Evening Star Newspaper, October 20, 1935, Page 69

News of Markets Pages 1 to 4 Parc 514 Pages CLEARINGS MOUNT 31.1 PER CENT OVER, YEAR AGOIN . C. Week’s Gain of 6.8 Per Cent | Revealed by Commerce Department Survey. FLEMING TO ADDRESS BANKERS AT WILLARD Acceptances Indicate Fall Meet- ing of District Association Will Draw Large Attendance. BY EDWARD C. STONE. ‘Bank clearings in Washington dur- ing the week ended Wednesday re- vealed a gain of 31.1 per cent over the corresponding week a year ago and were also 6.8 per cent higher than in the previous week this year. according to the weekly survey of business in 33 important cities made by the Department of Commerce. Department store sales continued their substantial gains over the com- parable period last year, but showed a decrease of 19 per cent from the previous week. This was due to the warm weather which temporarily slowed up buying in late Fall goods always required as cold weather ap- proaches, the survey stated. New construction continued very active, the report states, with the value of building permits increasing 14 per cent over the previous week and 618 per cent over the same 1934 week. The influx of tourists as reflected by those visiting the Washington Monument during the past week pre- sented a total of 13,636, compared with 13200 for the previous week and 10864 for the same week last Fear. One of the most interesting reports from other points in the fifth dis- trict this week came from Norfolk, where a gain of 340 per cent in the value of residential building permits for the first nine months of 1935 was reported. In Baltimore the ideal Fall weather helped trade rather than hindering it. Big Bank Meeting Forecast. Acceptances indicate a large attend- ance at the Fall meeting of the Dis- trict of Columbia Bankers' Associa- tion tomorrow evening at the Willard Hotel. Of outstanding interest will be an explanation of the banking act of 1935 and ifs implications by Rob- ert V. Fleming, president of Riggs National Bank, who is first vice presi- dent of the American Bankers' As- sociation. Action will be taken upon a pro- posed amendment to the constitution relating to the safe deposit section of the association. Another item of gen- eral interest will be the report of a special committee on plans for the advancement of public relations. In addition, it is expected that there will be the presentation of insignia to the chairmen of the various sections of the association. Charles H. Doing, president of the @ssociation and first vice president of the Washington Loan & Trust Co., will preside. The Credit Managers will hold a luncheon Tuesday, October 22, in the | private dining room of Woodward & | Lothrop. The guest speaker will be James Rotto, promotior manager of | Lansburgh & Brothers, and the sub- Jject of his talk will be “What the | Promotion Managers Think of Credit.” It is anticipated that there will be a | large number present and the commit- tee asks those who wish to attend to phone for reservations to the Retail Credit Men's Association in the Earle Building. The regular monthly meeting of the safe deposit section of the District of Columbia Bankers' Assnciation will be held next Wednesday evening at 8 o'clock in the board room of the American Security & Trust Co. The chairman, Albert E. Fisher, will pre- side and members are asked to bring &ny unusual problems of their respec- tive departments before the assembly. The District of Columbia Safe De- Pposit Section has oeen invited to at- tend a meeting of {ae Maryland State Safe Deposit Association which will be held in Baltimore Wedresday eve- ning, October 30. Reservations for this meeting, which includes a “Dutch treat” dinner, must be made at the October 23 meeting here. More Women Study Banking. “Increasing interest in business and financial matters and greater consci- ousness of social responsibility are be- ing shown by women in this country,” said Miss S. Winifred Burwell, assist- ant trust officer of the National Metro~ politan Bank, in referring to the forth- coming convention of the Association of Bank Women to be held in New Or- leans November 10-13, in connection with which Miss Burwell is serving on the General Convention Committee. ‘The only other member of the Asso- ciation of Bank Women in Washing- ton is Mrs. Vera W. Rhine, auditor and assistant secretary of the Morris Plan Bank of Washington. On the Washington Stock Exchange yesterday Capital Traction 5s figured in four consecutive $1,000 sales at 97, unchanged from the last previ- ous transfer. Washington Gas Light bs also appeared on the board, $1,000 moving at 106%, up % point. Lans- ton Monotype récorded three small transfers, all at 64, a gain of half a point. Capital Transit stock closed the week with 18 bid and 19 asked. The ‘Washington Gas Light Co. will pay the regular quarterly dividend of 90 cents & share within the next few days. Charles R. Gay, president of the New York Stock Exchange, praised the smaller exchanges in an address in Chicago the other night. They have their own special value and use- fulness, he asserted. LOOSE-WILES EARNS PROFIT OF $1,022,247 By the Associated Press. NEW YORK, October 19.—Loose- ‘Wiles Biscuit Co. and subsidiaries, nine months ended September 30, net profit $1,022,247, against $1,043,698 in the like period last year. Corporation Earnings W YORK. October 19.—Corporate earnings reporis issued during the week, showing the results In earnings per share, included: Quarter Ended Setember 30. Amcr. Tel & Tel_ 2 51 General Electric. =3 1 S48 National Biscuit. Westinghouse EI Johns-Manville American Chicle__ 3 Year Ended September 30, Continental Can__ _.-$4.23 Quarter Ended Ausust 31. Douglas Aircraft__ e GBL Eight Months Ended Ausust 31. Amer. Tel & Tel. (including subsidiaries) Allis-Chalmers CONGRESSISURGED TOCREATE CENTRAL REAL ESTATE BANK Federal Mortgage Discount Institution Advocated by State Groups. By the Associated Press. CHICAGO, October 19—The Na- tional Association of Real Estate Boards announced today that 13 affili- ated State associations in recent con- ventions, had urged congressional ac- tion to create a central mortgage dis- count bank. Such an agency for mortgages is needed, the association asserted, to provide & market that would be open at all times. The various groups, said the asso- ciation, favor the proposa. of Senator Duncan U. Fletcher, Democrat, of Florida, which would authorize the establishment of a Federal mortgage discount bank, financed by private | funds but operated under govern- | mental supervision and control. “Given the one needed element of | marketability, Amer.can mortgage in- vestments of the years immediately | ahead will have such safety as has | never before been possible for any | private investment,” declared the na- tional association's president, Walter i S. Schmidt. Urban Sales at New Peak. | Urban real estate sales for Septem- | ber set a new “recovery" high, accord- 3 ing to reports compiled for the asso- | ciation from major cities in the coun- | try. } The compilation is composed of the number of voluntary transfers and was corrected for seasonal variations. | It showed the total number of sales | for September was 48.5 per cent of | the 1926 base figure. In the cities studied, a cross section of the urban real estate situation in the country as a whole, the tabulation | showed that the upturn of a long- | term curve in real estate sales began /in 1933 in the months immediately | following the bank holiday. Since ‘June of the present year there has | been no interruption of this upward | movement. Vacancies Disappear. | Schmidt said that with vacant | dwelling space disappearing, rents in metropolitan centers have risen for apartments to 56.7 per cent of the 1926 level and for single family dwell- ing to 82.3 per cent of the 1926 rate. “While construction costs rose sharply in 1933 and have not fallen,” Schmidt said “a chart would show the line of income return of existing buildings rapidly moving to cross and | top the line representing construction costs. “But meantime, new family accom- modations being constructed are as yet only 20.4 per cent of the 1926 vol- ume.” INVESTMENT COMPANY AVERAGES MOVE DOWN | Special Dispatch to The Star. NEW YORK, October 19.—The in- vestment companies common stock index dropped last week, as evidenced by the averages compiled by Distrib- utors Group, Inc. The average for the common stocks of 10 leading management companies influenced by the leverage factor stood at 15.15 at the close of October 18, compared with 1541 on Octo- ber 11. The average of the mutual funds closed at 12.55 on October 18, com- pared with 12.50 at the close of the previous week. e HOMES CONSTRUCTION FAR ABOVE YEAR AGO By the Associate Press. NEW YORK, October 19.—Value of permits issued for new residential construction in the principal cities of the United States in September showed a gain of 167.4 per cent ver the value of similar permits issued in the cor- responding month of 1934, according to an estimate by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Compared with the August value of permits the figures showed a decline of 8.2 per cent. Special Dispatch to The Star. NEW YORK, October 19.—The spread in market prices between rail- road and industrial securities is not justified and not consistent with the general expectation for more business for manufacturers, in the opinion of Adams & Peck. ““More business means more freight,” says a statement by this investment house, “and despite all forms of com- petition the railroads still get the lion’s share of the freight traffic and in’ our opinion they will for many years. “Gross earnings of many railroads in 1935 have shown increases, but be- cause of increased expense of mainte- nance, these have not always carried into net carnings. Carloadings in FINANCIAL AND CLASSIFIED he Sy Shw WASHINGTON, D. C, BRITISH STUDYING LEAGUE CRISIS AND COMING ELECTIONS Danger of War Is Realized. Cabinet Likely to Win on Defense Issue. FRENCH TRADE CURBED BY POLITICAL TENSION Business Lags 10% or More Be- hind Year Ago—Germany Skeptical of Sanctions. Special Dispatch to The Star. NEW YORK, October 19.—Cables | and radio dispatches to Business Week give the following survey of business abroad for the week ending today: LONDON.—“All Britain is inter- ested above everything else this week in.the question of spanking Signor Mussolini. A dozen harried League members have thrown up a score of reasons for not trying to enforce sanctions, but Britain is determined to do something. The outcome is a | question, for there are not a few peo- ple in London who realize that Italy may interpret economic sanctions as military sanctions at any time if any- thing like a blockade is attempted. | And that would surely mean war. “Next to the Ethiopian problem, | widest interest centers in the coming elections which, it seems now, will be | staged in mid-November. England has | been expecting a Fall election for a long time, but when trouble first start- ed to brew in the Mediterranean, it was thought they might be delayed. Socialist Split Helps. “Issues have changed. Even as re- cently as four months ago, the Na- tional government expected to appeal to the people on its recovery record. Today there is only one vital issue— rearmament. On this there is unity among all parties except the Socialists. “Their split is the best boost the Baldwin government could ask. Should | the Mediterranean situation drag along, the government has more than an even chance to win because of the British attitude that the present crisis | developed because the British had al- | lowed others to arm to the point where British force was not respected. “If the situation is more tense, the | National government is sure to be re- | turned.” French Business Drops. PARIS.—"France is disturbed over the Ethiopian crisis, but the real rea- son that business activity is running 10 per cent or more behind last ye: records is the internal political situ tion. “Left Wing parties are increasingly | active, and are the disturbing influ- ence, though they have no construc- tive program to offer. “Beginning with the elections sched- uled for next week, and continuing through the important convention of the Radical-Socialist party on Octo- ber 24, France is likely to feel more | and more the disturbing influence of politics.” Reich Is Skeptical. BERLIN.—“Though England is ob- | viously in dead earnest about economic sanctions, opinion here is skeptical | regarding their efficacy, considering Austrian and Hungarian opposition, Swiss reluctance to co-operate, French sabotage of the plan by consistently delaying it, and German aloofness. “The first small rise in unemploy- |ment came in September this year, a full month ahead of the seasonal de- cline last year. Security sales by pro- spective Jewish emigrants is avowedly 8 new bear factor in the decline of the stock market. The butter shortage is no longer critical because of large shipments which have been received from Denmark.” _ CRUDE OIL STOCKS OFF DURING WEEK Bureau of Mines Reports Drop of 1,433,000 Barrels in Pres- ent Supply. By the Associated Press. Stocks of domestic and foreign crude petroleum October 12 were reported by the Bureau of Mines at 303,162,000 barrels, a decline of 1,433,- 000 from the preceding week. Stocks of domestic petroleum drop- ped 946,000 barrels and foreign crude, 487,000 barrels. Daily average production was 2,835, 000, & gain of 60,000. Daily average imports were 82,000 barrels, compared with 81,000 the preceding week. Daily average crude runs to stills, which had declined materially during the preceding week, increased 40,000 barrels to 2,735,000. The bureau added: “That portion of total demand attributable to ex- ports, fuel and losses remained at a high level, indicating the continuation of heavy shipments aborad.” Rail Shares Continue to Lag Despite Improving Outlook September show some very large ad- vances, reaching the highest level for any comparable period since 1931. Some of these advances we expect to see translated into .mproved net earn- ings to be reported in the next few weeks. ““We believe operating efficiency has been increased and economies adopted which will enable further increases in carloadings to be carried to net in increasing amounts. “Should carloadings (in September, 1935, about 650,000 cars per week) approach even the 10-year average for September 1926-1935 (860,000 cars per week) we believe many roads not now earming fixed charges would soon show earnings on their stocks. We do mot look for Government ownership of rallroads in the United States.” WAR TALK EXERTS SLIGHT INFLUENCE ONU. 5. MARKETS Americans Center Attention on Domestic Situation. Stocks in Demand. CORPORATION EARNINGS CONTINUE TO IMPROVE Huge Excess Balances Constitute Problem for Reserve Board. Jobless Remain. BY CHARLES F. SPEARE. 8pecial Dispatch to The Star. |+ NEW YORK, October 19.—The in- fluence of arms spending and warlike | tendencies abroad on speculative and investment sentiment here has not | been important. Americans are concerned with their own affairs; more and more they re- sist any suggestion that they become parties to a European dispute. Stocks have at intervals been notably strong in a market whose volume has glad- dened the hearts of brokers. The demand from the public for their favorite issues has increased. Tipsters, who have been ignored for months, find their predictions eagerly | sought after. It is a question whether the present interest in stocks represents a response | to more promising earnings by cor- | porations or is another of the many phases, in the past two and a half | years, of hedging against the possi- | bility of credit inflation. If the latter | 1s true, how may one explain the fact [of & heavy absorption of new public {uumy refunding bonds at top prices {of the year, the recovery in all of the | direct obligations of the Treasury to above par and a strengthening along the entire line of municipal and cor- poration issues, when inflation is sup- posedly the enemy of this type of se- curities? Excess Reserves Huge. The excess reserves of the banks are so huge that they constitute a prob- lem for the Federal Reserve authori- ties. They have been expanded by the unexpected gold imports which are now approaching a total of $400,000,- 000 since the movement began six weeks ago. While there has been some increase in the. demand for commer- cial loans to balance the rise in prices of many raw materials and to cover expar®ing inventories, this has made but little impression on the vast stores of unemployed, or sterile, capital in the banks. | ‘The Anaconda Copper Co. financing this week was mainly for the purpose of liquidating bank loans. So long as so little new money, representing the deposits of the public in the banks, goes into business in the form of pri- vate loans, will there be a plethoric Institutional policy of buying short- of 1 per cent. Industrial Outlook Better. Casting up the industrial account as |it stands today, one finds much for | which to give thanks. THe deeply | abused public utility companies are producing the greatest amount of elec- | tric power in their history. It is sig- | nificant that the highest percentage of their gain over a year ago is in the | central portion of the United States, where manufacturing is the chief oc- cupation. Present indications point to an out- put of 900,000 automobiles in the De- history. Iron and steel production is 52 per cent of capacity, compared with 23% per cent last year at this date and 31.6 per cent in the third week of October, 1933. It is expected to reach 55 per cent during November. Railroad car loadings just reported show an increase of 15 per cent over 8 year ago. Bank clearings are up more than 20 per cent. Retail sales this month will run from 10 to 15 per cent over October, 1934, comparing with an increase in September of less than 10 per cent. Profits on this turnover are said to be rising. ‘Turning to individual companies, we have the reports this week of the two great electrical companies, whose nine months’ sales ran 20 per cent in ex- cess of those in 1934, with substantial improvement in the amount of net income. The statement of the Ameri- can Telephone & Telegraph Co. for the January-September period indi- cates & gain of about 300,000 in the number of phones used. However, there must be a considerable better- ment in this situation to cover the re- quirements of the present 9 per cent dividend on the outstanding capital stock of the corporation. Since 1931, when & surplus of slightly over $3,000,000 was earned, the company has paid from surplus, to its share- holders, approximately $135,000,000, representing the difference between earnings and disbursements. The domestic situation would be more comforting if one were able to produce substantial facts showing an improvement in the unemployment figures. It is clear that the efforts to put men back to work through the use of Federal funds have not been successful. The Winter is coming on with a huge army of those for whom some form of relief must be provided. Seasonal Lull Likely. The peak in railroad traffic, in building construction and, probably, in automobile production, will be reached in the next 60 days. After that, a seasonal lull is likely to occur. At the same time, a reduction in the number of those engaged in the vari- ous Federal services must be made if serious measures are taken to bring the national budget into balance. This is the most perplexing problem facing the administration and one whose so- lution is not now apparent. It is com- plicated by the rising cost of living and by such social disturbances as may develop from the proposed advance in the price of bread. (Copyright, 1935, by the North American ‘Newspaper Alliance.) RAIL ORDER EXPECTED. NEW YORK, October 19 (#).—Rail- way Age says the National Railways of Mexico is inquiring for 10 express ml!mu‘mru_. 1 condition and & continuation of the | cember quarter, one of the largest | for the three months in automotive | SUNDAY MORNING, OCTCBER 20, 1935. Classified Ads Pages 5 to 13 SOME DAY THERE’LL COME A GREAT FLOOD = - \\\ \ S s S REVIVAL FORECAST IN FOREIGN TRADE T. J. Watson Sees Return to Normalcy After Survey of Europe. A “period of recovery” for this country, accompanied by world-wide improvement which will lead to a revival of normal world trade rela- term securities at & yield of a fraction | t10nS: 13 foreseen by Thomas J. Wat- son, chairman of the American sec- tion of the International Chamber of Commerce, who completed his survey in Europe recently. Mr. Watson, here to attend con- ferences as the head of the Foreign Trade Committee of the Business Ad- visory and Planning Council, beli | that “the revival of normal trade rela- tions between the United States and other countries will prove a major factor. in creating & more stable pros- perity, in the period ahead, than we have ever enjoyed before. “We should rebuild our foreign trade far above the level of 1929,” he pre- dicts, “when we led the world with ex- ports of more than $5,000,000,000 a year in American goods and imported $4,300,000,000 of foreign products. “The trade agreements our State Department has been negotiating with 18 countries during the last year have demonstrated it is feasible to revise trade barriers and to increase employ= ment through the stimulus given to the exchange of goods and services be- tween nations.” Cites Upturns After Panics. Mr. Watson's view that forzign trade is the key to stable prosperity grows out of broad experience mn American busi- ness and world markeéts. He is a director of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and a former president of the Merchants’ Association. As president of the International Business Machine Corp., which he organized in 1914, he has exported American goods to 78 countries. “I have studied the history of all the depressions we have had in this country,” Mr. Watson comments, “and find that following every panic we be- came more prosperous and forged ahead with shorter working hours and higher wages. “Notwithstanding recurring depres- sions, our per capita consumption grew to be seven times as great as that of the rest of the world. From 1860 down to 1929 the average wages of industrial workers increased from $288 to $1,325 a year and the work- ing day was cut from 16 to a standard of 8 hours a day.” Growing Opportunities Seen. “Here in the United States,” he said, “we have 6 per cent of the world’s population and normally pro- duce nearly half of the world’s man- ufactured goods. We consume 90 per cent of the goods we produce. This leaves the other 94 per cent of the world’s population open to us for trade. “Now that our industrial machine is speeding up again, the volume of our imports must inevitably increase in the very near future. It is abso- lutely necessary for us to purchase large quantities of foreign products every year in order to keep American factory wheels turning.” —_—— IMPORTANT DiVIDEND MEETINGS SCHEDULED By the Associated Press. NEW YORK, October 19.—Important dividend meetings scheduled next week include those of Burroughs Add- ing Machine, Diamond Match, Nor- folk & Western Railway, United Gas Improvement, Liggett & Myers Tobac- co, United Biscuit, Ingersoll Rand and Frooport Texss 9&. & | Sterling Goes Up As Tension Eases, | Gold Units Mixed | By the Associated Press. | A strong upward movement in| British pound sterling as a result of | a turn for the better in the African| war situation, was the principal fea- ture of foreign exchange trading yes- terday. ‘The British unit advanced 1% cents in New York to $4.92 after the dollar had slipped somewhat in London to| 4917-16 to the pound sterling. | The trend of gold currencies was | { mixed. The French franc rose .00% | €ral subsidence of price-cutting has | | of a cent in New York to 6.59!3 cents, | Italian lira yielded .01 of a cent to | 81213 cents, Holland guilders declined | | .03 of a cent to 67.83 cents and Swiss | francs declined .01 of a cent to 32.56 | | cents. The dollar was steady in Paris | at an equivalent of 6.59 cents. | | _ Based on the franc at its final New | York rate the dollar was at a premium | of 64-100 of 1 per cerit compared with | 66-100 Friday and 74-100 a month ago. 'ACACIA EXECUTIVE TRANSFERRED HERE | Manager of Cincinnati Branch Shifted to Field Department in Home Office. Transfer of A. R. Mead from the post of manager of the Cincinnati branch of the Acacia Mutual Life Insurance Co. to the field department of the company in i yesterday. Mr. Mead was graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1922. From i that date until coming to Acacia in 1930 he con- tinued in the United States Navy, serving as & naval aviator. Toward the close of the period he was assigned as aide to the chief of the Bureau of Aeronautics here. From the start of his employment with Acacia he was engaged mainly in field work. After two years in the home office he was transferred to Cincinnati to take charge of the branch there. At that time it had six agents. It now has twelve, four of them being members of the 1932 group. Ten of the twelve are mem- bers of the Willlam Montgomery Quality Club. A. R. Mea BY CLAUDE A. JAGGlidl,m . 35, by the Associat s5. (Co m-m.Ylgs bl tics of the week provided widespread evidence that the business pendulum is swinging to new high levels along the recovery arc. Electric power production reached another record high. The movement of freight swelled to the highest level since this month four years ago, when the pendulum was beginning its most rapid downward swing. Recovery still is most pronounced in consumers goods, with such lines as cigarettes, rayon and wool con- sumptién reaching post-war records this year, But the pronounced stir- rings in building, heavy machinery and other durable goods industries suggest to many analysts that a new and more important phase of the re- covery cycle may be starting. ‘The Associated Press seasonally ad- justed weekly index of industrial ac- ;m.um‘mm.wfl- P & S IPRICECUTS CURBED BY TIRE INDUSTRY Big Sales Firms Refuse to| Meet Slashes in New York Area. By the Associated Press. NEW YORK, October 19.—A gen- placed the automobile tire price struc- ture here on a somewhat firmer foun- dation, it was reported in tire trade circles today. Earlier in the month the market was unsettled by reported offers of heavy discounts t certain commer- cial interests operating fleets of trucks and delivery cars. - Such price slashing, attributed to some of the smaller distributors, has | gradually faded as a factor, it was said, due to the refusal of the larger selling units to meet the cuts. The business booked at the cut prices was small and generally of a character not sought by the larger dealers, according to tire authorities. KAYSER BOARD VOTES DIVIDEND OF 25 CENTS By the Associated Press. NEW YORK, October 19.—Directors of Julius Kayser & Co. have declared a dividend of 25 cents on the common stock, payable November 30 to stock of record November 13. On Septem- ber 10 a dividend of 65 cents was paid, while on February 15, 1935, & pay- ment of 25 cents was made. ‘The company and affiliates report for quarter ended September 30 net profit of $216,981 after taxes, interest, depreciation, etc., equal, after dividend requirements on employes’ preferred stock, to 52 cents a share on the cap- ital stock. This compares with $94,- 132, or 21 cents a share, in the Sep- tember quarter last year. ARMOUR TAKES OVER DECKER & SONS’ PLANT By the Associated Press. CHICAGO, October 19.—R. H. Ca- bell, president of Armgur & Co., an- nounced his firm would take over the Jacob E. Decker & Sons packing plant at Mason City, Iowa., and the Decker branch houses today. Armour contracted to purchase the Decker properties last August 21, but the transfer of ownership was de- layed by legal formalities. “The change in ownership will not disturb the operation of the Decker plant,” Cabell said. Statistics Indicate Upswing To New Peaks for Recovery mated the recovery peak reached last February. But all factors in the index were well ahead of that time, save automobile and steel production. The automobile industry, one of the biggest users of steel, is just getting started with its 1936 models. It ex- pects to have assembly lines running at a merey pace within a few weeks. The index, based on 1929-30 as 100, reached 77.0, compared with 73.1 the previous week, and only 61.1 at this time last year. Last February it touched 77.3., This index, together with the sea- sonally adjusted indices for its six component factors, all based on 1929- 30 as 100, follows: Latest Previous Year Week. ~ Week. 0. Composite .. 7.0 7 Bl Automobile p: .0 Steel mill activif 67.6 £ tton mfg. activity_ 93.4 3 Electric power 016 Resi lfl!n’ bldg. Bl i ) 3.4 8 8! 1, 1 7’ 9.8 INDUSTRY ACTIVE BUT RETAIL SALES LAGIN SOME AREAS Factory Activity Jumps. Weather Blamed for Buy- ing Declines. ORDERS AT WHOLESALE CENTERS STILL CLIMB Store Volumes Drop at New York, St. Louis and San Francisco. Other Cities Gain. BY RADER WINGET, Associated Press Financial Writer. Uneven gains and some recessions in retail trade last week because of unseasonable weather were over= shadowed by statistics indicating pro- nounced acceleration of industrial ace tivity. Consumers increased their pure chases in such Federal Reserve dise tricts as Cleveland and Kansas City; trade was well sustained in Chicago and Atlanta, but decreases were res corded because of weather conditions in New York, St. Louis and San Frane cisco sections. Nevertheless, the reaction was ree garded as minor since in recent weeks the volume of retail trade has ex- panded markedly to a level that is some 10 to 15 per cent ahead of the same period of 1934. Prospects for continuation of the movement, experts in the field declare, remain unclouded. Buying of goods at wholesale was brisk. Industrial Index Soars. The Associated Press index of ine dustrial activity, adjusted for seasonal variations, spurted to 77 per cent of the 1929-30 average last week from 73.1 per cent the previous week, and approximating the recovery peak of 77.3 reached last February. The Department of Commerce, in its survey of 33 key cities for the |week ended Wednesday, declared: | “Fall buying in the retail trade suf- fered a material setback throughout the greater part of the country during the week as a result of warm, une seasonable weather and the (Colume bus day) holiday interruption. “For the most part, however, retail sales continued at safe margins above the same week last year. “Wholesale lines were only slightly affected by adverse weather and the holiday interruption * * *.” The automobile industry continued its step-up in production schedules in preparation for Fall model intro- duction. Price adjustments were announced by a few manufacturers and indicated a lowering of the highest rates and a slight upward tendency of the lowest | figures. Steel Operations Gain. Steel makers operated their plants at 504 per cent of capacity, up .7 jof 1 per centage point from the pre- | vious week. Authoritative trade sources report demand fo- automobile require- | ments is well sustained, but & shade ing was noted in a few other lines. Freight carloadings for the week ended October 12 touched a new high since October of 1931 at a level of 734274, a gain of more than 15 per cent over the same week of 1934. The | previous week, loadings totaled 706, 877 cars. | Most of the addition was ascribed | to mounting coal shipments, but there also was a greater movement of other key commodities and merchandise 1o market. Electric power preduction for the same week set another new all-time | high with an output of 1,867,127,000 kilowatt hours. Appliance Sales Climb. Coincident with that record, the manufacturers of electric appliances were credited with the mest active October business in six years. Pointed |to as significant were the sales of | heavy household equipment as well as the lighter and cheaper items. On the financial side of the picture, third-quarter earnings reports of mae jor corporations, now being made pube lic, indicated greater profits were be= ing made than at the seme time last year. Because of the influx of gold from jittery European quarters and because of United States Treasury payments, excess reserves of member banks in the Federal Reserve System again established & new all-time high of $2,910,000,000. The amount provides an unprecedented credit base for American industry, standing ready for use when, as and if needed. Detailed Reports Given. Detailed reports from individuad Federal Reserve districts follow: BOSTON.—Print goods orders were heavy in New England with fears of & price raise expressed, and practically all fabrics were bought in quantities, The turnover in hides showed an ade vance, and wool continued to move freely with volume above average. NEW YORK.—Retaii trade in the metropolitan district receded because of warm weather, but wholesale cen= ters were active. More buyers wers present and records from other sece tions were heavy. Spring lines of dry goods were stocked widely. PHILADELPHIA. —Early October business gains were sustained. De- mand was noted for better quality clothing and buying of leather goods and house furnishings expanded, Bankers report more queries for work= ing funds, but loans were slow. CLEVELAND.—Buying by the auto= mobile industry gave strong support to steel, rubber, glass and parts indus- tries, although the volume was not so large as expected. Brisk weather aided apparel sales, and retail trade was up over the previous week. RICHMOND.—Such indicators of business as bank clearings, electric power production, construction and bank debits pointed upward. Retail trade wilted somewhat under unsea- sonable warmth. September building permits were about double a year ago. ATLANTA.—With heavy sales in Fall lines, retail trade held its own at a volume considered good by mere chants. Birmingham steel productiom ‘was at 58 7 per cent of capacity, the best level June, A