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A g r ic u l t u r a l a t® B u s in e s s C o n d it io n s IN THE TWELFTH FEDERAL RESERVE DISTRICT Monthly Report to the Federal Reserve Board by JOHN PERRIN, Chairman of the Board and Federal Reserve Agent Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco " ■ ■■- " ....----------------- --------------------------------- ------■ - = = = .■ = Vol. VI M San Francisco, California, September 16, 1922 A R K E D activity in industry, w hich, in th is d istrict is largely concerned w ith th e p rim ary handling of raw m aterials, continued d u ring A u g u st and the first p a rt of Septem ber. D em and has increased for both skilled and unskilled labor, p articu larly farm w orkers, experienced copper m iners, and skilled building trad es artisan s, a shortThe Month age of one or m ore of these classes of w orkm en having de veloped in a few sections. In one of th e copper m ining d istricts of A rizona, m ining com panies have recently announced a v o luntary increase of 10 per cent in wages. T he lumber ind u stry is 50 per cent m ore ac tive th an it w as a year ago, and both dom estic and foreign m arkets are bu ying in large quan tities. T he forest fire hazard, w hich has been p articu larly serious th is year due to the long d ry season, was dispelled by general rains d u r ing A u g u st and logging activity increased im m ediately. P rod uction of logs on Septem ber 1st w as estim ated to be 75 per cent of norm al com pared w ith 40 per cent on A u g ust 1st. I n creased o u tp u t of all of the principal metals produced in th is district, gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc, is show n by figures for Ju ly w hich are the latest available. R eports from th e m ining d istricts indicate continued im provem ent du ring A ugust. D em and for all of these m etals has increased d uring the p ast year and prices have risen accordingly. F u r th e r evidence of increased activ ity in lum ber ing and m ining is contained in the repo rts of the principal electric power com panies of the district. In July, 1922, electric pow er com panies in th e Pacific N o rth w est increased th eir sales to the lum ber in d u stry 20 per cent over July, 1921, and, in the district as a whole, sales to th e m ining in d u stry w ere 18.7 per cent g re ater in July, 1922, th an in July, 1921. R ecords of production and of stored stocks of petroleum in C alifornia w ere again broken during A ugust. A verage daily production at 382,221 barrels w as the highest figure ever reached and stored stocks on S eptem ber 1st at 54,272,194 barrels, w ere larger th an a t any tim e in the p ast five years. T he num ber of building permits issued d u ring A u g u st w as g re ater th an in any m onth since records w ere first assem bled in 1915, and the value of projected construction has been exceeded only twice, in A pril and Ju ne of this year. F avorable reports come from the retail trade. T he value of sales of 31 representative d ep art m ent stores in A ugust, 1922, w as 5.7 per cent g reater th an in A ugust, 1921, and approxi m ately equal to the value of sales of th e same stores in A ugust, 1920. T h e seasonal increase in activ ity custom ary in m any wholesale lines d uring the first w eeks of autum n w as noted. Seven of the 10 rep o rtin g lines experienced in creases in the value of th eir sales in A ugust, 1922, com pared w ith A ugust, 1921. C harges to depositors’ accounts (bank debits) in the banks of th e 20 principal cities of the district w ere 7.7 per cent g re ater in A ugust, 1922, th an in A ug ust, 1921, a less favorable show ing th an in July, 1922, w hen an increase of 12 per cent over the corresponding m onth a year ago w as reported, b u t indicating th a t business activity generally has not been m aterially curtailed by the recent coal and railroad strikes. Business failures continue above norm al levels. W e ath er conditions up to Septem ber 15th rem ained favorable for the agricultural crops of the district, and the h arv est is expected to yield, in m ost cases, norm al or larger th an norm al quantities. F orecasts of th e 1922 yield of w h eat rem ain unchanged at 98,000,000 bushels, 24,000,000 bushels less th an was p ro duced in 1921, b u t slightly in excess of the fiveyear average production. M ovem ent of this season’s crop to m arket up to Septem ber 15th T hose desiring this report sent them regularly w ill receive it without charge upon application np No. 9 Agricultural and Business Conditions 154 has been u n usually slow. Flour mills are now grin d in g new crop w heat and in A ugust, 1922, operated at 47.2 per cent of capacity com pared w ith 28.7 per cent in July, 1922, and 43.0 per cent in A u g ust, 1921. T h e carlot m ovem ent of fru it from C alifornia to S eptem ber 11, 1922, w as larg er th a n last year to the sam e date but prices received have averaged low er th an in 1921. S hortage of refrig erato r cars is hindering shipm ent of th e large grape crop. T h e U n ited S tates B ureau of L abor index n um ber of wholesale prices, w hich includes 404 com m odities in all stages of m anufacture, re m ained unchanged a t 155 in A ugust. T his index has increased 12 per cent since Jan u ary , 1922, w hen it stood a t 138. In a selected group of p ro d u cts of th is d istrict advances and de clines in prices d u rin g the m onth w ere alm ost equally divided. A n increased dem and for bank credit ap peared in th e larg e r cities of the d istrict during A ugust. C om m ercial loans of 68 rep o rtin g m em ber banks increased from $700,138,000 on A u g u st 9th to $709,934,000 on S eptem ber 6th or 1.4 per cent. T h e sam e banks had redis counts and bills payable w ith the Federal R eserve B ank am o u n tin g to $13,025,000 on S eptem ber 6th com pared w ith $9,362,000 on A u g u st 9th. C ountry banks, as a group, on the co n trary, reduced th eir borrow ings from this bank d u rin g the m onth and on Septem ber 13th the to tal discounts of the F ederal R eserve B ank w ere $38,000 below the $43,388,000 held on A u g u st 16th. Interest rates charged th eir custom ers by banks in the principal cities of the d istrict rem ained unchanged at Syi to 7 per cent in the large coast cities and 7 per cent in the in terio r centers. H a rv e stin g and th resh in g of w heat pro gressed rapidly d u rin g A ugust. E stim ates of the 1922 yield of w h eat in this d istrict show little change from a m onth ago, the Grains U nited S tates D e p artm en t of A gricul tu re on S eptem ber 1st forecasting a yield of 98,191,000 bushels. In 1921, 122,035,000 bushels w ere produced. D ealers in the Pacific N o rth w est now estim ate th a t the com m ercial crop of w heat in O regon, W a sh in g to n and Idaho will to tal approxim ately 5 0 ,0 0 0 ,0 0 0 bushels. O f this am ount 18,000,000 bushels are necessary to supply estim ated dom estic re quirem ents, leaving approxim ately 32,000,000 bushels available for export. M ovem ent of 1922 crop w heat to term in al concentration points has been unusually slow. R eceipts of w h eat a t th e principal m arkets in the Pacific N o rth w e st d u rin g Ju ly and A u g u st, the first tw o m onths of th e 1922-1923 crop season, have to taled 5,668 carloads, as com pared w ith receipts of 10,964 carloads d u rin g the sam e period of the previous season. E x p o rt m ovem ent of w h eat from P o rtla n d and P u g e t Sound since th e beginning of the p resen t crop year has been sm all, as show n by th e follow ing figures : EX P O R TS O F W H E A T July 1 to Sept. 1 1922 (bushels) July 1 to Sept. 1 1921 (bushels) P o r tla n d .................................... 1,712,394 P u get S o u n d ............................ 415,242 9,024,000 4,306,000 T otal ...................................... 2,127,636 13,330,000 F arm ers are reported to be re lu c ta n t to sell th eir w h eat at prices now obtaining, and buyers, p artic u la rly for th e ex p o rt trade, have offered prices low er th a n those nom inally p re vailing in Pacific C oast m arkets. H a rd w hite w heat has been quoted in N o rth w e stern m ar kets d u rin g th e first tw o w eeks of S eptem ber at prices ra n g in g from $1.05 to $1.08 per bushel, approxim ately 10 cents per bushel below com parable quo tatio n s d u rin g Septem ber, 1921. T he bulk of th e 1922 crop of barley in th is d istrict has been h arvested and threshed. A to tal yield of 46,828,000 bushels is forecasted, as com pared w ith 39,148,000 bushels produced in 1921. D ealers estim ate th a t the com m ercial crop of barley in C alifornia will to tal 800,000 tons (33,600,000 bushels) d u rin g th e 1922 season, as com pared w ith 650,000 tons (27,300,000 bushels) harv ested in 1921. R eceipts of barley at San Francisco, and ex ports from th a t p o rt d u rin g the p resen t crop (barrels) (barrels) Per Cent M ill Capacity in Operation A ug., July, A ug., 1922 1922 1921 California ........................................... Idaho ................................................... O r e g o n .............................................. . W ashington ...................................... 10 3 19 21 10 2 19 24 259,657 13,663 122,129 276,204 151,739 7,662 87,196 165,327 61.4 70.0 34.6 44.0 35.9 65.0 25.0 25.3 47 45 41 42 D i s t r i c t ................................................ 53 55 671,653 411,924 47.2 28.7 43 (A) M illing N o . M ills Reporting A ug.. 1922 July, 1922 -O u t p u t Aug.,1922 July, 1922 155 Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco season have been sm aller th an durin g the sam e period of the preceding season, as show n by the follow ing fig u re s: July 1 to Sept. 1 1922 July 1 to Sept. 1 1921 (bushels) (bushels) R eceipts .................................... 4,304,286 E xports .................................... 4,682,622 5,976,722 6,827,108 B arley prices in th e San F rancisco m arket have declined slig h tly d u rin g the p ast m onth. S hipping barley is now, S eptem ber 15th, quoted a t $1.20 to $1.30 per cental, as com pared w ith % \27y2 to $1.35 per cental on A u g u st 15th. F lo u r m illers are now g rin d in g new crop w h eat in large quantities, and a m arked in crease in m illing activ ity w as reported in A ug u st as com pared w ith July. R eportM illing ing m ills operated at 47.2 per cent of capacity d u rin g A ugust, 1922, com pared w ith 28.7 per cent of capacity during Ju ly , 1922, and 43 per cent of capacity d uring A u g u st, 1921 (see table “A ”). E x p o rt dem and for flour from th e Pacific C oast is reported to be im proving, b u t w ith o u t effect on th e price. T h e dom estic m ark et for flour w as dull d u rin g A ugust, and prices tended MILLION BUSHELS MILLION BUSHELS O o 9 c. 2 1 1 o O thousano ba r r e LS THOUSANO £ÏARR 900 '900 700 700 F'LCHJR. T öut JPUT* 0 * -, 500 500 v ■>( v' STO ck S V f. \ 300 300 V "FLO UR. 100 100 V s TOCKS OF y*/HEAT / 1920 1921 1922 M onthly Flour Output, and Stocks of Wheat and Flour at E n d of M onth, of 16 Reporting M illing Companies to follow th e dow nw ard m ovem ent of prices for new crop w heat. P rices for hard w hite m ill ing w heat in O regon and W ash in g to n m arkets are reported to be above the general level of prices for com parable grades of w heat in E a s t ern m ark etin g centers. M illing activ ity in this d istrict d u rin g th e p ast tw o crop seasons, as indicated by com parable reports from 16 large m illing com panies, is show n in th e accom panying chart. W ith th e exception of su g ar beets and hay, yields of the principal field crops in this d istrict during th e 1922 season will be larg e r th an d u r ing the 1921 season (see table “ B ”). Field T h e crops of potatoes and beans show Crops large i n c r e a s e s over th e p r e v i o u s season. A 1922 yield of 42,493,000 bushels of potatoes is forecasted, as com pared w ith 35,371,000 bushels harvested in 1921. T he bean crop is expected to to tal 5,697,000 bushels com pared w ith 3,902,000 bushels produced last year. W e ath er conditions have been favorable for the g ro w th of practically all crops d u rin g the season. E arly harv est re tu rn s indicate large yields per acre. C otton, beans and rice have advanced in price since a year ago. P rices for th e m ajority of the rem aining field crops in th e d istrict are now slightly low er th a n they w ere last year at this tim e. T he dom estic dem and for hops is reported to be sm all, and foreign dem and is ham pered by legislation in the U nited K in g dom re stric tin g im ports of th a t product. T he m ovem ent of fresh deciduous fruits from C alifornia d u rin g A u g u st w as large, despite tem p o rary em bargoes on the shipm ent of p er ishable products, caused by railroad Fruits strike conditions. T o tal shipm ents of deciduous fru its from California d u r ing the 1922 season to S eptem ber 11th, am ounted to 18,840 cars, as com pared w ith (B) Grains and F ield Crops—Twelfth Federal Reserve D istrict — U n it W h e a t ...................................... B a r le y ...................................... Oats ........................................ C o r n ......................................... H a y .......................................... P o t a t o e s .................................. Beans ...................................... Rice, pad d y............................. Sugar B e e ts ........................... H o p s ........................................ C otton (Short S ta p le )....... C otton (L o n g S ta p le )........ *C om m ercial estim ates. u “ “ “ <( Forecasted Yields 1922 Final Estimate of Yields 1921 98,191,000 46,828,000 29,263,000 11,817,000 14,748,000 42,493,000 5,697,000 3,779,550 1,554,000 31,838,000 69,000 37,000 122,035,000 39,148,000 34,343,000 11,599,000 16,115,000 35,371,000 3,902,000 3,280,500 2,578,000 29,140,000 40,641 37,094 Farm Value Per U n it August, August, August, 1922 1921 1920 $0.97 0.49 0.35 0.64 10.97 1.14 4.29 *2.75 *6.50 .09 (per lb.) .20 (per lb.) *.34 $1.04 0.49 0.33 0.61 11.73 1.36 2.75 *2.25 *6.44 .15 .09 *.30 $2.32 1.21 0.81 1.63 20.89 3.02 4.47 *4.00 *12.42 .50 .36 *.75 Agricultural and Business Conditions 156 17,589 cars shipped d u rin g th e 1921 season to S eptem ber 11th. W ith the exception of grapes, sh ip m ent of fru it from C alifornia has been alm ost com pleted. Forecasted Shipments Total Shipments Shipments to Sept. 11, During 1922 to Sept. 11, 1922 1921 Season A pricots .. . Cherries .. . A ll Grapes. . P eaches . . . . P e a r s ......... P lum s Total Shipments During 1921 Season (cars) (cars) (cars) (cars) 193 502 7,462 2,254 4,861 3,473 193 502 40,000 2,265 5,000 3,500 285 665 6,515 3,334 3,611 3,099 285 665 28,259 3,334 4,160 3,099 51,460 17,589* 40,072 T otal . . . . 18,840* *T otal includes shipm ents o f m ixed carlo ts of fru it. A sh o rtag e of refrig erato r cars, due to in te r ru p ted re tu rn m ovem ents from th e E ast, has recen tly becom e serious. O n S eptem ber 15th th e su p ply of re frig erato r cars w as reported to be insufficient for the needs of shippers of grapes, th e sh o rtag e in som e sections being as high as 75 per cent of estim ated requirem ents.. U nless th e situ atio n im proves m any grow ers will suffer serious losses. O n S eptem ber 1st, the C alifornia P ru n e and A pricot G row ers announced opening prices for prunes of the 1922 crop. T h e p ric e s ,n a m e d w ere y 2 to 1% cents per pound h ig h er th a n opening prices in 1921, as show n in th e follow ing ta b le : B A S IS O P E N I N G P R IC E S F O R P R U N E S I N B U L K (Sunsweet Brand) Size 1922 Crop 1921 Crop (per pound) (per pound) 30/40 ............................... 1 40/50 ............................... s y 2 50/60 ............................... 7y2 60/70 ............................... 7 0 9t 8 654 6 A fter confirm ing advance sales at th e fore going prices, the A ssociation advanced prices cent per pound for all grades of prunes. T he California A lm ond G row ers E xchange nam ed opening prices on 1922 crop alm onds d u rin g th e second w eek of Septem ber. T he 1922 prices w ere sligh tly higher th an the prices nam ed one year ago. O P E N I N G P R IC E S F O R C A L I F O R N I A A L M O N D S Variety 1922 Crop 1921 Crop (pei pound) (per pound) N onpareil ............................... 25# I. X. L ....................................... 24 N e Plus .................................. 22 23# 23 21 S hipm ents of citrus fru its from C alifornia d uring A ugust, 1922, w ere sm aller th a n d u rin g the sam e m onth a year ago. E a ste rn m ark ets w ere reported to be over-supplied w ith oranges d u rin g th e m onth and prices for this fru it de clined. H o t w eath er d u rin g A u g u st created a stro n g dem and for lem ons, available supplies in E astern m arkets w ere sm all, and prices ac cordingly rose. A verage re tu rn s to m em bers of th e C alifornia F ru it G row ers E x ch an g e for citrus fru its m arketed d u rin g A u g u st, 1922, com pared w ith average re tu rn s in Ju ly , 1922, and A ugust, 1921, w ere reported as follow s : F resh fru it prices in E a ste rn m arkets have been unstable d u rin g A ugust. G enerally, sup plies of fru it have been large, and price levels low, except w hen artificial shortages have re sulted from tem p o rary tra n sp o rta tio n em bar goes. P e a r shipm ents have been large and fairly profitable, until a recent heavy m ove m en t of this fru it from O regon and W ash in g ton, as well as C alifornia, depressed prices in E a ste rn m arkets. T ra d in g in dried and canned fru its has been light d u rin g the p ast m onth. T he general tren d of prices in E a ste rn m arkets has been dow n w ard, b u t on the Pacific C oast, prices, w ith few exceptions, have rem ained at previous levels. August, 1922 July, 1922 August,1921 (per box) (per box) (per box) $5.62 2.99 $3.59 2.90 O ranges ........................... $4.94 L em ons ............................ 3.69 P a stu re s and ranges th ro u g h o u t th e Pacific N o rth w e st and In term o u n ta in sections of th e d istrict, w hich had previously suffered from dro u g h t, w ere g re atly benefited by Livestock show ers d u rin g the la tte r p a rt of A ugust. F eed is now relativ ely plentiful in m ost sections and livestock g en er ally are rep o rted to be thriving. G rass fatten ed cattle and sheep from th e m ountain ranges are now m oving to m arket. R eceipts of cattle and calves at th e principal Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 157 m arkets of th e d istrict d u rin g A u g u st w ere norm al in am o u n t for this season of the year (see tab le “ C” ). R eceipts of sheep w ere com p arativ ely sm all, am o u n tin g to 216,507 head in th e eig h t m arkets of th e district, as com pared w ith 321,248 head received durin g A ugust, 1921, a reduction of 32 per cent. R eceipts of hogs w ere larg e r th an in A ugust, 1921, as they have been in all previous m onths of the pres en t year w hen com pared w ith corresponding m onths a y ear ago. L ivestock prices in the principal m arkets of TH O U S A N D S Ann TH O U S A N D S 1» > ;« s•s H E E P t• * • .A « i f" i /V • • • vl * t \» : ■ 360 320 280 240 0 120 80 40 CA1lt l e 0 320 280 • I >•% J o * °*°v U>» H C » G S V^oJ JOU ; \t * 1 \ 1 .. " 1 ! >, / V t 160 s / /inn II j» i • 200 • H II 160 V s tA / k Ï \ 240 200 120 __ \r % ***.... , 80 AND C MVES 40 IS>21 0 1922 Receipts of Livestock at Eight of the Principal Markets of the District 1921-1922. (L o s Angeles, Ogden, Portland, Salt Lake C ity, San Francisco, Seattle, Spokane and Tacoma included) (C) Receipts o f Livestock — x ^ Cattle August, August, 1922 1921 Calves August, August, the d istrict w ere steady d uring A ugust, w ith a slight stren g th en in g of prices for choice cattle late in the m onth (see table “D ”). In C alifor nia an increasingly large num ber of sales of choice fat steers a t 7 cents per pound f. o. b. ranch is being reported, although the average qu ality of steers m arketed during A u g u st re tu rn ed approxim ately 6% cents per pound to the producer. A ctive tra d in g in stocker and feeder cattle continued. D u rin g A u g u st th e price of hogs declined in all m arkets of th e district, excepting San F ra n cisco and Los A ngeles, follow ing a decline in prices paid for hogs in E a ste rn m arkets. T h e supply of hogs raised in th e d istrict has again fallen sh o rt of th e d istric t’s needs and corn fed hogs have been shipped in from th e central states to supply th e deficiency. D em and for lam bs and yearlin g sheep in th e m arkets of th is d istrict has been strong, al th o u g h prices have n o t advanced. L am bs in C alifornia are reported to be selling a t prices ran g in g from 9 to 10 cents per pound f. o. b. ranch. T h e norm al decline in b u tte r production w hich occurs a t th is season of th e y ear w as hastened in this d istrict by unusually h o t w e a t h e r d u rin g A ugust. Dairy and M ovem ent of b u tte r into Poultry Products cold storage d i m i n i s h e d d u rin g the m onth, and hold ings in sto rag e declined from the peak reached in July. O n S eptem ber 1st, holdings of cold Horses Hogs August, August, 1922 1921 1922 1921 Sheep August, August, 1922 1921 *Los A n g e le s .....19,035 O gden .................. 1,661 Portland ............ 9,548 Salt Lake C ity .., 1,892 *San F ra n cisco ..,.19,377 Seattle .................. 3,225 Spokane ............. 3,493 T acom a ............. 2,170 16,708 1,724 9,691 3,132 18,307 3,330 2,175 1,673 9,425 201 1,266 150 7,508 276 444 349 7,548 119 1,099 313 4,838 197 292 146 29,286 11,755 14,778 3,729 31,457 8,164 2,724 3,983 23,678 10,551 9,189 3,542 27,224 4,173 1,856 2,408 46,538 40,935 22,226 6,489 83,892 8,563 3,636 4,228 49,518 95,977 35,516 33,075 90,438 7,572 6,724 2,428 T w elfth D istr ic t.60,401 56,740 19,619 14,552 105,876 82,621 216,507 321,248 and Mules August, August, 1922 1921 146 82 37 *0 39 92 ’Ô 50 314 132 *R eceipts in th e Los A ngeles an d S an F rancisco B ay d istricts re p re sen t a m a jo rity of the anim als slaughtered in C alifornia. (D) R ange in Livestock Prices — Highest and Lowest Average To p Prices Per Hundredweight Received at Above Markets D uring August. W eek of Fat Steers A ugust 7 ..............$7.00— 8.25 A ugust 14.............. 7.00— 8.25 A ugust 2 1 .............. 7.00— 8.25 A ugust 2 8 .............. 7.00— 8.25 Cows $4.75— 5.62 4.75— 6.00 4.75—6.00 4.50—6.00 Calves Hogs Lambs $7.66— 9.00 8.00—9.50 8.00—9.50 8.00—9.50 $10.00— 13.00 9.50— 13.25 9.00— 13.51 9.10— 12.50 $10.00— 12.50 10.00— 12.50 10.00— 11.50 10.00— 11.50 Agricultural and Business Conditions 158 sto rag e b u tte r in th e four principal m arkets of the d istrict to taled 4,231,529 pounds, com pared w ith holdings of 4,664,416 pounds on A u g u st 1st, and 2,367,683 pounds on S eptem ber 1, 1921 (see tab le “ E ” ). Supplies of fancy grad e b u tte r in th e San F rancisco m ark et have been lim ited d u rin g the p ast m o nth and prices have advanced 4 cents p er pound. O n S eptem ber 15th 93 score fresh cream ery b u tte r w as quoted a t 46 cents per pound. P rices to producers for raw m ilk continued u p w ard d u rin g A ugust, advancing 5 cents per 100 pounds in the M ountain Section and 10 cents per 100 pounds in th e Pacific Section. C om pared w ith A ugust, 1921, raw m ilk prices have declined $0.55 and $0.38 per 100 pounds in th e M ountain and Pacific sections, respectively (see table “F ”). P relim in ary estim ates of cold sto rag e h o ld ings of eggs in this d istrict and in th e U n ited S tates, as of S eptem ber 1, 1922, indicate th a t stocks are decidedly larg er th an a y ear ago. C O L D S T O R A G E H O L D IN G S O F E G G S Sept. 1, 1922 Aug. 1, 1922 (cases)* (cases)* (cases)* 540,023 10,225,000 386,369 7,210,000 T w elfth D istrict. 498,789 U nited S t a t e s .. . . 9,586,000 Sept. 1, 1921 *O ne case contains 24 dozen eggs. T he w holesale price of fresh C alifornia eggs in th e San F rancisco m ark et advanced from 28% cents per dozen on A u g u st 15th, to 43J4 cents per dozen on S eptem ber 15th. P rices continued to m ove irreg u larly d u rin g A ugust. A ccording to th e U nited S tates B ureau of L ab o r index num ber th e general level of w holesale prices, w hich has been adPrices v ancing since J a n u a ry of th is year, rem ained unchanged in A u g u st com pared w ith the previous m onth. A t 155 (1913 prices equal 100) this index num ber is now 9.1 per cent higher th an one y ear ago and 12.3 per cent above th e low p o in t reached in Jan u a ry , 1922. T h e index num ber of prices of 20 basic com m odities (m ostly raw p ro d u cts) com piled by th e F ederal R eserve B ank of N ew Y ork, w hich has recently been declining, advanced from 138.3 to 139.6 d u rin g th e m onth. Seasonal Movement of Holdings of Cold Storage Butter at Four Principal Markets of the District, 1921 -1922 (E) M ovem ent o f Stocks o f Cold Storage B utter — A u g ., 1922 Net Decrease (pounds) A u g ., 1921 Net Decrease (pounds) Sept. 1, 1921 Holdings (pounds) Sept. 1, 1922 Holdings (pounds) L os A n g e le s... 213,899 P o r t la n d .......... ♦29,518 San F rancisco. 171,363 77,143 Seattle ............. 698,014 *13,648 1,345,850 303,664 133,988 702,327 305,111 1,412,748 1,055,922 770,604 377,652 310,083 432,887 803,103 4,231,529 2,367,683 T otals .......... *N et increase. United States Bureau of Labor Index of W holesale Prices (1 9 1 3 = 1 0 0 ). National Industrial Conference Board Index of the Cost of Living (July 1 9 1 4 = 1 0 0 ). (F) Prices R eceived by M ilk Producers *Sectionf A ug., 1922 Range M ountain (4 M k ts .)— $1.46-2.20 Pacific (8 M k ts .)........... 1.78-3.03 U . S. (91 M k ts .)............. 1.37-4.65 Ju ly, 1922 A v e rage A ug., 1921 A v e r age $1.88 $1.83 $2.43 2.72 2.91 A u g ., 1922 A v e r age 2.34 2.27 2.24 2.19 *A11 prices p e r h u n d red w eig h t fo r m ilk te stin g 3.5 p er cent b u tte r fat. fM o u n ta in Section includes Id ah o , U ta h , N evada an d A rizona. Pacific S ection includes W ash in g to n , O reg o n an d C alifornia. P rices received for a m ajo rity of th e p rin ci pal p roducts of this d istrict w ere low er in A u g u st th a n in th e previous m onth. In those m ar k ets w here th e pro d u cts of th e d istrict are sold in significant quantities, prices of cattle, sheep, dairy and p o u ltry products, lem ons, lum ber and lead m ade im p o rtan t advances w hile prices of w heat, barley, rice, hogs, wool, fru its and su g ar declined. Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco In th e Chicago m arket, cattle prices ad vanced 20 cents, sheep prices 75 cents, and lam b prices 20 cents per 100 pounds d uring A ugust. T h e price of eggs in the San F ra n cisco m ark et advanced from 28^4 cents per dozen on A u g u st 4th, to 38^4 cents per dozen on S eptem ber 1st. T h e co n tra ct price of Sep tem b er w h eat in C hicago declined from $1.061.0854 p er bushel on A u g u st 4th, to $1.00-1.01 per bushel on S eptem ber 1st. C hanges in the prices of som e of th e princi pal com m odities of the d istrict are show n in tab le “G.” A ctiv ity in th e lum ber industry, noted d u r ing previous m onths of this year, continued in A u g u st and reported production, orders, and shipm ents w ere all g re atly in excess Lum ber of the figures for A u g u st a year ago. A pproxim ately 95 per cent of the lum ber m ills in O regon, W a sh in g to n and Idaho w ere in operation d u rin g A ugust, 1922, com pared w ith 70 per cent in A ugust, 1921. C om pared w ith July, 1922, th e figures for A ug ust, 1922, reflect th e usual seasonal increase in 159 activ ity in th e lum ber in d u stry w hich occurs in the early fall. F igures show ing th e percen tag e increase or decrease in activity of 186 m ills in th e four lum ber associations in th is d istrict fo llo w : August, 1922 compared with July, 1922 . August, 1922 compared with August, 1921 P roduction ........ ....52.5% Shipm ents ......... ....31.1% O rders ................ ....42.1% Unfilled O rders.. 87.7% Increase Increase Increase Increase 31.0% Increase 13.2% Increase 33.4% Increase 7.7% D ecrease R etail lum ber yards w ere th e larg est dom es tic purchasers of lum ber d u rin g A ugust, sales of w oods suitable for sm all construction and repair w ork predom inating. D istrib u tin g cen ters in O regon, W ash in g to n , M innesota, South D akota, Iow a and Illinois received the m ajo rity of the shipm ents by rail. L arge shipm ents by w a te r w ere m ade to C alifornia and to th e A t lantic Coast. T h e to tal of all dom estic and foreign sh ip m ents of lum ber by w a te r from O regon and W a sh in g to n d u rin g the first six m onths of 1922 w as 1,456,228,371 feet com pared w ith (G) Com m odity Prices — Commodity T w en ty B asic C om m odities (F . R. B. of N. Y .) 1913=100. W holesale Prices (U . S. Bureau of Labor*) 1913= 100___ Cost of L iving (N ational Industrial Conference Board) July, 1 9 1 4 = 1 0 0 .................................................................................. Cattle (N ative B e e f ) .. .W eek ly average price at C h ica g o .. S h e e p .................................W eek ly average price at C h icago.. Lambs ..............................W eek ly average price at C h icago.. H o g s .................................. W eek ly average price at C h icago.. W h e a t ................... Chicago contract prices for Sept. W h eat. B a r le y ................... Shipping B arley F. O. B. San F rancisco. R i c e ....................... California F ancy Japan at San F rancisco. C o t t o n ................... M iddling U plands— W eek ly range of spot quotations at N ew O rlea n s..................... W o o l ..................... A verage of 98 quotations at B o sto n .......... Sugar .................... B eet granulated F. O. B. San F ra n c isc o .. Apples ..................G ravensteins at San F ra n cisco .................... Oranges ...............V alencias, special brands, L os A n g e le s.. Lem ons ................Special Brands Fancy at L os A n g e le s ... Dried A p p le s....... Choice in 50-lb. b oxes F. O. B. California Dried A p rico ts...C h o ice in 25-lb. b oxes F. O. B. California Prunes ..................Size 40/50 in 25-lb. b oxes F. O. B. Calif. Raisins ................. L oose M uscatel in 25-lb. boxes F. O. B. California ........................................................ Canned A p ricots.C h oice 2 ^ s F. O. B. California................. Canned P ea ch es..C lin g choice, 2 ^ s F. O. B. C a lifo r n ia ... Canned P e a r s .. . .B artlett, Standard 25^s F. O. B. C alif... Butter ................... 93 score at San F ra n cisco ............................ E g g s ...................... E xtras— San F r a n c is c o ................................... Copper ................. E lectrolytic; N ew Y ork S p o t...................... L e a d ...................... N ew Y ork S p o t.................................................. Petroleum ...........California 35° and a b o v e................................. D ouglas F ir ..........2x4, 16-ft. N o. S1S1E F. O. B. S e a tt le ... D ouglas F ir ..........12x12 Tim bers F. O. B. S ea ttle.................... * R evised figures. U n it 100 lbs. 100 lbs. 100 lbs. 100 lbs. bu. cental cental lb. lb. lb. box box box lb. lb. lb. lb. doz. doz. doz. lb. doz. lb. lb. bbl. M ft. M ft. Sept. 1,1922 One Month Ago One Year Ago 139.6 155 138.3 155 122.6 142 154.0 9.85 6.75 12.70 8.10 1.00-1.015* 1.25-1.30 5.45 155.6 9.65 6.00 12.50 9.20 1.06-1.0854 1.25-1.30 5.55 162.0 8.50 3.75 8.10 8.25 1.215^-1.2654 1.30-1.40 4.20 21.75-22.00* 71.55* 6.95 1.50-2.00 10.00-10.50 7.25-7.50 .09 54 .23 .12J4-.12J* 21.25-22.50* 73.98* 7.10 2.25-2.75 10.00-10.50 6.50 14.88-17.00* 40.04* 6.10 1.75-2.75 3.00-3.50 3.00-3.50 .Î3 -A 3 # .11 3.25 2.60 2.85 .42*4 .3 8 ^ .14 5.90* 1.95 18.50 18.00 .n -.ir n .24 .12J4-.12JS .1 8 -.1 8 J 4 .1 1 J 4 -.1 1 JS .11 3.25 2.60 2.85 •4154 .2 8 ^ .14 5.80* 1.95 17.50 17.00 .13 3.00 2.50 2.95 .4 3 ^ .45 .1 1 « 4.45* 2.45 11.00 13.00 Agricultural and Business Conditions 160 659,366,121 feet in th e sam e period of 1921, an increase of 796,862,250 feet o r 120.8 per cent. T h e follow ing tab le show s th e destin ation and am o u n t of w ater-b o rn e shipm ents from O regon and W a sh in g to n d u rin g th e first six m onths of 1922 and 1921 as rep o rted by Pacific L um ber Insp ectio n B ureau. First Six Months First Six Months of 1922 of 1921 (feetB . M.) (feet B. M .) California ............... ............. 687,512,322 Japan ........................ ............. 325,845,598 A tlantic Coast ........... 223,562,251 China ........................ ............. 70,786,836 A ustralasia ............. ............. 53,753,573 So. A m erica (W e st C oast) 28,659,790 H aw aiian I s la n d s .. ............. 28,654,692 E urope ..................... ............. 16,590,586 South A frica .......... ............. 6,597,268 India ......................... ............. 3,130,856 A ll O th er* ............... ............. 11,134,599 341,500,023 75,769,311 90,075,231 52,214,125 16,054,206 24,837,414 26,301,915 8,475,279 3,918,362 848,807 19,371,448 1,456,228,371 659,366,121 *A11 o th e r in c lu d es: A laska, P an am a, P h ilip p in e Islan d s, C entral A m erica, Cuba, M exico, N ew Z ealand, So u th A m erica (E ast C o ast), S o u th Sea Islan d s, S tra its Settlem ents. S trik e conditions on th e railroads of the co u n try are claim ed to have been responsible for a sh o rtag e of cars for shipm ent of lum ber in sections served by b ranch lines or w here th ere is no rail com petition. S hippers a t points M ILLIONS OF BOARD F E E T 600 / *\ A Vv /J I i / 500 \ J / r Ig V 400 MILLIONS OF BOARD FEET 600 I 500 1 r ¿i Pf Oi HI CT k\L L f i '\ /Á £ y SJ<ip M EN i / ORDERS 400 300 200 100 _ 300 li 200 1 1 PR O DUCTIO N _ S H IP M E N T S ____ ORDERS 100 l<92 2 (9 2 1 Lumber Production, Orders Received, and Shipments in Twelfth Federal Reserve District as Reported by Four Lum ber Associations, 1921-1922 (H ) Lumber — W est Coast Lum berm en ’< A ssociation August, 1922 A verage N o. of M ills R eporting . 125 Cut* ......................... 345,615 Shipm ents* ........... 298,109 O r d e r s * ................... .313,747 U nfilled O rd ers*., .246,513 * In th o u san d s o f feet. W estern P ine M anufacturer » * A ssociation August, 1921 August, 1922 103 235,187 250,023 236,304 155,105 42 130,338 108,381 103,950 102,850 August, 1921 44 76,212 68,674 65,175 34,325 on m ain lines, w here th ere is rail com petition, rep o rt th a t from 70 to 95 per cent of th e cars required d u rin g A u g u st w ere furnished, b u t th a t deliveries to d estination have been u n u su ally slow. F e a r of a fu rth e r car sh o rtag e b e cause of the p rio rity aw arded shippers of coal for open cars and shippers of farm p roducts for box cars, is rep o rted to have resu lted in a stren g th en in g of prices of Pacific N o rth w e st ern lum ber d u rin g the m onth of A ugust. P rices (f. o. b. m ills) of rep resen tativ e item s of D o u g las fir, as of the last w eek in A ugust, 1922, July, 1922, and A ugust, 1921, are show n in th e follow ing tab le : Douglas F ir (F . O . B . M ills) A ?921 N o. 1 clear, V. G. flooring 1x4, (pcr M) 10 to 16 f e e t .................................. $55.00 N o. 2 clear and better F. G. ceilin g ^ x 4 , 10 to 16 f e e t . . . 37.00 (pcr M) $52.00 (pcr M) $51.00 35.00 21.00 N o. 2 clear and better drop siding 1x6, 10 to 16 f e e t .........40.00 38.00 21.00 No. 1 com m on tim ber 12x32 feet and und er............................ 18.00 17.00 13.00 A fter one of th e m ost prolonged periods of dry w eather ever experienced in th e lum bering regions of th e Pacific N o rth w e st heavy rains fell d u rin g A ugust, ending th e fire hazard w hich had curtailed logging op eration s for over tw o m onths. A ctivity in the log gin g in d u stry increased rapidly, th e produ ction of logs on S eptem ber 1st being estim ated at 75 per cent of norm al com pared w ith 40 per cent a m onth previous. In A ugu st, 1921, th e p ro duction of logs w as reported to be 70 per cent of norm al capacity. T he supply of logs held on Septem ber 1, 1922, w as estim ated to be 5 p er cent g re ater th an th e supply on A u g u st 1, 1922, and 30 per cent less th a n th e supply held on Septem ber 1, 1921. C om parative figures of the cut, orders, ship m ents and unfilled orders of the four lum ber associations in this d istrict are show n in table “H .” C alifornia W hite a n d Sugar P ine M anufacturers * A ssociation C aliforn ia R ed w o o d A ssociation TO TA L August, 1922 August, 1921 August. 1922 August, 1921 August, 1922 August, 1921 7 51,340 34,456 21,358 6 24,700 15,104 11,940 12 42,257 36,344 41,739 57,619 12 37,253 30,072 24,798 27,370 186 569,550 477,290 480,794 406,982 164 373,352 363,873 338,217 216,800 Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 161 T he re ta rd in g influence of the railroad and coal m ining strikes on business and in d u stry has been felt by th e m etal m ining industry, b u t nevertheless a m arked increase in M ining m ining activ ity com pared w ith one year ago is apparent. F igures show ing th e n ational production of copper, silver and zinc, th ree of th e m ost im p o rtan t m etal p ro d u cts of th is district, are show n in the fol low ing table w hich com pares the o u tp u t in July, 1922, w ith June, 1922, and July, 1921. C o p p er (lb s.) July*1922 (m in e p ro d u c tio n ) 90,998,646 S ilv er (oz.) (co m m e rcia l b a rs ) 4,340,574 Z inc (to n s) ( s la b ) . . 31,917 June' 1922 93,739,847 July*1921 17,789,507 4,760,160 28,547 3,901,946 15,495 Figures on the production of lead are not available. P ro d u ctio n of copper a t the 13 of th e 17 p rin cipal m ines in this d istrict w hich are operating, increased d u rin g July, 1922, both as com pared w ith June, 1922, and w ith July, 1921. In July, 1922, th e o u tp u t of nine of these m ines for w hich figures are available w as 32,186,000 pounds, com pared w ith 29,297,000 pounds pro duced in June, 1922. In July, 1921, th e o u tp u t of th e th ree m ines then producing copper w as 6,434,000 pounds. In th is district, except in N evada and so u th ern C alifornia, silver is produced as a by-prod u ct in th e m ining of copper, lead, gold and zinc ores. Increased activity in th e copper, lead and zinc m ines of A rizona, Idaho and U ta h has been largely responsible for an increased pro duction of silver in 1922, com pared w ith 1921. C ontinued activity in th e deep gold m ines of C alifornia is reported, although m ost of the gold being produced a t p resen t is com ing from d red g in g properties. R eports received from the principal m ining cam ps in th e states of th is d istrict indicate a pronounced sh o rtag e of skilled and unskilled m iners, the deficiency in som e cases being as high as 20 per cent of th e num ber of m en re quired. In the Globe d istrict of A rizona, the (I) Petroleum m ines have posted a v o lu n tary increase of 10 per cent in w ages. Im proved conditions in th e m ining in d u stry have accom panied an upw ard m ovem ent of prices of th e principal m etals. C om parative prices in A ugust, 1922, July, 1922, and A ug u st, 1921, are show n in th e follow ing tab le: - Average Prices Aug., 1921 A ug., 1922 July, 1922 C o p p er (lb.) (cents) N ew Y o rk E le c tro ly tic .. 13.97 L ead (lb.) N ew Y o r k ......... 5.82 Silver (oz. tro y ) N ew Y o rk F o r e ig n ......... 69.41 Z inc (lb.) St. L o u is ............. 6.21 (cents) (cents) 13.90 5.72 11.88 70.24 5.69 61.59 4.18 4.38 P ro d u ctio n of petroleum in C alifornia in creased slightly d u rin g A ugust, th e average daily o u tp u t being 382,221 barrels, an increase of 8,526 barrels or 2.2 per cent P e tro le u m over the average daily o u tp u t in the previous record m onth of July. C o n trary to the usual seasonal m ovem ent, con sum ption of petroleum declined durin g A ugust. MILLIONS MILLIONS 90 r 80 70 60 50 90 80 70 60 50 ★ STORI sD /S T I DCKS OF GASOLI NE ___** (GAL TORÊD STOCK S OF F ETROl EÜM ( EBLS.) •mm***“ ★ PET KOLEUI «1 PROD JCTÍ0NCBBLS.' y» ... \ \ ■'** PBT rol' euk I ^ y SHIP!' 4ENTS<0 6 US.) "N V l | 2 | 3 4 15 16 7.18 L9 IOtu 112 i l ß h 4 15 [6 7 l 8 |9 I0| Ili 12 1922 1921 C A L IF O R N IA Production, Shipments and Stored Stocks o! Petroleum, and Refinery Stored Stocks of Gasolene 1921-1922 *See footnote to Table “ I” . August, 1922* July, 1922 P ro d u c tio n (d aily a v e r a g e ) ................................................... 382,221 bbls. In d ic a te d C o n su m p tio n (d aily a v e r a g e ) ......................... 298,999 bbls. S to red S to ck s (end of m o n t h ) ............................................ 54,272,194 bbls. N ew W ells C o m p le te d ........................................................... 76 W ith D aily P ro d u c tio n ....................................................... 52,553 bbls. W ells A b an d o n ed ................................................................... 20 373,695 bbls. 318,512 bbls. 45,187,910 bbls. 100 66,195 bbls. 2 August, 1921 323,616 bbls. 252,792 bbls. 33,829,725 bbls. 83 20,895 bbls. 3 ^ B eginning w ith A ugust, 1922,. figures on petroleum operations fu rn ish e d by the A m erican P etro leu m In stitu te . T hey are no t stric tly com parable w ith the figures previously fu rn ish e d by the S ta n d a rd Oil Company, w hich w ere p a rtly estim ated. Agricultural and Business Conditions 162 A verage daily shipm ents to taled 298,999 b a r rels, a decrease of 19,523 b arrels or 6.1 per cent per day from th e previous m onth. A u g u st p ro duction exceeded consum ption by 83,222 b a r rels p er day. S torage stocks of petroleum , alread y large, w ere consequently fu rth e r in creased, stan d in g a t 54,272,194 b arrels on A u g u st 31, 1922, an increase of 2,579,904 barrels or 4.9 p er cent over the figure rep o rted by the A m erican P etro leu m In s titu te on Ju ly 31, 1922. S eventy-six new w ells w ere com pleted during A u g u st and 20 w ells abandoned, an increase of 56 p ro d ucing w ells d u rin g the m onth. S to red stocks of gasolene in C alifornia are b eing fu rth e r depleted. C onsum ption durin g Ju ly , 1922, to taled 66,584,330 gallons, a new high record. D u rin g th e sam e m onth 35 refin eries, o p eratin g a t 94 per cent of capacity, pro duced 59,063,530 gallons of gasolene. Stored stocks w ere draw n upon to m eet the deficiency. T o tal sales of electric pow er for in d u strial purposes in this d istrict increased 11 per cent d u rin g July, 1922, as com pared w ith July, 1921. T h is increase w as due chiefly to exE lec tric pan d in g activ ity in the m ining and E n erg y m an u factu rin g industries. D u rin g July, 1922, sales of pow er to th e m in ing in d u stry show ed an increase of 15 per cen t in C alifornia and 18 per cent in th e In te r m ountain states com pared w ith Ju ly a y ear ago. A ctivity in oil production in C alifornia and in lum ber production in the Pacific N o rth w est, as reflected by pow er consum ption in these industries, w as less d u rin g July, 1922, S TO R E D S TO C K S O F G A S O L E N E A T C A L IF O R N IA R E F IN E R IE S Ju ly 31. 1922 June 30, 1922 Ju ly 31, 1921 41,920,742 gal. 48,441,542 gal. 75,002,032 gal. T h ere w ere 313,302,422 gallons of gasolene consum ed d u rin g th e first seven m onths of 1922, an increase of 29 per cent over consum p tio n in th e sam e period last year. T h e w hole sale price of gasolene w as reduced 1 cent per gallon on A u g u st 8th. S ta tistics on oil field operations as furnished b y th e A m erican P etro leu m In stitu te , are show n in table “ I .” Total and Segregated Sales of Electric Power to Industries in California, June, 1921 to July, 1922 (Based on reports of eight principal power companies) (J ) Electric Energy — (1) Production— C alifo rn ia (8 com panies re p o rtin g ) .................... Pacific N o rth w est (5 com panies re p o rtin g ). In te rm o u n ta in S ta te s (6 com panies re p o rtin g ). Plant Capacity K . W . Ju ly, 1922 June, 1922 Ju ly, 1921 969,075 969,075 910,975 365,675 356,585 238,657 T w e lfth D istric t (19 com panies re p o rtin g ).1,573,407 Peakload K . W . Plant Output K . W . H . June, 1922 July, 1921 July, 1922 790,080* 777,766* 703,914* 353,675 251,524* 224,720* 238,657 222,897 146,030* 139,921* 1,564,317 1,487,547 Num ber ol Industrial Consumers (2) Sales— Ju ly, 1922 1,187,634* 1,142,407* June, 1922 Ju ly, 1921 362,545,572 349,705,289 334,132,711 225,318* 105,660,225 105,927,639 96,064,350 119,120* 78,930,971 73,733,648 61,248,812 1,048,352* 547,136,768 529,366,576 491,445,873 Connected Industrial Load H . P.Industrial Sales K . W . H . Ju ly, 1922 June, 1922 July, 1921 July, 1922 June, 1922 C alifo rn ia ......................... 52,029 51,398 43,922 Pacific N o rth w est ......... 10,860 10,907 9,960 178,321* 176,656* In te rm o u n ta in S tates . . 10,315 10,141 9,487 277,863* 295,251* T w elfth D istric t ............. 73,204 72,446 63,369 1,720,744* 1,722,268 2,176,928* 2,194,175* July, 1921 Ju ly, 1922 June, 1922 Ju ly, 1921 1,461,799* 171,546* 225,436,498 225,406,211 211,176,978 66,402,675 65,006,148 59,557,774 259,451* 57,356,816 52,370,259 42,644,259 1,892,796* 349,195,989 342,782,618 313,379,011 *N ot rep o rte d by all com panies. F ig u res so m arked a re com parable u n d e r respective headings com parison w ith o th er p o rtio n s o f the table. an d dates, b u t n o t stric tly a ccu rate fo r Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 163 th an d u rin g June, 1922, although sales to the lum ber in d u stry w ere 20 per cent larg er th an d u rin g July, 1921. Sales of pow er for indus trial purposes by industries and by sections of th is d istrict are com pared in the follow ing p er centage ta b le : Percentage increase or decrease, July, 1922 compared with July, 1921 Total A gricul< M an u- Industrial ture M ining facturing Sales California ................ + 3.1% Pacific N o r th w est.— 46.2% Interm ountain ....+ 2 1 .3 % T w elfth D is t r ic t ...— .2% +15.7% +30.1% +18*5% +18.7% +26.0% — 6.6% — 4.6% +13.5% + 6.7% +11.5% +34.5% +11.4% In th e accom panying ch a rt to tal industrial sales of electric energy by eight principal pow er com panies in C alifornia are show n by m onths since June, 1921. Sales of pow er to various classes of industrial consum ers are indicated as p o rtions of the to tal sales. T h e m arked seasonal variation in the figures rep resen tin g to ta l industrial sales is due chiefly to th e ch an g in g needs of ag ricu ltu ral consum ers for pow er to pum p w ater for irrigation. T he stead ily in creasing volum e of pow er sales to m anu factu rin g industries d u rin g the p ast six m onths is p articu larly notew orthy. E m p loym ent in C alifornia increased fu rth e r d u rin g A ugust, principally due to seasonal de m ands for w orkers to be used in h arv estin g and packing C alifornia fruits, and to E m ploym ent g re a te r building activity in sev eral sections. R eports from so u th ern C alifornia indicate a sh o rtag e of skilled building trad e m echanics. P ublic em p lo y m ent offices in th e larg er cities of C alifor nia re p o rt an increase in the num ber of place m ents actually m ade d u rin g A ugust, 1922, com pared w ith July, 1922, and A ugust, 1921, as show n by the follow ing ta b le : Num ber of Positions Filled A ug., 1922 July, 1922 A ug., 1921 Bakersfield .. Fresno ........... Los A n g e le s.. M arysville . . . M odesto . . . . Oakland ........ Sacram ento .. San Francisco San J o s e ......... Stockton ___ 1,136 1,652 10,250 943 432 3,209 1,704 5,637 1,600 690 949 1,397 9,929 483 360 2,410 1,279 4,183 1,056 988 1,548 776 2,030 1,208 305 27,253 23,034 11,927 955 5,105 All available w orkers in th e Pacific N o rth w est are reported to be em ployed and th e need for m en in the lum bering, fishing, ag ricu ltu ral and building industries, and for highw ay con stru ctio n w ork, has increased. In the principal lum bering sections of O regon, W a sh in g to n and Idaho it is estim ated th a t 81,500 m en w ere on the payrolls on Septem ber 1, 1922, com pared w ith 78,769 on A u g u st 1, 1922, and 60,000 on S eptem ber 1st one year ago. In th e In term o u n ta in states (A rizona, Idaho, N evada and U tah ) th e em ploym ent situ atio n im proved d u rin g A u g u st com pared w ith Ju ly and conditions are m arkedly b etter th a n in A u g u st a y ear ago. Increased activity in th e m etal m ining and building industries has re sulted in an actual sh o rtag e of skilled copper m ine w orkers and building trades m echanics. O f th e 4,800 m en norm ally em ployed in the coal fields of U tah, less th a n 1,000 w ere idle durin g A u g u st despite th e nation-w ide strike of coal m iners w hich w as th en in progress. By S eptem ber 15th practically all of the strik ers had retu rn ed to w ork. E m ploym ent in the m anufacturing industries of the four larg est cities of the district, as in dicated by rep o rts of th e U nited S tates D e p art m ent of L abor, increased during A ugust, 1922, com pared w ith A ugust, 1921. C om pared w ith July, 1922, em ploym ent increased in tw o of the four cities, a slig h t decrease in P o rtlan d and San F rancisco being reported. F igures show ing th e to tal num ber of w orkers on the payrolls of 40 m an u factu rin g firm s in Los A ngeles, P o rtlan d , San F rancisco and Seattle, usually em ploying 501 m en or m ore, are given in th e Percentage follow ing ta b le : Number of M en on Payroll* Num ber A ug. 31, of firms 1922 L os A n g e le s .. 16 Portland ........ 8 San Francisco 10 Seattle ............ 6 increase in number of men on pay roll Aug. 31, 1922 compared withAug.31, 1921 July 31, 1922 A ug. 31, 1921 28,753 6,439 6,735 2,343 27,272 6,645 7,092 2,159 23,097 6,385 5,926 2,330 24.4 .8 13.6 .5 44,270 43,168 37,738 17.3 *These figures do n o t re p re sen t the total num ber of m en engaged in m a n u factu rin g activities in these cities, b u t only th e payroll figures of a selected num ber of firms. T he dollar value of sales of 31 representative d ep artm en t stores in this district during A ug ust, 1922, w as 5.7 per cent g reater th an th e value of sales of the sam e stores in Retail A ugust, 1921. T his increase w as parTrade ticipated in by 17 of the 31 rep o rtin g stores. T he seasonal increase of A u g u st sales over those of Ju ly am ounted this year to 24.3 per cent. Collections w ere characterized by rep o rtin g firms as fo llo w s: No. of reporting firm s__ Excellent Good Fair Poor 1 10 9 0 Agricultural and Business Conditions 164 A statistica l record of th e m ovem ent of stocks on hand, o u tsta n d in g orders, and the rate of tu rn o v er of stocks for re p o rtin g stores is given in th e follow ing ta b le : Percentage increase or decrease ( — ) in the value of stocks at end of month compared with same month of previous year January, February, March, April, May, June, July, A ugust, 1922. 1922. . 1922. . 1922. . 1922. . 1922. . 1922.,. 1922. . Percentage outstanding orders at end of month to total purchases during year 1921 3.4 — 4.3 —2.4 — 4.3 — 9.0 — 1.9 — 1.4 — 7.6 Annual rate of turnover ' of stocks indicated at end of month 2.4 2.3 2.3 2.4 2.6 2.5 2.4 2.6 8.9 10.3 9.5 7.2 9.1 11.2 10.7 10.6 T able “K ” gives in detail statistics in reg ard to sales, stocks and o u tsta n d in g orders as fu r nished by 31 d ep a rtm en t stores in th is district. A ctual sales figures received from 194 re p re sen tativ e w holesale firm s in th e 10 lines of business in th is d istrict show th a t the value of sales d u rin g A u g u st, 1922, w as W holesale g re a te r th an d u rin g A u g u st, 1921, Trade in seven of th e 10 re p o rtin g lines. T h e th ree exceptions w ere agricu l tu ral im plem ents, autom obile tires and drugs. C om pared w ith th e previous m o n th of th is year, th e value of sales d u rin g A u g u st in creased in all lines except ag ric u ltu ral im ple m ents, autom obile supplies and groceries. N e t Sales of 32 Department Stores in Tw elfth Federal Reserve D istrict (in M illions of Dollars) (K) R eta il Trade A ctivity — CONDITION OF RETAIL TRADE DURING AUGUST, 1922 In Federal Reserve District N o. 12 (31 Stores Reporting) No. of reporting firm s.............................. N et sales (percentage increase or de crease) A ugust, 1922, compared with A ugust, 1921.................................. A ugust, 1922, compared w ith July, 1922 .............................................................. Period July 1 to A ugust 31, 1922, compared with sam e period in 1921 Stocks: (P ercen tage increase or de crease) A ugust, 1922, compared w ith A ugust, 1921 ............................................. .. A ugust, 1922, com pared w ith July, 1922 .............................................................. , , Percentage of average stocks on hand at close of each m onth since July 1, 1922, to average m onthly sales dur ing sam e p eriod ...................................... Percentage outstanding orders at close of A ugust, 1922, to total pur chases during year 1921........................ Los Angeles Oakland Salt Lake C ity San Francisco Seattle Spokane 6 4 4 8 5 3 D istrict 31 7.2 .4 .2 4.3 13.0 — 5.6 5.7 30.7 21.0 — 1.9 33.2 5.5 17.4 24.3 6.7 1.4 — 2.8 3.5 11.5 — 5.8 4.8 .8 — 3.3 — 1.2 .1 .3 — 7.6 — 3.3 6.6 6.8 5.4 13.1 5.3 4.1 389.6 577.4 613.5 457.5 397.8 691.8 454.4 13.3 10.4 8.5 10.6 —20.4 8.9 — - Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 165 T h e average n et increase or decrease (— ) in the value of sales of all re p o rtin g firms in each line of business w as as follows : Eight Months ending Aug.31, 1922 compared with same compared with period in A u g ., July, 1921 1922 1921 Agricultural Im p lem en ts.. — 18.4 5.9 A utom otive S u p p lies.......... A utom obile T ir e s............... — 9.4 D rugs ..................................... — .3 24.1 D ry G o o d s.............................. 16.3 Furniture ............................... 7.1 Groceries ............................... 22.9 Hardware .............................. 5.8 Shoes ...................................... 10.7 Stationery ............................. - -27.3 - - .9 13.2 26.7 34.6 29.3 - - 5.2 7.9 36.2 38.7 — 5.6 — 2.5 — 8.2 4.9 3.6 6.3 — 2.5 11.3 — 5.3 — 1.9 Percentage of Collections during Month (A u gu st) to Total Amount Due from Customers (outstanding) on First of that Month D ry G o o d s........................ Furniture ......................... H ardware ........................ 2 8 1921 60.2 83.1 39.2 49.6 46.7 35.7 67.1 60.3 85.0 40.6 52.2 45.1 36.8 67.0 . ,, AU6UST PRICESI92H 00% S AU6U5T 1921SALES U.S.8UREAU OF LABOR INDEX NO. WHOLESALE PRICES A6RICULTURAL IMPLEMENT9 AUTOMOBILE SUPPLIES AUTOMOBILE T IR E S DRUGS DRY G O O D S F U R N lT U R fc Percentage of Past Due Accounts on September 1, 1922, to Total Am ount Due from Customers on the Same Date A gricultural Im p lem en ts......... A utom obile T ir e s....................... 1922 13 4 8 12 16 9 10 A utom obile S u p p lie s... Stationery ....................... O ne hundred firm s reported th eir collections on S eptem ber 1, 1922, and S eptem ber 1, 1921, as fo llo w s: Num ber of Firm s Num ber of Firm s G R O C E R IE S 1922 1921 HARDW ARE 38.3 16.6 22.1 SHO ES 12.0 S T A T IO N E R Y Percentage of Outstandings September 1, 1922 to August, 1922, Sales Num ber of Firm s .. Groceries 18 0 1922 1921 124.7 122.6 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 Dollar Value of Sales of Representative Wholesale Houses and General Wholesale Prices in August, 1922, Compared with August, 1921 (L) Wholesale Trade — (la) Percentage of increase or decrease (—) in net sales during August, 1922, compared with August, 1921 Agricultural A uto N um ber o f re Implements Supplies 18 porting firms. .. . 2 4 L os A n g e le s ... .— 2.6 5.8 Portland ........... .— 14.3 6.0 — 2.9 Salt Lake C ity. .— 26.7 San F ran cisco..,. 38.4 12.8 Seattle ............... — 6.6 Spokane ............ — 51.8 T acom a ............. D istrict ............. — 18.4 5.9 (lb) Drugs 21 11.8 —21.8 — 16.6 — 9.6 — 24.9 — 34.7 8 — 9.4 D ry Goods 16 21.7 1.8 Furniture 16 16.7 19.0 — 9.5 19.2 57.2 — 5.3 , . 26.7 24.1 38.9 16.3 — .3 Groceries 31 .9 6.4 .4 25.1 — 17.1 — 4.4 20.7 7.1 Hardware 21 47.1 24.4 4.2 10.1 23.9 8.1 — 6.9 22.9 Shoes Stationery 12 27 6.8 8.5 — 9.7 15.8 16.5 — 5.4 18.7 — 1.8 46.8 5.8 10.7 Percentage of increase or decrease (—) in net sales from January 1, 1922, to August 31, 1922, compared with the same period last year. Agricultural Num ber of re Implements porting firms,.. 24 Los A n g e le s ... . 84.3 Portland ........... — 18.9 Salt Lake C ity. .—22.9 San F ran cisco.... 14.0 Seattle ............... Spokane ............ — 33.1 T acom a ............. D istrict ............. — 5.6 Auto Tires Auto Supplies 18 Auto Tires .7 2.7 6.9 7.3 6.3 21 24.7 .5 9.7 — 7.9 1.5 — 1.7 — 2.5 — 8.2 — — — — Drugs 8 D ry Goods Furniture 16 — 9.1 16 — 6.4 12.6 2.1 — 8.1 4.9 1.9 36.2 2.9 — 5.0 3.6 26.6 6.3 Groceries 31 — 4.5 — 1.2 1.4 2.5 — 24.1 — 10.8 12.5 — 2.5 Hardware 21 35.7 3.2 — 6.5 .4 20.3 — 8.7 — 5.7 11.3 Shoes 12 2.2 — 8.9 14.1 — 5.3 Station« 27 .8 — 4.0 — 2.3 — 8.2 16.3 — 6.7 — 1.9 Agricultural and Business Conditions 166 Collections d u rin g th e p a st th ree m onths have been reported as follow s: Num ber of Firm s Reporting Collections as Excellent Good Fair Poor June ................................... July .................................... A u g u s t ............................... 5 5 5 45 51 53 74 79 70 5 10 9 and in the principal foreign countries w ith w hich we trade. 1913 1919 1920 1921 Tw elfth District M onthly M onthly M onthly M onthly F v n o r t « ; m n n th 1v A ve ra^e Average Average Average average™ 9 1 2 -1 3 .. 100 Im ports, m on th ly average 1912-13.. 100 July, 1922 416.6 350.0 216.6 183.3 380.0 310.0 160.0 340.0 211 207 241 357 .. 364 133 236 180 239 250 314 510 1,997$ 624 140 259 218 148 167 201 345 2,127§ 578 145 200 167 165 157 171 325 28,919|| 537fl 145 197** 157 Prices_ U nited S ta t e s * ... 100 Canada* ............... 100 England* .............100 France .................. 100 Germ any ..............100f Italy ...................... 100 China .................... 100 Japan .................... 100 A ustralia ..............100ft S tatem en ts of increases or decreases in net sales of 194 re p o rtin g w holesale firm s during A u g u st, 1922, com pared w ith A ugust, 1921, and th e eight m onths of 1922 com pared w ith th e sam e period in 1921 are show n in table “ L .” T h e cum ulative effects of im proved general tra d e conditions, appreciation in th e dollar value of th e currencies of m any of the countries w ith w hich we trade, and low er F o re ig n ocean freig h t rates now prevailC o m m erce ing, are reflected in the increase in th e value of foreign com m erce th ro u g h Pacific C oast p o rts in recent m onths, com pared w ith corresponding m onths of 1921. E x p o rts from th e T w e lfth F ederal R eserve D istric t d u rin g Ju ly am ounted to $22,353,902 com pared w ith $19,676,889 in July, 1921, an increase of 13.6 per cent. Im p o rts d u rin g July, 1922, to taled $34,242,518, an increase of 199.0 p er cen t over Ju ly , 1921. *Compiled by F e d e ra l R eserve B oard fo r purposes of in te rn a tio n a l com parisons. fju ly , 191 4 = 1 0 0 ; ^ J a n u a ry 1, 1920; §J a n u a ry 1, 1921; HSeptem ber 1, 1922. fljune, 1922. **June, 1922. f t Ju ly , 1914=100. Value of Free and Dutiable Imports of Merchandise Into Customs Districts of the Pacific Coast, 1913-1921 Value of Foreign and Domestic Exports of Merchandise from Custom* Districts of the Pacific Coast, 1913*1921 *Based on figures for fiscal year ending June 30, 1913. 1913 are not available. Figures for calendar year In o rd er to com pare th e p re sen t physical vol um e of o u r foreign trad e w ith the physical vol um e in previous years, it is necessary to con sider y early changes in prices of com m odities im ported and exported. T hese changes m ay be ap p ro x im ated by reference to changes in g en eral w holesale prices as show n by index num bers of w holesale prices in the U nited S tates A stu d y of these figures indicates th a t th e decline in th e value of ou r im ports and ex ports in 1921 and 1922 w hen com pared w ith th e peak year, 1920, has been due in p a rt to the low er level of prices prevailing in nearly all countries in the later years. *Based on figures for fiscal year ending June 30, 1913. 1913 are not available. Figures for calendar year M easured by th e num ber of perm its issued in 20 cities of the district, building ac tiv ity du rin g A u g u st, 1922, exceeded any previous m onth of th e years 1915-1922. T h e B uilding value of perm its issued also reached Activity a high figure, being exceeded only by th e value of perm its issued d u r ing A pril and Ju n e of th is year. T h e num b er of Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 167 perm its (11,596) increased 13.8 per cent and the value ($29,424,332) of such perm its in creased 71.8 per cent com pared w ith the num ber and value of building perm its issued d u rin g A ugust, 1921. C om pared w ith July, 1922, th ere w as an increase of 23.1 p er cent in the num ber of p erm its issued and of 31.4 p er cent in the value of construction involved. O f th e rep o rtin g cities, 12 cities show an in crease in num ber of perm its issued durin g A u gust, 1922, com pared w ith A ugust, 1921, and 16 cities an increase in the value of perm its issued d u rin g the sam e period. C om parative figures of th e num ber and value of building perm its issued d u rin g A ugust, 1922, A ugust, 1921, and July, 1922, are show n in table “M .” D ebits to individual accounts as rep o rted by 184 banks in 21 clearing house centers w ere g re ater in A ugust, 1922, th an in A ugust, 1921, by $128,220,000 or 7.7 per cent. T h is B an k is the fifth consecutive m onth in w hich D e b its debits to individual accounts in these cities have been g re ater th an in th e corresponding m onth a y ea r ago. T he increase in A ugust, how ever, w as well below th e in crease of 12 per cent reported for Ju ly and w as also less th an th e percentage increase of com m odity prices a t w holesale durin g the year, Debits to Individual Accounts in 20 Principal Cities, Twelfth Federal ________ Reserve District, 1921-1922 Building Permits Issued in 20 Principal Cities, Tw elfth Federal Reserve D istrict, 1921-1922 Note: The figures used in preparing the above chart are for calendar months and are partly estimated. (M) B uilding Perm its — No. B erkeley ............ Boise .................. Fresno ................ L on g Beach . . . L os A n geles . . . Oakland ............. O gden ................ Pasadena ........... P h oen ix ............. P ortland ............ Reno ................... Sacram ento __ Salt Lake C it y .. San D i e g o ......... San F rancisco . San J o s e ............. Seattle ................ Spokane ............. Stockton ............ Tacom a .............. D is t r ic t ............... ........... 229 85 176 ........... 287 ........... 4,294 ........... 852 65 337 43 . . 1,644 26 264 142 386 690 72 1,006 333 151 514 11,596 August, 1922 Value No. July, 1922 Value No. 556,300 112,524 407,398 856,988 11,523,891 1,651,201 167,600 925,358 109,985 1,941,380 46,500 868,046 421,075 1,082,216 6,214,082 193,785 1,200,740 391,136 385,100 369,027 101 85 133 208 3,393 721 41 308 45 1,313 29 213 159 369 595 79 842 248 109 424 $ 527,250 49,906 370,288 535,884 8,064,018 1,900,712 87,660 987,826 137,082 2,206,615 69,120 367,858 569,951 710,006 3,024,036 166,245 1,559,205 273,022 409,196 375,136 130 110 199 300 3,554 652 54 295 54 1,591 23 260 160 365 381 46 1,113 251 88 561 $29,424,332 9,415 $22,391,016 10,187 $ August, 1921 Value $ Per Cent Increase or Decrease (— ) in Value August, 1922 compared with August, 1921 248,664 64,327 383,572 889,164 7,015,861 1,852,609 115,600 566,531 58,344 1,486,982 54,375 348,788 346,620 442,109 1,216,937 39,075 1,340,430 222,992 115,140 318,245 123.7 74.9 6.2 — 3.6 64.2 — 10.8 44.9 63.3 88.5 30.5 — 14.4 148.8 21.4 144.7 410.6 395.9 — 10.4 75.4 234.4 15.9 $17,126,365 71.8 Agricultural and Business Conditions 168 w hich, according to th e U n ited S tates B ureau of L ab o r index n u m ber of w holesale prices, advanced 9.1 per cent d u rin g the year period A u gust, 1921, to A ugust, 1922. I t is therefore doubtful w h e th e r an increase of 7.7 per cent in th e am o u n t of debits to individual accounts rep resen ts an increase in th e physical volum e of business tran sacted . C om parative figures of debits to individual accounts in 21 clearing house centers during th e four w eeks ending A u g u st 30, 1922, A u g u st 2, 1922, and A u g u st 31, 1921, are show n in table “N .” B usiness failures in this d istrict d u rin g A ug ust, 1922, w ere g re a te r both in num ber and liabilities th an in July, 1922, and g re ater in num ber b u t Jess in liabilities th an in B usiness A ugust, 1921. C om pared w ith A ugF ailures ust, 1921, th e num ber of failures in creased by 33 or 22.0 per cent and th e am o u n t of liabilities decreased by $768,851 o r 26.1 p er cent. R. G. D un & C om pany’s com p arativ e figures of th e num ber and liabilities of business failures in the states of th is d istric t d u rin g A ugust, 1922, and July, 1922, follow : August» 1922 No. Liabilities No. A rizona ............ 0 California ........ , .. 85 Idaho ................ 8 3 . 34 U tah .................. 9 W ashington . .. 44 0 $ 748,069 160,968 7,500 452,065 52,167 746,743 3 77 8 1 21 10 33 D istrict ............ $2,167,512 153 183 L IA B ILITIE S IN MILLIONS 9 8 6 5 4 3 2 I NO.OF FAI CUi .ES A L/ V LI A B ILITIES v > V * ...... ▲ -V r V \ \ ! V -A ./ /* A S 19 21 $ 10,500 1,003,096 86,593 7,420 127,370 563,516 273,267 $2,071,762 NO. OF F A IL U R E S 10 7 July, 1922 Liabilities / / V 250 AA 200 L J V 150 A \ A vt h 1922 Business Failures, Tw elfth Federal Reserve D istrict, 1921-1922 (N) Bank Debits*F o ur weeks ending A ug. 30, 1922 B e r k e le y ............. $ B oise ................... F r e s n o ................ L o n g B e a c h .. . . L os A n g e le s . . . . Oakland ............. O g d e n ................. Pasadena ............ P h o en ix f ............ P o r t la n d ............. R eno ................... Sacram ento Salt Lake C ity .. San D iego ......... San Francisco . ... San J o s e ............. S e a t t le ................. Spokane .............. Stockton ............ Tacom a .............. Y a k im a ............... T otal ............... 13,369 9,954 36,542 31,705 431,387 78,080 16,603 20,155 12,794 124,962 8,911 58,731 50,442 31,914 612,503 20,666 137,504 36,695 19,119 34,028 8,038 $1,794,102 Four weeks ending A ug, 2, 1922 Four weeks ending A ug. 31,1921 $ $ 14,375 11,135 40,760 35,909 476,051 77,227 15,779 23,237 15,135 123,935 10,164 56,902 52,055 36,834 675,287 19,464 134,945 39,354 19,871 35,285 8,960 $1,922,664 *000 O m itted. tA u g u st, 1921, figures fo r P h o e n ix n o t available. 12,616 9,492 34,429 21,019 385,219 68,465 10,554 16,639 132,103 10,201 42,023 48,794 28,449 602,230 17,746 117,597 38,976 17,887 30,463 8,186 $1,653,088 T he to tal am o u n t in all savings accounts, as reported by 75 banks in seven principal cities, increased 7 te n th s of 1 per cent d u rin g the m onth ended A u g u st 31st, being on Savings th a t date $772,150,000, com pared Accounts w ith $766,807,000 on Ju ly 31st. Sav ings accounts are now a t th e h ig h est point in th e th ree years and eight m onths for w hich records have been k ept by this bank. T h ey are 8.6 per cent g re a te r th a n th ey w ere M ILLIO N S M IL L IO N S 1000 IOOOi - 500 -400 - 300 -200 - PO RTLA ND 100 - 50 - 40 - 30 - 20 - 10 1922 Savings Accounts in Banks in Seven Principal Cities of the Twelfth Federal Reserve District, 1919-1922 on A u g u st 31, 1921, and 42.7 per cent g re ater th an on Ja n u a ry 31, 1919. O nly in S alt L ake C ity savings accounts are now less th an th ey w ere a y ear ago. In L os Angeles, O akland and P o rtla n d th ey are a t new Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco 169 rem ained firm at 3 per cent since July, w as placed a t 3% per cent on Septem ber 15th. B ills of sh o rt m atu rities w ere m ore in de m and than those of longer m aturities as show n by the follow ing general classification of bills m a rk e te d : high levels and in San F rancisco they are ap proxim ately as high as th e record reported in Ju n e of this year. Savings accounts in Seattle are 26 per cent less th an th ey w ere at the end of D ecem ber, 1919, in Spokane 10 per cent less th an a t the end of D ecem ber, 1920, and in S alt L ake C ity Zy2 per cent less th an at th e end of M ay, 1921, th e dates m entioned being, respec tively, those a t w hich the h ig h est figures for these cities w ere reported. T h e changes in savings accounts in the seven cities from one m onth and one year ago are show n in table “O ,” and in th e accom panying ch a rt (see opposite page) are show n the changes since Jan u ary , 1919. F o r th e g re ater p a rt of the m onth ending S eptem ber 15th dem and in the bill m arket con tin u ed in te rm itte n t and spotty, th e country banks rem aining o u t of the m arAcceptances ket. N ew bills continue to be offered in good volum e, and, in co n junction w ith increased offerings in o ther p a rts of th e country, have created a supply w hich is at least equivalent to presen t de m ands. T ran sactio n s involving the export and dom estic shipm ent of grain, flour, canned goods, su g ar and cotton predom inated. U n d er the influence of th is increased supply, and also because of the slig h t increase in short term m oney rates recently in N ew Y ork City, th e offering rate for acceptances, w hich had Maturities 30 60 90 120 August 15 to September 15 July 15 to August 15 22.8% 55.3% 19.4% 2.5% d a y s..................... d a y s..................... d a y s..................... d a y s..................... 3.8% 27.8% 67.8% 0.6% M onthly statistics com piled by this bank on th e acceptance operations of 35 of the principal accepting banks in the d istrict are now avail able for a period of one year. T h ey show a m arked increase in the volum e of acceptance business handled d uring A ugust, 1922, com pared w ith A ugust, 1921. P ercentage com pari sons of the acceptance business of these banks d u rin g A ugust, 1922, w ith the previous m onth of this year and w ith A ugust, 1921, are given in th e follow ing ta b le : Aug., 1922 Co m pared with Aug., 1921 (Increase) A m ount of bills a c c e p te d .. . . 88.1% A m ount of bills b o u g h t......... 250.3% A m ount of bills held at close of m o n th ....................... 278.5% A ug., 1922 C o m pared with July, 1922 (Decrease) 22.0% 9.4% (Increase) 6.4% P u rch ases and holdings of acceptances of re p o rtin g banks appear in table “P .” CO ) Savings Accounts *— Decíeas^f-)* A ug. 31,1922 July 31,1922 Aug. 31,1921 A ug. 31, 1922 over A u g. 31,1921 ....................... ....................... ....................... ....................... ....................... ....................... ....................... 13 7 9 9 16 15 6 $238,189 77,204 40,595 24,104 346,679 31,245 14,134 $235,987 76,115 39,688 24,028 345,660 31,261 14,068 $212,528 73,383 37,295 24,568 319,965 29,761 13,645 12.1 5.2 8.8 — 1.9 8.3 5.0 3.6 T otal ............................ ....................... 75 $772,150 $766,807 $711,145 8.6 Number of Banks L os A n geles .................. Oakland ........................... Portland .......................... Salt Lake C ity ............... San F r a n c is c o ............... Seattle ............................. Spokane .......................... *000 O m itted. (P) Acceptances* (--------------------------------------A m ount Bought--------------------------------------, Created in Amount Accepted Twelfth District A ug., 1922 July, 1922 A ug., 1922 Ju ly, 1922 A ll Other A ug., 1922 July, 1922 A ug., 1922 Amount held at Total close of month July, 1922 A ug., 1922 July, 1922 Pacific N o rth w est ___ $ 704,023 $ 353,399 $ 237,113 $ 96,348 $ 176,451 $ 160,555 $ 413,564 $ 256,903 $ 1,332,834 $ 930,453 N o rth e rn C alifornia . . 5,074,927 6,676,445 3,082,406 4,070,030 2,021,654 2,829,765 5,104,060 6,899,795 5,644,453 6,814,002 S o u th e rn C alifornia . . 573,867 1,122,027 653,895 724,247 4,327,307 3,716,881 4,980,202 4,441,128 8,447,651 6,745,179 O th er D istricts .............. Total .........................$6,352,817 $8,151,871 $3,973,414 $4,890,625 $6,525,412 $6,707,201 $10,497,826 $11,597,826 $15,424,938 $14,489,634 *35 B anks reporting. Agricultural and Business Conditions 170 O n S eptem ber 11th th e T re a su ry D e p art m ent opened subscription books for an issue of ab o u t $200,000,000 of C ertificates of In d eb ted ness designated Series TS-1923, G overnm ent dated S eptem ber 15,1922, m aturF inancing ing S eptem ber 15,1923, and b ear ing in te re st a t the ra te of 3% per cen t per annum . T h is is th e low est ra te offered by the g o v ernm ent since th e close of th e w ar. T h e issue w as heavily over-subscribed, to tal su b scrip tions am ounting to $570,476,500 w hen th e books w ere closed a t noon on Septem ber 15th. In th e T w elfth F ederal R eserve D istrict su b scrip tions am ounted to $45,542,500 of w hich $14,120,000 w ere allotted by th e T re a su ry D e p a rtm e n t th ro u g h th e F ederal R eserve B ank of San F rancisco. T h e to tal of subscriptions in th is d istric t w as exceeded only in th e N ew Y ork, P hiladelphia, Chicago and Cleveland districts. S tatem en ts of 68 re p o rtin g m em ber banks in th e larg e r cities of th e d istrict indicate an in crease in th e dem and for credit d u rin g A ugust. C om m ercial loans, w hich totaled B anking $700,138,000 on A u g u st 9th, w ere Situation $709,934,000 on S eptem ber 6th, an increase of $9,796,000 or 1.4 per cent. T h e ir borro w in g from th e F ederal R e serve B ank, afte r declining on A u g u st 9th to $9,362,000—n ex t to the low est figure in three MILLIONS T<>TXL CEl»CSITJ 1000 cTéiL L<>Ai /Ni pii;cOlIKT£ 500 400 300 200 1» MIUUION5 1000 500 400 300 200 IV1 STMENTs 100 100 50 40 30 20 10 *AfA31 ihi .L5 A^11 *0 RElDM;cc ui^T.5 VIIrH J L FEC rAKRESÎRVEBINK Vu vsi V 1921 *$7,060,000 on June 7, 1922. Ç VAl >22 1 50 40 30 20 a 10 O $ 9 ,8 7 5 ,0 0 0 on August 16. 1922. Total Deposits, Loans and Discounts, Investments, and Bills Payable and Rediscounts of Reporting Member Banks years— advanced steadily and stood a t $13,025,000 on S eptem ber 6th. In v estm en ts of re p o rt ing banks fluctuated w ithin n arro w lim its and at $333,627,000 on S eptem ber 6th w ere $928,000 below th e figures reported four w eeks previous. T o tal deposits increased from $1,184,485,000 to $1,196,793,000 or $12,308,000 d u rin g this period. T he to tal of bills discounted by th e F ed eral R eserve B ank of San F rancisco for both city and co u n try banks advanced slightly d u rin g Total Reserves, Federal Reserve Note Circulation, Bills Discounted, U . S. Government Securities H eld , and Bills Bought in the Open Market, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco the la tte r p a rt of A u g u st b u t declined d u rin g th e first tw o w eeks of S eptem ber, and on Sep tem ber 13th w as $38,000 below the $43,388,000 reported on A u g u st 16th. A sm all increase in F ederal R eserve N ote circulation from $216,013,000 on A u g u st 16th to $221,327,000 on Sep tem ber 13th w as a norm al m ovem ent at th is season of the year, w hen additional funds are needed for m oving th e crops of th e district. Since S eptem ber 14, 1921, th ere has been a decrease of $76,045,000, or 63.7 per cent, in th e am ount of bills discounted by this bank. D u r ing the sam e period, com bined holdings of ac ceptances b o u g h t in th e open m ark et and of U nited S tates G overnm ent securities have in creased by ap proxim ately an equal am ount. T o tal earn in g assets on S eptem ber 13, 1922, w ere therefore only $1,987,000 or 1.5 per cent less th a n one year ago. F ederal R eserve note circulation has changed b u t little d u rin g th e year period. Federal Reserve B a n k of San Francisco 171 PRINCIPAL RESOURCE AND LIABILITY ITEMS OF REPORTING MEMBER BANKS IN RESERVE CITIES IN TWELFTH FEDERAL RESERVE DISTRICT Number o f Reporting Banks .................................................................. Sept. 6, 1922 Aug. 9, 1922 68 68 70 $ 863,027,000 334,555,000 104,934,000 1,184,485,000 9,362,000 $ 875,520,000 301,324,000 99,793,000 1,120,648,000 64,464,000 Loans and D iscounts (exclusive of red isco u n ts)................................$ 866,824,000 Investm ents ....................................................................................................... 333,627,000 Cash in Vault and w ith Federal R eserve B an k .................................... 101,831,000 T otal D ep osits ................................................................................................. 1,196,793,000 Bills Payable and R ediscounts with Federal R eserve B an k ........... 13,025,000 COMPARATIVE STATEMENT OF CONDITION OF FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF SAN AT CLOSE OF BUSINESS, SEPTEMBER 13, 1922 Sept. 7, 1921 FRANCISCO R ESO UR CES Aug. 16, 1922 Sept. 14, 1921 T otal R eserves ................................................................................................. $242,000,000 B ills D iscounted .............................................................................................. 43,352,000 Bills B ought in Open M arket...................................................................... 33,831,000 U nited States Governm ent S ecu rities..................................................... 52,977,000 Sept. 13. 1922 $259,093,000 43,388,000 17,702,000 53,977,000 $235,737,000 119,397,000 3,655,000 9,095,000 T otal Earning A s s e ts .....................................................................................$130,160,000 A ll Other R esou rces*..................................................................................... 55,671,000 $115,067,000 45,656,000 $132,147,000 51,491,000 T otal R e s o u r c e s ........................................................................................... $427,831,000 $419,816,000 $419,375,000 $ 22,789,000 141,308,000 216,013,000 39,706,000 $ 22,566,000 122,404,000 228,674,000 45,731,000 L IA B IL IT IE S Capital and Surplus.........................................................................................$ 22,811,000 T otal D eposits .................................................................................................. 138,866,000 Federal Reserve N otes in A ctual C irculation........................................ 221,327,000 A ll Other L ia b ilitiesf...................................................................................... 44,827,000 T otal L ia b ilitie s ........................................................................................... $427,831,000 ^Includes “U ncollected Item s” .................................................................... fIn clu d es “Deferred Availability Item s” ................................................. 48,612,000 41,080,000 $419,816,000 $419,375,000 38,914,000 35,172,000 45,358,000 37,241,000 CHANGES IN THE COST OF LIVING T h e cost of living in th e four principal cities of th e T w e lfth F ederal R eserve D istrict w as relativ ely stable d u rin g the th ree m o n th s’ p er iod from M arch to June, 1922, according to the rep o rts of th e U n ited S tates D ep artm en t of L abor. T h e rapid decline in living costs w hich began in June, 1920, term in ated in M ay, 1921, and th e grad u al decline th ere after ensuing ended, a t least tem porarily, in M arch, 1922. C hanges in th e to ta l cost of living in four cities of th is d istric t and in th e U nited S tates are su m m arized in th e accom panying table and ch art. T h e dates selected for com parison are D ecem ber, 1914, in a pre-w ar norm al year, Ju n e, 1920, approxim ately the high point in the rise of th e cost of living, and M ay, 1921, the d ate from w hich relative stab ility has obtained. Item ized figures of changes in the cost of food, clothing, housing, fuel and light, fu rn i tu re and m iscellaneous goods and services are included in th e tab u latio n of the to tal cost of living. R ecently all of these item s have not follow ed th e sam e general trend. Food prices, w hich fell m ost quickly and sh arp ly after the peak level of prices had been reached in June, 1920, have recently been advancing. C lothing, fuel and light, and fu rn itu re and furnishings prices, w hich reached h igher levels th an the o th er item s w hen prices w ere advancing, have lagged behind on the decline and are still fall ing slowly. H o u sin g costs have risen stead ily even d u rin g th e period of falling com m odity prices in 1920 and 1921, and, except in Seattle, w here a decrease of 5.8 per cent has occurred, th ey are now from 7 to 37 per cent higher th an th ey w ere tw o years ago. Changes in C ost of Living—Per C ent In crease F rom D ecem ber, 1914 to June, 1922 COST OF LIVING IN THE TW ELFTH FEDERAL RESERVE DISTRICT C ity L os A n g e le s....... .. Portland ............. San F rancisco (and O akland). .. Seattle ................. , . U nited S ta t e s f.. ■ ( \ Per Cent Per Cent Per Cent Increase Decrease Decrease Dec., June, May, 1914 to 1920 to 1921 to June, June, June, 1922 1922 1922 f-------r u e l and L ig h t-------\ Per Cent Per Cent Per Cent Increase Decrease Decrease Dec., June, May, 1914 to 1920 to 1921 to June, June, June, 1922 1922 1922 31.5 38.9 1.9 4* 81.3 53.2 36.2 40.8 20.2 19.8 95.6 43.3 37.1* 7.6* 5.5* .3* 39.1 50.3 9.4 2.3* 8.9 10.0 31.1 30.0 41.0 32.4 35.7 35.6 1.6 2.3* 2.5 90.7 78.0 72.3 34.4 35.0 40.0 20.8 22.1 22.6 29.4 64.7 60.9 18.3* 5.8 18.9* 6.3* 5.8 1.2* 59.5 64.3 74.4 8.4* .9 1.4* 2.3 8.1 3.9 C ity L os A n g e le s............................................... P o r t la n d ..................................................... San Francisco (and O a k la n d )........... Seattle ......................................................... U nited S ta t e s f........................................... r lo u s in g Per Cent Per Cent Per Cent Increase Decrease Decrease Dec., June, May, 1914 to 1920 to 1921 to June, June, June, 1922 1922 1922 r 30.6 26.5 COST OF LIVING, Continued * Increase. fB ase year 1913. -C lo th in g r Per Cent Per Cent Per Cent Increase Decrease Decrease Dec., June, May, 1920 to 1914 to 1921 to June, June, June, 1922 1922 1922 ( Per Cent Increase Dec., 1914 to June, 1922 128.8 101.9 104.4 . , 137.3 102.9 -F urniture ■\ ,-------- Mi! scellaneous--------► , Per Cent Decrease June, 1920 to June, 1922 Per Cent Decrease May, 1921 to June, 1922 Per Cent Increase Dec., 1914 to June, 1922 24.3 28.8 27.0 26.1 30.7 10.8 18.6 16.2 14.4 18.1 103.8 78.5 83.7 97.6 101.5 Per Cent Per Cent Decrease Decrease June, May, 1920 to 1921 to June, June, 1922 1922 9.2* .7 2.3* 3.6* .05* 3.5* 1.4 .4 3.8 3.5 —\ f------------ T otal Per Cent Per Cent Per Cent Increase Decrease Decrease Dec., June, May, 1914 to 1920 to 1921 to June, June. June, 1922 1922 1922 72.5 52.1 56.8 67.0 66.6 14.4 24.1 20.0 20.7 23.0 3.5 6.2 5.9 7.3 7.6 F in a n c ia l C o n d it io n s % in 'ï p e ' CfK /C T w elfth F ed er a l R eserve * % % , ■> % JOHN PERRIN, Chairman of the Board and Federal Reserve Agent Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco San Francisco, California, September 16, 1922 A S U R V E Y of financial conditions in the T w elfth F ederal R eserve D istric t based upon rep o rts of condition of banks as of Ju n e 30, 1922, is presented herew ith, in com p ariso n w ith the last survey, as of D ecem ber 31, 1921, w hich w as published last A pril. W hen allow ance is m ade for th e norm al expansion of loans to m eet the seasonal requirem ents of ag ricu ltu re, w hich are well defined in this dis tric t by Ju n e 30th, conditions com pare very favorably w ith those of D ecem ber 31, 1921. T h e sam e criterion of financial conditions in a given area w as used as in previous surveys, i. e., the ratio of to tal loans and discounts of all banks, S tate and N ational (except in the case of O regon and U tah, w here figures for non m em ber S tate banks are n o t y et available), in th a t area to th eir to tal deposits. W h ere total loans and discounts in a given area w ere less th an 80 per cent of to tal deposits, financial con ditions w ere considered “good” (colored blue on accom panying m aps) ; w here th e ra tio w as betw een 80 per cent and 100 per cent, financial conditions w ere considered “fa ir” (colored yel low on m aps) ; and w here th e ratio w as over 100 p er cent and w here, consequently, m any b anks w ere borrow ing from th e F ederal R e serve B ank or th eir correspondents, financial conditions w ere considered “po o r” (colored green on m aps). As in previous surveys, this study relates p ri m arily to conditions in th e ag ricu ltu ral regions of th e district, figures for the cities of B erkeley, Los A ngeles, O akland, P o rtlan d , S alt Lake City, San Francisco, and S eattle having been excluded. C om parison of th e accom panying m ap w ith the m ap show ing conditions as of D ecem ber 31, 1921, indicates the areas in w hich changes have taken place. T he proportion of banking re sources in “po o r” areas is still dim inishing. In m ost cases w here a change from “good” to “fa ir” occurred, it w as th e re su lt of loan expan sion to m eet h arv estin g and m ark etin g require m ents. T hese changes are sum m arized b e lo w : P R O P O R T IO N O F T O T A L D E P O S IT S O F BANKS IN C O L O R E D A R E A S T O T O T A L D E P O S IT S O F A L L C O U N T R Y B A NK S A pril 28, 1921 D ec. 31, 1921 June 30, 1922 “G ood” a rea s........... 54.9% 80.3% 66.1% “Fair” “ ........... 34.8% 12.7% 27.2% “P o o r” “ ........... 10.3% 7.0% 6.7% T o tal deposits of all banks included in this survey (excepting banks in the city of Spokane) —the so-called cou ntry banks—w ere on June 30, 1922, approxim ately 40 per cent of total bank deposits in the T w elfth F ederal Reserve D is tric t D eposits in the cities above m en tioned and in Spokane equaled 60 per cent of total bank deposits in the district. T he condi tion of th e banks in these cities w as excellent, the ratio of th eir com bined loans to deposits being 64.8 per cent, com pared w ith 67.6 per cent on D ecem ber 31, 1921. FINANCIAL CONDITIONS in the TWELFTH FEDERAL RESERVE DISTRICT As of June 30, 1922 LE G E N D I I GOOD I I FA IR || J POOR FINANCIAL CONDITIONS in the TWELFTH FEDERAL RESERVE DISTRICT As o f December 31, 1921 LEGEND 1 GOOD R e d isc o u n t O pe r a t io n s in th e T w e l f t h F e d e r a l R e se r v e D istr ic t M ILLIONS OF DOLLARS M IL L IO N S OF D O LLA R S 180 r 180 160 160 140 140 ALL ME v| BE:r eJAN KS 120 120 4i i i ▼ .f / \ i 60 V tL 40 _ j 100 80 1 y 80 "A J A V J mi \ . J \ AL L Cl TY 1v1E(^1BE R Bt S Z * 100 tmmm y 60 r ALI.co ^ •NTRY M :MB ER BANK 'S »■•»I 4 0 • d 20 •ft 1920 1919 \ 1921 VJ 20 V * 1923 COMPARATIVE REDISCOUNT OPERATIONS, 19 1 9 -1 9 2 2 NOTE: City banks include all member banks in Los Angeles, Oakland and Berkeley, Portland, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, Seattle and Spokane. Country banks include all other member banks. BORROWINGS FROM THE FEDERAL RESERVE BANK AND WHOLESALE PRICES C ity Bank Borrowings Date January 22, 1919..................................................... $ 61,297,000 Country Bank Borrowings A ll M ember Bank Borrowings $22,746,000 $ 84,043,000 United States Bureau of Labor Wholesale Price Index* (1913=100) 199 f October 5, 1920 August 23, 1921 October 5, 1920 M ay, 1920 116,286,000 68,985,000 174,699,000 247 June 28, 1921............................................................... 83,415,000 67,006,000 150,421,000 142 D ecem ber 27, 1921................................................. ... 32,867,000 39,193,000 72,060,000 140 June 27, 1922.............................................................. 13,719,000 35,581,000 49,300,000 150 A ugust 29, 1922...................................................... ... 11,845,000 35,513,000 47,358,000 155 48.5% 72.9% 37.3% Subsequent P e a k ............................................... j P ercentage decrease from p ea k ..................... * F igures a re fo r m o n th ap p earin g in d ate colum n. 89.8% (N ew index.)
@FedFRASER