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FEDSBAkr/RESERVE BANK a
RICHMOND
c m
a a
Ju ly 1956
CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT
CONTRASTS
(Percentage change first five months 1956 from year ago.)
UNITED
STATES
TOTAL CONSTRUCTION
Residential Construction
One-and Two-Family Houses
Other Residential Construction
Non-Residential Construction
Manufacturing Buildings
Commercial Buildings
Educational and Science Buildings
Other Non-Residential Construction
Public Works and Utilities
In This Issue
C
onstruction contracts presuppose an equivalent
construction
outlay.
Construction
expendi
tures are an important part of the economic bal
ance-wheel.
Contract
awards
established
new
high records in 37 Eastern states in the first five
months of 1956, but fell behind last year in the
Fifth District.
-
-
-
Cross-Currents in 1956 C onstruction__ Page 3
Record Volume of
Nonresidential Building ______________Page 4
District Building Activity
Simmers Down ______________________ Page 5
Member Bank Business L oa n s:
A Decade of Change ________________ Page 7
Business Conditions and P rospects_____ Page 10
Fifth District Statistical Data __________ Page 11
Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
F
if t h
D
is t r ic t
DEPARTMENT STORE SALES
180
180
i
180
180
M A R Y LA N D
DISTRIC /T O F COL U M B IA
160
160
160
140
140
140
120
120
i
120
V
100
*r\
f\j
/
v
V
1949
100
1952
1951
1950
1953
195 4
1955
194 8
.
A
\
1953
1954
1955
1956
IL h
V
Ve
160
140
140
A jv M
v
120
120
100
100
(Seos onally Adju sted )
0 9 ' 17 -1 9 4 9- 1CX5)
1951
1952
1953
1954
1955
:
0
Vv
\
K /
rJ
X aTA
V t
*
f
1950
1952
180
w
1949
1951
W E S T V IR G IN IA
140
1948
1950
180
160
r
1949
i
Department store sales in the District of Columbia in May were
5% higher than in April, after seasonal correction, 5% ahead of a
year ago, and the first five months were up 6% . The trend of
seasonally adjusted sales has been jaggedly downward since January.
Growth since the end of World W ar II has been about the same as
in the District as a whole.
180
160
r' \
100
. (194 7-1949-10 0 )
0 i
1956
r
100
120
A
'V V - A
100
V IR G IN IA
120
140
(Seaso nally Adjusled)
Department store sales during May in Maryland, on a seasonal
ly adjusted basis, were at the April level and were 3 % ahead of a
year ago. For the first five months sales were 2 % higher than a
year earlier. Growth in department store sales in Maryland has
shown little progress in the last 10 months and growth since World
W ar II has been relatively slow.
1 80
K
1
0
194 8
u ,
f W
v
h
Sea* jnolly Adju sted)
(194 7 -1 9 4 9 * 130)
160
r
/vAJV
160
140
120
100
V T
(Seosc nally Adju le d )
(1947-1949-1C 0)
0
1956
. A
/
1948
1949
1950
1951
1952
1953
1954
1955
I
195 6
Department store sales in Virginia during May were at the same
level as in April, after seasonal correction, 4 % ahead of May 1955,
and the first five months were up 5% . The trend since July 1955
has been about flat. Growth since World W ar II has been about
the same as in the District as a whole.
Department store sales in West Virginia during May were at the
same seasonally adjusted level as in April, but 14% higher than in
May 1955; for the first five months they were up 10% . Sales in West
Virginia have been rising at a rapid rate during the past year.
Department store sales in North Carolina, trending downward
slightly since the first of the year, were 8 % higher in May than
April, 3% ahead of a year ago and the first five months were up
2 % . Sales since the Spring of 1954 have shown about the same
rise as the District but growth since the end of World W ar II has
been considerably slower.
Department store sales in South Carolina in May were 5 % higher
than in April, after seasonal correction, 7% ahead of May 1955
and the first five months of the year were up 7% . South Carolina
has shown the most rapid rise of any state in the District since the
Spring of 1954 as well as since the end of World W ar II.
i 2 y
Ju ly 1956
Cross-Currents in 1956 Construction
a speech last May, Mr. Allan Sproul, retiring
president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York,
noted that the economy had been “ in transition from a
period in which consumer investment in houses and
durable consumer goods was the dominant expansive
force . . . to a period in which business investment in
plant and equipment is the dominant force.” The over
all result was pretty much of a standoff for the economy
— with economic activity fairly stable at a very high
level. A s expressed in another quarter, general busi
ness activity has moved “ violently sideways.”
In short, the economy has returned to “ rolling ad
justment”— a series of large-scale shifts in the shortrun fortunes of major industries that have canceled out
each other. A s Secretary of the Treasury Humphrey
expressed it recently, a rolling readjustment is “ an
adjustment here, an adjustment there.” Should one
of the integral adjustments zig, so to speak, when it
should zag, the net result could be a sharp decline in
aggregate business activity rather than a pattern of
stability.
Rolling readjustment can also occur within a major
industry. Construction affords a recent example. For
the first five months of this year, outlays for residential
building in the United States amounted to $5,751 mil
lion, 7.5% less than for the same period a year earlier.
Nonresidential building, on the other hand, at $4,847
million, was up 6.6% from a year ago. Together they
were little changed from the total construction outlays
of the 1955 period.
upturn this past April. However, preliminary data
indicate that there was a slight decline again in May.
All told, the seasonally adjusted annual rate of outlays
declined almost 12% from July 1955 to March 1956.
A few months ago, when lending terms on mortgages
guaranteed or insured by Federal agencies were liber
alized and the Federal Home Loan Banks were given
access to greater amounts of funds, it was felt that ad
justment in the home building industry might be com
pleted very shortly. This opinion was not confirmed
by subsequent developments although recent levelingout of the decline in residential outlays is regarded by
some analysts as an optimistic indicator.
Promise of an upturn in this sector is held out by
new housing starts which, after dropping almost con
tinuously throughout last year, have held steady at
around 1.1 million (seasonally adjusted annual rate)
for the last four months for which data are available—
February, March, April, and May.
Another indicator on the optimistic side is the record
of contract awards for residential building. Latest
figures of the F. W . Dodge Corporation show that priv
ate contracts awarded in May in the 37 states east of
the Rockies rose to $1,094 million, 12% higher than
a year earlier. This was the third consecutive month
that private awards for residential building reached an
all-time record high for any month in the history of
this series. For the first five months of the year, the
total of private awards was 7.4% greater than it was
in the same period last year.
Awards at Record Levels
Mixed Pattern
Whether residential building will complete its ad
justment and re-emerge as an expansionary force dur
ing the second half of this year was a moot point at
mid-year. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the nation’s
outlays for home building peaked in July 1955 and
then declined in every succeeding month until the small
Complicating the analysis of the residential building
situation and prospect have been divergencies between
residential starts, contract awards, and outlays during
the first half of 1956. In explaining the continued
divergence of residential contract awards data collected
by the F. W . Dodge Corporation and the Department
/
n
R E S ID E N T IA L
BUILD IN G
U
STARTS
AWARDS (Total)
(Private)
P U T IN
PLACE
(Private)
M il
Million [
BilM o n
.1950
1.0
, -------- 1955
1.4
V955 *•
\
x 1955
.8
1.3
6
1.2
.4
LI
'“ - - x
.1956
■
.*• 1950
1956
ill
(F. W Dodge Corporation)
J
F
M A
M J
( Seas. Adj. Annual Rate)
I•0 |
.2 -ewnJ-----1----- 1----- 1-----1-----L.
J
A
S
O
N
D
J
1 I .I I 1 I i I
F
M
A
M
J
J
i 3 y
A
S
(S e a s. Adj. Annual Rate)
I
O
1 I
N
O
J
F
M
I .1 1 I I I .. I
A
M
J
J
A S O N D
Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
of Labor’s housing starts totals, the company has point
ed out that the awards data do not include the 11 states
west of the Rockies. In recent months residential
building in that region has lagged behind the national
average, thus loading the Dodge totals on the upside
in comparison with starts data drawn from the entire
country. A second reason given was that bad weather
in many parts of the country lengthened the usual one
or two months’ lag between awards and the start of
construction.
Another point of difference has been the gap between
the declines in starts and in outlays. W hile the num
ber of new private nonfarm housing starts was down
17% in the first five months of this year as compared
with the same period last year, outlays were off only
7.4% .
The explanation generally given is tw ofold : higher
building costs and larger and better-equipped homes.
Assuming no errors in the data for starts and outlays
and allowing for a 4.7% rise in residential building
costs (Boeckh— 20 city average) from the first quarter
of 1955 to the first quarter of this year, explanation of
the difference between starts and outlays falls largely
on the shift to bigger and better homes. Such a shift
is most unusual for a limited period of one year. H ow
ever, the recent survey of the National Association of
Home Builders disclosed that the 100 builders con
tacted plan to build this year 28% fewer homes to sell
for less than $15,000 and 61% more than last year in
the $15,000-and-over class. All told, this group ex
pected to erect just 4 % fewer homes this year than last.
Record Volume of Nonresidential Building
upsurge in construction activity is at
tributable largely to record outlays by business for
expansion and modernization of productive facilities.
If present business plans materialize, such investment
will continue to be an expansionary force for the rest
of the year.
Last Fall’s M cGraw-Hill survey showed business
spending 13% more in 1956 for new plant and equip
ment than in 1955. Five months later, after many
tentative plans had become more definite, the joint sur
vey by the Securities and Exchange Commission and
the Department of Commerce disclosed an increase in
spending plans to exceed 1955 by 22% . This Spring’s
survey by M cGraw-Hill of 1956 business-spending
plans indicated an increase over 1955 of 30% .
Although results of the M cGraw-Hill and SEC-Com merce surveys are not directly comparable, due to dif
ferences in methods and coverage, the final McGrawHill tally at least confirms the sharp increase disclosed
by the Government survey. In view of the weaknesses
in other major areas of the economy during the first
half, this is a highly significant trend.
revision in the Government’s estimate of private out
lays for this type of construction this year. Last
November the Departments of Commerce and Labor
looked for a 17% increase this year; in June they
raised their sights to a plus 25% .
Latest data available show that while outlays for
residential building in the first five months of this year
were lagging 7% behind the same period last year, non
residential construction was running 19% ahead of the
1955 pace. Contrary to a year ago when all classes of
commercial building were setting the pace in the non
residential field, in the first five months of this year in
dustrial building has been the star performer with
activity 25% above that of a year earlier. The rate of
increase, furthermore, has risen considerably since
January, so that industrial building in May was 17%
above the year-end level and 35% above a year ago.
Another impressive factor in the industrial building
picture is the backlog of proposed projects. The En
gineering News-Record keeps a continuous monthly
inventory of projects in the planning stage, and on
April 30 this total was 26% above a year earlier.
o n tin u e d
C
The F. W . Dodge Corporation has reported that
contracts awarded for manufacturing building in the
first five months exceeded the total for the same period
of 1955 by 39% . Interestingly, the floor area involved
was 45% greater than in the 1955 period.
The Engineering N ews-Record’s reports on contract
awards show that for the first 25 weeks of this year,
industrial awards were booming— 130% higher than a
year ago. The disparity between this and the Dodge
figure is due to differences in geographic coverage, size
of projects reported, and timing of contracts. Timing
probably accounts for the major share of the difference
between the two series. Engineering News-Record
reports the total value of a contract at the time of its
award, with the whole project going into the figures
right away. Dodge, on the other hand, reports awards
piecemeal, as sections of the project are started or as
subcontractors enter the picture.
Record Commercial Construction
The backlog of proposed commercial building pro
jects has also been swelling despite the heavy flow of
projects out of the planning stage and into contract
awards. A s of April 30 it was 23% higher than on
that date in 1955. Engineering N ews-Record reports
that for the eight months to that date, the inflow of new
proposed commercial projects exceeded the volume
This, together with a favorable trend of contract
awards for industrial building, has led to an upward
i 4 Y
July 1956
j/fansujL
Seasonally adjusted outlays for stores, restaurants,
and garages in the first four months of this year, while
28% greater than in the same period of 1955, were
practically unchanged from the last four months of
1955. This may have been a factor in the recent re
vision of the 1956 estimate from a plus 17% to a plus
13% . Since the volume of store construction is influ
enced by the volume of new housing, an extension of
the adjustment in new residential building over a longer
period of time than is currently envisaged could have
a pronounced impact on commercial building.
Outlays for new construction in the other major
category of commercial building, office buildings and
warehouses, increased 19% in the first four months of
this year over the same period last year and almost 3%
over the last four months of 1955, the strongest part of
that year. In view of this strength, the original G ov
ernment estimate of a 9 % increase in such outlays this
year has been boosted to 12%.
leaving the backlog and becoming contract awards.
Contract awards for commercial building as reported
by Engineering News-Record increased 18% in the
first 25 weeks of this year, and on the Dodge scoreboard
they were up 16% in the first five months compared
with the same period of 1955. The significance of these
gains is highlighted by the fact that these comparisons
are being made with the strongest part of 1955.
On outlays for commercial buildings erected this year,
the record shows that such expenditures in the first
five months exceeded the rate for the comparable period
of 1955 by 22% . Compared with the last five months
of 1955, however, outlays, seasonally adjusted, were
only 1.7% higher. In their June revision of construct
ion estimates for 1956, the Departments of Commerce
and Labor evidently took such movements into con
sideration in changing the original estimate of a 14%
gain for the year to 12.5%.
District Building Activity Simmers Down
confined to any one particular type of construction; it
runs the entire gamut.
Residential awards in the District were down 16%
in the first five months of 1956 from 1955 compared
with a gain of 9 % in the nation. Furthermore, all states
in the District, except W est Virginia, showed declines.
W est Virginia recorded a small increase.
Nonresidential awards in the District were down
15% compared with a national increase of 16% . In
this area, Virginia increased slightly from a year ago,
and South Carolina showed a 19% ga in ; other states
declined from 12% in Maryland to 61% in the District
of Columbia.
Contract awards for public works and utilities in the
first five months of 1956 were down 2% from a year ago
in the Fifth District compared with an increase of 20%
in the United States. South Carolina increased 22% ;
Virginia, 7% ; and W est Virginia more than tripled,
but other states showed losses ranging from 21% to
32% .
O f the nonresidential components, commercial build
ings in the District in the first five months of 1956 de
clined 14% from a year ago compared with a 15% in
crease in the nation. In this type of construction, V ir
ginia was 16% ahead of a year ago and the District of
Columbia 5% ; other states showed losses ranging from
10% in W est Virginia to 37% in South Carolina.
h e construction industry has played an important
part in establishing the economy of the Fifth Dis
trict in 1955 and early 1956 at an all-time high level— a
more important part, in fact, than its magnitude in dol
lars would indicate. Construction, along with other
capital outlays, is an important balance wheel in the
economy, for it utilizes savings of people aand business
concerns to expand industrial capacity and create a place
for people to live. In balanced amounts, construction
and other capital outlays give employment to an ex
panding labor force and create an added demand for
goods and services which keeps the economy dynamic
and prevents stagnation. W hen construction and other
capital outlays do not utilize the total savings of the
economy, the result is a stagnant economy. W hen they
attempt to use more than the total savings of people and
businesses, they create stresses in the economy and cause
inflation.
Growth in the value of construction in the Fifth Dis
trict since W orld W ar II has been at substantially the
same rate as in the nation as a whole, that is, through
1955. From 1946 to 1947 and from 1951 to 1952 the
value of total construction contract awards in the Dis
trict receded somewhat, whereas nationally in these
periods it continued to increase. Over the entire peri
od there has been little difference in the growth in Dis
trict and national figures.
Based on the first five months of 1956 relative to
1955, however, Fifth District and national contract
awards have gone in opposite directions— the national
figure going up, and the Fifth District down.
T
Aggregate dollar awards for manufacturing buildings
in the District for first five months of 1956 were at a
level 8% below 1955, which compares with a 39% na
tional increase. In this type of construction, increases
were shown in Virginia ( 9 5 % ) , the District of Colum
bia (1 0 9 % ), and South Carolina ( 6 0 % ) . Declines of
25% in Maryland, 50% in W est Virginia, and 30%
In this same comparison, total contract awards in
the Fifth District were down 13% compared with a
13% rise for the nation. The District decline is not
i 5 y
Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
in North Carolina more than offset the above increases.
Contract awards for educational buildings in the Dis
trict dropped 15% in the first five months of 1956 com
pared with those months of 1955; nationally they rose
12%. The school integration issue appears to have
little to do with these changes, for the declines occurred
most substantially in Maryland, down 32% ; the Dis
trict of Columbia, down 61% ; and W est Virginia, down
54% . Virginia dropped 21% , but North Carolina was
up 2 4% , and South Carolina was up 14% .
“ All other” nonresidential contract awards took the
worst beating of any group, except “ other” residential,
in the first five months of 1956 relative to a year earlier
— off 20% . Nationally, awards for this type of con
struction were up 3 % . In this sector Maryland show
ed an 81% increase, South Carolina 41% , and Virginia
1% ; but other states were down, ranging from 24%
in North Carolina to 79% in the District of Columbia.
The reason for divergent trends in the District as
compared with the United States is not readily forth
coming. The Dodge figures for 37 eastern states show
an increase of 13% in total awards, with all but three
areas showing increases. T w o fairly important areas,
Middle Atlantic down 13% and Southeast up 3 % , give
some toning down in the aggregate increase. The St.
Louis district also dropped 12% and the Kansas City
district 13% , while the large percentage increases came
in the Pittsburgh, upstate New York, and Cleveland
areas. All areas except three, however, showed in
creases ranging from 3% to 78% , with most of them
in good but moderate percentage increases. Possibly
the District’s construction decline is associated with
the current softness in its far-flung textile industries
and in the synthetic fiber chemical industries or in the
lack of growth in other District industries in the past
few years. This, however, does not seem to have had
any noticeable direct effect on expansion of newer in
dustries and these are largely responsible for holding
contract awards for manufacturing building in the first
five months of 1956 only 8% below similar months of
1955.
Construction in Perspective
By almost any measuring stick, the construction in
dustry has risen much faster than the economy as a
whole in the postwar period. Perhaps the best yard
stick to measure the District economy is personal in
come which, on a national basis, closely approximates
changes in the gross national product.
Personal income between 1947 and 1954 (latest avail
able) rose 50% in the Fifth District while the value of
construction contract awards in the same period in
creased 118%. This may not be a fair comparison,
however, since the construction industry was retarded
during the war period by materials allocation and may
not have been able by 1947 to establish its position in
the economy at that time. From 1940 on up to 1954
the construction industry grew somewhat less rapidly
{ 6
than personal income. Actually, personal income from
1940 to 1954 rose a sharp 274% while construction
awards in the District rose 251% .
From 1940 through 1954 (excluding the war years)
contract awards in the District averaged 8% of per
sonal income, varying between 6% in 1947 and 1948
and 12% in 1941. In the postwar years the ratio has
averaged between 6% and 9 % , with 9 % in 1950 and
again in 1955. This indicates that the 1955 level was
fairly close to a balanced relation in District economy.
Contribution of the States
O f the District’s total construction contract awards of
$2,329,000,000 in 1955, Maryland accounted for 35.3% ;
the District of Columbia, 5.1% ; Virginia, 28.6% ; W est
Virginia, 5 .9 % ; North Carolina, 1 5.2% ; and South
Carolina, 10.0%.
In the postwar period some fairly significant varia
tions in the states’ shares have been witnessed. M ary
land has varied from 27.2% in 1952 to 35.3% in 1955.
The District of Columbia’s highest contribution was in
1949, 1 1.4 % ; its lowest, 4.2% in 1951. Virginia’s
highest percentage was in 1951, 2 9 .4 % ; its lowest in
1948, 20.4% . W est Virginia has ranged from 6.2%
in 1950 to 10.5% in 1948. North Carolina has ranged
from 14.5% in 1954 to 21.3% in 1952. South Caro
lina, excluding the atomic energy project, has ranged
from 8.7% in 1950 to 12.7% in 1946.
In 1955, residential building awards accounted for
40.4% of the District total. Nonresidential accounted
for 39.9% and public works and utilities 19.7%. The
nonresidential range in postwar years has been from
29.4% of the total in 1947 to 41.9% in 1953. The resi
dential range was from 36% in 1953 to 46.3% in 1950.
Public works and utilities made their lowest contribu
tion of 16.5% in 1950 and their highest, 28.0% , in 1947.
Breakdown in the nonresidential sector shows com
mercial buildings accounted for 11.2% of total construc
tion contract awards in 1955, manufacturing buildings
10.0%, educational buildings 8.7% , and other nonresi
dential construction 10.0%.
The 11.2%for commercial building awards in 1955
was the highest percentage of total construction in the
postwar period; the lowest occurred in 1951, when
materials allocation regulated this type of building and
the percentage was 5.0.
Awards for manufacturing buildings accounted for
15.5% of the total in 1946 and 3.7% in 1949. Educa
tional buildings were 13.4% of the total in 1953 and
2.5% in 1946. Other nonresidential construction ac
counted for 5.4% of total awards in both 1946 and 1947
and 14.0% in 1949.
One- and two-family houses accounted for their
largest percentage of District awards in 1955, 36.2%
compared with 1949’s low of 24.6% . All other shelter
provided 17.4% of the District’s total in 1949 and 4.2%
in 1955 for the widest range in any of the construction
(Continued on page 9)
Zf&nM/$&K 6UfL
July 1956
Loan Survey Results
. .
.
Member Bank Business Loans — A Decade Of Change
1.4% of the dollar amount of business loans outstand
ing at all member banks in the District and only 7%
of the number of loans. In 1955, not only had the
number of banks in this deposit category declined by
one-third, but their proportion of business loans had
been cut in half (to 0 .7 % ) and the number of loans
held had been reduced to only 3% of the District total.
The accompanying chart shows the relative holdings
by each bank size group of the amount of business loans
outstanding and the number of loans in both 1946 and
1955. It should be remembered, in making compari
sons between bank size groups, that differences between
the two periods are due more to the shifting of banks
between size groups than to changed lending practices
within the groups. In other words, a bank shifting
because of growth into a larger size group takes with
it a larger dollar amount of business loans than a bank
just entering the size group from the next lower cate
gory brings with it.
T \ u rin g the eventful decade from the end of 1945
through 1955, member banks in the Fifth District
added $1,885 million (or 3 0 .3 % ) to their total assets.
O f this increase in total assets, $1,443 million was in
the form of interest-earning assets, that is, loans and
investments. A t the end of 1945, 6.6% of the mem
ber banks’ total earning assets was in the form of loans
to commercial and industrial firms. By the end of
1955, commercial and industrial loans by these banks
had increased to 17.7% of total loans and investments.
Commercial and industrial loans, at the end of the
decade, were Zy2 times the 1945 level.
This third report on the Federal Reserve’s survey of
business loans at member banks as of October 5, 1955
compares the principal characteristics of this kind of
lending in 1955 with those revealed by a similar survey
undertaken in November 1946. The first and second
reports on the District results of the 1955 survey were
published in the April and June 1956 issues of this
Monthly Review. A national summary of the findings
appeared in the April 1956 issue of the Federal Reserve
Bulletin published by the Board of Governors of the
Federal Reserve System.
Business Loans by Size of Borrower
Business firms with total assets in excess of $5 mil
lion accounted for one-fifth of business borrowing from
District member banks in 1955, a slightly larger pro
portion than they took in 1946. The smallest business
borrowers, those with total assets under $50,000, ac
counted for nearly 60% of the number of business loans
held by District member banks in 1946 but had only
15% of the dollar amount of these loans outstanding.
Business Loans by Bank Size
In November 1946 there were 136 member banks in
the District with total deposits of less than $2 million.
In October 1955 there were only 94 in this deposit
category. In 1946 the 136 very small banks held only
BUSINESS LOANS AT MEMBER BANKS
F IF T H
FED ERA L RESERVE
DISTRICT
NOVEMBER 20, 1946 and OCTOBER 5, 1955
Banks with
Total Deposits
(Million $) |
I
I
■ ■
|
Dollar Amount Held
Per Cent Held
Number of Loans Held
Per Cent Held
\ 7 Y
Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
BUSINESS
BORROWERS AT MEMBER BANKS
FIFTH
FED ER A L R ESE R V E DISTRICT
NOVEMBER 20, 1946 and OCTOBER 5, 1955
L. 1
Borrowers with
HH
| Per Cent of Total
(Tt>ousand*$S) I Dollar Amount Outstanding
I Number of Loans
Per Cent of Total
30
By 1955 the number of loans to firms in this size group
had dropped to 42% of the total held by all District
member banks, and they accounted for only 7.3% of
the dollar amount of business loans outstanding. Again,
it should be remembered that the growth of firms
(bringing them into a larger size group in 1955 than in
1946) plus emergence of new firms during the period
and failure of some old firms are partially responsible
for the shifts in relative position of the size groups.
40
50
merchants from 1946 to 1955 than in the loans to other
classes of borrowers. Wholesale merchants actually
had a smaller dollar amount of loans outstanding in
District member banks in October 1955 than in Novem
ber 1946. They had dropped from 21.5% of the total
dollar amount outstanding in November 1946 to 8.5%
on the 1955 survey date. Retail merchants more than
doubled the dollar amount outstanding at District mem
ber banks, but they accounted for a smaller percentage
of the total in 1955 than in 1946. In sharp contrast,
sales finance companies and service firms showed an
almost fourfold increase in their indebtedness to mem
ber banks. Manufacturing and mining firms increased
their outstanding bank loans by 2 y2 times over the
period. Insofar as number of loans is concerned, re-
The Business of the Borrower
A n accompanying table shows the dollar amount and
the number of loans held by each of the principal types
of business borrowers in 1946 and in 1955. Perhaps
the most striking feature of this table is the much
slower growth shown in loans to wholesale and retail
B U S IN E S S L O A N S BY T Y P E OF B U S IN E SS
Fifth District Member Banks
(Estimated)
Business of Borrower
All Businesses ___________________________
Manufacturing and mining --------------------Food, liquor, and tobacco --------------------Textiles, apparel, and leather --- -------Metals and metal products ----------------Petroleum, coal, chemicals, and rubber
All other manufacturing and mining _
Trade _____________________________________
W holesale_______________________________
Retail __________________________________
O th e r______________________________________
Sales finance com panies------- -— ____
Transportation, communication, and
other public utilities -----------------------Construction------------------------ --------------—
Service fir m s-----------------------------------------All other nonfinancial--------------------------
Amount Outstanding
October 5, 1955
November 20, 1946
Thousands
Thousands
% of
% of
Total
of Dollars
of Dollars
Total
Number of Loans
October 5,1955
November 20, 1946
% of
% of
Number
Total
Number
Total
1,187,400
278,217
60,492
82,543
38,297
19,850
77,035
325,433
100,962
224,471
583,750
105,124
100.0
23.5
5.1
7.0
3.2
1.7
6.5
27.4
8.5
18.9
49.1
8.9
496,894
110,518
26,662
23,519
18,999
11,381
29,957
211,646
106,573
105,073
174,487
28,892
100.0
22.2
5.4
4.7
3.8
2.3
6.0
42.6
21.5
21.1
35.1
5.8
77,898
11,233
1,991
1,384
1,918
1,662
4,278
34,159
5,448
28,711
32,506
727
100.0
14.4
2.6
1.8
2.4
2.1
5.5
43.9
7.0
36.9
41.7
0.9
42,497
6,282
1,069
792
963
836
2,622
21,605
6,018
15,587
14,591
445
100.0
14.8
2.5
1.8
2.3
2.0
6.2
50.8
14.1
36.7
34.3
1.1
71,663
89,134
81,149
236,680
6.0
7.5
6.8
19.9
39,313
38,508
21,616
46,157
7.9
7.7
4.4
9.3
2,588
5,298
11,687
12,206
3.3
6.8
15.0
15.7
3,160
2,553
4,260
4,173
7.4
6.0
10.0
9.8
«{ 8 y
July 1956
tail merchants still accounted for almost 37% of the
total in 1955, whereas wholesale merchants had drop
ped to 7% of the total from 14.1% in 1946.
Another noticeable difference between 1946 and 1955
business borrowing is found in the relative use of long
term (over one year) loans relative to short-term loans.
Manufacturing and mining firms as a group had over
one-fourth of their loans with maturities in excess of
one year in 1946 in contrast to less than one-fifth with
these longer maturities in 1955. Retail and wholesale
merchants, on the other hand, increased their use of
longer term borrowing, although a predominant por
tion of their total borrowing was still with maturities of
one year or less. Wholesale merchants had 7.9% of
their business loans in 1946 on long-term basis. This
had increased to 13.9% in 1955. Retail merchants
raised their longer term borrowings from 21.3% of their
total in 1946 to 24.3% in 1955. Sales finance com
panies, traditionally short-term borrowers, showed a
sharp swing away from the small amount of longer
term borrowing they had been using in 1946. In 1946
their borrowing with maturities of over one year ac
counted for 7.3% of their total borrowings. In 1955
this longer term borrowing had dropped to 1.7%.
B U SIN E SS L O A N S B Y M A T U R IT Y
Fifth District Member Banks
(Estimated)
Amount Outstanding
(Thousands of Dollars)
October 5, 1955
Business of Borrower
All Businesses__________________
Manufacturing and mining ____
Food, liquor, and tobacco __
Textiles, apparel, and leather
Metals and metal products __
Petroleum,
coal,
chemicals,
and rubber _________________
All other manufacturing and
mining _____________________
Trade ___________________________
Wholesale ____________________
Retail ___ ____________________
Other ____________ _____________
Sales finance companies _____
Transportation,
communica
tion, and other public util
ities ..... ...................................
Construction _____ __ _ _ _____
Service firms _________________
All other nonfinancial _______
Per cent of Industry Total
October 5, 1955
November 20, 1946
Short-term
(one year
or less)
Long-term
(over one
year)
22.8
19.4
12.4
17.2
20.8
76.6
73.4
70.0
75.6
72.3
23.4
26.6
30.0
24.4
27.7
84.4
15.6
92.9
7.1
72.7
78.9
86.1
75.7
74.6
98.3
27.3
21.1
13.9
24.3
25.4
1.7
67.9
85.4
92.1
78.7
67.9
92.7
32.1
14.6
7.9
21.3
32.1
7.3
44.4
85.8
61.2
73.5
55.6
14.2
38.8
26.5
39.5
85.3
55.0
68.2
60.5
14.7
45.0
31.8
Short-term
(one year
or less)
Long-term
(over one
year)
916,510
224,321
52,965
68,316
30,321
270,890
53,895
7,527
14,227
7,975
380,728
81,104
18,667
17,778
13,736
116,165
29,414
7,995
5,739
5,264
77.2
80.6
87.6
82.8
79.2
16,749
3,101
10,569
811
55,970
256,912
86,962
169,950
435,277
103,311
21,065
68,522
14,000
54,522
148,473
1,813
20,354
180,832
98,148
82,684
118,550
26,795
9,603
30,814
8,425
22,389
55,937
2,098
31,798
76,477
49,661
174,031
39,865
12,657
31,488
62,650
15,547
32,839
11,883
31,486
23,767
5,670
9,733
14,671
Long-term
(over one
year)
November 20, 1946
Short-term
(one year
or less)
Long-term
(over one
year)
Short-term
(one year
or less)
District Building Activity Simmers Down
(Continued from page 6)
be just what has happened.
segments.
The variation shown in this analysis of various types
of construction activity and how they have fared seems
to indicate that construction’s prime characteristic is
irregularity. Thus, variability by types of construction
should be the expected rule. For exam ple: a company
decides to locate in a given area, builds a plant, and
employs its workers. First off, this gives rise to a
demand for housing space to accommodate the workers,
who (assuming no unemployment) had to migrate into
the area, or leave other jobs, providing job openings
for migration of other people. Expansion in the work
ing population gives rise to a larger demand for com
mercial facilities and schools and these are constructed
in turn. Expansion of industrial concerns, commercial
concerns, and population all give rise to a greater de
mand for electric, gas, and transportation services and
these come still later, providing the public utilities did
not anticipate the original expansion. Thus, it makes
sense that different types of construction move different
ly in time as the requirements dictate. That seems to
Em ployment
Employment in contract construction in the Fifth
District averaged 242,000 in 1955, an increase of 29%
over the average employment level in 1947. Contract
construction does not cover the entire field of construc
tion workers, but it does cover about the only part of
construction employment that can be counted and is
an important part of the total. In 1950 the Occupa
tional Census showed 335,000 workers employed in
the construction industries compared with a contract
construction figure of 205,000 in April 1950. The
1950 census showed these workers were 6.4% of all
employed people in the District.
The increase in employment in the first four months
of 1956 over 1955 varied considerably among the states.
W est Virginia led the District with an increase of
21.1% , followed in turn by Maryland up 15.7%, Dis
trict of Columbia up 14.0%, Virginia up 12.1%, North
Carolina up 1.1% , and South Carolina down 2.2% .
i 9 y
Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
Business Conditions and Prospects
improvement in business conditions in
the Fifth Federal Reserve District took place in
May. Improved business over April levels was wit
nessed in retail trade, in mineral output, and in con
struction contract awards. Output of the District’s
factories, however, receded slightly during the month.
Loans of Fifth District member banks rose during
May but total assets declined, due mainly to a reduc
tion in security holdings. Bank debits, after seasonal
correction, receded moderately from their all-time high
established in April. Electric power production in
April was down 3% from March on an adjusted basis.
M
o d e ra te
Time deposits of Fifth District member banks eased
$5 million from April to May. Although sales of Series
E and H savings bonds were down 2 % during the
month, new savings commitments in the form of life
insurance rose 4% from April to May to a level 18%
ahead of a year ago and thus continued the sharp up
ward trend in evidence for more than five years.
New business incorporations in the District during
April were 4% higher than March and were a sharp
24% above a year ago. Nonagricultural employment
in May was higher than April in most District states,
with nonmanufacturing employment more than offset
ting declines at the manufacturing level.
Construction
Construction contract awards of all types were 12%
higher in May (after seasonal correction) and 11%
ahead of May 1955 thus reducing the accumulated loss
for the five months to 17%.
Strength in commercial and public works and utili
ties contract awards were responsible for the rise in
the over-all total. Commercial awards (seasonally ad
justed) in May rose 29% from April and were 21%
ahead of a year ago. This brought the five months’
total to 13% under last year compared with a 22%
accumulated loss in April. Public works and utilities
awards jumped 83% (after seasonal correction) from
April to May. May was a booming 120% above a
year ago, although the first five months’ total showed
a 2% decline from last year. For four months the ac
cumulated decline was 21% .
The substantial upsurge taking place nationally in
new industrial construction has not been present in the
Fifth District. May awards for this type of construc
tion, after seasonal correction, were 45% under April,
47% under May 1955, and the first five months were
down 8 % . There was a fairly substantial upsurge in
this type of construction in the last half of 1955, which
carried over into January this year; but since January,
awards for manufacturing buildings have consistently
declined with the May figure only 31% above the com
paratively low base years 1947-49.
Residential construction reversed the April rise by
dropping 6% (after seasonal correction) to a level 15%
below a year a g o ; and the first five months were down
21% . The dominant part of residential construction,
one- and two-family houses, showed a seasonally ad
justed decline in awards in May of 10% from April.
This level was 11% under May 1955 and the five-month
total was down 14%.
Trade
The trade level showed moderate improvement after
seasonal correction between April and May in both
department and furniture stores. A small increase was
indicated in passenger automobile registrations during
the month for states thus far reporting, but the increase
was less than normal for the season. New commercial
car registrations for four states of the District rose 17%
from April to May, were 6% higher than a year ago,
and the four months’ figures were up 13%.
Department store sales in May rose 3% on an aver
age daily seasonally adjusted basis from April, were
5% higher than in May 1955; the first five months’
total was up 5 % . Gains in May were good in women’s
apparel items and most homefurnishings’ departments
showed large increases over a year ago. Radios, tele
vision, and floor coverings fell behind last year. De
partment store inventories (adjusted) were off 1%
from April to May but remained 11% ahead of a year
ago. This is the third consecutive decline in the inven
tory level, apparently a readjustment designed to bring
stocks in line with the relatively flat sales trend.
Retail furniture store sales rebounded 4 % on a sea
sonally adjusted basis from the April level and brought
the May figure close to the March peak. May sales
were 10% higher than a year ago, and the first five
months of the year were also up 10% . Furniture store
inventories, after seasonal correction, were 10% higher
at the end of May than a month earlier but were still
1% lower than a year ago.
Manufacturing
Activity in the manufacturing industries of the Dis
trict during May receded slightly from April on a manhour basis. For the three states thus far reporting
May man-hours in all manufacturing industries of V ir
ginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina declined
0.8% from April and were 0.4% under May last year.
The decline occurred in the Carolinas, with North Car
olina down 0.5% and South Carolina 2.6% . Virginia
showed little change, up 0.2% , during the month and
1.0% from last year.
Man-hours in the durable goods industries of these
states were up 1.0% in May and stood even with a
year ago. Lumber in North Carolina and transporta
tion equipment in Virginia were largely responsible for
the rise during the month.
Man-hours in nondurable goods industries of these
{ 10 y
July 1956
states were down 1.4% from April to May, to a point
slightly (0 .5 % ) under a year ago. Each of the states
showed a modest decline during the month, leaving
Virginia 1.5% above a year ago, North Carolina down
0.6% , and South Carolina down 1.8%.
Cotton consumption in Fifth District mills during
May was off a mere 2% (after seasonal correction)
from April and remained 2% ahead of May 1955. For
the first five months total consumption was actually 6%
higher than a year ago. Selected cutbacks in operat
ions were noted early in June, and a few shutdowns oc
curred. Japanese competition has been suggested as
being responsible, but it is probable that retailers’ and
fabricators’ inventories, together with lack of intense
demand at the retail level, are important factors.
Cigarette production in April in the District was 6%
higher than in March (after seasonal correction), 12%
ahead of a year ago, and the first four months were up
6%.
F
if t h
D
is t r ic t
Total assets of Fifth District member banks declined
$38 million in May compared with April. Loans and
investments were off the same amount but loans rose
$23 million and security holdings declined $61 million.
Reserves, cash, and bank balances slipped $3 million
and other assets rose $3 million.
A t the end of May, deposits were down $73 million,
with demand deposits off $68 million and time deposits,
$5 million. Borrowings increased $27 million during
the month and capital accounts were $11 million higher
while other liabilities declined $3 million.
Business loans (weekly reporting member banks)
made a new high in the third week of June and con
sumer loans, after showing some irregularity, were
near their all-time high on that date. Real estate loans
have been creeping upward and are again approaching
the high point established last Fall.
b a n k in g
D E B IT S T O D E M A N D D E P O S IT A C C O U N T S *
(000 omitted)
5 Months
May
May
5 Months
1955
1956
1956
1955
District of Columbia
Washington ______ $1,498,124 $1,331,990 $ 7,490,741 $ 6,567,237
Maryland
7,672,741
Baltimore ____ ____ 1,785,137
1,640,070
8,564,369
120,717
28,620
27,352
Cumberland ______
132,517
114,238
128,563
Frederick _________
28,151
24,021
211,852
H agerstow n ______
48,799
45,442
235,198
Salisbury** ______
37,820
35,941
163,742
176,456
8,119,548
1,736,885
Total 4 C ities___ 1,890,707
9,060,647
North Carolina
Asheville .........
359,510
327,563
74,728
62,817
2,005,464
Charlotte _ ___
2,230,769
435,030
407,719
Durham
____
422,450
395,967
83,867
81,436
Greensboro
170,401
802,431
716,296
144,469
246,054
High Point**
277,030
55,991
48,333
Kinston _______ ___
110,976
111,057
22,081
21,487
Raleigh ___
185,209
1,172,388
1,057,238
___ 215,205
Wilmington
258,612
53,922
50,898
263,636
Wilson
19,034
104,369
101,350
___ 19,739
Winston-Salem __
184,942
835,028
167,326
951,517
Total 9 Cities
5,808,575
1,259,915
1,140,395
6,418,046
South Carolina
Charleston . _ _
92,819
82,443
460,655
413,905
Columbia _____
193,003
181,744
982,395
877,875
Greenville _____
143,564
124,236
719,491
629,330
Spartanburg
70,563
63,922
350,809
326,199
Total 4 Cities
499,949
452,345
2,513,350
2,247,309
Virginia
Charlottesville
40,360
37,309
188,531
179,778
Danville ______
41,977
36,210
213,954
191,887
Lynchburg
62,000
52,731
307,647
261,789
Newport News
57,139
65,876
311,269
270,547
Norfolk _______ ___
326,495
288,839
1,540,479
1,403,764
P ortsm outh ______
39,263
36,586
188,946
178,463
Richmond _____
710,421
637,604
3,442,337
3,180,598
Roanoke ____ .
163,529
131,204
757,396
628,241
Total 8 Cities
1,449,921
1,277,622
6,950,559
6,295,067
W est Virginia
Bluefield . .
60,147
43,369
282,264
214,994
Charleston ____ _
193,322
165,157
910,514
844,071
Clarksburg
41,599
34,907
201,211
175,514
Huntington __ ____
88,511
80,195r
426,584
395,884r
Parkersburg
37,678
32,238
182,771
156,056
Total 5 Cities ___
421,257
2,003,344
355,866
1,786,519
District Totals
$7,019,873 $6,295,103r $34,436,687 $30,824,255r
* Interbank and U. S. Government accounts excluded.
** Not included in District Totals,
r Revised.
Banking
s t a t is t ic s
W E E K L Y R E P O R T IN G M E M B E R B A N K S
(000 omitted)
Change in Amount from
June 15,
May 16,
1955
1956
+ 177,092
4,264
+
June 13,
Items
1956
Total Loans ____________________ $1 ,812,294**
831,249
—
Real Estate L o a n s __________
334,277
All Other L o a n s _________ ____
672,505
Total Security H o ld in gs______ 1 ,638,707
+
+
+
5,227
761
8,934
51,972
+ 99,250
+ 12,542
+ 68,823
— 105,561
U . S. Treasury Bills ..............
89,126
U. S. Treasury Certificates _
18,118
U. S. Treasury N o te s ________
295,586
U. S. Treasury Bonds .
967,850
Other Bonds, Stocks & Secur.
268,027
369,352
Cash Items in Process of Col. _
Due from Banks ______ _ __
181,885*
Currency and Coin .......................
79,522
Reserve with F. R. Banks _ 521,012
Other Assets ___________________
74,273
Total Assets __________________ $4 ,677,045
+ 48,916
2,662
+
7,589
+
— 8,569
1,374
+
— 4,739
+ 13,395
+ 3,561
— 8,278
+ 2,000
+ 62,175
+ 14,945
— 4,340
— 69,333
— 46,257
—
576
— 2,528
+ 1,182
+ 3,536
+ 9,236
+ 7,057
+ 90,014
+ 74,944
+
+
+
+
+
65,288
_
—
5,560
2,255
3,305
Bus. & Agric. .______________
Total Demand Deposits ..........__$3 ,528,505
Deposits
Deposits
Deposits
Deposits
Certified
of
of
of
of
&
Individuals _____ 2,670,065
U. S. Government
103,071
State & Local Gov.
230,047
Banks .....................
463,822*
Officers’ Checks _
61,500
+106,743
— 40,296
+ 11,847
+ 4,418
— 7,768
754,832
679,888
74,944
—
Liabilities for Borrowed Money
10,500
46,830
All Other Liabilities ..... .........
Capital Accounts ...........................
336,378
Total Liabilities __
______ $4 ,677,045
_
—
Total Time D eposits___________
Deposits of Individuals_____
Other Time Deposits _ _
+
—
4,822
407
5,229
6,300
3,224
+ 1,577
+ 62,175
* Net figures, reciprocal balances being eliminated.
** Less losses for bad debts.
{ 11 I*
37,622
12,098
15,331
4,950
— 4,713
—
5,500
! 8,290
+ 27,496
+ 90,014
Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond
F if t h
d is t r i c t
F U R N IT U R E SAL ES*
(Based on Dollar Value)
Percentage change with correspond
ing period a year ago
May 1956
5 Mos. 1956
STATES
0
Maryland
+ 2
Dist. of Columbia _________
+ 8
+ 3
Virginia ________________ .__
+ 3
+ 5
West Virginia _____________
+ 13
+ 19
+ 18
North Carolina ___________
+ 10
South Carolina _____________
+ 10
+ 4
District _________________
+
9
IN D IV ID U AL CITIES
Baltimore, Md. __________
+ 2
Washington, D. C. ______
+ 8
Richmond, Va. __________
+ 8
Charleston, W . V a .............
+ 18
Greenville, S. C. _______
+ 17
* Data from furniture departments of department stores
furniture stores.
+
5
+
+
+
+
as
0
3
1
7
5
well as
W H O LE SA LE TRADE
Sales in
May 1956
compared with
May
Apr.
1955
1956
+ 2
+25
LINES
Auto supplies ----------------------Electrical, electronic and
appliance goods __________ + 3 5
Hardware, plumbing, and
heating goods ------------------- + 7
Machinery equipment sup
plies _____________________
+ 8
Drugs, chemicals, allied
products __________________ + 1 2
Dry goods _________________
NA
Grocery, confectionery,
meats ____________________
+10
Paper and its products ___ + 6
Tobacco products __________
NA
Miscellaneous ______________
+ 7
District total ____________
+11
Stocks on
May 31, 1956
compared with
May 31,
Apr. 30,
1955
1956
NA
NA
+ 5
+ 12
+17
NA
4
+
NA
— 2
+24
+
+ 9
NA
+ 8
+
+11
— 3
NA
+ 2
+ 5
+ 7
— 2
NA
NA
— 1
+ 2
2
1
NA
NA
NA
NA
+34
+ 16
N A Not Available.
Source: Bureau of the Census, Department of Commerce.
St a t is t ic a l D a t a
B U IL D IN G PE R M IT F IG U R ES
May
1956
Maryland
Baltimore
$ 2,922,771
Cumberland .
312,905
Frederick
813,585
Hagerstown .
129,296
Salisbury
76,124
Virginia
Danville
559,287
Hampton
499,564
Hopewell
300,229
Lynchburg
405,825
Newport News
121,971
Norfolk _____
9,218,013
Petersburg _ _
305,650
Portsmouth _
222,591
Richmond
1,964,678
Roanoke ____... 1,272,598
Staunton
245,630
Warwick
572,582
West Virginia
Charleston
710,619
Clarksburg
157,945
Huntington .
574,160
North Carolina
Asheville
256,309
Charlotte
6,585,771
Durham
939,100
Gastonia
708,200
Greensboro_2,382,955
High Point _
541,360
Raleigh _____ ._ 1,556,321
Rocky Mount
352,681
Salisbury
625,160
Wilson ______
232,550
Winston-Salem 2,188,249
South Carolina
Charleston
188,129
Columbia
1,372,064
Greenville __
529,750
Spartanburg _ 1,336,858
District of Columbia
Washington _6,504,669
District Totals ..$47,686,149
May
1955
5 Months
1956
5 Months
1955
$16,046,590
148,400
471,970
615,865
62,432
$ 22,723,886
855,055
1,224,250
660,741
1,098,885
$ 43,595,882
801,691
1,168,175
1,330.885
1,032,599
250,110
461,954
319,544
549,181
237,274
1,682,681
164,000
298,975
2,446,657
980,510
168,300
2,020,609
3,663,243
3,758,444
854,558
5,273,835
1,089,672
13,905,301
1,260,050
1,451,739
13,903,113
11,719,255
1,273,916
3,118,122
3,342,021
7,155,082
1,610,707
4,095,798
850,026
6,065,359
1,567,400
1,549,815
9,445,765
5,087,353
1,369,355
5,291,565
709,178
185,151
529,355
2,524,717
703,432
2,105,094
2,890,149
858,464
2,021,226
247,790
3,609,029
564,116
1,030,050
1,009,319
674,290
2,107,865
369,934
125,695
189,100
1,638,613
2,920,746
14,895,362
3,719,271
2,895,950
7,354,011
2,785,904
5,726,385
1,623,562
1,255,125
2,600,075
6,785,468
1,324,077
13,570,975
6,151,989
3,621,950
4,627,424
3,787,019
9,343,879
1,652,645
506,163
1,670,775
6,589,017
507,404
1,105,826
1,101,598
39,255
933,171
5,142,720
3,381,226
2,485,986
1,282,625
3,788,940
3,376,746
870,700
5,067,360
$47,735,980
23,437,118
$181,109,388
28,447,620
$191,741,861
F IF T H D IS T R IC T IN D E X E S
D E P A R T M E N T ST O R E O P E R A T IO N S
(Figures show percentage changes)
Other
Rich. Balt.
Wash. Cities
Seasonally Adjusted: 1947-1949 = 100
Dist.
Totals
Sales, May ’56 vs May ’55 _
Sales, 5 mos. ending May
31, ’56 vs 5 mos. ending
May 31, ’55 ______________
+
+
5
+
2
+
Stocks, May 31, ’ 56 vs ’55 ~
Outstanding Orders
May 31, ’56 vs ’55 ----------
+
3
+
7
+13
+17
+ 11
+ 16
+ 13
+12
+ 15
8
+
+21
7
+
9
7
+10
+
+
7
+
6
Open account receivables May
1, collected in May ’56 —
31.4
51.6
45.3
38.6
42.9
Instalment receivables May
1, collected in May ’56 ~
10.6
13.7
13.4
15.4
13.2
Md.
Sales, May ’56 vs May
’55 ___________________
+
7
D.C.
Va.
+
+
9
7
W .V a.
+18
N.C.
S.C.
+
+ 11
6
May
1956
9
New passenger car registra
tion* _______________________
Bank debits __________________
Bituminous coal production*
Construction contracts _______
Business failures— number ...
Cigarette production ________
Electric power production __
Manufacturing employment*
Furniture store sales ______
Life insurance sales ________
190
110
228
172
125
135
129
228
* Not seasonally adjusted,
r Revised.
Back figures available on request.
Apr.
1956
May
1955
% Chg.Latest Mo.
Prev.
Yr.
Mo.
Ago.
174
192
105r
204r
153
105
127
131
193
111
124r
219
196r
176
99r
206
151
106
125r
128
182
108r
117
193
- 2
- 1
b 5
-12
-12
- 6
- 2
+ 3
- 3
0
+ 4
+ 4
— 9
+ 8
+ 11
+ 11
+ 14
+ 12
0
+ 5
+ 8
+ 3
+ 10
+ 18
@FedFRASER