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MONTHLY REVIEW O f Agricultural, Industrial, Trade and Financial Conditions in the Sixth Federal Reserve District F E D E R A L R E S E R V E B A N K O F A T L A N T A (Compiled May 17, 1929) VOL. 14, No. 5. ATLA N TA , GA., M ay 3 1, 1929. B U SIN E SS CONDITIONS IN T H E U N IT ED STA TES In d u strial activ ity continued a t a high level in A pril, and th e volume of fac to ry em ploym ent and payrolls in creased fu rth e r. Loans and investm ents of m em ber banks in leading cities continued to decline betw een th e middle of A p ril and the middle of May, and w ere a t th a t tim e a t ap proxim ately th e sam e level as a y e a r ago. Production In d u strial activ ity increased in A pril to th e h ig h est level on record. The iron and steel and autom obile industries continued exceptionally active during A pril. A ctivity in copper refining, lum ber, cem ent, silk and wool textiles, and th e m eat packing in d u stry increased, and production of cotton tex tiles showed a less th a n seasonal reduction. F acto ry em ploym ent and p ayrolls increased, co n trary to th e seasonal tren d . O ut p u t of m ines w as also la rg e r in A pril. Copper and a n th rac ite coal production increased and th e seasonal decline in o u tp u t of bitum inous coal w as sm aller th a n usual. P e troleum production declined slightly. P relim inary rep o rts fo r th e first h alf of M ay indicate a continued high r a te of operation in th e iron and steel industry. O utput of lum b er and bitum inous coal w as som ew hat la rg e r during th e first p a r t of M ay th a n a t th e end of A pril. Building con tra c ts aw arded during th e m onth of A pril increased sh a rp ly and fo r th e first tim e in five m onths approxim ated th e to ta l fo r th e corresponding m onth in the preceding year. The increase w as not continued, however, in th e first p a r t of M ay w hen aw ards averaged 20 per cent below th e sam e period in M ay 1928. D uring A pril m ost classes of build ing showed seasonal increases over M arch, th e la rg e st be ing in contracts fo r residential building and public w orks and utilities. D istrib u tion Shipm ents of commodities by ra il increased during A pril and w ere th e la rg e st fo r th is m onth in any recent year. The increase from M arch r e Digitized FRASER Aprilfor121. This review released fo r publication in the afternoon papers of May 30. flects la rg e r loading of m iscellaneous fre ig h t, lum ber, live stock and ore. D uring th e first h alf of M ay shipm ents of fre ig h t continued to increase. Sales a t w holesale declined seasonally in A pril, except in th e case of g ro cry and h ard w are firm s. In com parison w ith A pril, 1928, all lines of trad e rep o rtin g to th e F ed eral Reserve System showed increases. D ep artm n t sto res sales w ere also sm aller in A pril th a n in M arch, b u t continued above th e level of a y ear ago. P rices W holesale com modity prices averaged slig h tly low er in A pril th a n in M arch, ac cording to th e index of th e U nited S tates B ureau of Labor S tatistics, reflecting prim arily declines in prices of fa rm products and th e ir m an u factu res. P rices of m ineral and fo re st products and th e ir m anufactures, on th e av erage, showed little change. T here w ere increases in th e prices of iron and steel, and sh arp declines in copper, lead, and tin . Seasonal declines occurred in prices of coal and coke, w hile gasoline prices advanced. P rices of fa rm products and th e ir m an u factu res averaged low er in A pril th a n in M arch, P rices of g rain , especially w heat, moved down w ard m ore sh arp ly and wool and cotton continued to de cline. Livestock and m e at prices continued th e upw ard m ovem ent of th e previous m onth; hides averaged slig h tly higher in price, and le ath e r som ew hat lower. A m ong im ported raw m aterials, rubber, su g ar, and coffee showed m arked price recessions. E a rly in M ay cattle, hides and w h eat prices declined sh arp ly and th e price of ru b b er in creased. B ank C redit D uring th e fo u r weeks ending M ay 15 loans and investm ents of m em ber banks in lead ing cities showed a decrease of n early $ 2 0 0 ,00 0,0 00 , la rg e ly in loans on securities, to g eth er w ith some fu rth e r de cline in investm ents. A ll o th er loans, chiefly fo r com m er cial and ag ric u ltu ral purposes, rem ained unchanged a t a (Continued on page 7 ) M ONTHLY R E V IE W Monthly averages of daily figures fo r 12 Federal Reserve Banks. L atest figures are averages of first 22 days in May. SIX TH D ISTRICT SUMMARY W eather conditions in some p a rts of th e six th d istric t d u rin g M arch and A pril w ere unfavorable, excessive rain s have delayed fa rm w ork and low tem p eratu re s have h in dered grow th. A ccording to rep o rts of th e U nited S tate s D ep artm ent of A gricu lture, prospects fo r peaches in th e d istric t generally, and fo r citru s fru its in Florida, are low er th a n a t th is tim e la s t year. R etail tra d e in A pril w as in som ew hat la rg e r volume th a n in th e sam e m onth la s t year, although slig h tly less th a n in M arch. W holesale tra d e increased over M arch and w as g re a te r th a n in A pril 1928. Stocks of both re ta il and wholesale firm s w ere sm aller th a n a y ea r ago, and collections during A pril rep o rted by departm ent sto res and by w holesale dealers w ere g re a te r th a n in M arch or in A p ril la s t year. The volume of debits to individual ac counts a t tw enty-six cities in th e d istric t declined slig h tly in A pril com pared w ith M arch, b u t w as g re a te r th a n in A pril 1928. S avings deposits averaged fo u r p er cent less th a n a y ea r ago. B uilding perm its issued a t tw en ty cities of th e d istric t in A pril w ere g re a te r th a n in M arch, and averaged less th a n one p er cent sm aller th a n fo r A pril 1928. The consum ption of cotton in A pril w as about th e sam e as in M arch, and w as tw en ty p er cent g re a te r th a n in A pril la s t y ea r, and production of cotton ojoth and y a rn by rep o rtin g m ills in th e six th d istric t w as in g re a te r volume th a n fo r eith er of those periods. P roduction of coal in A labam a averaged g re a te r, b u t in Tennessee sm aller, th a n a y ea r ago. A labam a production of pig iron w as less th a n in M arch b u t g re a te r th a n in A pril 1 928. T here w as an increase of less th a n th ree millions of dollars in to ta l loans by th irty w eekly rep o rtin g m em b er banks in the la rg e r cities of th e d istric t in th e fo u r w eeks period betw een A pril 10 and M ay 8, and on th is date loans w ere m ore th a n nine m illions g re a te r th a n a y ea r ago. Investm ents of these banks in U nited S tates governm ent and o ther securities on M ay 8 w ere also a little m ore th a n nine m illions g re a te r th a n on th e corre Monthly rates m the open m arket in New Y ork: commercial paper rate on 4- to 6 -month paper and acceptance ra te on 90-day bankers* acceptances. L atest figures are averages fo r first 24 days in May. sponding re p o rt d ate la s t y ea r, and to ta l loans and in v est m ents show an increase over th a t d ate of 18^2 m illions. D iscounts by th e F ed eral R eserve B ank of A tla n ta fo r m em ber banks increased n ea rly 17 m illions betw een A pril 10 an d M ay 8, and w ere over 2 5 ^ m illions g re a te r th a n on the sam e re p o rt date la s t y ear. H oldings of bills bought in th e open m a rk e t and of U nited S tate s securities declined com pared w ith both of th ese re p o rt dates. R E T A IL TRA D E M erchandise d istrib u tio n a t re ta il in th e six th F ed eral R eserve D istric t d u rin g A pril, reflected in figures rep o rted confidentially by dep atm en t sto res located th ro u g h o u t th e district, w as in som ew hat sm aller volume th a n in M arch, b u t averaged som ew hat g re a te r th a n in A p ril la s t y ear. Stocks of m erchandise increased slig h tly over those fo r M arch, b u t w ere sm aller th a n a y e a r ago, and th e r a te of tu rn o v er fo r A pril w as slig h tly g re a te r th a n fo r A pril 1928. A p ril sales by 4 5 rep o rtin g d ep a rtm en t sto res av e r aged 1.3 p er cent g re a te r th a n in A p ril la s t y ear, in creases a t A tla n ta and N ashville slig h tly m ore th a n off se ttin g decreases fro m o th er points. Sales fo r th e first fo u r m onths of th e y ea r averag ed ab o u t th e sam e as d u r ing th e sam e period la s t year. Stocks averag ed 1.6 p er cent la rg e r th a n fo r M arch, b u t w ere 4 .8 p er cent sm aller th a n a y ea r ago. A ccounts receivable decreased 2.4 p er cent com pared w ith M arch, b u t w ere 3.2 p er cen t g re a te r th a n fo r A pril 1928, and collections increased 6.3 p er cent over those in M arch, and w ere 8.1 p er cent g re a te r th a n in A pril la s t y ear. The ra tio of collections d u rin g A p ril to accounts receivable and due a t th e beginning of th e m onth, fo r 33 firm s, w as 33.3 p er cent; fo r M arch th is ra tio w as 3 2.3 p er cent, and fo r A p ril la s t y e a r 3 3.4 p er cent. F o r A pril th e ra tio .of collections a g a in st re g u la r accounts, fo r 33 firm s, w as 35.7 p er cent, and th e ra tio of collections a g a in st in stallm en t accounts, fo r 8 firm s w as 15.9 p er cent. CONDITION OF RETA IL TRADE DURING A PR IL 1929 AT 45 DEPARTM ENT STORES IN THE SIXTH FEDERAL RESERVE DISTRICT A tlan ta (5) Birm ingham (5) Chattanooga (6) N ashville ( 4 ) ' New Orleans (5) O ther Cities (20) D istrict (46) ____ Comparison of N et Sales Apr. 1929 w ith Ja n . 1 to A pr. 30,1929 A pril 1928 w ith same period 1928 ----- +10.9 + 6 .6 ------— 3.3 + 0.7 ------ — 2.4 — 1.0 ----- + 6.1 — 1.3 — 0.4 — 2.7 — 4.8 — 2.4 + 1.3 + 0.1 Comparison of Stocks A pr. 30, 1929 A pr. 30, 1929 w ith w ith A pr. 30, 1928 Mch. 31,1929 + 3.3 + 0 .6 —13.1 + 0.5 — 2 .0 + 1.5 — 5.6 + 4.3 — 7.6 — 0 .1 -f 2 .8 + 2.5 — 4.8 + 1 .6 Note: The rate of stock turnover is the ratio of sales during given period to average stocks on hand. R ate of Stock T urnover Ja n . 1 to A pril Apr. 30, 1928 1929 1928 1929 .26 .29 1.03 1.13 .19 .19 .79 .79 .18 .18 .72 .73 .23 .24 .94 .93 .17 .18 .73 .70 .2 0 .18 .78 .73 .2 0 .2 1 .82 .81 M ONTHLY R EV IEW W H O LESA LE TRADE The volume of w holesale trad e in the sixth d istric t d u r ing A pril, as reflected in sales figures reported confiden tia lly to th e F ed eral Reserve Bank by 121 w holesale firms in eig h t different lines, increased slightly over the p re ceding m onth and w as g re a te r th a n in th e sam e m onth la st y ear. Stocks of m erchandise on hand a t the end of A pril, rep orted by some of these firm s, w ere sm aller th a n a m onth or a y ear earlier. A ccounts receivable a t the end of A pril increased slightly over M arch, but w ere sm aller th a n a y ear ago, and collections averaged b etter th a n in M arch or in A pril 1928. P ercentage com parisons of figures fo r all lines combined are shown in the able, and com parisons by lines are shown in the p ara g ra p h s which follow. Sales _____________ Stocks on hand ___ Accounts receivable Collections _______ A pril 1929 compared w ith : Mch. 1929 A pril 1928 ___________________ + 1.1 + 8.7 ______________ ____ — 1.8 — 7.1 _______________ + 0.6 __________________ + 5.7 — 0.6 + 6.4 Groceries A pril sales of groceries a t w holesale av e r aged 2.2 per cent less th a n in M arch, due to decreases reported from Jacksonville and New Orleans, b u t w ere 6.4 per cent la rg e r th a n in A pril 1928. Stocks on hand and accounts receivable decreased, and collections increased, com pared w ith both of those periods. A pril 1929 compared w ith : Mch. 1929 A pril 1928 A tlan ta (3 firms) _____________________ + 9.9 + 3.0 Jacksonville (4 firms) -------------------------- —18.4 -j-16.4 New Orleans ( 6 firms) _______________ — 2.9 —10.8 Vicksburg (3 firms) ___________________ + 5.6 +12.1 O ther Cities (13 firms) ________________ + 5.7 +11.7 DISTRICT (29 firms) _________________ — 2.2________ + 6.4 — 5.8 Stocks on hand ___ — 4.3 — 7.5 — 3.2 Accounts receivable + 7.2 + 3.1 Collections ------------- D ry Goods Sales of dry goods a t w holesale in A pril de clined 7.3 per cent from th e higher level in M arch, b u t w ere 8.1 per cent g re a te r th a n in A pril of la st year. Stocks on hand increased over those a t th e end of M arch b u t w ere 18.3 per cent sm aller th a n a year ago. Ac counts receivable w ere sm aller, and collections g rea ter, th an fo r eith er th e preceding m onth or th e sam e m onth la s t year. A pril 1929 compared w ith : S ales: Mch. 1929 A pril 1928 A tlan ta (3 firms) --------------------------------- — 0.1 +14.8 Nashville (3 firms) ______________ ____ —10.3 + 2.1 New Orleans (4 firms) ________________ — 7.3 — 4.3 O ther Cities (15 firms) ________________ — 7.2 +13.6 DISTRICT (25 firms) ________________ — 7.3________+ 8.1 Stocks on hand _______________________ + 2.2 —18.3 Accounts receivable ___________________ — 2.8 — 4.4 Collections ------------------------------------------+10.0 + 4.8 H ardw are Sales of hardw are a t w holesale during A pril increased 4.2 per cent over M arch and w ere 11.1 p er cent g re a te r th a n in A pril 1928. Stocks of m erchandise a t the end of A pril w ere sm aller th a n fo r a m onth or a y ear earlier. A ccounts receivable a t the end of A pril, and collections during the m onth, both show in creases over the preceding and th e sam e m onth la st year. Nashville (4 firms) ....... ................. ............... New Orleans (5 firms) ________________ O ther Cities (19 firms) ________________ DISTRICT (28 firms) _________________ Stocks on hand ___ Accounts receivable Collections ............. .... A pril 1929 compared w ith : Mch. 1929 A pril 1928 + 8.5 +11.1 + 3 .1 +22.8 + 3.6 + 3.7 + 4.2________ +11.1 — 3.1 — 3.0 + 3.4 + 4.8 + 6.9 +13.3 F u rn itu re A pril sales of fu rn itu re a t wholesale de clined com pared w ith M arch bu t averaged slig h tly la rg e r th a n in A pril a y ear ago. A ccounts receiv able w ere sm aller th a n fo r M arch, but averaged 6.4 per cent la rg e r th a n fo r A pril la st year, and collections show decreases com pared w ith both of those periods. S ales: A tlan ta (5 firms) Other Cities (7 firms) __ DISTRICT (12 firms) __ Accounts receivable Collections ............... April 1929 compared w ith : Mch. 1929 A pril 1928 — 1.1 +18.0 — 4.7 — 2.1 — 4.1 ____ + 1.2 ------------------------------------____________ ■2.4 2.0 + 6.4 —10.7 $ E lectrical Supplies Sales of electrical supplies a t wholesale during A pril averaged 17.4 p er cent g re a t er th a n in M arch, and 14.5 p er cent g re a te r th a n in A pril la st year. Stocks on hand, accounts receiv able and collections all show increases over M arch, and collections w ere g re a te r th a n in A pril la s t year, b u t de creases com pared w ith th a t m onth a re shown in stocks and accounts receivable. S ales: New Orleans (4 firms) O ther Cities ( 8 firms) .. DISTRICT (12 firms) . Stocks on hand ___ Accounts receivable Collections ________ A pril 1929 compared w ith : Mch. 1929 A pril 1928 ____________ +21.5 +34.5 ____________ +15.1 + 5.0 ____________ +17.4________+14.5 + 1.4 — 1.9 — 0.8 +12.7 + 2.3 +16.8 Com parisons in the other th ree lines are shown only fo r th e d istrict as th ree or m ore rep o rts w ere n o t received from an y single city in an y of these lines. Sales in all th ree lines increased over both th e preceding m onth and the corresponding m onth a y ear ago. Shoes: Sales ___ S tationery: Sales D ru g s: Sales Accounts receivable Collections ________ A pril 1929 compared w ith : Mch. 1929 A pril 1928 __ + 2.5 + 5.4 „ + 8.9 + 8.9 - + 5.4 +11.5 ... + 1.0 _ — 4.6 — 0.0 — 4.1 A G RICU LTU RE W hile fa rm w ork generally in th e south has m ade f a ir progress, w eath er conditions in some p a rts of th e six th d istrict during A pril and early M ay have n ot been fav o r able. In F lorida th e n o rth ern and w estern p a rts of the sta te have had too much ra in and cool w eath er, while cen tr a l and south F lorida w ere suffering from drought. As a re su lt of storm dam age, th e re w as some rep lan tin g in th e staple crop sections. The p resen t outlook fo r citrus fru its is much below th a t of a y ear ago, th e condition of oranges on May 1 being 61 p er cent com pared w ith 82 p er cent la st year, and g ra p e fru it being 56 p er cent com pared w ith 80 p er cent a y ear ago. The early bloom w as unusually lig h t and the extrem e dry w eath er has caused some dropping of the young f ru it and lowered the condition of th e trees. Peaches and p ears w ere also dam aged by storm s during A pril, and th e condition is below th a t of a y ea r ago. T ruck crops are much earlier th a n la st year. U nseasonably cool tem p eratu res during A pril accom panied by excessive ra in over th e en tire s ta te of Georgia have delayed farm in g operations and hindered p lan t grow th. The tornado and storm stricken sections suffered severe dam age to crops and pro p erty . On May 2 heavy w indstorm s sw ept south ern G eorgia and a p a r t of th e Piedm ont sections, re su lt ing in some in ju ry to crops and to peaches. On M ay 8 hail storm s accounted fo r additional dam age in localized areas of middle G eorgia. P rospects fo r peaches w ere much lower on M ay 1 th a n a m onth earlier, th e condition being 60 p er cent norm al com pared w ith 84 p er cent on A pril 1. Curculio in festatio n w as th e w o rst in y ears and th e continuous and excessive rain s during the blooming period resu lted in an unusually heavy drop. F o r th e ten southern sta te s th e condition of peaches on May 1 w as 67.4 p er cent, com pared w ith 73.8 la st year. In A rkansas, Oklahom a and Texas prospects are b e tte r th a n in any of th e p ast th ree years, b u t in other sta te s th e condition is low er th a n a t th e sam e tim e of la s t year. COTTON M O V EM EN T -U N IT ED STATES Since August 1 1928 1927 1929 7,957,377 12,213,276 Receipts a t all U. S. P orts ----------- 9,088,699 Overland across Miss., Ohio & Potomao 1,082,042 1,463,772 Rivers to Nor. Mills and C anada__ 1,252,539 In terio r stocks in excess of those 217,543 417,503 held a t close of Com’l year----------266,334 4,070,787 3,922,143 Southern mills takings, net ----------- 4,182,000 17,965,378 Total for 276 days _________________ 14,789,572 13,379,065 6,510,379 Foreign exports ___________________ 7,325,191 6,102,859 ♦American Mills N. & S. & C anada— 6,594,339 Am erican Cotton thus fa r -------------- 13,328,000 12,655,000 14,725,000 ♦of which 1,728,744 by N orthern Spinners against 1,678,609 last year and 4,865,595 by Southern Spinners against 4,424,250 last year. 4 S u g ar Cane an d S u g ar W eather conditions in th e Louisiana cane belt have not been entirely favorable during th e la tte r p a rt of A pril and ea rly M ay. The cool w eath er h as som ew hat checked th e grow th of th e cane b u t stands a re excellent and th e crop shows a health y color, according to press rep o rts. SUGAR MOVEMENT (Pounds) Raw S ugar A pril 1929 Mch. 1929 R eceipts: 140,103,566 New Orleans ___________.-193,251,535 87,989,890 S avannah __ ______________ 59,138,160 M eltings: -154,040,093 168,606,357 New O rleans _ 37,375,892 39,070,377 Savannah Stocks: 148,312,836 -187,417,944 New O rleans 55,563,256 - 77,325,524 Savannah — A pril 1928 183,381,992 49,667,557 131,323,534 32,249,541 97,930,035 54,714,793 Refined S ugar (Pounds) Shipm ents: New Orleans Savannah __ Stocks: New Orleans Savannah — -176,573,549 - 19,350,188 136,984,464 27,053,159 116,710,526 18,968,799 _ 65,898,750 _ 37,905,141 89,664,711 21,105,929 58,350,183 35,936,952 RICE MOVEMENT—NEW ORLEANS Rough Rice (Sacks) A pril 1929 19,512 16,525 22,832 Receipts _ Shipm ents S t o c k s ___ Mch. 1929 34,071 36,710 19,845 A pril 1928 12,583 11,289 8,243 119,770 116,548 163,847 160,846 205,148 205,501 CLEAN RICE— (Packets) 122,132 131,246 154,733 Receipts Shipm ents S t o c k s ---- RICE M ILLERS ASSOCIATION STATISTICS (B arrels) Receipts of Rough Rice: Season 1928-29 _____ Season 1927-28 -------D istribution of Milled R ice: Season 1928-29 ________ Season 1927-28 -----------Stocks of Rough an d Milled R ice: May 1, 1929 _______________ May 1, 1928 _______________ A pril 429,389 620,032 Aug. 1 to A pril 30 8,614,837 8,997,201 745,097 835,992 8,001,677 8,463,902 1,763,837 1,957,878 FIN A N C IA L T otal savings deposits a t th e end of A pril, reported by 80 banks located throu g h o u t th e six th district, averaged tw o-tenths of one p er cent less th a n a m onth earlier, and w ere fo u r p er cent less th a n a t th e end of A pril la s t year. Sm all increases over M arch rep o rted from A tla n ta and B irm ing ham w ere m ore th a n offset in th e d istric t average by de ceases rep o rted from o ther points, and decreases com pared w ith A pril 1 92 8 w ere shown fo r all points except “ O ther Cities/* Com parisons in th e table a re shown fo r A tla n ta, and fo r F ed eral R eserve branch cities, and rep o rts fro m banks located elsew here a re gouped under “O ther C ities.” Savings D eposits (000 Omitted) A tlan ta (7 banks) -------Birm ingham (4 banks) . Jacksonville (5 banks) „ Nashville < 8 b a n k s ) ---New O rleans (7 banks) O ther Cities (49 banks) Total (80 b a n k s ) --------- D ebits to Individual Accounts __ __ __ __ — Comparison Comparison A pril Mch, Apr.-Mch. Apr. A pril 1929 1929 1929 1928 *29-'28 42,974 $ 42,707 + 0.6 ? 44,564 — 3.6 25,354 — 1.5 24,978 24,784 + 0.8 26,025 26,631 — 2.3 29,101 —10.6 27.898 — 8.8 25,442 25,446 — 0.02 50,194 — 8.1 46,121 46,433 — 0.7 110.455 110,207 110,399 — 0.1 + 0.2 275,939 276.456 — 0.2 287,318 — 4.0 The to ta l volume of debits to individual accounts a t tw enty-six rep o rtin g cities in th e six th d istric t in A pril averaged 1.4 p er cent less th a n in M arch, b u t w as g re a te r by 11.8 p er cent th a n in A pril la st year. T w enty of these re p o rt in g cities showed increases over A pril a y ea r ago, w hile six showed decreases com pared w ith th a t m onth. The m onthly figures shown in ta b le a re derived from w eekly figures by p ro -ratin g figures fo r those w eeks w hich do n o t fall en tirely w ithin a single calendar m onth. (0 0 0 A labam a Birm ingham D o t h a n ____ M o b ile _____ Montgomery Florida Jacksonville Miami P e n s a c o l a __ T a m p a _____ Georgia A l b a n y _____ A t l a n t a ____ A u g u s t a ____ B r u n s w ic k _ C o lu m b u s___ E lb e r t o n ___ _ M a c o n ______ New nan ____ S avannah ___ V a l d o s t a ___ L ouisiana New O rleans Mississippi H attiesburg Jackson ____ M e r i d i a n ___ V icksburg __ Tennessee C hattanooga . Knoxville __ Nashville ___ Total 26 cities om itted) A pril 1929 $ 150,797 3,418 38,270 31,207 Mch. 1929 $ 149,077 8,181 38,703 28,635 A pril 1928 $ 141,848 8,230 38,189 29,442 87,750 45,800 7,935 40,270 84,014 48,532 7,053 38,368 76,307 38,945 7,213 39,639 3,958 231,954 28,430 4,039 16,173 1,131 19,958 1,962 40,890 4,335 4,195 240,771 28,000 3,861 16,085 1,322 19,981 2,043 42,939 4,842 3,685 155,159 27,670 3.042 13,574 1,054 21,927 2,128 46,698 5.043 341,170 356,882 324,311 7,460 31,584 15,507 6,731 7,189 29,084 16,352 7,465 7,122 24,544 17,988 6,774 52,281 38,691 110,724 48,169 35,846 119,710 47,932 38,510 96,988 ~$1,362,425 $1,382,299 $1,218,962 . Conditions of M em ber B anks in Selected C ities W eekly re p o rts received fro m th ir ty rep o rtin g m em ber banks located in A tla n ta , N ew O rleans, B irm ingham , Jacksonville, N ash ville, C hattanooga, Knoxville and S avannah indicate th a t betw een A p ril 10, figures fo r w hich d ate w ere shown in th e previous issue of th e Review, and M ay 8 th e re w ere increases in loans on securities and in A ll O ther loans, and to ta l loans on M ay 8 w ere $ 2 ,9 2 5 ,0 0 0 g re a te r th a n fo u r w eeks earlier. F ig u re s fo r A p ril 10, shown in th e tab le below, have been slig h tly corrected since publication o: th e previous issue of th e Review. Com pared w ith figures fo r th e corresponding re p o rt d ate a y ea r ago, loans on securities on M ay 8 th is y ea r show an increase of over 17 m illions, while A ll O ther loans show a decrease of $7,740,000. T otal loans on M ay 8 w ere $ 9 ,4 1 4 ,0 0 0 g re a te r th a n on the sam e re p o rt d ate a y ea r ago. H oldings of U nited S tate s securities declined slig h tly betw een A p ril 10 and M ay 8, and w ere over 3J4 m illions g re a te r th a n a y ea r ago, and holdings of o th er stocks and bonds w ere $ 27 5 ,0 0 0 less th a n on A p ril 10, and $ 5 ,52 8,0 00 g re a te r th a n a y ea r ago. T otal loans and investm ents of th ese w eekly re p o rt ing m em ber banks on May 8 am ounted to $ 6 4 8 ,67 5,0 00 , com pared w ith $ 64 6 ,5 6 6 ,0 0 0 on A p ril 10, and w ith $630,1 54,000 on M ay 9, 1 928. Tim e deposits of th ese banks de clined slig h tly d u ring th e fo u r w eek period betw een A pril 10 and M ay 8, and w ere 14.4 m illions less th a n a y ear ago, and dem and deposits show decreases com pared w ith both of th ese dates u nder com parison. Borrow ings by th ese banks w ere g re a te r th a n fo r eith er of th ese com par ative re p o rt dates. May 8 . 1929 L o an s: $150,248 On Securities 363,239 All Other 513,487 Total Loans 64,939 U. S. Securities 70,249 Other Stocks and B o n d s ----------------Total Loans and Investments. 648,675 228,595 Time Deposits 327,888 Demand Deposits -----------------49,522 Borrowings from F . R. B a n k - O perations of th e F ed eral R eserve B ank A pril 10, 1929 $149,187 361,375 510,562 65,480 70,524 646,566 228,663 341,705 38,360 May 9, 1928 $133,094 370,979 504,073 61,360 64,721 630,154 243,025 336,406 30,896 F ig u re s contained in th e weekly sta te m en ts of th e F ed era1 R eserve B ank of A tla n ta ind: cate th a t discounts fo r m em ber banks declined from 60.'< m illions on Ja n u a ry 23 to th e low point so f a r th is y ear, a t 48.6 m illions, on M arch 20, and since th en have in creas ed to 76.5 m illions on M ay 1, declining th e follow ing w eek to 74.5 m illions. Bills discounted fo r m em ber banks based on governm ent securities have averaged low er in volume during m ost of M arch and A pril th a n d u rin g Ja n u a ry and F eb ru ary , and th e p rin cip al increase h as been in O ther Bills D iscounted, fo r com m ercial, ag ric u ltu ral and indus- M O N THLY R E V IE W tr ia l purposes. H oldings of bills bought in the open m a rk e t have decreased nearly th ree-fo u rth s since the first of th e year, and holdings of U nited S tate s securities have also declined. T otal bills and securities held by th e F ed eral Reserve B ank w ere g re a te r on M ay 1 th a n on any o th er re p o rt date since th e la s t of Ja n u a ry , and declined less th a n tw o m illions during th e w eek ending May 8. Com pared w ith figures fo r th e corresponding re p o rt date of la s t y ear, discounts secured by governm ent obligations show a sm all decrease, b u t O ther bills discounted are a l m ost tw ice as la rg e a s a t th a t tim e. T otal discounts on M ay 8 am ounted to $ 74 ,5 31 ,00 0, com pared w ith $57,536,0 0 0 fo u r w eeks earlier, and w ith $ 48 ,7 85 ,00 0 on th e sam e re p o rt d ate la s t year. H oldings of bills bought in th e open m arket, and of U nited S tate s securities, a re also m a teria lly sm aller th a n a y ea r ago. Cash reserves de clined $ 1 7 ,6 7 1 ,0 0 0 d uring th e fo u r weeks period betw een A p ril 10 and M ay 8, and w ere $ 2 1 ,8 52 ,00 0 sm aller th a n a y ea r ago. D ecreases com pared w ith both of these com p ara tiv e dates a re shown in to ta l deposits, and in F ederal R eserve N otes in ac tu a l circulation. P rincipal item s in th e w eekly sta te m en t of th e F ed eral Reserve B ank fo r th e th re e re p o rt d ates under com parison, are shown in th e table. (000 Omitted) May 8 , Bills Discounted: 1929 Securities by Govt. Obligations----- $ 17,486 57,045 All Others 74,531 T otal Discounts 7,995 Bills Bought in open m a rk e t3,148 U. S. Securities 248 Foreign loans on Gold 85,922 T otal Bills and Securities^ 118,908 Cash Reserves 67,061 T otal Deposits 132,693 F. R. Notes in actual circulation.. 59.5 Reserve R a t i o ---------------------------- A pril 10, 1929 $ 14,166 43,370 57,536 10,600 4,000 May 9, 1928 $ 18,884 29,900 48,785 22,185 6,463 72,136 136,579 67,158 134,610 67.7 77,432 140,760 71,221 142,535 65.9 Gold M ovement Im ports of gold into th e U nited S tates continued in A pril m uch la rg e r th a n exports, and fo r th e first fo u r m onths of th is y ear im ports have exceeded exports by m ore th a n 120 millions of dollars. D uring th e sam e period la st y ea r exports of gold w ere n ea rly 211 m illions g re a te r th a n im ports. A pril ex p o rts am ounted to $1,594,000, com pared w ith $1,635,000 in M arch, and w ith $96,469,000 in A pril 1928, and im p o rts of gold in A pril am ounted to $24,687,000 com pared w ith $25,470,000 in M arch, and w ith $5,319,000 in A pril la st y ear. Com m ercial F ailu re s A ccording to sta tistics compiled by R. G. D un & Com pany, com m ercial failu res d u r ing A pril in th e U nited S tate s increased in num ber, com pared w ith th e preceding m onth and w ith th e corresponding m onth la s t y ear, b u t w ere som ew hat less th a n fo r eith er of these m onths in to ta l liabilities of failin g firm s. F ig u re s fo r th e six th d istric t indicate few er failu re s in A pril th a n in M arch, or in A pril 1928, and liabilities of firm s w hich failed in A pril w ere 30 per cent less th a n fo r M arch, and 39 p er cent less th a n fo r A pril la s t y ear. F ig u re s in th e tab le show failu res in th e U nited S tate s divided by F ed eral Reserve D istricts. N um ber Liabilities D istrict A pril 1929 A pril 1929 Boston __________ ___ 223 $ 3,904,184 New Y o r k _______ ___ 328 8,846,562 P h ila d e lp h ia _____ 90 2,015,410 C le v e la n d ________ ___ 158 2,539,185 R i c h m o n d _________ _132 2,573,495 A t l a n t a _________ 94 2,075,964 4,983,924 C h i c a g o _________ ___ 295 St. L o u i s ________ ___ 126 1,992,932 M in n e a p o lis _____ 81 717,778 Kansas C i t y _____ ___ 128 1,271,800 Dallas __________ ___ 51 515,003 San Francisco ___ ___ 315 3,833,465 2,021 $35,269,702 T o t a l __- I Liabilities Mch. 1929 $ 3,017,038 7,226,081 1,583,521 4,141,234 2,167,780 2,983,415 6,329,441 1,987,665 540,973 1,706,639 559,130 4,112,774 $36,355,691 Liabilities A pril 1928 $ 2,384,602 6,436,423 2,005,049 7,055,083 2,316,842 3,407,316 5,531,131 1,208,376 1,283,614 4,427,764 $37,985,145 IM PORTS AND EXPORTS P relim in ary figures fo r A pril, compiled by th e U nited S tate s D epartm ent of Commerce indicate th a t exports during A pril declined, b u t im ports increased, com pared w ith M arch, and both im ports and exports w ere g re a te r th a n fo r A pril la st year. A pril exports w ere 12.8 p er cent less th a n fo r M arch, and 17.3 p e r cent g re a te r th a n in A pril 1 928, and im ports increased 6 .6 p er cent over M arch and w ere 18.4 p er cent U nited S tate s 5 g re a te r th a n in A pril la st year. P relim inary figures fo r A pril, w ith com parisons, are shown in th e table. E xports 1929 A pril -------------------------------------------------$ 427,000,000 March ----------------------------------------------- 489,891,000 1 0 months ending w ith A p r i l _________ 4,597,026 000 Im ports A pril ____________________ ~$ 409,000,000 M arch _____ ___________________ 383,804,000 10 months ending w ith A p r i l ___ ~ 3,536,667,000 1928 $ 363,928,000 420,617,000 4,065,853,000 $ 345,314,000 880,437,000 3,476,270,000 New O rleans M erchandise w as im ported into th e _ . . U nited S tate s th ro u g h th e p o rt of New O rleans du rin g F eb ru ary , th e la te s t m onth fo r w hich de tailed figures a re available, to th e value o f $ 21 ,7 3 0 ,2 4 6 com pared w ith $18 ,7 37 ,24 3 in ja n u ary , and w ith $20,576,2 59 m F e b ru a ry la s t y ear. M erchandise ex p o rts th ro u g h the p o rt o f N ew O rleans F eb ru ary to taled $ 32 ,3 83 ,32 5, com pared w ith $43,374 ,1 43 m Ja n u a ry , and w ith $28,0 63 ,29 0 in F e b ru a ry of 1 928. G rain E x p o rts—New O rleans G rain w as exported th ro u g h th e p o rt of N ew O rleans d u rin g A p ril to th e am ount of 959 ,9 83 bushels an increase of 2 6 9 ,7 1 5 bushels over th e sam e period a y ea r ago, due to th e increases in w heat, corn, oats an d b arley exports. F ig u re s fo r th e m onth and fo r th e season to d ate a re given in th e table. W heat, bu. _ Corn, bu. _ Oats, b u . _ Barley, bu. Rye, bu. Total, bu. ~ A pril 1929 304,124 567,393 70,806 17,660 959 983 A pril 1928 132,801 253,074 68,679 235,714 690,268 Season Ju ly 1929 5,335,696 11,345,529 554,912 3,842,139 256,031 21,334,307 1 to A pril 80, 1928 7,992,534 3,419,246 784,889 931,602 13,128,271 BU ILDIN G The volume of prospective building a t tw en ty rep o rtin g cities of th e six th d istric t as reflected in p erm its issued fo r the^ construction of buildings w ith in th e ir corporate lim its, increased 3.9 p er cent in A p ril as com pared w ith M arch, and w as only eig h t-ten th s o f one p er cen t less th a n fo r A pril of la st y ear. Seven of th ese tw en ty rep o rtin g cities showed increases over A p ril 1928, and th irte e n re ported decreases. The index num ber fo r A p ril, based upon th e m onthly av erag e fo r th e th ree-y ear period 19232 5, w as 73.4, com pared w ith 7 0.7 fo r M arch, and w ith 7 4.0 fo r A pril 1 928. Index num bers fo r F ed eral R eserve B ank and B ranch cities a re shown on th e la st page o f th is Re view. The to ta l value of co n tracts aw arded fo r building an d construction w ork in th e 3 7 sta te s e a st of th e Rocky M ountains, according to sta tistic s compiled by th e F . W . Dodge C orporation, am ounted in A pril to $64 2,06 0,5 00 , an increase of 32.4 p er cent over th e preceding m onth, an d ab o u t equal to th e to ta l fo r A p ril la s t y ea r $ 6 4 2,23 7,1 00 The A pril to ta l th is y ea r is la rg e r th a n fo r th a t m onth of any other* y ea r except 1928, and is th e la rg e s t m onthly to ta l recorded since Ju n e 1928. In A p ril 4 0 p e r cent of all construction, or $ 25 6,77 9,7 00 , w as fo r resid en tial build ings; 2 4 p er cent, or $ 1 5 2 ,12 6,9 00 , fo r public w orks and utilities; 12 p er cent, or $77 ,9 88 ,40 0, fo r com m ercial build ings, and 11 p er cent, or $ 68 ,2 29 ,50 0, fo r in d u stria l p ro jects. The to ta l fo r th e firs t fo u r m onths of 1929, is $1,897 ,8 89 ,80 0, a decrease of 11 p er cent com pared w ith th e corresponding period of la s t y ear. C ontract aw ards in th e six th d istric t d u rin g A p ril am ounted to $ 37 ,3 87 ,26 3, an increase of 47.2 p e r cent over the to ta l fo r M arch, and g re a te r by 5 3.4 p er cent th a n fo r A pril 1928. The to ta l fo r A p ril th is y ea r is la rg e r th a n fo r any m onth since N ovem ber 1927. In th e table a re shown sta tistics of building p erm its is sued a t rep o rtin g cities of th e six th d istrict, and com par ative figures fo r th e sam e m onth la s t y ear. Alabama A nniston __ Birm ingham Mobile ____ Montgomery Florida Jacksonville A pril 1929 Num ber Value 29 $ 43,350 394 3,306,416 130,932 121 292,447 226 375 461,355 A pril 1928 Num ber V alue 16 $ 20,350 574 1,919,265 89 160,006 149 141,796 409 924,990 Percentage change in Value + H 3 .0 + 72.3 — 18.2 +106.2 — 50.1 M O N THLY R E V IE W 6 M ia m i--------284 303,906 279 O r l a n d o -----72 25,820 119 134 P e n s a c o l a __ 74,489 65 Tam pa ____ 286 204,188 332 ♦Lakeland ___ 13 3,575 7 ♦Miami Beach 53 475,280 46 Georgia A tlan ta 317 1,097,148 A ugusta ___ 167 90,183 184 Columbus __ 37 95,800 54 M a c o n _____ 137 67,403 107 24 Savannah __ 76,625 30 Louisiana New O rleans 191 495,309 215 A lexandria — 69,715 66 Tennessee Chattanooga .. - 329 304,954 249 Johnson City 23 48,550 25 Knoxville __ . 189 522,246 253 „ 318 Nashville 552,275 258 Total 2 0 Cities . 3,746 8,263,111 3,869 Index N o . -----73.4 ♦Not included in totals or index numbers. 346,332 85,005 141,262 292,496 1,175 399,125 1,022,797 66,950 152,665 43,760 144,200 689,189 50,855 453,931 69,325 569,074 1,035,882 8,329,130 74.0 —• 12.3 — 69.6 — 47.3 — 30.2 +204.3 + 19.1 + + — + — 7.3 34.7 37.2 54.0 46.9 — 28.1 + 37.1 — 32.8 — 30.0 — 8.2 — 46.7 — 0.6 LUM BER M anufacturing conditions in th e lum ber in d u stry w ere m ore favorable in A pril th a n in M arch, and p relim in ary figures fo r A pril received up to th e middle of M ay from 100 rep o rtin g m ills indicate th a t th e volume of orders booked during A pril averaged seven-tenths of one p er cent less th a n th e ir production. In M arch, w hen opera tions w ere seriously in te rru p te d by excessive rain s, orders exceeded o u tp u t by 13.3 p e r cent, and in A pril la s t y ear orders w ere 10.6 p er cent g re a te r th a n production. Ship m ents in A pril by rep o rtin g m ills averaged 5.8 p er cent g re a te r th a n orders booked during the m onth, and 5 p er cen t g re a te r th a n th e ir production. O utput in A pril av er aged 3.4 p er cent below th e th ree -y e ar average production fo r th ese mills; in M arch production w as 9.3 p er cent, and in A p ril la s t y ea r 4.8 per cent, below th e th ree -y e ar a v e r age. Stocks on hand a t th e end of A pril averaged 8.9 p er cent sm aller th a n th e th ree-y ear relativ e stocks of these rep o rtin g m ills. Unfilled orders on hand a t th e end of A p ril am ounted to 88.9 p er cent of a m onth’s production a t th e r a te w hich prevailed in A pril. P relim in ary figures fo r A p ril, w ith com parisons, are shown in the able. (feet) Orders ________ Shipm ents -----------------------Production -----------------------3-Year Average Production Stocks, end of m onth ------3-Year Relative Stocks Unfilled orders, end of m onth A pril 1929 1 0 0 mills 239,409,819 253,178,033 241,187,077 249,565,833 582,168,511 639,038,272 214,470,380 Mch. 1929 104 mills 270,424,831 247,809,492 238,637,908 263,203,059 620,248,106 673,957,753 236,932,470 A pril 1928 113 mills 310,628,650 299,445,790 280,953,818 295,025,989 757,815,226 742,668,922 277,086,420 T E X T IL E S C otton S tatistic s compiled and published by th e Consum ption U nited S tates Census B ureau indicate th a t th e consum ption of cotton in th e U nited S tate s during A pril am ounted to 631 ,7 10 bales, a decrease of tw o-tenths of one per cent com pared w ith th e preced in g m onth, and 2 0.4 p er cent g re a te r th a n consum ption d u rin g A pril of la st year. Stocks of cotton in consum ing establishm ents declined som ew hat com pared w ith those a t th e end of M arch, b u t w ere la rg e r th a n a y ea r ago, w hile stocks in public sto rag e and a t com presses w ere sm aller th a n fo r eith er of those com parative periods. E x p o rts of cotton during A pril w ere 18.6 p er cent less th a n in M arch, and 2.9 p er cent sm aller th a n in A pril a y ea r ago. The num ber of spindles active during A pril decreased by 179,8 1 2 as com pared w ith M arch, and w as sm aller by 2 6,15 6 th a n th e num ber active in A pril 1928. U nited States (Bales) Cotton Consumed: A pril 1929 Mch. 1929 L i n t ______________________ 631,710 632,808 79,008 76,746 L in ters ___________________ Stocks in Consm. E sta b .: L in t ______________________ 1,606,832 1,730,944 L in ters ___________________ 233,189 228,544 Stocks in Public Storage and a t Compresses: L in t _____________________ 2,523,574 3,177,147 L i n t e r s _________________ _ 81,333 81,308 Exports ____________________ 453,591 556,986 Im ports " __________________ 84,621 37,124 Active Spindles ______________ 30,924,184 31,103,996 A pril 1928 524,765 59,930 1,507,599 223,252 2,919,278 61,897 467,318 18,149 30,950,340 Cotton Growing S tates (Bales) A pril 1929 March 1929 Cotton ----- -------------------------477,866 - - - - - Consumed 480,517 Stocks m Con. E stab...................... 1,146 004 1,257,828 Stocks in Public Storage and a t Compresses --------------------- 2,239,899 2,914,759 Active Spindles ______________ 17,941,948 18,097,420 A pril 1928 396,566 1,018,738 2,668,657 17,822,160 Cotton Cloth R eports fo r A p ril w ere rendered to th e . F ed eral Reserve B ank of A tla n ta by cot ton m ills m th e six th d istric t which, d u ring th a t m onth, m an u factu red 2 8,7 3 9 ,0 0 0 y ard s of cotton cloth, an o u tp u t 1.2 p er cent la rg e r th a n fo r M arch, and 20.9 p er cent g re a te r th a n in A p ril la st y ear. O rders declined sh arp ly , however, com pared w ith M arch, and w ere in sm aller vol^ um e th a n in A pril 1928. Shipm ents w ere sm aller th a n in M arch, and unfilled orders on hand a t th e end of A p ril w ere also sm aller th a n a m onth ea rlier, b u t both ship m ents and unfilled orders w ere g re a te r th a n a t th e sam e tim e a y ea r ago. Stocks on hand increased over those fo r M arch, b u t w ere n early one-third sm aller th a n a y ea r ago, and th e num ber of w orkers on pay ro lls w as 8 p e r cent g e a te r th a n fo r A pil 1 928. P ercen tag e com parisons of r e ported figures are shown in th e table. Production ________ Shipm ents ________ Orders booked _____ Unfilled orders ___ Stocks on hand ___ Num ber on payroll --------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A pril 1929 compared w ith : Mch. 1929 A pril 1928 + 1.2 + 20.9 — 1.8 + 13.3 —46.4 —23.5 —13.7 +20.6 + 4.6 —33.0 + 1.4 + 8.0 Cotton Y arn R eports w ere also received fo r A pril from m ills w hich produced 7,3 09 ,0 0 0 pounds of y arn , an o u tp u t 5.3 p er cen t g re a te r th a n in M arch, and 19.5 p er cent g re a te r th a n in A p ril la s t y ear. Shipm ents, and num ber of w orkers, also increased over both of th ese com parative periods. O rders booked du rin g A pril declined, and unfilled orders on hand a t th e end of A pril decreased, com pared w ith M arch, b u t both item s w ere g re a te r th a n fo r A pril 1928. Stocks on hand a t th e end of A pril w ere sm aller th a n a m onth or a y ea r ago. Production ________ S h i p m e n t s ________ Orders b o o k e d ____ Unfilled orders __ Stocks on hand ___ Num ber on payroll A pril 1929 compared w ith : Mch. 1929 A pril 1928 + 5.3 +19.5 + 4.4 +27.8 —10.1 +40.5 — 8.9 +39.2 — 2.5 —12.8 + 2.9 +15.2 H osiery P roduction of hosiery by 36 establishm ents rep o rtin g to th e U nited S tate s Census Bu rea u showed an increase of 3.2 p er cent in A p ril over M arch. O rders booked d u rin g th e m onth increased 6.3 p er cent over M arch, and shipm ents declined slig h tly , and u n filled orders on hand a t th e end of A p ril w ere 7.8 per cent g re a te r th a n a m onth earlier. Stocks on hand decreased 2.5 p er cent. Production ____ Shipm ents _____ Stocks on hand Orders booked Cancellations __ Unfilled orders . (Dozen pairs) A pril 1929 Mch. 1929 784,033 759,931 805,946 812,517 1,738,469 1,783,156 899,276 845,672 36,550 47,274 903,500 COTTON SEED AND COTTON SEED PRODUCTS (1) Sixth D istrict U nited States Aug. 1 to A pr. 30 Aug. 1 to A pr. 30 1929 1928 1929 1928 Cotton Seed, Tons Received a t m i l l s ____ 1,485,275 1,424,157 4,535,151 5,004,626 Crushed ------------------- 1,403,922 1,402,398 4,831,611 4,516,591 On H a n d ................. 86,056 48,223 191,048 107,844 P roduction: Crude Oil, lbs. .. 465,368,952 458,913,841 1,523,553,552 1,427 788 664 610,989 2,176,222 Cake and Meal, tons_ 608,370 2,028,916 Hulls, tons 404,976 385,398 1,307,549 1,279,663 L inters, bales __ 304,169 253,059 1,030,890 846,844 S tocks: (2 ) (2 ) 17,579,216 57,209,133 65,492,218 Crude Oil, lbs............... 12,374,633 75,840 23,811 225,362 84,515 Cake and Meal, to n s_ 16,790 26,148 123,543 85,793 Hulls, tons ............ 27,345 46,344 167,263 111,253 L inters, bales ---------(1) Georgia, Alabam a, Louisiana and Mississippi. (2) N ot including stocks held by refining and m anufacturing estab lishm ents, and in tra n s it to refiners and consumers. M ONTHLY R EV IEW COAL P relim in ary figures compiled by the U nited S tates Bu reau of Mines indicate the production in A pril of 36,888,000 tons of bitum inous coal. This rep resen ts a decrease of 6.2 p er cent in production com pared w ith M arch, but w as 14.6 p er cent g re a te r th a n the output in A pril of la st year. In A pril th e re w ere 25.6 w orking days, com pared w ith 2 6 in M arch, and w ith 24.7 in A pril 1928. The av e r age daily output p er w orking day in A pril w as 1,441,000 tons, sm aller by 4.8 p er cent th a n th e daily average of 1.513 .0 0 0 fo r M arch, bu t 10.6 per cent g re a te r th a n the average of 1 ,303,000 tons fo r A pril la s t year. W eekly production figures since the beginning of th e new coal y ea r A pril 1 also show increases over figures fo r corre sponding weeks of la st year, as shown in the table below. W eekly figures fo r A labam a average som ew hat g re a te r th a n a y ear ago, bu t production w as sm aller in Tennessee. The to ta l production of bitum inous coal during the presen t calendar y ear up to May 4 (approxim ately 106 w orking day s) am ounted to 1 80,511,000 net tons, com pared w ith 1 66.570.000 tons produced in th e sam e period of 1928. Week E nded: A pril 6 A pril 13 April 20 A pril 27 May 4 (000 Omitted) United States 1929 1928 ... ....... .... . _____ ........... _____ _____ _____ ............ ........... ........... 7,641 8,247 8,651 9,118 8,781 7,158 7,415 7,917 8,191 8.174 Alabama 1929 1928 325 321 335 335 335 325 329 333 320 338 Tennessee 1929 1928 100 96 98 95 90 107 109 108 110 106 IRON S tatistics compiled and published by the Iron A ge indi cate th a t the production of pig iron during A pril th is y ear w as g re a te r th a n fo r th a t m onth of any other year, and th a t the daily average r a te of production in A pril w as th e th ird highest fo r any m onth, having been exceed ed only by May and Ju n e of 1923. F urnace activ ity in creased in the U nited S tates as a whole, bu t th e re w as no change in the num ber of furnaces active in A labam a, w here production declined, both in to ta l am ount and in daily average output, com pared w ith M arch, b u t w as m a te rially g re a te r th a n a y ea r ago. T otal production of pig iron in th e U nited S tates d u r ing A pril am ounted to 3,662,625 tons, sm aller by 1.4 p er cent th a n fo r th e longer m onth of M arch, but 15 per cent g re a te r th a n fo r A pril 1928. The daily average increased 1.9 p er cent com pared w ith th e average fo r M arch. On M ay 1 st th e re w ere 2 15 furnaces active, an increase of th ree fo r th e m onth, and an increase of ten over th e num ber active on May 1 st a y ea r ago. F o r th e first four m onths of th is y ear the to ta l outp u t of 1 4,025,653 tons establishes a new record fo r th a t period. S tatistics fo r A labam a indicate th e production of 235, 787 tons during A pril, a decrease of 5.3 per cent com pared w ith M arch, b u t 18.2 per cent g re a te r th a n the output in A pril 1928. The daily average ra te fo r A pril declined 2.2 p er cent com pared w ith M arch. The num ber of furnaces active did not change, 17 Leing active a t th e beginning and a t the end of th e m onth, com pared w ith 16 active a t the sam e tim e a y ea r ago. P ress rep o rts indicate th a t consum ers are covering only th e ir nearby requirem ents and shipm ents are steady, bu t show no increase. Some furnaces are not shipping all th e iron made. A sm all am ount of iron has been sold a t $15.00 fo r shipm ent out side th e B irm ingham d istrict, b u t m erchant producers are still quoting $15.50 base on much of th e business o rig in at ing in the d istrict. Production figures are shown in ta b u la r form fo r convenience of com parison. 7 U nited S tates: A pril 1929 Production __________________ 3,662,625 Index N um ber _____________ 123*1 Average per day ___________ 122,087 ♦Active furnaces _____________ 215 A labam a: Production ------------------------------ 235,787 Index N um ber ______________ 101.5 Average per day ___________ 7,860 ♦Active furnaces _____________ 17 Mch. 1929 A pril 1928 3,714,473 3,185,504 124.3 106.6 119,822 106,183 212 195 249,079 107.3 8,036 17 199,487 85.9 6,650 16 ♦First of following month. NAVAL STORES Receipts of both tu rp en tin e and rosin a t th e th ree p rin cipal naval sto res m ark ets of the d istrict increased season ally in A pril as com pared w ith preceding m onths, and w ere g re a te r th a n in th e sam e m onth la st y ear. Stocks of both commodities w ere som ew hat g re a te r th a n fo r M arch, and stocks of tu rp en tin e w ere g re a te r th a n a t th e sam e tim e la st year, b u t supplies of rosin w ere sm aller th a n a y ea r ago. F ig u re s over a period of y ears indicate th a t A pril receipts of both tu rp en tin e and rosin w ere g re a te r th a n fo r A pril of any of th e p a st tw elve years. Stocks of tu rp en tin e a t th e end of A pril w ere la rg e r th a n a t the sam e tim e of any y ear since 1919, and stocks of rosin, while la rg e r th a n fo r A pril of 1920, 1926 and 1927, w ere sm aller th a n fo r A p ril of other recen t years. P ress rep o rts indicate th a t th e dem and fo r both commodities has been fa irly good, from both domestic and foreign sources. The price of tu rp en tin e has ranged betw een 48 and 4 9 ^ cents, betw een th e middle of A pril and th e early p a r t of May, and prices fo r th e different grades of rosin have not fluctuated g rea tly . Receipts and stocks, w ith com pari sons, are shown in th e table. Mch. 1929 Apr. 1928 9,125 3,477 8,463 4,423 3,177 570 Receipts—T u rp en tin e: Savannah ____ ________ ................ Jacksonville ------------- ________ Pensacola ---------------- ............... Apr. 1929 15,415 12,028 4,169 Total ............... ........________ Receipts—R osin: Savannah ------------------ ................. Jacksonville ................. Pensacola ---------------- ________ 31,610 8,470 20,765 49,932 38,691 11,831 14,031 20,115 3,587 29,260 32,442 6,060 Total ____________________ Stocks—T u rp en tin e: Savannah ___________ ________ Jacksonville ------------- ________ Pensacola ---------------- ________ 100,454 37,733 67,762 12,685 18,745 21,257 8,280 18,145 21,971 10,303 19,656 15,499 Total .......... ............. Stocks—R osin: Savannah __________ ________ Jacksonville ________ ________ Pensacola __________ ________ 52,687 48,396 45,45f 64,559 33,666 1 0 ,1 1 0 54,752 36,946 9,024 65,433 68,455 6,917 108,335 100,722 140,805 Total ____ ______ (C ontinued from P age 1 ) relativ ely high level. There w as a fu rth e r reduction^ in th e average volume of reserve bank credit outstanding betw een th e weeks ending A pril 2 4, and M ay 22, owing larg ely to additions in the co untry’s m o netary stock of gold. The decline w as in discounts fo r m em ber banks; holdings of acceptances and of U nited S tates securities showed p ractically no change. O pen-m arket ra te s fo r com mercial paper rem ained u n changed as did ra te s on prim e b ankers’ acceptances, ex cept fo r a tem p o rary decline a t th e end of A pril and th e first week in May. In the first th ree weeks of M ay ra te s on collateral loans averaged considerably higher th a n in A pril. M ONTHLY R E V IE W MONTHLY IN D E X N U M BERS The follow ing index num bers, except as indicated otherw ise, are com puted by th e F ed eral Reserve B ank of A tla n ta m onthly. The index num bers of re ta il and w holesale trad e are based upon sales figures rep o rted con fidentially by represen tativ e firm s in the lines of trad e indicated, and th e other series of index num bers are based upon figures reported to the bank or curren tly available th ro u g h the daily or tra d e p ress. These index num bers, except as indicated in th e foot-notes, are based upon th e m onthly averages fo r the th ree y ea r period 1 923-25 as rep resented by 100. F eb ru ary 1929 M arch 1929 A pril 1929 F eb ru ary 1928 M arch 1928 A pril 1928 112.8 9 7.4 60.6 82.0 79.7 87.5 87.0 153.8 119.5 90.9 1 16.6 97.4 113.4 113.0 146.1 99.1 82.8 103.9 9 4.8 99.6 105.0 109.0 1 00.4 67.5 88.8 88/. 93.4 91.0 152.4 115.7 82.5 106.0 100.9 109.7 110.0 131.8 102.5 84.8 94.2 95.2 104.6 1 02.0 84.7 1 09.5 104.0 86.0 103.0 101.9 229.2 122.0 169.8 88.3 146.9 111.6 234.6 156.3 196.3 158.5 2 40.7 152.3 2 32.0 142.0 186.0 123.0 220.0 121.0 193.0 115.0 148.0 86.0 137.0 106.0 2 27.0 133.0 163.0 117.0 2 00.0 119.0 202.2 134.6 154.5 130.0 194.6 130.0 84.0 68.9 77.5 87.4 81.3 75.5 74.8 89.6 80.0 89.9 89.4 86.5 98.9 81.7 102.7 68.3 100.3 89.1 87.8 83.6 90.9 98.0 9 5.4 101.4 74.3 108.1 89.9 85.8 80.0 81.8 95.1 ' 73.2 85.8 90.7 100.1 84.2 91.8 96.5 88.7 102.5 75.1 112.1 76.3 113.3 9 2.2 80.6 76.9 81.1 93.9 78.2 92.3 71.5 95.9 81.7 W H O LESA LE P R IC E S U . S. ( 2 ) F arm products________________ Foods _________________________ Hides and le ath e r products.. T extile products __________ Fuel and lighting.. M etals and M etal products.. B uilding m a te r ia ls . Chemicals and d ru g s__ H ousefurnishing goods., M iscellaneous ________ A LL COMMODITIES.. 105.4 98.1 109.0 96.1 81.3 104.4 97.5 96.1 96.6 80.4 96.7 107.1 98.1 108.3 96.1 80.6 106.4 98.8 95.6 96.5 80.C 97.5 104.9 97.7 107.9 95.5 8 0.6 106.4 97.9 94.9 9 6.7 79.2 96.8 104.5 98.7 124.1 96.6 81.2 98.3 91.0 95.8 98.4 87.3 96.4 1 03.5 98.0 124.0 96.5 80.8 98.4 91.0 95.6 98.3 86.8 96.0 107.6 99.5 126.7 96.5 80.8 9 8.4 9 2.5 95.8 97.9 84.9 97.4 BU ILDIN G PER M ITS 6 th D ISTRICT A t l a n t a ____________________________ B irm in g h a m _______________________ Jacksonville _______________________ N a sh v ille ___________________________ N ew O r l e a n s ____________________ __ O ther C ities________________________ D ISTRICT (2 0 C itie s). 56.9 44.5 50.7 121.5 181.9 33.0 61.1 114.6 50.4 51.0 80.3 154.6 46.0 70.7 70.9 223.0 56.1 87.1 38.5 42.9 73.4 72.3 149.4 106.8 45.7 86.6 41.0 70.3 116 .6 121.7 92.2 111.8 47.3 74.8 87.2 66.1 129 .4 112 .4 163 .3 53.5 50.0 74.0 63.7 72.4 1 06.7 63.5 85.0 69.4 117.7 130.2 90.1 99.8 124.5 137.5 95.8 90.4 124.3 136.8 96.8 73.8 112.9 123.0 90.7 103.3 1 14 .4 123 .5 94.3 100.0 103.3 1 13.5 80.9 78.9 107.3 90.9 124.3 107.3 123.1 101.5 97.1 89.2 107.1 96.2 1 06.6 85.9 86.8 92.4 92.7 92.1 90.8 81.1 R E T A IL TRA D E 6 th D ISTRICT (D ep a rtm en t S to re s.) A tlanta.. Birm ingham _ Chattanooga „ N ashville ___ New O rleans.. O ther Cities.— DISTRICT R E T A IL TRA D E U . S. ( 1 ) D ep artm en t S to res__ Chain S tores: G rocery _________ 5 & 10 Cent______ D r u g ____________ S h o e _____________ W earing A pparelCandy _ W H O LESA LE TRA D E 6 th D ISTRICT G roceries __________________________ D ry Goods__________________________ H a r d w a r e __________________________ F u rn itu re __________________________ E lectrical Supplies.. Shoes S tatio n ery D rugs ___ TOTAL __ CONTRACTS AW ARDED 6 th D ISTRICT COTTON CONSUM ED: U nited S ta te s_________________________ Cotton-G row ing S tates A ll O ther S ta te s______ E x p o r ts _________________ PIG IRON PRO DU CTIO N : U nited S ta te s___________ A la b a m a _______________ U N FIL L E D ORDERS— U. S. S TEE L CORPO RA TIO N ___________________ (1 ) Compiled by F ederal Reserve Board. ( 2 ) Compiled by th e B ureau of L abor S ta tistic s. Base 1926— 100.
@FedFRASER