlans observe a close parallel in the sales curves for 1930 and 1931. Tt is reasonable to expect, there- fore, that the first eight months this year also absorbed 80 per cent of the year's total. On.this basis, the 1,875,000 figure would be correct. Franklin Motor Car Co. has an- nounced price reductions on its latest models. Devaux-Hall has reduced prices $10 on one of its models, while increas- ing prices $35 to $70 on its others, The | Devaux-Hall Co. reports current produc- | tion of 700 cars a month. (Copyright, 1031.) . Shanghai now has more Americans |and Europeans than any other city in [} NN N NN AN X ' ANANT AN ITTTIIRTIR R AN\ AN AN . AAAAARANE RN ARNRAARNRRA R R NNV AN N G0OD LEADERSHIP AIDS GRAIN MART Recent Advances Have Not Been Large, but Trading Is Broader. ~ BY FRANK I. WELLER, Assoclated Press Farm Editor. For the first time in many months the wheat market seems to have leader- ship on the constructive side. Prices have made only moderate ad- ;\‘nnces from tl new lows established | early in the weel, but trade was broader and it was apbparent that the constructive developments entering the wheat situation for many weeks past | were attracting more attention. There | is such evidence of enthusiasm in the grain markets and of influential buy- ing that many traders are of the opin 1931. fon that the market definitely has turned. Buying Orders Appehr. An outstanding feature is that buy- ing orders have followed the advance in prices and readily absorbed profit- taking and short sales. There is every indication that underlying conditions are strengthening the world over and that wheat prices are naturally react- ing from undue depreseion, largely lack of confidence. Fundaraental bullish in- fiuences long have been ored. While the advance in' the securities market and smaller receipts have much to do in strengthening cash wheat and futures, optimists must not discount the influence of reports that Russia may be on_the verge of export collapse. ‘These stories of Soviet trouble in collecting wheat and of a smaller Rus- sian crop than expected have been cur- rent for many weeks and usually refuted by subsequent developments. Russia has played such a tremendous part in the world market that every wheat ex- porting country is cheered by the faintést indication of the recession in her grain exports. There is an expression in the trade that Russia has a habit of bluffing im- portations in order to stimulate the market. Many are of the personal opinion. that Russia still has plenty of wheat for export besides that now afloat or stored unsold. connection it is well to recent h shipments apparently have exceeded current market requirements and stocks have accumulated in British and Northwestern European ports. Stocks in British ports now are more than twice as large as a year ago. Conti- nental markets are only moderately active and price changes are influenced mainly by the local situation in the various countries. Because of the poor financial position, which keeps European demand on a hand-to-mouth basis, it is well to give due credit for, the advance in domestic prices to the power of speculation which | has boosted stocks in the wake of President Hoover's plan to bolster American finances. Undoubtedly it will require liberal purchase in the immediate future to maintain this higher level in the grain markets. ‘There is, however, consider- able comfort in the fact that farmers are mot pressing sales and elevator houses are confent with the present carrying charge and willing to hold un- til the international wheat situation improves. Receipts at the principal Winter wheat markets showed a de- crease of more than 800 cars from the previous week, Smaller Production Seen. ‘To bolster the bull fever natural to any sharp falling off in the Russian shipments, which have been e menace to every other wheat-exporting country in the world, is the indication of smal production next year, ‘There are ine creased complaints of lack of surface moisture retarding Winter wheat seed- | ing in parts of Oklahoma, Kansas and | Nebraska. —Fully 9,000,000 scres are sald to have a poor Fall start.. Com- | mercial estimates place the German wheat crop at 16,000,000 bushels less I than the last official estimate, and the Argentine wheat acreage shows a de- crease of about 19 per cent, while there | @ppears to be a 32,000,000-bushel deficit | in the Australian crop coming to mar- | ket next month, Even if there should be no material | advance in prices at the present time, 2 steady market would create more confidence and more desire to make | purchases. If values remain around present levels, there should be heavy consumptive buying of wheat. That, | however, goes for corn, too, and a heavy | use of corn militates against the new practice of feeding wheat to. live stock. | The corn futures market has advanced frcm the new low levels reached earlier in the week, but primary receipts have | been running more than a million bushels larger than a year ago. JOINS VINSURANCE STAFF. | The Aetna Casualty & Surety Co. has announced the appointment of Walter J. L. Smith to its Washington | agency staff. He has had several years experience in this branch of insurance, § H A Tribute to 1200 Men and Women These are the 1200 pairs of hands that have made Hecht Month possible. These are the hands that symbolize 1200 smiling faces who have eagerly served you behind the counters and behind the scenes of this great store. These are 1200 loyal men and women who are now engaged in bitter battle “friendly enemies” as it were in a contest to serve you more happily and more conscientiously during Hecht Month than ever before. We believe that in business, trucks and bricks and merchandise are important material elements— but that the human equation counts more than all the rest. We are particularly proud of the spirit of these, our fellow workers, during Hecht Month ...the same spirit which-has kept our business ahead during the past months. The same spirit which has enabled us to employ more wage earners than ever before in our history. The same spirit which we hope will carry us on to even greater.heights and greater public of Washington. 310 F Sireet at 7th NAtional service for the people /