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MONTHLY REVIEW o f C r e d it a n d S e c o n d Federal Reserve Agent B u s in e s s F e d e r a l R e s e r v e C o n d itio n s D is t r ic t March 1 , 1927 Federal Reserve Bank, New York Business Conditions in the United States N D U S T R IA L activity has been slightly larger since the turn of the year than at the close of 1926. Seasonal liquidation of Reserve Bank credit has been in unusually large volume owing chiefly to the inflow of gold from abroad, and conditions in the money market have been easy. Wholesale prices have continued to decline. I those fo r the same period o f 1926. Decreases have been largest in New Y ork and in the New England, South eastern, and Northwestern states, while increases oc curred in the M iddle Atlantic and Central Western states. B y types o f building, contracts awarded for resi dential and industrial building in January showed large reductions as compared with December and with January .1926, while contracts fo r commercial buildings were larger than a month or a year ago. P r o d u c t io n Output of factories was larger in January than in December but smaller than in January 1926 or 1925. Mineral production, though somewhat below the Decem ber level, continued in unusually large volume, reflecting the maintenance o f production of bituminous coal, crude petroleum, and copper. Manufacture of iron and steel, which was sharply curtailed in December, increased in January and February. Autom obile output was in creased considerably from the unusually low level o f production reached last December, but the number o f passenger cars produced since the beginning o f the year has been smaller than fo r the corresponding period of the past four years. The textile industries have con tinued active since December without, however, showing the usual seasonal increase. Building contracts awarded in 37 states during the first seven weeks of the year were smaller in value than PERCENT. Index Number of Production of Manufactures and Minerals Combined, Adjusted for Seasonal Variations (1923-25 average ~ 100 per cent). T rade Retail trade showed more than the usual seasonal de cline between December and January. Sales o f depart ment stores were in about the same volume as a year ago, while those of mail order houses were 7 per cent smaller. W holesale trade declined in nearly all leading lines in January and was considerably smaller than a year ago. Inventories o f department stores were re duced less than is customary, and at the end o f the month were in about the same volume as in January 1926. Stocks o f merchandise carried by wholesale firms increased slightly, but continued in smaller volume than in the corresponding month o f the previous year. Freight car loadings declined by somewhat more than the usual seasonal amount between December and J anu ary, but, owing chiefly to heavier shipments o f coal this year, weekly loadings since the beginning o f the year TERCZNT. Price Indexes of United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (1913 average = 100 per cent). MONTHLY REVIEW, MARCH 1, 1927 18 M on th ly A v era g es o f W e e k ly F ig u res fo r M em b er B anks in 101 L ea d in g C ities. L a test F ig u res a re A v era g es fo r T h ree W eek ly R ep ort D ates in F eb ru a ry. were larger than for the same period of 1926. Shipments o f merchandise in less than carload lots were also slightly larger than last year, but those of most basic commodities were smaller. P r ic e s The general level of wholesale prices declined fra c tionally in January, according to the index of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, considerable advances in prices of livestock being somewhat more than offset in the total by decreases in nearly all other commodity groups included in the index. Prices of non-agricultural products, as a group, declined to the lowest level since early in 1922. In February there were decreases in the prices of iron and steel, non-ferrous metals, bituminous coal, grains, and hides, while prices of cattle, sheep, cot ton, and gasoline increased. B ank C r e d it Commercial loans of member banks in leading cities continued to decline during the four weeks ended F eb ruary 16, although at a less rapid rate than in earlier weeks, and in the middle of February the volume of these loans was about $270,000,000 below the seasonal peak reached in the middle of November, though about $200,000,000 above last y e a r’s level. Loans on securities also declined during the period, while the banks’ invest ment holdings increased somewhat. The volume o f Reserve Bank credit remained during the fou r weeks ended February 23 near the low level reached at the end of January. Liquidation o f Reserve Bank credit since the high point of last December has been in excess of $500,000,000, the unusual extent o f th k reduction being due chiefly to the large inflow of gold from abroad. Total bills and securities of the Reserve Banks on February 23 were about $200,000,000 smaller than on the corresponding date of last year. Easier money conditions in February were reflected in a decline in the rate on prime commercial paper from 1 -4 1 4 per cent to 4 per cent after the first week of the month. M on th ly A v e ra g e s o f D a ily F ig u re s fo r 12 F ederal R e se rv e B anks. L a test F igu res are A v e ra g e s o f F irs t 23 D a y s in F ebruary. Money Market The principal influence on the money market since the first o f the year, aside from ordinary seasonal move ments, has been the im port o f about 77 million dollars of gold. Exports of gold amounted to about 17 millions, blit these consisted principally o f exports to Germany of gold which had previously been earmarked and hence their export had no effect on the money market. The total gold movement has therefore resulted in a net gain o f over 70 million dollars to the market. The gold imports were made up largely o f two move ments, an im port o f 39 million dollars from Canada, in keeping with the usual seasonal movement, and an im port o f 21 million dollars from France, representing part o f the gold which the Bank o f France had pur chased from French citizens. There have been no arri vals from France since February 2— and the discount on Canadian exchange which caused the Canadian move ment has been reduced so that the rate is just above the gold shipping point. In considering the factors which are likely to in fluence gold movements in the future, more interest at taches to the im port o f about $7,300,000 o f new gold from London. The amount o f new gold production destined fo r monetary use, which is sold largely in London, amounts ordinarily to about $150,000,000 a year, and the distribution o f this gold reflects the rela tive position o f money rates and the exchanges, freight rates, and fluctuations in the price o f gold in different markets. The movement of $7,300,000 from London to New Y ork in 5 shipments in the past six weeks appears to represent a coincidence o f the sailing o f a fast boat with unusually low freight rates, a low price o f gold in Lon don, and a low sterling exchange rate on two or three separate occasions. In the past two weeks London money FEDERAL RESERVE AGENT AT NEW YORK rates have grown, slightly firmer, sterling exchange has risen slightly and as a consequence none of the gold sales in London in the past two weeks has been reported as destined for this country. The result to the money market o f gold imports in January and February has been to accentuate the usual seasonal tendency toward easy money. Member banks in New Y ork City were able to reduce their borrowings at the Federal Reserve Bank to around 60 million dollars on February 23, as com pared with about 150 million dollars at this time last year, and member banks throughout the system were able to reduce their bor rowings to about 400 million dollars, com pared with 540 a year ago. Total earning assets of the Reserve System on February 23 were approximately one billion dollars, compared with 1,200 millions a year ago. The greater part of this difference is accounted fo r by the net gold imports during the past 12 months, although there is at the present time also a slightly smaller demand for currency due to smaller payrolls than a year ago. 19 In connection with the situation in the commercial paper market it should perhaps be noted that the limi tation in the supply o f available paper as compared with the demand is in part due to a tendency for some months past fo r the amount o f paper offered in the open market to diminish, due to a number o f causes which include com petition with direct loans by banks and a considerable reduction in the amount o f borrowing in the textile industry, which has always been one of the largest factors in the commercial paper market. Reports to this bank o f the commercial paper outstanding through 26 dealers show total outstandings at the end o f January at 551 million dollars. This is an increase of about 5 per cent from the end of December, in keeping with the usual seasonal tendency, but it is about 16 per cent smaller than the amount of paper outstanding a year ago and there has been a steady decline in the amount of paper outstanding as indicated in the accom panying diagram. BILLIONSo f DOLLARS A curious development in connection with the easing in money rates which has taken place since the first of the year has been a tendency fo r a greater concentra tion of rates. Rates above 4 per cent have tended to be reduced, while there has been a com paratively small amount of money available at rates below 4 per cent. This tendency is nowhere better illustrated than in the commercial paper market and in the bill market. Since the first of the year the offering rate on prime commercial paper has declined from 4 % to 4 per cent and the market fo r this paper has been excellent. In fact the amount of paper available has been inadequate to meet the demand, particularly from the interior. In the bill market, on the other hand, the rates on bills are now at approximately the same levels as in the early part of January. F or a time during the period the rate on 90-day bills was reduced to 3 % per cent, but due to a lack of demand the rate was later advanced again to 3 % per cent. D uring most of this period the supply of bills has tended to be larger than the demand and dealers ’ portfolios have been in the neighborhood o f 90 million dollars, which is considerably above the average, until the past few days when there has been some reduction in these portfolios. The much greater concentration of rates than was true a year ago is shown by the figures for money rates in the follow ing table. Money Rates at New York Feb. 25, 1926 Call Money................................. Time Money-90 day.................. Prime Commercial Paper.......... Bills-90 day unendorsed............ Treasury Certificates and Notes Maturing March 15............... Maturing June 15.................. Federal Reserve Bank of New York Rediscount Rate........... Federal Reserve Bank of New York Buying Rate for 90 day Bills.......................................... *5 m *4 4M 4—4 3% 3 % — 3M Feb. 25, 1927 *4 4V2 3 4 —3M 3.65 3.07 3.40 3.31 2.85 3.15 4 4 4 3Ys 3H 3H * = Prevailing rate for preceding week. Jan. 28, 1927 O u tstan d in g P ap er o f 26 C om m ercia l P ap er Dealers. Rates in the call loan market have been unusually steady fo r the first two months o f the year. In fact during the past month the renewal rate has not de parted from 4 per cent except on February 28 when the rate was 4V2 per cent. On several days the rate rose as high as 4 % or 5 per cent fo r a short time, or de clined to 3 % . These rates fo r February represent a substantially lower level o f rates than were maintained during February 1926, when rates of 4V2 to 5 per cent prevailed. M em ber B ank C r e d it Loans on stocks and bonds by reporting member banks in this district were reduced about $80,000,000 further during the fo u r weeks ended February 16, and commercial loans continued to decline gradually, but investments were increased slightly. Compared with a year ago, however, security loans o f banks in this dis trict show a decline o f $160,000,000, investments are practically unchanged, and commercial loans are $190,000,000 higher, whereas reports from member banks in other districts show an increase o f $140,000,000 in security loans, and an increase of similar amount in investments, but little change in commercial loans. 20 MONTHLY REVIEW, MARCH 1, 1927 BILLIONS OFPOLLARS lost part o f their recent gains in sympathy with the decline in silver from the January high of 60.38 cents to 56.50 cents per ounce. G o ld M o v e m e n t The net import o f gold in January amounting to $47,000,000 was nearly half as large as during the entire year 1926, and, as the accom panying diagram shows, was larger than in any previous month since 1921. In muONSo/DOLLARS Loans to Brokers and Dealers in Securities Placed by New York City Reporting Member Banks. Total security loans o f reporting banks in all dis tricts combined show little change from a year ago, but loans to brokers and dealers in securities placed by New Y ork City banks fo r their own account, fo r correspond ent banks, and fo r others are over $400,000,000 smaller than a year ago. A s the follow ing diagram shows, the principal reduction has been in loans fo r their own ac count, while loans for correspondent banks remain fairly high, and loans for others are close to the highest level reached since these records were inaugurated. F o r e ig n E x c h a n g e The principal European exchanges were in general either stable or slightly firmer in February than in the preceding month. Practically no change occurred in Austrian, Belgian, German, and Danish rates. Sterling fluctuated narrowly, remaining close to the gold export point. The French franc sagged toward the close of the month to 3.91 cents, and Swiss francs at 19.23 cents were likewise weak. The Italian lira was somewhat stronger and reached 4.42 cents toward the close of February. Dutch rates rose above 40 cents for the first time since October, and the Norwegian krone continued upw ard to 25.94 cents. The Spanish peseta at 16.97 cents also established a new high point fo r recent years, although quotations receded to 16.74 cents toward the end o f the month. W hile part o f the recent advance in the peseta appears to be due to speculation, some real im prove ments in Spanish conditions have taken place, such as the cessation of hostilities in Morocco, smaller budgetary deficits, and the consolidation of a large portion o f the floating debt. 1 EXC ESS OF I iniPORTS A l i t fc-'-'vi f l [ip lIl EXCE!5S OF I >RTS 19H- 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 Monthly Gold Export or Import Balance o f the United States. the first 26 days of February the movement slackened but gold imports continued to exceed exports, and the net receipts through the P ort o f New Y ork and from Canada amounted to about $13,000,000. The principal gold movements in January and the greater part o f February are summarized below. (In thousands of dollars) Source or Destination January February 1 to 26 United States New Y ork and St. Lawrence Districts Imports C anada.............................. E ngland............................ C hile.................................. Germ any........................... All O ther.......................... T o ta l.............................. Exports $37,975 14,695 Imports Exports $1,200 6,283 7,274 2,629 3,243 2,000 1,420 $12,590 2,300 546 1,065 1,028 $61,962 $14,890 $15,303 $2,093 S e c u r it y M a r k e t s Argentine rates advanced steadily throughout the month, and at 42.09 cents were less than half a cent below parity. Brazilian quotations ranged from 11.75 to 11.85 cents. H eavy trading in railroad shares resulted in an in crease during February in the average turnover of stocks to well over two m illion shares a day. Average prices o f high grade railroad stocks rose 8 points during the month to the highest levels since early in 1910. In dustrial stocks also were firmer and representative price averages rose to approxim ately the highest levels ever reached. The yen strengthened during the latter part o f the month, reaching 48.90 cents, but the Chinese exchanges Corporation bond averages, after reaching the high est levels in recent years toward the end o f January, The Canadian dollar remained stationary at 99.84 cents, and after one shipment during the early part of the month, no more gold imports were received. FEDERAL RESERVE AGENT AT NEW YORK eased about one-third of a point and subsequently re mained steady at this level. Foreign bond prices also declined slightly from the high levels of late January and early February. In the case o f United States Gov ernment obligations, however, the fourth Liberty 4*4 *s, and the Treasury 3 % ’s, 4 ’s, and 4 1/4 ,s advanced to the highest levels since issuance, and other issues were steady. B ond trading on the New Y ork Stock Exchange re mained fairly active in February, although there was some decline from the large turnover of the previous month. A s the accom panying diagram shows, the vol ume o f bond sales on the New Y ork Stock Exchange has been increasing rapidly since last summer, and in Janu ary reached the highest level since 1924. Sales o f fo r eign bonds were larger than in any previous month. 21 tionally large amount of January, and was larger than a year ago. A $9*5,000,000 issue o f Missouri Pacific R ail road Company 5 per cent bonds was the largest issue of the month, and was one of the largest pieces o f railway financing ever undertaken. Public utility and industrial offerings continued large and included numerous sub stantial stock issues. The principal foreign issues were one o f $26,000,000 fo r the R epublic of Chile and one of $23,000,000 fo r the State o f New South Wales. The latter was the first financing arranged publicly fo r that State in this market. The accom panying diagram shows that new financing increased rapidly, along with the volume of trading, toward the end of last year, and in January was the largest in recent years. Refunding* issues have been excluded from the totals. F o r e ig n T r a d e Exports o f merchandise valued at $419,000,000 in January were seasonally less than in December, but $22,000,000 larger than a year ago, despite lower com m odity prices this year. Im ports valued at $359,000,000 were practically the same as in December, and were $58,000,000 less than in January 1926. 'i i v ISZZ 1923 1924 \9Z5 m i L9£6 1927 Monthly Sales of United States Government, Domestic Corpora tion, and Foreign Bonds on the New York Stock Exchange. N e w F in a n c in g Offerings of new securities continued very large in the first part of F eb ru a ry; so that the total fo r the month as a whole was only moderately below the excep Raw cotton exports continued heavy, and, although smaller than in December, were 50 per cent above last year in quantity, but the value was 6 per cent smaller than a year ago. Total grain exports also showed a decline from December, but wrere 50 per cent greater in value than in January 1926. Quantity receipts o f crude rubber were the largest on record. In value, however, they were considerably less than a year ago, owing to the price drop o f about 50 per cent, and no doubt were a large factor in the decline in value o f total imports. The quantity o f raw silk im ported was large and exceeded that o f December or January 1926. Im ports o f coffee also were larger than in January o f last year. I n d e x e s o f B u s in e s s A c t i v i t y January changes in business activity and general distribution were m ixed com pared with the previous month and with January 1926. Bank debits in 140 centers outside o f New Y ork City, which have been found to closely follow changes in the general volume o f trade, increased after allowance fo r seasonal variation to about the level o f a year ago. Car loadings o f mer chandise and miscellaneous freight com pared somewhat more favorably with those o f a year ago than in Decem ber, and loadings o f the heavier commodities remained larger than a year ago, due chiefly to much larger move ments of coal and coke. M onthly Volume of New Capital Issues in the United States (Refunding issues excluded). In distribution to the consumer, department store sales continued slightly larger than a year ago, but mail order sales which reflect largely purchasing by rural communities, showed more than the usual seasonal de- 22 MONTHLY REVIEW, M ARCH 1, 1927 din e from December and were 7 per cent smaller than a year ago. Other indexes of business activity such as advertising, postal receipts, employment, stock trading, and building permits all were lower than in December or in January 1926. In the follow ing table this ban k’s indexes of business activity are given in percentages of the com puted trend, with allowance for seasonal variations, and, wher^ necessary, for price changes. (C om puted tre n d of past years =100 per cent) 1926 Jan. Primary Distribution Car loadings, merchandise and misc. . . . Car loadings, other................................... Exports...................................................... Imports................. : .................................. Crain exports............................................ Panama Canal traffic............................... 110 100 82 130 47 97 Distribution to Consumer Department store sales, 2nd Dist. Chain store sales....................................... Mail order sales........................................ Life insurance paid for............................. Real estate transfers................................. Magazine advertising............................... Newspaper advertising............................. 97 97 122 99 110 103 107 1927 Nov. Dec. 108 113 96 124 70 84 105 112 92 117 63 84 Jan. 106 104 90p 116p 102 98 120 117 100 111 101 138 121 i03 108 103 100 106 108 126 103 115 132 107 101 108 127 159 94 107 104 94 117 101 12 per cent smaller than in January 1926. January was the seventh consecutive month to show a decrease from the corresponding month of the previous year. ’ 99 E m p lo y m e n t a n d W a g e s General Business Activity Bank debits, outside of N. Y. City........ Bank debits, New York City............ . Bank debits, 2nd Dist. excl. N. Y. City. Velocity of bank deposits, outside of New York City................................. Velocity of bank deposits, New York City Shares sold on N. Y. Stock Exchange* . Postal receipts........................................... Electric power........................................... Employment in the United States.......... Business failures....................................... Building permits...................................... New corporations formed in N. Y. State 114 128 General price level. . ................................ 188 110 112 102 106 120 186 97 109 104 97 149 128 115 146 98 113 102 111 137 112 185 124 195 105 116 101 110 ‘ ioop 158 114 103 130 114 186 185 *=Seasonal variation not allowed for. V—Preliminary. B u ild in g January awards of building and engineering contracts showed a decrease of 16 per cent from the high level of a year ago and of 28 per cent from December, accord ing to reports received by the F. W . Dodge Corporation from 37 states east of the Rockies. The total, however, was the second largest for any January on record. The entire decline from a year ago was due to a smaller volume of contracts in New Y ork and Northern New Jersey than in January 1926, when the figures included the contract fo r a very large power project. The accom panying diagram indicates that, while building activity in this district in most recent months has been at a lower level than a year previous, construc tion in other districts has continued slightly above the level of a }^ear ago. The S. W . Straus & Co. report of building permits issued in 467 cities throughout the country in January shows a total 29 per cent smaller than in December and B u ildin g C on tracts A w ard ed in N ew Y o r k S tate and N orth ern N ew J e rse y and in O ther R e p o rtin g S tates fo r w hich C om parative Data are A va ila b le sin ce January 1923. Factory employment in New Y ork State continued in January to show a decline that cannot be attributed wholly to seasonal conditions. The State Departm ent o f Labor reported a reduction of nearly 2 per cent from December, and of 5 per cent from January 1926. F or the country as a whole, the average decline in factory employment and payrolls compared with a year ago was about 3 per cent. The principal decline in New Y ork State continued to be in the metal working industries; working forces in railway equipment plants showed especially large re ductions. Increased activity was reported in the silk goods and rug industries, but at least small declines in most other textile lines. A much larger curtailment of activity than a year ago occurred in the cement mills, and the number employed in the automobile industry remained considerably smaller. A lthough wage rates paid to common labor appear to have become fairly well stabilized, there still appears to be a tendency fo r wages o f more skilted labor to ad vance. E arly in February a 7 per cent increase in wages was granted to firemen and enginemen of Eastern railways, and reports received by the State Labor D e partment continue to show scattering increases in fa c tory wages, with practically no wage reductions. P r o d u c t io n A ctual production in a number of lines was larger in January than in December, but after allowance fo r the usual seasonal tendencies, increases during the month were relatively few. Autom obile production in creased substantially, but the total output remained FEDERAL RESERVE AGENT AT NEW YORK 23 about 20 per cent below the high level of a year ago, although truck production was considerably larger. Increases occurred also in the output of copper and cement, and in mill consumption of silk, but production in most other lines showed reductions after allowance fo r the usual seasonal changes. Further increases in the activity of the iron and steel industry have been reported in February, and bituminous coal output has been maintained at a high level in anticipation of a possible suspension of mining in union fields on A p ril 1 if a new wage contract cannot be agreed upon before that time. January indexes, in which allowance has been made for the usual seasonal variations and year-to-year growth, are shown below, with comparable figures fo r recent months and a year ago. B asic C om m od ity P rice s in the U nited S tates and Engle land. (M o n th ly a vera g es o f w eekiv indexes o f t7’ * F e d c-a ! Re serve B ank o f N ew Y ork. 1913 a v e r a g e s 100 per c e n t). (Computed trend of past years = 100 per cent) 1927 1926 Producers' Goods Pig iron...................................................... Steel ingots................................................ Bituminous coal........................................ Copper, U. S. mines................................. Tin deliveries............................................. Zinc............................................................ Petroleum.................................................. Gas and fuel oil......................................... Cotton consumption................................. Woolen mill activity*............................... Cement...................................................... Lumber...................................................... Leather, sole.............................................. Silk consumption*.................................... Consumers’ Goods Cattle slaughtered.................................... Calves slaughtered................................... Sheep slaughtered..................................... Hogs slaughtered...................................... Sugar meltings, U. S. ports..................... Wheat flour............................................... Cigars ...................................................... Cigarettes.................................................. Tobacco, manufactured........................... Gasoline..................................................... Tires........................................................... Newsprint.................................................. Paper total .. .... Boots and shoes........................................ Anthracite coal ....................................... Automobile, all ....................................... Automobile, passenger............................. Automobile, truck..................................... *=Seasonal variation not allowed for. Jan. Nov. Dec. 112 112 113 103 129 105 114 107 96 93 123 104 64 132 108 103 129 114 124 116 125 100 102 102 123 99 79 129 105 105 126 105 112 115 127 107 110 99 120 110 80 107 104 116 103 82 139 90 86 80 111 137 132 119 94 84 ** 143 148 121 101 107 105 82 126 86 119 69 101 148 119 129 93 95 90 105 104 110 102 115 123 76 138 94 100 72 101 158 134 119 89 98 92 79r 73 I02r * * = Strike J>=Preliminary Jan. 104 99 118p 110 107 102 ’ ’ 98 95?) 124 ’ 'i i 129 99 106 110 81 106 84 100 72 110 The sharp drop in raw cotton prices and lower level of other farm products, while an im portant factor, was not the sole cause o f the decline during the last year and a half. The price o f crude rubber in February was Jess than half that prevailing in the summer o f 1925; raw silk, hides, and newsprint were considerably lo w e r; and crude petroleum, cement, copper, and lead showed moderate declines. D uring the past month, corn and livestock prices resumed their decline follow ing somewhat firmer ten dencies in January, but cotton held its partial recovery from the low level reached last fall. Raw silk advanced moderately in February, and crude rubber was slightly higher, but bituminous coal, pig iron, copper, hides, and sugar declined. 'l l 5 ” 86v 84p 109 103 133 r=Revised C o m m o d i t y P r ic e s Prices o f basic commodities, after holding fairly steady during most of December and January, again resumed in February the decline which had been in progress since the summer of 1925. As the accom pany ing diagram shows, this bank’s index of prices o f 20 basic commodities in this country declined in February to the lowest level since the Spring of 1922. Basic com m odity prices in England have showTn comparatively little change since December, when a sharp decline fo l lowed the relatively high level caused by high prices of fuel and basic metals during the coal strike, but this index also was lower in February than at any time since 1922. D e p a rtm e n t S to re T r a d e Total sales o f leading department stores in this dis trict in January were somewhat above those o f a year ago, but conditions in the different localities varied considerably. Sales o f W estchester stores continued much larger than a year previous, and moderate in creases continued to be reported from New Y ork City, Newark, and Bridgeport, but sales o f stores in Northern New' Y ork State, the Capital district, and the Hudson River Valley showed the largest decreases in a number o f months and sales in Buffalo and Syracuse also were considerably smaller. A pparel store sales averaged 4 per cent larger than in January 1926, but mail order sales were 7 per cent smaller. Stocks o f merchandise on hand in department stores at the end o f the month were slightly smaller than a year ago, and the rate o f stock turnover was higher. Collections on charge and instalment accounts were somewhat larger than in January o f last year, but MONTHLY REVIEW, MARCH 1, 1927 24 charge accounts outstanding at the end of the month averaged 10 per cent higher fo r all reporting stores, while instalment accounts receivable averaged only slightly larger. Percentage Change January 1927 from January 1926 Locality New Y o r k .......................*............... B uffalo.............................................. R ochester......................................... Syracuse........................................... Newark............................................. B ridgeport....................................... Elsewhere........................................ Northern New Y ork S ta te... . Central New Y ork S ta te......... Southern New Y ork S ta te .. . . Hudson River Valley District. Capital D istrict......................... Westchester D istrict................. Net Sales + 4 .5 — 6.2 — 0.8 — 8.2 + 4 .3 + 3 .1 — 4 .7 — 12.3 — 4 .6 + 1.4 — 11.3 — 13.4 + 14.5 Stock on hand end of month — 1.1 — 9 .4 + 4 .5 — 18.0 + 3 .5 + 1.5 + 0 .5 All department stores................... + 2.8 — 1.3 Apparel stores................................ Mail order houses.......................... + 4 .0 — 7 .2 + 9 .0 C ollec tions* + 4 .8 + 3 .3 + 1 4 .5 A cct’s Receiv able* + 8 .7 + 9 .2 +20.2 + 2 5 .2 +25! 6 — 1.8 + 7.3 + 6.6 + 10.4 *=Exclusive of instalment accounts. Comparisons of January sales and stocks o f merchan dise on hand at the end of the month in the principal departments with those of a year previous are shown in the follow ing table. Books and stationery................................ Toys and sporting g ood s .......................... M en’s furnishings....................................... Linens and handkerchiefs......................... W om en’s ready-to-wear accessories. . . . Shoes.............................................................. Furniture...................................................... H osiery.......................................................... W om en’s and Misses’ ready-to-wear. . . Toilet articles and drugs.......................... Luggage and other leather good s........... M en’s and B oys’ w ear.............................. Silverware and jew elry.............................. Cotton g o o d s ............................................... Home furnishings....................................... Silks and velvets........................................ W oolen goods ............................................. Musical instruments and rad io............... Miscellaneous.............................................. Net Sales Percentage Change January 1927 from January 1926 Stock on Hand Percentage Change January 31, 1927 from January 31, 1926 + 1 9 .0 + 1 3 .2 + 8 .7 + 8 .6 + 6 .4 + 6 .4 + 6 .2 + 5 .6 + 5 .3 + 5 .3 + 4 .1 + 3 .9 + 3 .0 + 1.3 — 1.0 — 1.3 — 19.7 — 30.9 — 3.1 + 4 .6 — 6 .2 — 0 .7 + 2 .7 + 4 .2 + 1.1 + 3.1 — 5 .3 — 2.1 — 1 .0 — 0 .1 + 2 .3 — 6 .9 — 9 .8 + 5 .0 — 13.2 — 3 1.7 — 8 .0 — 9 .4 W h o le s a l e T r a d e probably due to lower prices this year, dollar sales con tinued smaller than last year. Diam ond sales showed a large decline from the high level o f January 1926, and sales o f jew elry, drugs, and hardware, were considerably smaller. Machine tool sales, however, were somewhat larger than a year pre vious fo r the first time since last summer, paper sales continued larger, and stationery sales showed little change. Stocks o f groceries and cotton goods at the end of January were smaller than a year ago, but stocks o f hardware, and diamonds and jew elry were larger. Percentage Change January 1927 from December 1926 Com m odity Net Sales Groceries........................ M en’s clothing.............. W om en’s dresses.......... W om en’s coats and suits............................. Cotton goods— Jobbers Cotton goods— C o m ’n. Silk go o d s....................... Shoes............................... D rugs.............................. Hardware....................... Machine tools................ Stationery...................... P aper............................... D iam onds....................... Jewelry............................ — 10.7 + 3 9 .0 + 2 8 .9 Weighted A v e ra g e ... + 9 .4 — 0 .7 + 2 0 .3 + 2 7 .7 + 6 .9 }+ 0 .6 Net Sales — 10.3 — 22.4 — 14.3 + 3 .5 — 6 .6 — 10.5 — 11.9 — 11.6 — 8 .4 — 7 .6 + 4 .6 — 0 .2 + 3 .6 — 35.1 — 11.4 Stock end of month Collections A cct’s R eceiv able — 7 .8 — 0 .4 — 18.3 — 1 1.0 + 0.1. — 3 .0 — 8 .6 — 8 .6 — 4 .6 .0 — 13,5 — 0 .4 — 6 .9 — 13.3 — 8 .6 — 6 .0 + 8 .1 — 1.9 — 1.7 — 12.5 — 0 .3 — 11.7 — 4 .8 + 7 .9 j+ 1 3 .3 — 10.4 }+ 2 .7 — 6 .4 }+ 0 .4 — 5 .0 C h a in S t o r e S a le s Total sales o f reporting chain store systems in Janu ary were nearly 14 per cent larger than a year ago, or about the same increase as in December. V ariety and drug chains continued to report largest gains over last year, followed closely by grocery systems. Ten Cent and tobacco chains also reported moderate increases, but shoe and candy sales were somewhat smaller, follow ing increases in most recent months. Sales per store in a m ajority o f lines were smaller than in January 1926, but owing to considerably larger sales in variety and grocery stores, the average fo r all types o f stores was nearly 5 per cent larger. W holesale trade in this district in January showed a seasonal increase over December, especially in the ap parel trades, but remained substantially smaller than a year ago, according to reports from representative dealers in fifteen important lines. M en ’s clothing and dress sales continued much smaller than last year, but sales of w om en’s coats and suits showed the first increase since last summer. Silk goods sales remained well below those o f a year ago, and shoe sales were considerably smaller, follow ing increases in most recent months. A ctual quantity sales o f cotton goods in January are reported to have been large, but + 9 6 .7 — 30.5 — 5 .6 + 8 .8 — 4 2.4 + 1 1 .3 — 36.4 — 2 .2 + 0 .2 + 2 .3 + 2 .9 — 69 8 Stock end of month Percentage Change January 1927 from January 1926 Percentage Change January 1927 from January 1926 T yp e of Store G rocery. . Ten Cent. D ru g........ T o b a cco .. S h oe......... V a rie ty .. . Ca n d y . .. T otal Number of Stores + 9 .2 + 7 .2 + 3 0 .8 + 4 .4 + 1 0 .3 + 3 .8 + 2.8 + 8.6 T otal Sales + 1 6 .9 + 7 .0 +20.0 + 5 .5 — 5 .0 Sales per Store + 7 .1 — 0.2 — 8.2 + 1.0 — 5 .2 — 13.9 + 1 5 .7 — 7 .9 + 1 3 .8 + 4 .8 +20.2
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