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MONTHLY BUSINESS REVIEW Covering financial, industrial, and agricultural conditions in the Fourth Federal Reserve District Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland Vol. 8 Cleveland, Ohio, June 1, 1926 Some hesitancy has appeared in the business world in the past few weeks, the present situation being some what difficult to analyze. Operations in many lines in April compared favorably with the preceding year; e. g., production of pig iron, steel ingots, and coal increased, and that of automobiles held its own; car loadings con tinued to run ahead of 1925, and bank clearings also gained. On the other hand, signs of curtailment in the iron and steel and automobile trades have recently de veloped, the extent of which cannot be determined as yet. Building permits in April fell below a year ago, and indications are that the peak of activity in this in dustry has been passed. Depression exists in the tex tile trades. On the whole, there appears to have been some slowing-up of industry, such as took place in the spring of 1924 and 1925. Wholesale prices again declined during the past month, although slightly, the Labor Department's index stand ing at 151.1 in April, 151.5 in March, and 156.2 in April, 1925. The decline from last year has been particularly noticeable in clothing materials and farm products. Grains have fallen from 167.2 to 154.1, and livestock from 137.4 to 133.1. Owing to the publication of additional earnings state ments during the past month, a clearer picture of first quarter net earnings can now be obtained than was possible a month ago. Net earnings (after all deductions, but before dividends) of 134 representative industrial corporations in the United States were $185,805,491 in the first quarter of 1926, as compared with $143,002,155 in the same period in 1925, a gain of 29.9 per cent. In creases were reported by 92 corporations, and decreases by 42. In the Fourth District, reports from a large number of manufacturers indicate that there has been a rather general slackening of activity recently. In a number of instances, however, it is pointed out that operations are still ahead of a year ago. The bad weather is blamed by some for the let-down but others attribute it to the general tendency which has appeared about this time in the past three years. Manufacturers are prac tically unanimous in reporting that customers are show ing no inclination to buy more liberally, and in some cases they are restricting purchases even more than heretofore. No. 6 Financial Conditions Savings deposits of seventy selected banks in the larger cities of the Fourth Federal Reserve District amounted to $883,839,106 on March 31, 1926, an in crease of 6.8 per cent over a year ago and 1.5 per cent over the preceding month. Commercial failures in this District according to R. G. Dun and Company, numbered 200 in April, as compared with 214 in March and 165 in April, 1925. Liabilities aggregated $3,306,131, as compared with $2,604,395 a year ago. In the United States, there were 1,957 failures in April, 1,984 in March, and 1,939 in April, 1925. Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland Federal Reserve System (In Millions) (In Millions) May 12, May 13, Apr. 14* May 12, May 13, Apr. 14, 1926 1925 1926 1926 1926 1926 $272 $292 $279 $2,804 $2,864 $2,782 69 40 64 476 839 677 16 22 21 228 288 274 37 36 86 396 380 877 123 99 122 1,118 1,014 1,242 Gold reserves .............. Discounts ..................... Acceptances ................ U. S. Securities .......... Total bills and securities Federal Reserve notes in circulation ................ 199 201 202 1,676 1,676 1,681 Total deposits .............. 183 176 185 2,246 2,200 2,347 Reporting: Member Banks— Fourth District (In Millions) May 12, May 13, Apr. 14, May 12, May 13, Apr. 14, 1926 1925 1926 1926 1925 1926 Loans secured by stocks and bonds .............. $538 $454 $581 $5,296 $4,828 $5,256 All other ...................... 809 761 793 8,666 8,339 8,641 Total loans ................ 1,347 1,215 1,324 13,961 13,167 18,897 669 626 685 5,670 5,594 5,600 Investments .................. Demand deposits ......... 1,040 991 1,003 13,023 12,882 12,898 Time deposits ............ 807 728 786 5,659 5,562 5,505 Iron and Steel Conditions in iron and steel are further reflecting a stepdown from the high rate of production and absorp tion during the first three months of the year. The decline in new business in April after three months of unusually heavy demand has been followed by a moderately better showing in May. New tonnage for the industry as a whole since May 1 has been heavier than in the preceding month. The movement is not a uniform one, however, certain products making a better showing than others. Alto gether, the flow of new business has not been sufficient to keep production to its expanded limits. Accumulated specifications have been coming off producers’ books and with this has come a gradual contraction of opera tions. Viewed in all aspects, the process of readjustment has 2 THE MONTHLY BUSINESS been mild. At present the steel industry is functioning at approximately 80 to 85 per cent of capacity. This com pared with a high plane of 90 to 95 per cent reached in March. Steel output for April developed a loss of 4.5 per cent on a daily average against March, but left the industry producing at the indicated annual rate of 49,330,000 tons. This was equivalent to 88.09 per cent of theoretical capacity. April pig iron production as compiled by IRON TRADE REVIEW actually disclosed a gain over March, this amounting to 3.05 per cent on a daily average. The rate of output was the highest since March, 1925. In total it was 3,448,898 tons compared with 3,458,171 tons in the one day longer month of March. Furnaces in blast at the end of April showed a gain of 2 over March, rising to 237 or 63 per cent of the numerical total of the country. Apparently pig iron production reached its peak for the present in April as since that time a num ber of furnaces have been blown out. May promises to show an appreciable reduction in the amount of pig iron turned out and this appears also to be true in steel. As the market has reacted, irregularities in demand from various quarters have been emphasized. Where the Chicago district apparently passed the low point of the reaction for the present several weeks ago and has been showing material gain since, conditions at Youngstown, Pittsburgh and certain other leading cen ters are sluggish. Fresh requirements of building steel are in favorable volume. Considerable tonnage is be ing provided by the railroads in the form of new buy ing of rails for last half delivery. Cars remain the weak spot in railroad demand with an exceedinly small number now being placed. However, the total of cars ordered during the first four months of the year was 35,335 compared with 15,995 for the corresponding period last year. Further buying of steel by the automobile industry has been checked down while the market is digesting the large volume of units turned out in the January-March period and the extent of future demand from this source is problematical. As buying has been more hesitant, prices of iron and steel have yielded and concessions have appeared more freely. This is particularly true in sheets, steel bars, boiler tubes and certain other lines. Principal grades of pig iron again are 50 cents lower than a month ago. IRON TRADE REVIEW composite of fourteen leading iron and steel products, registering this softening of prices, as of May 19 had fallen to $38.14, the lowest point since October. On the corresponding date in April it was $38.47. REVIEW coal on the Great Lakes was delayed this year owing to the unseasonable weather, but the lake shipping sea son has finally gotten under way during the past few weeks. Daily average bituminous production declined season ally during April, but remained ahead of the two pre ceding years. The National Association of Purchasing Agents reports a steady decrease in industrial stocks on hand during the first quarter of 1926; on April 1, stocks were somewhat greater than on the same date in 1925, but were less than in 1924. Rubber and Tires The rubber and tire situation is still characterized by uncertainty. One adverse factor continues to be the exces sive stocks in the hands o f manufac turers, and, to a lesser extent, o f dealers. Inventories of manufacturers showed the usual rise in March, in spite of the fact that they were abnormally high on March 1, and by April 1, amounted to approximately 9,000,000 casings, as compared with 7,100,000 a year previously. Although no report later than April 1 is available, indications are that a sur plus of stocks still exists. Manufacturers in this District report conditions be low normal for the first four months of 1926. Buying of tires by the public in April and early May con tinued light, due to adverse weather and the expecta tion of further tire price cuts. It is stated, however, that there has been some seasonal increase in activity re cently, and also that sales of tires as original equipment to automobile manufacturers have been above normal this year, owing to the high rate of automobile production. Crude rubber prices on May 21 were about the same as a month ago, standing at 48 cents a pound. The British have recently taken action which will result in exports from British-owned rubber plantations being cut to 80 per cent o f production on August 1, if the av erage price for the quarter beginning May 1 falls be low 21 pence (42.53 cents). Reports from the Philippines indicate a growing in terest on the part of the natives in the possibilities o f cultivating rubber and of tapping the wild trees already growing in the interior. The Michelin Company o f France has acquired 120,000 acres in Cochin China, fo r rubber planting. The United States Department of Commerce reports that the value of rubber goods exported in March was the highest for any month since 1920, amounting to Coal Dullness continues to prevail in the union soft coal mining regions, amount ing to depression in many sections of this District. A slight temporary firm ing of prices and increase in activity was noted during the British strike, but the industry on the whole is now less active than a month ago. De mand for domestic coal, which was unusually strong in April on account of the cold weather, has quieted down during the first part of May. Movement of Automobiles Preliminary figures indicate that about 449,000 automobiles and produced in April, or slightly less than in March. Truck manufacturers in the Fourth District report a good first quarter, running well ahead of last year, but also state that April did not make such a favorable comparison. A similar condition obtains among automobile parts man ufacturers; April brought somewhat decreased activity THE M O N T H L Y BUSINESS REVIEW BSBBBSSSB9BBSSBBBSSSSSSSSB98BSSB5BSBSBBBB88B989BBS after a heavy volume of business during the first quarter* According to figures recently published by the Na tional Automobile Chamber of Commerce, 81 per cent of the motor vehicles of the world are owned in the United States. Foreign sales of American-made cars in 1925 amounted to 12 per cent of total production, and exceeded such sales in 1924 by 39 per cent. The au tomobile industry employs 3,445,642 persons. Closed cars have gained rapidly in popularity in recent years, and in 1926 constituted 56 per cent of the total output. Clothing Several manufacturers of various lines of clothing in this District agree that the late spring has adversely affected the industry, from retailer to manu facturer, owing to the curtailment of the usual spring buying on the part of the public. This is borne out by sales of women’s wear, men’s clothing, yard goods, etc., in department stores in this District, which showed substantial decreases from last year dur ing the first four months of 1926. Many customers are buying even more conservatively than heretofore, and are slow in placing orders for fall delivery. Style changes have reacted unfavorably on certain articles such as sweaters. Stocks in dealers’ hands are reported to be very low in some lines, suggesting the possibility of heavier buying for replenishment. Depression continues in the wholesale dry goods trade in this District. Sales for April were less than for the same month in any of the five preceding years, being 15 per cent below the 1921-1925 average for April. As compared with last year, April sales decreased 9.7 per cent, and sales for the first quarter decreased 7.2 par cent. Stocks on hand at the end of April were 9.9 per cent less than a year previously. Some improvement has taken place in the shoe manufacturing industry with the coming of good weather. Cincin nati firms report operations about on a par with last year. The general sit uation from the manufacturers’ standpoint appears to be reasonably satisfactory. Wholesale shoe houses in this District reported a sharp decline in sales during April as compared with a year ago, amounting to 17.5 per cent. The first third of 1926, however, ran 1.5 per cent ahead of 1925. Sales of shoes in department stores in April declined 2.1 per cent from last year. Women’s and children’s shoes decreased 0.2 per cent, and men’s and boys’, 8.9 per cent. Preliminary production figures for shoe manufac turing plants in this District during April indicate a loss of 40 per cent from March. Final figures for March show a small increase over February. Produc tion in the United States was 29,839,528 pairs in March and 25,697,729 in February. Paint A noticeable increase in activity with in the past few weeks is reported by Fourth District paint and varnish man ufacturers, most of whom attribute this gain almost entirely to seasonal fac- 3 m tors. Customers are buying purchases are still for small to cut down even further the ness in the automotive paint what spotty. more frequently, although amounts, with a tendency individual purchase. Busi lines is reported as some* Building A downward trend in building permits took place in April, according to fig ures compiled by Bradstreet’s. Valua tion of permits for 170 cities amounted to $363,074,504, a decrease of 10.4 per cent from April, 1925, as contrasted with a gain of 1.5 per cent for the first quarter. The April total was about 1 per cent less than that for March. This corre sponds with the years 1922, 1923, and 1924, in each of which the peak was reached in March. The decline from last year was general throughout the country, with the exception of the Southern division. Of the 170 cities reporting, 110 showed a loss from April, 1925. In the Fourth District, permits of 27 cities totaled $23,697,310, a loss of 25.7 per cent from a year ago and of about 24 per cent from March. Only five cities re ported gains over last year. For the first four months of 1926, permits were 18.4 per cent less than in 1925, four cities showing increases. A strike in the building trades hampered bulding operations in Cleveland dur ing April. Building Operations April 1926 (Valuation of Permits) April % Chance Jan.-Apr. 1926 from 1925 1926 Akron..................... Ashtabula.............. Barberton.............. Canton................... Cincinnati.............. Cleveland proper.. H suburbs: Cleve. Heights... East Cleveland.. Euclid................. Garfield Heights. Lakewood........... Parma................ Rocky River.... Shaker Heights.. Columbus. . 7 ? . .. .. Covington, K y . . . . Dayton.................. Erie, Pa................. Lexington, Ky....... Lima...................... Mansfield............... Newark.................. Pittsburgh, Pa....... Springfield............. T o l e d o ............... Wheeling, W. V a... Youngstown.......... J,msp & » m T r' *1,972,940 93.352 150,956 680.174 2,497,920 3,546,325 — 1.4 —55.S +56.5 — 13.7 —34.5 —47.0 $5,520,481 $5,415,546 + 1.9 218,242 311,273 —29.9 246,119 269,504 — 8.7 1,943,424 2,706,783 —28.2 7.388.740 9,547,050 21,886,250 23,595,625 - 2n 437,962 169,348 189,750 257,400 244,080 165,050 73,750 341,050 2,949,400 140,600 1,369,691 643,530 178,197 114,684 736,000 41,375 2,488,436 134,893 1,071,678 374,532 2,634,237 —63.2 —62.6 — 4.8 —32.5 — 74.1 — 38.7 — 29.7 —63.9 +10.8 — 16.8 — 7.3 — 1.2 +109.4 —39.0 +54.2 —64.1 —49.1 —47.4 — 17.4 — 9.2 +136.4 2,360,487 4,036,500 —41.5 479,595 1,734,462 — 72.3 539,615 598,420 — 9.8 717,100 1,034,750 — 30.7 1,294,755 2,774,490 —53.3 437,690 541,840* — 19.2 162,500 348,340 —53.4 1,553,180 4,032,900 —61.5 7,205,800 8,787,700 — 18.0 445,800 705,150 —36.8 2,756,292 3,722,686 —26.0 1.471.740 1,810,518 — 18.7 780,791 564,410 +38.3 589,026 + 5.3 620,244 1,161,215 1,616,630 —28.2 111,150 283,280 —60.8 12,503,834 15,019,598 — 16.7 475,678 548,680 —13.3 3,629,332 4,355,014 —16.7 663273 1,429,309 —53.6 4,536,222 2,947,995 +53.9 Total.................. 23,697,310 — 25.7 ♦Revised 81,009,549 99,327,479 — 18.4 Building Materials Some betterment in the lumber trade is reported by manufacturers in the Fourth District, but this is largely sea sonal. Profit margins are still nar row, and the price situation remains somewhat unsatisfactory. The common brick industry was hampered by unfa vorable weather during the first quarter for both man ufacture and consumption. The usual seasonal increase 4 THE MONTHLY BUSINESS in activity, however, has recently taken place, although later than ordinarily. Present operations in the larger centers are about normal. Cement output in Ohio, Western Pennsylvania, and West Virginia amounted to 1,198,000 barrels in April, as compared with 1,275,000 a year ago. Stocks at fac tories in the United States were unusually high in March, but declined slightly in April. The Aberthaw Index of industrial building costs re mained unchanged at 199 on May 1. Agriculture The wheat crop in the Fourth Dis trict is reported as some three weeks later than usual, owing to the back ward season, but the condition of the growing crop is generally satisfactory. Seeding was rather late last fall, but the winter was not severe enough to damage the crop, and practi cally all of the acreage presents a good stand. Aban donment of wheat acreage in this District ranges from 3 to 5 per cent as compared with some 25 or 30 per cent last year. Spring plowing and planting are from ten days to two weeks behind last year's program, but no marked change is noted in the acreage reported in the “ in tention to plant” reports of the Department of Agri culture, issued earlier in the year. Stocks of hay and grain on the farms are only about half as great as a year ago, due to the backward con dition of pastures. For the country at large, the U. S. Department of Agriculture reports a somewhat larger abandonment of wheat acreage than is shown in the Fourth District,—the estimate for the entire U. S. be ing 5.6 per cent. The drouth of the late fall caused severe losses in some of the Northwestern states, but this condition is not general. The Canadian Pacific Railway Company reports that the prairie provinces of Canada show a very slight de crease in acreage from last year,—less than half of one per cent,—with soil conditions favorable. This de crease is mainly in Saskatchewan, where weather condi tions were such as to prevent fall plowing. Acreage in other provinces is practically unchanged from that of last year. Tobacco As the burley tobacco crop has not been set out yet to any extent, no ac curate information on acreage is available at this time. Judged by the num ber of plant beds and by the Govern ment “ intentions to plant” report, present indications, which of course are subject to change, point to a little larger acreage than last year in Kentucky. The selling season is over, the last important transaction being the payment on the 1924 crop made by the Burley Asso ciation to its members. This amounted to $10,600,000. Leaf tobacco held by manufacturers and dealers on April 1 was reported to be 578,298,027 pounds, as compared with 562,769,273 a year ago. Stocks have increased gradually for the past several years. REVIEW Retail Trade Sales of ..seventy department stores in this District m April decreased 6.7 per cent from last year. All cities shared in the decline except Dayton, which gained 5.8 per cent. For the first four months of 1926, the District showed a loss of 1.5 per cent, the only cities to report increases being Cin cinnati, Columbus, and Dayton. Eighteen out of 52 separate departments increased in in April over the preceding year. Departments showing a gain of more than 10 per cent were domestics, 13.0; leather goods, 16.4; umbrellas, parasols, and canes, 25.8gloves, 16.0; women's and children's hosiery, 13.9; and furniture, 13.6. The losses from last year were scat tered throughout all 52 departments, but were partic ularly noticeable in yard goods and men's and women's wear. Departments showing a loss of over 10 per cent were silks and velvets, woolen dress goods, cotton dress goods, laces, men's clothing, boys' wear, women's coats, suits, and skirts, misses' ready-to-wear, furs, juniors’ and girls' ready-to-wear, waists and blouses, sweaters, corsets, muslin underwear, and toys and sport goods. Percentage changes in departments doing the largest business in April were: % change—Apr. 1926, compared with Apr. 1925 Silks and Velvets __i(j .5 Men's Clothing __ 12.7 Men's Furnishings __ 3.4 Women's Coats __ 14.1 Women's Dresses __ o.7 Misses' Ready-to-Wear __ 15.3 Millinery __ 7.2 Women's and Children's Hosiery +13.9 Shoes __ 2.1 Furniture +13.6 Draperies, Lamps, Shades — 4.6 Floor Coverings __ 1.8 House Furnishings __ g o Wholesale Trade Sales of all reporting wholesale lines in this District except drugs increased during April from the same month in 1925. The greatest decline was in shoes, with a loss of 17.6 per cent The decrease in dry goods was 9.7 per cent; hardware' 4.5 per cent; and groceries, 0.07 per cent. Drugs gained 11.7 per cent. For the first four months, drug sales gained 7.8 and shoes 1.5 per cent, the other lines show ing decreases. Sales of all lines declined in April as compared with March. Corporation Earnings The chart below shows the net earn ings (after all deductions but before dividends) of representative corpora tions in the leading industries o f the United States, by years, from 1919 to 1925 inclusive. In all, 158 of the largest railroad in dustrial, and public utility corporations in the country THE MONTHLY BUSINESS having total resources of $38,835,100,000, are represented on the chart. A study of the graph gives a good idea of the ups and downs of business during the post-war period, since net earnings furnish an excellent indicator of business conditions. It will be noted that 1925 was the high point in earnings in eight of the twelve groups, while 1921 was at the other extreme, being the low point for nine groups. Five groups showed deficits in 1921, and one— the railroads—in 1920. The public utility and tobacco companies were very little affected by the 1920-1921 depression and their earnings increased throughout the seven years with but little interruption. The motor and rubber groups ex perienced a very marked upswing in 1925, and the same was true, to a slightly less extent, of copper and oils. The equipment companies enjoyed their best year in 5 REVIEW 1923, as a result of the railroad come-back which started in 1921 and 1922. Retail stores recovered quickly from the 1921 slump, and their earnings have been steadily on the upgrade for the last four years. Steels have been somewhat erratic, declining from a high point in 1920 to their low in 1921, recovering almost to the high in 1923, and again declining somewhat in 1924. Net earnings by years for the 158 companies com bined were as follows: 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 $1,092,604,000 726,599,000 559,341,000 1,151,128,000 1,546,293,000 1,524,310,000 1,944,035,000 Corporation Earnings Yearly net earnings, (after all deductions but before dividends) 1919-1925* of 158 leading corporations in representative industries. The scale for each chart Is In millions of dollars, and is both positive and negative to show net profits or deficits 10 COPPER 12 EQUIPMENT (JV O — <N K) T i 17 O IL r~ O — rvj to Z rsi rsi cv jsj rsi r\i L i Os * RUBBER * % O — N ro ^ 1 0 ft <n i c m 15 PUBLIC UTILITY O • ^ N V^ r\l C4 c*j CJ £ J fsl * O jy M W rsi rsj — rsj rsj V U > oJ ^ ^ ^ 10 csj rsj cm jn 9 FOOD and PA C K IN G ztiL fsl £M f> i cvi 29 RAILROAD 0 S C H <5 !N M 7 TOBACCO 7 STEEL jU rs j c m JJ V C* rx rsj (V pa rvi i 10 MOTOR a> o — rsj Ln Z. r\j <>j rsj rsj fv fvj 9 RETAIL STORE «< KAIL OROEft nt O — K) JS I J S i <NJ CSI J M lA JN i 25 MISCELLANEOUS 2 } Si rsi R S cQ 6 THE MONTHLY BUSINESS REVIEW Fourth District Business Statistics (A ll figures arc for Fourth District unless otherwise specified) Bank Debits (23 cities) Savings Deposits (end of month) Ohio <43 banks) Western Pennsylvania (27 banks) T otal (70 banks) Commercial Failures— Number “ “ — Liabilities Postal Receipts— 9 cities Sales— Life Insurance— Ohio and Pa. “ — Dept. Stores— (54 firms) “ — Wholesale Grocery (49 firms) ■' — “ Dry Goods — (18 “ ) “ — “ Hardware — (16 “ ) “ — “ Drugs — (16 “ ) Building Permits, Valuation— 13 cities Production — Pig Iron, U, S. “ — Steel Ingots, U. S. " — Automobiles, U. S. Passenger Cars Trucks — Bituminous Coal, 4th Dist. — Cement: Ohio, W. Va.. Wn. Pa. “ — Petroleum: Ohio, Pa., Ky. “ — Shoes, 4th Dist. — Tires, U. S. Bitumious Coal Shipments (from Lake Eric ports) Iron Ore Receipts (at Lake Erie ports) * 4 months’ average * March 3 Jan.-M ar. 4 Figures Confidential * No change Thous. of dollars Actual Number Thous. of dollars Thous of Tons D E P A R T M E N T STORES A k r o n . . . . ......................... ..........5 Canton......................................... 5 Cincinnati................................... 7 Cleveland.................................... 6 Columbus........................... ..........7 D a y ton ............................... ......... j New Castle....................... ..........1 Pittsburgh......................... ......... 7 T o le d o ...........................................5 W heeling............................ ..........5 Youngstow n...................... ......... 3 Other C ities...................... 14 D istrict............................... 70 W E A R IN G A PP AR E L Cincinnati................................... 6 C leveland.....................................3 Other Cities................................ 9 D istrict............................... 18 F U R N IT U R E C an ton..........................................3 Cincinnati.......................... 11 Cleveland........................... 10 Columbus........................... 16 D a y ton ............................... ..........5 T o le d o ...................... .................... 6 Other Cities...................... 11 D istrict............................... 62 C H AIN STORES* Drugs— District v ............. .......... 3 Groceries— D istrict......... .......... 5 W H OLESALE G R O C E R IE S A kron............................................ 3 Cleveland........................... ..........4 Erie...................................... 4 Pittsburgh.......................... 10 T o le d o........................................... 5 Y oungstow n...................... .......... 3 Other C ities...................... 27 D istrict............................... 54 W HOLESALE D R Y GOODS 18 W HOLESALE DRUGS 16 W HOLESALE H A R D W A R E 16 W HOLESALE SHOES 7 ♦Sales per individual unit operated. casings tons —10. S — 0.1 — 3 .6 — 10.0 + 5 .8 — 23.1 — 9 .7 — 13.9 — 14.2 — 6 .3 + 0 .5 — 608,290 228,349 836,639 165 2,604 2,964 101,373 26,619 6,699 3,367 2,146 1,788 31,889 3,211 3,588 + 7.9 + 4 .4 + 6 .9 + 2 1.2 + 2 7 .0 + 6 .4 + 0.8 — 10 .1 — 0 .0 4 — 9 .7 — 4 .5 + 11.6 — 2 5.7 + 7 .4 + 1 4 .9 643,308 * 237,210* 880,517* 846 16,593 12,280 377,303 87,211 26,193 12,578 7,984 7,507 81,109 13,131 16,564 392,000 47.000 14,078 1,275 1,858* * 4,014* 1,658 865 + 2 .5 + 12 .8 + 1 8 .5 — 6.0 + 1 .0 “ — 4 .7 s + 3.4* -4 2 .7 1,417,000 172,000 78,708 3,046 5,266“ 200 3,306 3,155 102,170 23,942 6,696 3,039 2,049 1,996 23,697 3,450 4,124 4 p a irs Percentage Increase or Decrease SALES SALES April 1926, Jan.-April 1926, compared with compared with April 1925 Jan.-April 1925 — 11.5 April 1925 2,913 402,000 53,000 16,685 1,198 1,8772 Actual Number Thous. o f Tons barrels Retail and Wholesale Trade No. of Reports April 1926 3,066 656,084 238,284 894,368 Millions of dollars 1.0 — 5.3 + 6 .7 — 1.4 + 0.1 — 6.7 + 5 .4 — 13.5 — 4 .0 — 4 .4 — 6 .4 — 3.2 + 3.2 — 1.5 + 4,149a 950 change + 5 .3 an.-A pi J*KAP'1926 n.-A pr. 4 11,355=* 1,069 — 17.6 — 12.4 — 9 .9 — — + Department Stores (54)*................ if? i f Wholesale Drug. (I S )* .................... Wholesale Dry G ood . (1 7 )* ........... Wholesale Groceries (49)*............... Wholesale Hardware (1 5 )* ............. Wholesale Shoes (6) * ....................... Wholesale— All (1 02 )*..................... ........................ 90 73 69 90 116 77 56 106 + + 3.8 2 .7 — — + — — 6 .7 4 .0 4 .2 5 .9 2 .7 — 1.6 + 6 .4 — 0.07 — 9 .7 + 1 1 .7 — 4.5 — 17.5 + 4 ,1 + 0.04 — 10.2 — 4 .7 + 0 .4 — 11.8 + 2 .4 — 6.3 + 3.8 — 2.2 — + — + 7.2 7 .8 4 .7 1.5 + 10.0 + 0 .5 — 2 .9 — 2 .4 — 7 .2 — 4 .8 + 7 .8 — 1 8.2 — 1.8 + 5 .2 1,187,000 + 1 9.4 152,000 + 1 3 . 2 68,878 + 1 4 . 3 3,492 — 12 .8 5,266s 4 — 4 .*8s 3 11,353s + 0.02s 1,791 — 4 0 .3 865 86 85 12S 87 93 98 if" 112 79 t # ' J9e “ I 110 99 112 71 78 105 in ? 90 100 II 99 25 103 84 70 93 (In Thousands o f Dollars) 2. 0 + 6 .4 — 13.1 — 6 .4 — 6.2 + 7.5* + 3.9* + 6 .5 * + 2 8 .8 + 3 0 .3 Debits to Individual Accounts 1.8 2.0 598,573* 228,279* 826,852* 657 12,730 11,165 375,338 89,852 26,835 13,551 8,383 6,963 99,180 13,368 15,742 (Average Monthly Sales for the Five-Year Period 1919-1923, inclusive— 100) — 3.3 — 13.8 — 9.5 — 12.1 change + 6.8 Index Numbers of Trade in the Fourth Federal Reserve District — 0 .7 2.8 % 11,178 in f 11,935 1^26 A kron....................... Butler, Pa............... C anton..................... Cincinnati............... Cleveland................. Colum bus................ Connellsville, P a ... D a yton ..................... Erie, Pa................... Greensburg, Pa-----Homestead, P a .. . . Lexington, K y -----L im a......................... L orain....................... Oil City. Pa........... Pittsburgh, Pa....... Springfield ............. Steubenville............ T o le d o ...................... W arren..................... Wheeling, W. Va.. Youngstow n............ Zanesville................. T o ta l..................... 83,453 10,374 46,603 333,541 644,209 148,040 4,753 77,052 32,497 18,843 4,700 21,061 15,927 5,449 12,673 *61,256 22,690 9,856 187,676 10,810 42,181 61,824 11.762 % Cf an* C h ifc r + 3.5 — 4 .5 + 1.2 + 7.1 — 0 .01 + 1 4 .7 + 7.5 + 1 3 .1 + 0 .2 + 0.01 — 3.2 + 2 0 .3 -1 3 .8 — 14.3 — 3 .6 + 2 .8 + 1 4 .4 — 1 3.0 - 2 .9 — 14.3 + 0 .6 + 5 .8 - 0 .5 2,667,250 + 2 .8 < a s fi> /o incr. or 1^ t° deer. 1926 over 1925 fl-ifc 416 712 ic a nan 495 79 MS’ ? ! ? 220*829 2 1 1 *osn 1,714 173 1 552*17? 3 255 513 2 698 266 21 996 382,868 322*1! 152 046 93*944 SQ’ rvM 19 17? 118*006 tltt’I o c 70 902 25 654 tn ’Juc? 57 ' ggo 4,192089 4 ifH if 108 352 ‘ 9! n o l 48 223 9S0972 S7? ’ « ! S8 968 219*588 299 301 in o’ U ? 13,231,433 12,389,577 + 1 7 .0 + 2 .5 + 4 .2 + 1 0 .4 + 9 .9 + 14.5 + 7 .7 + 1 7 .2 + 5 .3 + 5 .5 — 1 .9 — 0 .4 — 1 6 .4 — 1 4 .7 — 6 .4 + 1 .7 + 1 5 .2 T 42 + 9 .1 + + — + 0 .3 9 .1 0 .3 4 .7 + 6.8 THE MONTHLY BUSINESS REVIEW Summary of National Business Conditions PCXCENT i 00| ------ PRE T E CN. - — — -|200 — WHOLE5ALEPRICES i I I )»** 1924 i f s r of U. 8. Bureau of Labor Statistics (1913— 110, biM idtpted by Bureau). U t n t flcure—April* 111. of IS basic eommodltiee, adjusted for variations <191$— 100). Latest fm n -A p r il, 122. i i RESERVE 6ANKCacpff V S /K v ^ - s s ’: L / l s y / n L i Monthly aTeraces of daily firures for 12 Federal ■ motto Banks. Latest Imres are it for 21 days in May. Index of aalee of IS» stores <l>lt—1M). April* adjasted—12t; lasted—III. (By the Federal Reserve Board) There was a slight decline in the activity of industry and trade in April, and a further reduction in the general price level. Commercial demand for bank credit continued large and the volume of security loans, after a rapid decline since the turn of the year, remained at a constant level. Production Production in basic industries, according to the Federal Reserve Board’s index, decreased 1 per cent in April, slight increase in production of lumber and pig iron being more than offset by declines in output in other industries. Particularly large recessions were shown in the production of steel ingots and in textile mill activity. Automobile production, not included in the index, continued in large volume. Factory employment and pay rolls declined slight ly in April, particularly in the food, tobacco, textile, and boot and shoe in dustries. The value of building contracts awarded during April was smaller than in March and practically the same as in April of last year. Awards for the first two weeks in May, however, showed increases as compared with the same weeks in 1926. Reports by the department of agriculture indicate that up to the first of May 68 per cent of spring plowing and 56 per cent of sowing and planting was completed, compared with about 83 per cent and 66 per cent last year. On the basis of the condition of winter wheat on May 1, a yield of 549,000,000 bushels is forecast compared with a final yield of 398,000,000 bushels in 1925. Trade The volume of wholesale trade in April was seasonally smaller than in March for all lines except meats. Compared with a year ago, sales of gro ceries, meats and drugs were larger in April, while sales of dry goods, shoes and hardware were smaller. Department store sales increased less than usual and were somewhat smaller than a year ago. Sales of mail order houses were slightly smaller than in March, but continued to be larger than in the cor responding month of 1925. There was some decrease in the stocks of mer chandise held by wholesale firms during the month, and inventories of depart ment stores showed less than the usual seasonal increase, though they were larger than a year ago. Weekly freight car loadings decreased in the early part of April but later increased, and the volume of shipments for the month of April as a whole and for the first two weeks in May was larger than in the corresponding periods of any previous year. Prices Wholesale commodity prices, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ index, declined slightly from March to April. Increases in the farm products and foods groups, which had been declining for several months, were more than offset by decreases in other groups. The greatest declines were in the prices of clothing materials. In the first three weeks of May prices of wheat, cattle, sheep, cotton goods, pig iron, bricks, and rubber declined, while those of hogs, raw silk, and crude petroleum increased. Bank Credit Commercial demand for bank credit at member banks in leading cities continued in large volume between the middle of April and the middle of May. Liquidation of security loans, which had been rapid since the beginning of the year, did not continue after the middle of April and the volume of these loans remained fairly constant at a level about $450,000,000 below the peak at the end of 1925. There was some addition to the banks investments and the total of their loans and investments was about $1,000,000,000 larger than at the same period of last year. Withdrawals of funds from New York were reflected in an increase be tween the middle of April and the middle of May in borrowings at most of the other reserve banks declined. Open market holdings of the reserve banks remained fairly constant during the period and there was little change in the total volume of reserve bank credit outstanding. Money rates in April reached the lowest level for a year, but in May conditions in the money market became somewhat firmer. Index of National Business Conditions The base (100) for all the charts except the first is the monthly average for the 5 years 1919-1923 inclusive. For the first chart, the base is the monthly average for the three years 1921-1923. VOLUME OF CHECK PAYMENTS ------ P .E R jfS >00 - ____ ISC 0 0 i— !-------- 4A _ » r v — - . . . . i< . — Soar ■ in a r • H 9. * 1 Wh o l e s a l e - A »& 2 * tr ad e '(NT. toe 200 1 *0 IS O A J*S\ A ~ 4 J\ io 1 00 so o 1921 1922 1923 0 •9 8 a 1924 1926 EXPORTS OF MERCHANDISE fflL . ................. Ma ■•u*. > <•C N T PER C 200 200 IS O 140 „ 100 1 A 100 •v / so .0 P 19 IRON / V, r 1921 y * 1922 I9 2 3 PRODUCTION A A jV V /v V »9 2 » 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. «. 1922 19 2 1 1924. 192* <9 2 * LATEST FIGURES Member Bank Credit: Loans, April—121. Investments, April—1S7. 7. Bnilding Permits, April—221. Member Bank Deposits; Demand, April— 119. Time, April—187. 8. Car Loadings, April—1IS. Cheek Payments, except New York, March—134. 9. Exports of Merchandise, April—81. Commercial Failures, April—152. 10. Bituminoni Coal Production, April—iftQ. Retail Trade, April—118. 11* Iron Production. April—188. Wholesale Trade, March—96. 12. Automobile Production, April—209. I / 1A ^ A i vc 4 so 192 5 1926 0
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