Full text of Economic Review (Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco) : June 17, 1922

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A g r ic u lt u r a l

B u sin ess C o n d it io n s

and

IN T H E T W E L F T H F E D E R A L R E S E R V E D IS T R IC T

M o n th ly R e p o rt to th e F ed eral R eserv e B oa rd
by

JOHN PERRIN, Chairman of the Board and Federal Reserve Agent
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
Vol. VI

San Francisco, California, June 17, 1922

E R E was a marked increase in trading
T Hreported
activity in this district during May and
sales at both retail and whole­
sale were greater in value than in the same
month last year. In the retail trade, sales of
32 representative department stores and mail
order houses were 15.5 per cent greater in
value in May, 1922, than in May,
T h e M onth
1921, this being the first month
of the present year during which
the value of such sales has been greater than
in the corresponding month a year ago. In the
wholesale trade the various lines (except auto­
mobile tires and shoes) report increases of 1
to 51 per cent in the dollar value of their sales
during May, 1922, compared with May, 1921,
by far the most favorable showing made this
year. These increases evidence the greater
purchasing power of the community grow ing
out of increased activity in industry, an im­
proved employment situation, and advancing
prices for farm products.
Since January of this year there has been a
steady increase in the production of lumber in
this district and in May, reporting lumber mills
operated at 100 per cent of normal capacity for
the first time in two years. Orders received
exceeded the output, and unfilled orders on
hand at the close of the month were nearly
twice as large as one year ago. Several of the
principal copper mines of the district which re­
cently resumed operations are now producing
ore, and one more large company announced
the opening of its mine during the month.
During the present year each month’s daily
production of petroleum in California has ex­
ceeded that of the previous month, the month
of May setting a production record of 357,376
barrels per day. Stored stocks of petroleum in
that state, at 42,041,461 barrels, stand at the
highest figure reached in the past five years.

Reported increases in industrial activity are
confirmed by increased sales of electric power
for industrial purposes. The most noteworthy
improvement is reported in the Intermountain
district where, largely in response to the grow ­
ing needs of the mining industry, sales of elec­
tric power during April increased approxi­
mately 30 per cent over the previous month.
The crops of the district made favorable
progress during M ay and normal yields are
expected in most sections. Prices already made
on some varieties of deciduous fruit are uni­
form ly higher than those paid to the grower
a year ago. Shearing of w ool has been com ­
pleted except in some parts of the northern
states and about 90 per cent of the district clip
(72,250,000 pounds) has already been sold.
New clip wool has recently been purchased for
35 to 45 cents per pound compared with prices
of 15 to 17 cents paid at this time last year.
The banking situation in the district changed
little during the month. Rediscounts with the
Federal Reserve Bank, both by city and coun­
try member banks were reduced, the total on
June 14th being $1,255,000, or 2.9 per cent, less
than on May 10th. Loans and discounts of re­
porting member banks remained practically
stationary and on June 7th were $853,560,000
compared with $853,231,000 on May 3rd. Inter­
est rates on commercial paper (bought through
brokers) and on customers' paper in four of
the leading financial centers of the district de­
clined one-quarter to one-half of 1 per cent
during the month.
Building activity continues at record figures,
the number of permits issued during May hav­
ing been exceeded only in one month, October,
1921. Permits issued were 32.1 per cent greater
in number and 59.1 per cent greater in value
than in May, 1921. Debits to individual ac­
counts in the district were 3.1 per cent greater

Those desiring this report sent them regularly will receive it without charge upon application




No. 6

Agricultural and Business Conditions

94

in the four weeks ending May 31, 1922, than
in the same four weeks in 1921, indicating an
increase in the volume of business transacted.
Business failures were less in number in May
than in April, but liabilities were greater.
Compared with May, 1921, the number of fail­
ures increased 14.5 per cent and the amount of
liabilities 27.8 per cent. Savings deposits in
the principal cities of the district have in­
creased in each of the past seven months ex­
cept April, and on May 31, 1922, were 4.4 per
cent greater than on M ay 31, 1921.
In this district the condition of winter wheat
declined during May, according to United
States Department of Agriculture reports, and
on June 1, the forthcom ing 1922 crop
Grains was estimated at 71,862,000 bushels,
as compared with a May 1st forecast
of 72,877,000 bushels, and a final estimated
yield of 80,102,000 bushels in 1921. Since June
1st, drying winds are reported to have affected
the condition of grow ing grains unfavorably
in sections of Oregon and W ashington. Plant­
ing of spring wheat has been delayed by un­
favorable weather, but was finally completed
late in May. The total acreage of spring wheat
this season is reported to be slightly less than
in 1921, being estimated at 2,233,000 acres com ­
pared with 2,253,000 acres sown the previous
year. Based upon the acreage and condition

W eekly range in prices at Chicago for N o. 2 red wheat (per bushel)
and at San Francisco for milling wheat (per cental) during
1921-1922 cereal year

(A )

,

given, a yield of 40,261,000 bushels of spring
wheat is estimated compared with 41,943,000
bushels harvested during 1921.
Under favorable weather conditions, barley
fields in California matured rapidly, and the
1922 barley harvest is now in progress. A
yield of approximately 36,840,000 bushels is in
prospect. The 1921 barley crop in California
was estimated at 29,700,000 bushels.
Total 1922 season plantings, and compara­
tive estimated yields of wheat, barley and oats
in the district fo llo w :
Acreage
1922

Estimated Yield
1922

(acres)

(bushels)

All Wheat . . . 5,812,000
Barley ........... 1,479,000
Oats ..............
889,000

Actual Yield
1921
(b u sh els)

112,261,000
46,478,000
33,695,000

122,045,000
39,148.000
34,343,000

Comparative estimates of condition and yield
of winter wheat, and of acreage, condition and
yield of spring wheat, by states, are shown in
table “ A .”
Movement of surplus stocks of 1921 crop
wheat from the Pacific Coast continued in fair
volume during May. M ovement of 1921 crop
barley from California practically ceased dur­
ing May, stocks of barley remaining in that
state on June 1st being estimated at 942,120
centals as compared with stocks of 5,059,340
centals held on December 1, 1921, and with
2,423,520 centals held on June 1, 1921. (One
cental of barley equals approximately two
bushels.)
W heat prices on the Pacific Coast declined
during May, in sympathy with the abrupt de­
cline of wheat prices in eastern markets (see
accompanying chart). Price fluctuations of
wheat in the large marketing centers are re­
ported to have been accentuated this season
by the close adjustment of world supply and
demand, and the absence of a stabilizing wheat
surplus in European granaries. No. 1 Hard
W heat is now (June 16th) quoted at $1.14 to

(

C o n d i t i o n 9 A c r e a g e a n d E s t im a t e d Y ie ld o f W h e a t —
------------------------------ W i n t e r W h e a t ------------------------------- x

Condition
(P e r cen t of norm al)

June,
1922

Arizona ........ .
California . . . .
Idaho ............
Nevada ......... ,
Oregon .........
Utah .............. .
Washington . .
12th D istrict..
United States.
*000 Omitted.




92
90
85
93
90
91
79

M ay,
1922

92
90
88
91
93
85

June, 10-year
1921 average

75
80
98
96
99
103
96

78
93
94
93
90
89

8Ì.9 83.5 77.9 81.5

Estimated Yield*
1921
1922

------------------------------------------S p r i n g

W h e a t-

Condition

Acreage Sown*
1922
1921

(b u sh els)

(b ushels)

(acres)

(acres)

1,330
13,347
8,712
48
18,533
2,639
27,253
71,862
607,333

840
8,355
10,279
61
20,125
2,985
37,457
80,102
584,795

679
22
249
136
1,147
2,233
18,639

700
18
262
126
1,147
2,253
19,706

(P e r cent of norm al)

June,
1922

91

93
85
92
83

June, 10-year
1921 average

98
96
95
99
91

95
94
93
94
92

90.7 93.4 92.8

Estimated Yield*
1922
1921
(bush els)

(b u sh els)

15,633
593
3,170
3,253
17,612
40,261
247,175

16,800
432
4,192
3,314
17,205
41,943
207,861

Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco

95

$1.20 per bushel in the San Francisco market,
as compared with prices of $1.41 to $1.44 per
bushel on M ay 16th. The price of barley de­
clined 10 cents per cental during the past
month and is now (June 16th) quoted at $1.30
to $1.35 per cental, in the San Francisco mar­
ket.
Flour output of 65 reporting mills in this
district was at one-third of capacity during
May, 1922, the figures showing little
Milling change as compared with the pre­
vious month or the same month a
year ago (see table “ B ” ).
Sales of flour during M ay are reported to
have been small in volume as buyers are pur­
chasing only to meet current requirements, a
situation which is expected to continue until
new crop wheat is available and wheat and
flour prices are more nearly in adjustment.
Millers in the Pacific Northwest report that
prices of desirable grades of milling wheat re­
main at high levels, although wheat prices in
general declined sharply during May.
The trend of milling activity in this district,
as indicated by the reports of 16 large milling
companies, is shown in the accompanying
chart. Total stocks of flour on hand June 1st
are shown to be smaller than on May 1st, in­
dicating that millers are producing less flour
than they are selling in order to reduce sur­
plus stocks, which have been slowly accumu­
lating since the first of the year.

(B) MillingIdaho




No. Mills Reporting
May, 1922
April, 1922

On June 15, 1922, stocks of 1921 crop Cali­
fornia rice held in growers' hands were esti­
mated at 1,000,000 bags of 100 pounds each
(figures quoted refer to paddy or rough,
Rice uncleaned rice). The total crop last year
amounted to 2,646,000 bags (132,300
tons). A ccording to growers’ estimates, the
larger part of the rice sold during the 19211922 season has been moved at prices ranging
from $2.52 to $2.70 per 100 pounds, the average
return to the growers being $2.52^2 per 100
pounds of paddy rice of all grades. A t the
present time (June 15th) growers are reported
to be receiving prices equivalent to $2.75 per
100 pounds for No. 1 grade paddy rice, com ­
pared with $2.00 per 100 pounds a year ago.
Nearly two-thirds of the 62 per cent of the
1921 California rice crop which has already
been sold has been marketed in Japan. Be­
tween July 1, 1921, and June 1, 1922, approxi­
mately 56,000 tons (the equivalent of 1,120,000
bags of 100 pounds each) of California rice was
exported to Japan, an amount equal to 40 per
cent of the 1921 crop. The Japanese rice crop
in 1921 was reported to be 1,494,237 tons (29,884,740 bags) below that of the previous year
(9,974,437 tons or 199,488,740 bags) and a
shortage of rice resulted, causing Japan to be­
come a heavy importer of this foodstuff. It is
estimated that approximately 450,000 tons
(9,000,000 bags) of foreign rice will be needed
in Japan this year in addition to the supply
obtained from Korea.
W eather conditions have been favorable this
spring in California for planting and starting
rice, although the crop is from two to three
weeks later than usual. It is estimated that
approximately 140,000 acres of land are now
planted, as compared with 120,000 acres in
1921.
W eather conditions during May have been
favorable throughout the district for decidu­
ous fruits, and large yields of the principal
varieties are expected. The apple
Deciduous crop in the Pacific Northwest, alFruits
though large, will be smaller than
the record crop of 1921. In Cali­
fornia the 1922 crop probably will be larger
Per Gent Mill Capacity
in Operation
April,
May,
1922
1921

OutputMay, 1922
April, 1922
(barrels)
(barrels)

May,
1922

10
5
22
28

10
3
22
26

178,847
27,600
68,620
245,733

171,360
13,566
88,157
221,863

43.5
49.1
18.3
35.6

44
47
28
29

65

61

520,800

494,946

33.7

34

Agricultural and Business Conditions

96

than the 1921 crop. For the entire district the
1922 estimate is for a yield of 39,882,000
bushels (approximately one bushel in a stand­
ard size b o x ), as compared with 46,450,000
bushels harvested in 1921. The past month has
brought improvement in the condition of
peaches, the present estimate for this year's
crop in California being 16,800,000 bushels
(420,000 tons), which compares with the 1921
crop of 12,848,000 bushels (320,000 tons). De­
partment of Agriculture estimates of condition
and yield of apple and peach crops in this dis­
trict, by states, for 1921 and 1922 are presented
in table “ C.”
A larger than normal yield of berries, cher­
ries and pears is in prospect in the Pacific
Northwest, but reliable details are lacking. In
California the condition of the principal fruit
crops other than apples and peaches is shown
in the follow ing table prepared from figures
furnished by the United States Department of
Agriculture.
r— '—Condition (per cent of normal]
June 1
1922

55
Apricots ......
Cherries ....... . 70
Pears ........... , . 80
78
Plums ..........
Prunes ......... , . 76

May 1
1922

June 1
1921

52
90
92

45
63
61
70
69

95

June 1
(average)

68
76
79
73
78

Commercial factors estimate that total ship­
ments of fresh deciduous fruits from California
during the 1922 season will be from 50,000 to
55,000 carloads, compared with 42,000 carloads
shipped in 1921. These shipments must com ­
pete with increased yields in Eastern states
of most varieties of fruits. The Eastern crop
last year was abnormally small.
Representative California fruit canners ex­
press indecision as to the extent of their oper­
ation during this season. T hey have not yet
announced their opening prices on 1922 pack
canned fruits. The follow ing prices are being
paid to growers of apricots, cherries, peaches
and pears, compared with those paid in 1921
and 1920:

Prices to Growers for Canning Fruits
1922
1921
1920
(per ton)
(per ton)
(per ton)

Apricots (Santa Clara) $100.00
Cherries (Black) ........ 200.00
Peaches (No. 1 Cling).
60.00
Pears (No. 1 Bartlett)
71.25

$ 60.00
120.00
35.00
61.75

$100.00
240.00
110.00
100.00

A decline in the condition of the California
prune crop has reduced commercial estimates
of the 1922 yield from 150,000 to 105,000 tons,
compared with 100,000 tons in 1921. Prelimi­
nary estimates of the prune crop in the Pacific
Northwest indicate a yield of between 25,000
and 35,000 tons, compared with 14,000 tons in
1921. In May, independent California packers
of dried fruit named basis opening prices on
1922 crop prunes, later revising them upward
due to unfavorable reports on the new crop.
Comparative basis opening prices for 1922 and
1921, and revised prices for 1922 crop prunes
are as follow s:
Revised
Opening Prices
1922 Crop
(per pound)

Size

30/40.......... 1154-11#*
40/50.......... 95450/60.......... 8^4- 8y2t

Opening Prices
1922 Crop
1921 Crop
(per pound)
(per pound)

10J4-10^

8X7 - 7%4

9^4-9^

7&-7Mt

6 -6 ^

It is estimated that the 1922 dried apricot
tonnage will be small. Opening prices for
Santa Clara “ Blenheim” dried apricots have
already been advanced approximately 4 cents
per pound. The grade known as extra choice
San Joaquin dried apricots, 1922 crop, opened
at 23^4 cents per pound, and is now quoted at
2 4 cents, compared with 18% cents in 1921.
Shipments of oranges from California dur­
ing May, 1922, totaled 3,151 cars, compared
with 6,174 cars shipped during May, 1921.
Valencia oranges (which comprised
Citrus the bulk of shipments during M ay) are
Fruits reported this season to be only fair in
quality and small in size. Members of
the California Fruit Growers Exchange re­
ceived an average price (f. o. b. California) of
$5.09 per box for oranges during May, 1922, as

(C) C o n d i t i o n a n d E s t i m a t e d Y i e l d o f A p p l e s a n d P e a c h e s —
■A pp les------------------------------------- \

Condition
June 1, June 1, 10-year
1922
1921 average

California .. .8 3
Idaho ......... 79
Oregon ...... 80
Utah .......... , . 93
Washington . 85
Total ....
*000 Omitted.




53
83
90
80
93

79
.,

83
##

90

Estimated Yield*
1922
(bushels)

Actual Yield*
1921
(bushels)

7,221
3,800
5,100
1,007
22,754

6,500
4,280
5,571
1,037
29,062

39,882

46,450

,------------------------------------- P e a c h e s

Condition
June 1, June 1, 10-year
1922
1921 average

98
53
82
85

77

73
49
50
53
59

82
.,

65
64
72

Estimated
Yield*
(bushels)

Actual
Yield*
(bushels)

16,800
208
400
1,034
1,171

12,848
150
190
763
772

19,613

14,723

Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco

97

compared with $4.49 per box in April, 1922,
and $2.75 per box in May, 1921. Exchange
growers received an average price of $4.68 per
box for lemons during May, 1922, as compared
with $3.11 per box in May, 1921.
It is reported that little apparent permanent
damage was done to orange groves by the kill­
ing frosts in January, although this year’s crop
will be curtailed as a result of the close pruning
of fruit bearing w ood made necessary in many
orchards. Many lemon groves were severely
injured, however, and the California Fruit
Growers Exchange now estimates that ap­
proximately 2,000 acres of lemon trees will be
pulled out this year or grafted to oranges.
Orange and lemon crops now bloom ing and
setting were reported by the United States
Department of Agriculture to be in the follow ­
ing condition (as of June 1st):

increase in the district over a period of years
is approximately 80 to 85 per cent but this
year’s increase is reported to be approximately
70 per cent.
Receipts of sheep during May, 1922, at eight
principal markets of the district (403,390)
show a large seasonal increase over receipts
during April, and were three per cent larger
than during May, 1921 (see table “ D ” and
accompanying chart). Receipts of cattle show
a decrease during May, as compared with
April, but were larger than during May one
year ago. Receipts of hogs continue consider­
ably larger than they were a year ago.

Condition (percent of normal)
May 1
June 1
10-year
1922
1921
average

June 1
1922

Oranges ........... 75
Lemons ............. 63

78
66

92
90

92
90

Favorable weather has prevailed over the
range territory during the past month and
a definite improvement in the condition of
livestock is reported from all secLivestock tions of the district, except the
southeastern part of Arizona,
where a drouth is menacing feed and water
supplies. Final reports on the spring lamb crop
of the district show more serious losses, and
a smaller total increase, than earlier estimates
indicated. The normal average percentage of

Receipts of Livestock at Eight of the Principal Markets of the District
1921-1922. (Los Angeles, Ogden, Portland, Salt Lake City, San
Francisco, Seattle, Spokane and Tacoma included)

( D ) R e c e ip t s o f L iv e s t o c k —
Calves
May,
May,
1921
1922

Cattle
May,
1921

May,
1922

Hogs

Sheep

May,
1922

May,
1921

May,
1922

May,
1921

17,241
3,915
11,188
Salt Lake C ity.. 3,309
14,155
4,564
1,897
2,196

14,827
842
8,934
1,999
16,531
3,894
4,639
1,798

8,529
157
949
163
4,459
79
257
18

6,293
86
730
97
5,035
142
183
16

36,179
13,897
17,555
6,174
31,613
11,824
2,850
5,650

25,059
9,554
11,766
3,683
27,449
12,276
1,640
6,415

43,290
176,738
23,317
57,533
90,238
5,176
4,161
2,937

41,265
129,794
34,796
64,688
95,952
5,802
14,239
5,267

Twelf th District.. 58,465

53,464

14,611

12,582

125,742

97,842

403,390

391,803

Ogden

Horses
and Mules
May,
May.
1922
1921

65

164

107

1Ì4

75
98
••

29
98
••

345

405

*Receipts in the Los Angeles and San Francisco Bay districts represent a m ajority of the animals slaughtered in California.

(E ) R a n g e i n L iv e s t o c k P r i c e s —
Highest and Lowest Average Top Prices Per Hundredweight Received at Above Markets During May.
Week of

Fat Steers

May 8 ................. $7.00— 8.50
May IS................. 7.2S— 9.00
May 22................. 7.25— 9.00
May 29................. 7.00— 9.00




Cows

Calves

$4.50— 7.00
S.50— 7.2S
5.00— 7.25
5.00—7.25

$6.50— 11.00
6.50— 11.00
6.50— 11.00
6.50— 11.00

Hogs

$10.10— 12.00
10.25— 12.00
10.50— 12.00
10.50— 12.50

Lambs

$8.50— 14.50
8.50— 14.00
8.50— 13.10
8.50—13.10

Agricultural and Business Conditions

98

In California marketing centers the trend of
cattle prices was slightly downward during
M ay (a normal tendency in this section at this
time of the year). California cattle buyers, as
well as buyers from the Pacific Northwest and
Intermountain states, are now seeking fat cat­
tle in California. Only a small supply is re­
ported to be available. Other states of the
district report that few fat cattle will be avail­
able for market before August or September.
The weekly range of top prices for livestock
at the principal markets of the district during
M ay is presented in table “ E ” (see preceding
page).
Reports from w ool growers indicate that
early season estimates of the 1922 w ool clip
(72,250,000 pounds) remain approximately cor­
rect, although the clip in several secW o o l tions is reported as slightly below ex­
pectations. Sheep shearing progressed
rapidly during May, and by the end of the
month approximately 90 per cent of the total
clip had been collected.
W o o l buyers have been active during this
season and grow ers have freely disposed of
their holdings. W o o l is being sold as fast as
sheared and sacked, and over 90 per cent of the
total w ool clip of this district is reported to
have been disposed of by outright sale or con­
tract by the first of June.
Further improvement in the statistical posi­
tion of w ool in domestic and foreign marketing
centers, has been accompanied by advancing
prices for raw wools. Growers are reported to
be selling (on June 1st) average clips of fine
grade, uncleaned w ools at prices ranging from
35 to 40 cents per pound, as compared with
prices of from 30 to 35 cents per pound secured
one month ago. A year ago, comparable grades
of w ool sold at 15 and 17 cents per pound.
More recently, some choice lots of w ool are
reported to have sold at 45 cents per pound.
Growers in some sections are holding their re­
maining w ool for this price or better.
D uring M ay there was an increase in the
production of butter throughout the district
and in California marketing centers large
amounts were stored at advancing
Dairy
prices. A total of 1,066,969 pounds
Products of butter moved into cold storage
in the four principal markets of the
district during the month, increasing holdings
at these markets to 1,805,178 pounds on June
1, 1922, compared with holdings of 1,717,322
pounds on the same date a year ago (see table
“ F ” ).
Butter prices in San Francisco advanced
during May, fresh creamery butter (93 score)




which was selling on May 15th at 3 6 ^ cents
a pound being quoted at 3 9 cents on June
15th. A year ago this grade of butter was sell­
ing at 3 4 }i cents. The explanation given for
this advance is the continued demand for but­
ter from other sections, including the Pacific
Northwest, where a scarcity of butter exists
because of the lateness of the spring season,
which is the season of heavy production.
The average price to producers for raw milk
declined 1 cent per 100 pounds in the Mountain

Seasonal Movement of Holdings of Cold Storage Butter at Four
Principal Markets of the District, 1920-1922

Section during May, 1922 (see table “ G” ), and
declined 18 cents per 100 pounds in the Pacific
Section during the same period. Compared
with May, 1921, prices have declined $0.40 and
$0.66 per 100 pounds in the Mountain and
Pacific sections, respectively.
The trend of prices was upward during May,
continuing, although at a slower pace, the
movement in progress during the present year.
The rapid advance in the prices of cotPrices ton and w ool and the steady upward
movement of the prices of cattle (on
the Chicago market) were the outstanding
(F ) M o v e m e n t o f S to ck s o f C o ld S to ra g e
B u tte r—
May, 1922
Net
Increase
(pounds)

Los Angeles.. . 324,885
Portland ....... . 53,187
San Francisco . 648,535
. 40,362

May, 1921
Net
Increase
(pounds)

June 1,
1922
Holdings
(pounds)

June 1,
1921
Holdings
(pounds)

326,123
685,686
98,161
55,572
583,673 1,022,230
200,814
41,690

498,178
108,772
865,700
244,672

1,066,969 1,208,771 1,805,178 1,717,322
( G ) P r i c e s R e c e i v e d b y M i l k P r o d u c e r s *—
Section!

May,
1922
Range

Mountain (7 M k ts .)....$1.29-2.80
Pacific (9 M k ts.).......... 1.45-3.80
U. S. (104 M kts.)........ 1.14-4.65

May,
1922
Average

April,
1922
Average

May,
1921
Average

$1.92
2.16
2.08

$1.93
2.34
2.16

$2.32
2.82
2.52

*A11 prices per hundredweight for milk testing 3.5 per cent butter
fat.
fM oun tain Section includes Idaho, U tah, Nevada and Arizona.
Pacific Section includes W ashington, Oregon and California.

99

Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
features of the month. The principal price de­
cline was in wheat which sold for July delivery
at $1.18 per bushel on June 2nd, compared with
a price of $1.39^4 on May 5th for May delivery.
One year ago wheat for July delivery sold at
$1.33 to $1.40 per bushel.
Deciduous fruit prices are definitely higher
than one year ago. Trading in fresh, canned
and dried fruit proceeded on a limited scale,
the market being restricted by the small stocks
available for sale and overshadowed by the im­
pending new crop. New crop prices already
named for choice dried apricots (23 cents per
pound f. o. b. California) are 2 to 3 cents above
those of one year ago and 1922 crop prunes
are being quoted at prices one cent a pound
higher than the 1921 opening prices. In the
citrus fruit market oranges sold at advanced
prices during May and lemons held the gains
of recent months.
Rapid advances in the price of lead and
slight increases in the selling price of copper
were noted in the metal market during the

month. Lumber prices fluctuated from week
to week but are generally at the same levels as
at the close of April, and well above prices of
one year ago.
Changes in the prices of some of the prin­
cipal products of the district are shown in
table “ H .”
Canned salmon has been steadily m oving
into consumption during the present season
(June 30, 1921, to June 30, 1922) and for the
first time since 1919 stocks on the
Salm on Pacific Coast are reported to be ap­
proximately normal. The 1921 pack
of salmon by American canners was estimated
at 3,617,396 cases and the carryover from the
1920 season at 2,160,000 cases (chiefly of the
Pink and Chum varieties) making the total
available for the 1921 season 5,777,396 cases.
On June 1, 1922, total stocks of canned salmon
remaining on the Pacific Coast (exclusive of
British Columbia) were estimated at 1,045,000
cases. Stocks of salmon held by jobbers and
retailers in the large marketing centers of the

( H ) C o m m o d it y P r ic e s —
Commodity

Twenty Basic Commodities (F. R. B. of N. Y .) 1913=100.
Wholesale Prices (U. S. Bureau of Labor*) 1913=100___
Cost of Living (National Industrial Conference Board)
July, 1914=100 .........................................................................
Cattle (Native B e e f).. .W eekly average price at Chicago..
Sheep ............................. W eekly average price at Chicago..
Lambs ........................... W eekly average price at C hicago..
Hogs .............................. W eekly average price at C hicago..
W h e a t ..................Chicago contract prices for July and May
Wheat .........................................................
Barley .................Shipping Barley F. O. B. San Francisco.
Rice ..................... California Fancy Japan at San Francisco
C o tto n ................. Middling Uplands— W eekly range of spot
quotations at New Orleans.....................
W o o l ................... Average of 98 quotations at B oston .........
Sugar .................. Beet granulated F. O. B. San Francisco.
A p p le s ................. N. W . Winesaps at New Y o rk ..................
Oranges ............ Valencias, special brands, Los A ngeles..
Lemons .............. Loose pack at Los A ngeles........................
Dried A pples-----Choice in 50-lb. boxes F. O. B. California
Dried A pricots... Choice in 25-lb. boxes F. O. B. California
Prunes ................ Size 40-50 in 25-lb. boxes F. O. B. Calif..
R a isin s................ Loose Muscatel in 25-lb. boxes F. O. B.
California ...................................................
Canned A pricots.Choice 2 ^ s F. O. B. California...............
Canned Peaches.. Cling choice, 2 ^ s F. O. B. California.. . .
Canned Pears___ Bartlett, Standard 2 ^ s, F. O. B. C alif....
Butter ................. 93 score at San Francisco............................
E g g s .................... Extras— San Francisco.................................
Copper ............... Electrolytic; New Y ork S p ot....................
Lead .................... New Y ork S pot..............................................
Petroleum ..........California 35° and above............................
Douglas F ir.........2x4, 16-ft. No. 1 S1S1E F. O. B. Seattle..
Douglas F ir.........12x12 Timbers F. O. B. Seattle...................
^Revised figures,
t July wheat. $M ay wheat.
§1922 Crop prices.




Unit

100
100
100
100

lbs.
lbs.
lbs.
lbs.

bu.
cental
cental
lb.
lb.
lb.
box
box
box
lb.
lb.
lb.
lb.
doz.
doz.
doz.
lb.
doz.
lb.
lb.
bbl.
M feet
M feet

June 2. 1922

One Month Ago

One Year Ago

138.1
148.0

133.1
143.0

127.0
145.0

154.9
$8.40
7.10
12.20
10.45

154.8
$8.25
9.00
14.85
10.25

165.7
$8.15
4.60
11.90
7.90

1.1934-1.18t 1.42^6-1.39 ¿4 ± 1.40^-1.33^
1.35-1.40
1.45-1.55
1.30-1.35
$4.85
$4.90
$4.20
20.50*
71.44*
5.90*
2.25-5.00
7.50-8.00
2.50-2.75
.16V2

♦23§
.12?4-.12JS§
.1 5 «
3.00
2.60
3.00
.38y2
27Ÿ2
.13H-.14

5.65-6.00«*
2.45
14.50
17.00

18.12*
58.98*
5.60*
2.25-5.00
7.25-7.50
2.50-3.00
• 16^2
.26
.14-.14JÎ
•1SVs
3.00
2.60
3.00
.35
.27^

A3-A3Vs

5.25-5.50*
2.45
14.50
17.00

11.75*
40.92*
6.55*
3.50-4.00
1.25-1.75
.09^-.09M
.20-21
•243/s

2.25
2.70
2.65
.35
.28*4

-12J4
4.70*
2.70
12.50
16.00

Agricultural and Business Conditions

100

country are thought to be light as they have
bought sparingly and to meet current needs
only.

Total World Pack of Canned Salmon by Districts 1905—1921
inclusive, and canners’ preparations for 1922 Pack

The trend of prices during the past year has
been downward, as shown by the follow ing
comparison of spot prices for the principal
varieties of salmon on June 1, 1922, with open­
ing prices for these varieties in 1921:

Variety

Spot Price
June 1, 1922

Opening
Price, 1921

(per d o z. N o. 1

(per d oz. N o. 1

tall cans)

tall cans)

Alaska Reds ....................... $2.25
Pinks ....................................
1.05
C h u m s ........................................... 95

$2.35
1.10
1.00

Alaska Red salmon sold within the above
range of prices throughout the year. Prices
of the Pink and Chum varieties dropped as low
as 70 cents and 60 cents per dozen cans before
the active demand for canned salmon during
January and February, 1922, reduced the large
surplus holdings. Subsequently all salmon
prices advanced, the price of the Pink and
Chum varieties rising to a level 5 cents above
1921 opening prices. In the late spring prices
declined as the demand for canned salmon
diminished. During the past two months (nor­
mally a period of activity in the canned salmon
market) there have been some price conces­
sions on cheaper grades.
The intent of canners to put up a larger pack
of canned salmon this year than in 1921 is in­
dicated in the preparations for the 1922 pack,
as shown in the follow ing table:
Pack Preparations
1922

(cases)

Actual Pack
1921

(cases)

Alaska .............................. 4,994,000
160,000
Puget S o u n d ...................
Columbia R i v e r ..............
450,000
Other U. S. W aters........
117,000

2,604,973
653,490
323,241
35,692

T o t a l .............. 5,721,000

3,617,396




Private factors estimate that the actual 1922
pack of canned salmon in American waters
probably will be between 4,000,000 and 4,500,000 cases (from 70 to 80 per cent of pack prep­
arations) as compared with an actual pack of
3,617,396 cases during the 1921 season.
For the first time in tw o years reporting
lumber mills in Oregon, W ashington and
Idaho operated at 100 per cent of normal
capacity during May, compared with
Lumber 95 per cent in April and 75 per cent
in January. In California the output
of some white and sugar pine mills was slightly
curtailed during May, due to strike conditions,
but these mills are now reported to be operat­
ing at normal capacity.
Based on reports of 191 mills in the four
lumber associations in this district, production
of lumber in May, 1922, was 543,283,000 feet
compared with 388,109,000 feet in May, 1921,
an increase of 155,174,000 feet, or 39.9 per cent.
The volume of sales also increased during
May, 1922, orders received by reporting mills
totaling 607,159,000 feet compared with 424,725.000 feet in April, 1922, and 354,132,000 feet
in May, 1921, an increase of 42 per cent over
the previous month and 71.4 per cent over
May, 1921. Shipments made during May, 1922,
amounted to 546,977,000 feet compared with
424.725.000 feet shipped in April, 1922, and
350.231.000 feet shipped in May, 1921. In the
three associations for which figures are avail­
able unfilled orders at the close of May totaled
481.490.000 feet compared with 426,940,000 feet
on April 30, 1922, and 251,234,000 feet on M ay
31, 1921.
There was little change in the domestic
market for lumber during the past month.
Although there was a slight decrease in the
demand for lumber from California, a corre­
sponding increase in the demand for lumber to
be used in railroad work was reported. Many
mills that in the immediate past have supplied
only intercoastal and foreign trade, received
orders from the agricultural sections of the
Middle W est during May, and that large lum­
ber consuming territory again appears to be
actively in the market. Approxim ately 75 per
cent of the present domestic demand for lum­
ber is from retail yards and is thought to be
largely for use in general building and con­
struction work. The improvement which has
been discernible in the lumber market during
the past few months is reflected in the sharp
upward movement of prices of many items, the
advance beginning during the month of April.
Prices (f. o. b. mills) of representative items
of Douglas fir, California redwood and sugar

Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco

101

pine as of June 3, 1922, April 1, 1922, and June
4, 1921, are shown in the follow ing table:
Douglas fir (f. o. b. mills) June 3,
No. 2 grade and better 1922
F. G. finish 1x8-10, 6 to (per M)
16 feet ................................ $51.00
No. 2 grade and better F. G.
ceiling f£x4, 10 to 16 feet 31.00
No. 2 grade and better drop
siding 1x6, 10 to 16 fe e t .. 35.00
No. 1 common timber 12x32
17.00
and u n d e r .........................
Redwood (f. o. b. mills)
clears 1x5, 14 to 20 fe e t .. 80.00
Rustic 1x4, 14 to 20 fe e t ... 80.00
Sugar Pine (f. o. b. mills)
No. 1 and 2 clear, 4x4----- 160.00
No. 1 shop, 5 and 6x4........ 68.25

April 1,
1922
(per M)

June 4,
1921
(per M)

$51.00

$51.00

28.00

21.00

30.00

23.00

15.00

16.00

80.00
80.00

85.00
90.00

155.00
64.80

150.00
55.00

In the foreign market, Australia, Chile,
China, Peru and“ Japan were the largest pur­
chasers of Pacific Coast lumber during the
month of May.
L o g production in the district during May
was estimated to be 90 per cent of the normal
capacity based on working days of eight hours.
W eather conditions have improved and only
a few camps at the higher elevations are now
prevented from operating by snow and ground
conditions. L og production in the inland moun­
tains is increasing rapidly while on the coast
operators are gradually amassing stocks of
logs sufficient to insure sawmills a continuous
cut while at the same time permitting the usual
two weeks shut down of logging camps begin-

Lumber Production, Orders Received, and Shipments in Twelfth
Federal Reserve District as Reported by Four Lumber
Associations, 1921-1922

(I) L u m b e r —

Average No. of

Orders*
*In thousands of feet.




W est C oast
L u m b e r m e n ’«
A s s o c ia tio n

M ay,
1922

128
350,683
359,153
400,512
285,030

M ay,
1921

114
233,753
255,325
260,049
180,837

W e s te rn P in e
M a n u fa c tu re rs ’
A s s o c ia tio n

M ay,
1922

43
117,075
121,281
137,825
140,700

M ay,
1921

49
94,198
64,495
59,275
37,000

ning about July 4th. The present supply of
logs is reported to be 15 per cent greater than
in April, 1922, and 25 per cent greater than in
May, 1921.
Comparative figures of the cut, orders, ship­
ments and unfilled orders of the four associa­
tions in this district during May, 1922, and
May, 1921, are shown in table “ I.”
Reports received from eight of the 17 prin­
cipal copper mines in this district show that
they produced 22,764,000 pounds of copper in
April, 1922, compared with 19,288,000
M ining pounds in March, 1922, and 14,747,000
pounds in April, 1921. It was in
April, 1921, that the policy of drastic curtail­
ment of output was put into effect by nearly all
of the principal copper mines in order to re­
duce large surplus stocks, and it is only re­
cently that this policy has been abandoned or
modified. In addition to mines which have pre­
viously renewed operations (commented upon
in our April report) recent reports from the
copper mining regions of this district announce
the resumption of production by the United
Verde Copper Company in its Arizona mines
and the resumption of smelting by the Inter­
national Smelting Company’s plant at Tooele,
Utah.
The advance in the price of refined copper
which began about the middle of April was
accelerated in May, the price of electrolytic
copper for prompt delivery at New Y ork City
being now (June 12th) 14 cents per pound,
compared with 12% cents during the first part
of April when the lowest price of this year was
recorded. Only once before since November,
1920, has copper sold for as high as 14 cents,
namely for a few days in December, 1921. The
recent strength of the market is attributed to
the heavy sales which have been consum­
mated, those for M ay being estimated at 200,000,000 pounds, the largest of any month since
March, 1920. Production of copper in the
United States during April was 59 per cent of
normal, compared with 46 per cent of normal
during March.

C a lif o r n ia W h ite
a n d S u g a r P in e
M a n u fa c tu re rs *
A s s o c ia tio n

M ay,
1922

M ay,
1921

8
31,943
31,342
27,002

7
24,230
12,619
14,025

C a lif o r n ia
Redw ood
A s s o c ia tio n

M ay,
1922

12
43,582
35,201
41,820
55,760

M ay,
1921

12
35,928
17,792
20,783
33,487

TO TAL

M ay,
1922

191
543,283
546,977
607,159
481,490

M ay,
1921

182
388,109
350,231
354,132
251,324

Agricultural and Business Conditions

102

Reports received from 15 mines in the dis­
trict engaged in the production of gold, silver
and lead show a small decrease in the actual
output of metal in April, 1922, compared with
March, 1922, and an increase in the production
of silver and lead and a decrease in output of
gold compared with April a year ago.
Comparative figures of the output of metal
of 15 reporting mines in April, 1922, March,
1922, and April, 1921, fo llo w :
April
1922

Gold (oz.) ........
33,774
Silver (oz.) . . . .
676,849
Lead (lbs.) . . . . 5,758,095

March
1922

April
1921

34,189
718,822
5,879,550

46,329
499,956
5,542,870

The 10 per cent reduction in interstate rail­
road freight rates, effective July 1st, insofar as
it reduces the cost of mining supplies and
lowers the charges for shipping ore and metal
is expected to help the mining industry. In
many sections the cost of producing metal is
still proportionately much higher than in pre­
war years.
Average prices for copper, silver, lead and
zinc (shown below ) reflect the improvement
which has taken place in the metal market
during the last three months. The most note­
worthy advance has been in the price of lead,
the M ay average being 5.4 cents per pound
compared with 5.1 cents per pound in April
and 4.7 cents per pound in March.

Copper (lb.)
(N. Y. E lectrolytic)..........
Lead (lb.) (N ew Y o r k )........
Silver (oz. troy)
(N ew Y ork F o re ig n )........
Zinc (lb.) (St. L o u is )...........

ceeded consumption in each of the last 18
months and, as a result, stored stocks on M ay
31st totaled 42,041,461 barrels, the highest fig­
ure reached during the past five years. Sixtyfour new wells with an initial daily production
of 45,685 barrels were completed during April
and four wells abandoned, a net increase of 60
producing wells during the month.
In the accompanying tabulation, furnished
by the Standard Oil Company of California,
the proven area of California oil fields is shown
as 97,255 acres. These figures represent only
the actually proven area and make no allow­
ance for the territory that is generally regarded
as proven but which has not been fully drilled.
Statistics on oil field operations as furnished
by the Standard Oil Company of California are
shown in table “ J-”
Proven Acreage
Jan. 1, 1922

Kern R i v e r ...............................
M cKittrick ................................
Midway-Sunset .......................
Los Hills-Belridge .................
C o a lin g a .....................................
Lompoc-Santa M a r ia ..............
Ventura-Newhall ....................
Los Angeles-Salt Lake...........
Whittier-Fullerton .................
Summerland .............................
Miscellaneous ..........................

Total Barrels
per acre to
Jan. 1,1922

8,045
1,685
42,709
5,077
15,297
8,409
5,068
2,700
7,835
230
200

28,378
37,175
10,365
9.021
16,823
12,556
5,697
20,810
29,726
10,394
5,450

97,255

15,051

Average Price
M ay
April
M ay
1922
1922
1921
(cents)
(cents)
(cents)

13.361
5.420

12.823
5.115

12.992
4.952

71.154
5.110

66.575
4.906

59.810
4.848

A new high record for production of petro­
leum in California was established in May,
1922, when the average daily output totaled
357,376 barrels, compared with
Petroleum 341,077 barrels in April, 1922, and
337,101 barrels in May, 1921. Con­
sumption also increased slightly during the
month, May average daily shipments of 284,910 barrels being 4,055 barrels greater than
average daily shipments in April. W ith excep­
tion of September and October, 1921, when the
oil workers’ strike was in progress in the San
Joaquin V alley oil fields, production has ex­
(J ) P e t r o l e u m -----

M ay, 1922

April, 1922

Production (daily average)...............................................
357,376 bbls.
Shipments (daily average)..............................................
284,910 bbls.
Stored Stocks (end of m on th ).........................................42,041,461 bbls.
New Wells O pened............................................................
64
With Daily P roduction................................................
45,685 bbls.
4
Wells Abandoned .............................................................

341,077 bbls.
280,965 bbls.
39,795,057 bbls.
49
17,330 bbls.
9




M ay, 1921

337,101 bbls.
250,070 bbls.
28,054,710 bbls.
59
21,130 bbls.
6

103

Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
A ctivity in the principal industries of the
district as reflected in sales of electric power
for industrial purposes, approached normal
levels, during April. In the district
Electric as a whole the mining industry conEnergy
sumed 28.4 per cent more power in
April, 1922, than in April, 1921. Elec­
tric power sales to oil producers in California
and to the lumber camps and mills of the
Pacific Northwest were respectively 2 per cent
and 36.8 per cent larger in April, 1922, than in
April a year ago.
The usual seasonal increase in sales to agri­
cultural consumers did not occur in April, 1922,
and sales to this industry were 49.2 per cent
less than in April, 1921, a decline accounted for
by the lateness of the spring rains this year
which lessened the need for power to pump
water for irrigation purposes. Largely as a re­
sult of this decline in agricultural sales, total
sales of industrial power in the district were
1.3 per cent less in April, 1922, than in April a
year ago.
The follow ing table presents some of the re­
cent significant developments in sales of elec­
tric power for industrial purposes by districts
and by industries:
Percentage Increase or Decrease ( —) in Sales oí Electric Power to
Industries during April, 1922, as compared with
AprU.1921.

Agriculture

California ................ — 50.6
Pacific N orthw est...— 39.4
Intermountain ........— 47.1
Twelfth D is t r ic t ....— 49.2

Tota)

Mining

—

3.2
23.8
185.9
28.4

Manu* Industrial
facturing
Sales

4.8 — 4.6
— 2.8
1.0
— 11.8
14.8
1.1 — 1.3

Statistics on production and sales of electric
energy during April, as reported by 17 prin­
cipal power companies in the district, are pre­
sented in table “ K .”
A ccording to reports received from labor

authorities in the seven states of this district,
the employment situation was further im­
proved during May as compared with
Labor April. Compared with May, 1921,
there has been a marked increase in
employment in practically all sections and in­
dustries. Present unemployment is confined
almost entirely to unskilled labor which is
rapidly being absorbed in seasonal occupa­
tions. Continued unusual building activity has
caused a shortage of skilled laborers in certain
trades in some sections of the district. Parttime employment which was resorted to a year
ago in many industrial plants and trades in
some of the cities of this district has now been
largely discontinued.
Increased activity in agriculture, railroad
construction, building, lumbering and fishing
has increased the demand for both skilled and
unskilled laborers in all sections of the Pacific
Northwest. Salmon fishing and canning began
during the month of May furnishing employ­
ment for a large number of men. Reports from
establishments in the principal lumbering sec­
tions of Oregon, W ashington and Idaho show
that 77,400 men were on the payrolls June 1,
1922, compared with 54,000 men on June 1,
1921, an increase of 23,400, or 43 per cent.
Little forced unemployment was reported in
California during May, large construction
projects and the farms of the state employing
practically all of the available labor. The de­
mand for laborers in the mining and petroleum
industries increased during May but employ­
ment in these industries is still below normal.
An employment survey recently made by the
Bureau of Labor Statistics of the State of Cali­
fornia shows that 546 manufacturing concerns
in California employed 110,351 workers at the
close of May, 1922, compared with 108,880

(K) Electric Energy—
(1) Production—
California (8 companies
reporting) .....................
Pacific Northwest (4
companies reporting).
Intermountain States (5
companies reporting).

Plant Capacity K. W .
April,
April,
March,
1922
1922
1921

April,
1922

Peakload R. W .
March,
April,
1922
1921

Plant Output K. W . H.
April,
March,
April,
1922
1922
1921

973,925

973,925

857,595

600,394*

651,636*

577,918*

320,995

311,905

305,495

101,631*

137,680*

97,734*

218,497

212,997

203,937

99,118*

85,962*

100,473*

Tw elfth District (17
companies rep ortin g).1,513,417

1,498,827

1,367,027

801,143*

875,278*

776,125*

412,604,986

(2) Sales—

Number of Industrial Consumers
April,
March,
April,
1921
1922
1922

Connected Industrial Load H . P.
April,
March,
April,
1922
1922
1921

278,542,418

273,414,999

285,940,114

88,056,893

96,053,368

86,573,250

48,131,266

42,150,236

43,250,032

411,598,603

413,552,856

Industrial Sales K. W . H .
April,
March,
April,
1922
1922
1921

California ..........................
Pacific Northwest ..........
Intermountain States . .

49,366
8,9 20
9,769

48,552
8,703
9,688

45,216
8,773
8,877

1,295,259* 1,373,568* 1,210,804*
122,740*
116,529*
121,628*
270,391*
290,337*
252,100*

148,952,741
54,328,034
27,181,932

147,973,420
57,232,546
20,443,312

156,219,178
53,755,435
23,666,455

Tw elfth District ..............

68,055

66,943

62,866

1,688,390* 1,785,533* 1,579,433*

230,462,707

225,649,278

233,641,068

*N ot reported by all companies. Figures so marked are comparable under respective headings and dates, but not strictly accurate for
comparison with other portions o f the table.




104

Agricultural and Business Conditions

on April 30, 1922, and 104,227 on March 31,
1922.
Employment in the Intermountain states
(Arizona, Idaho, Nevada and Utah) during
May, increased compared with April, due prin­
cipally to increased mining activity and the
need for laborers in the agricultural sections.
Unemployment resulting from the coal miners’
strike in Utah was reduced by the absorption
of large numbers o f coal miners in the copper
mining industry which is again active after a
period of depression lasting more than a year.
A shortage o f experienced miners was reported
in some districts.
In Portland and Seattle employment in man­
ufacturing industries increased during May
compared with April but in Los Angeles and
San Francisco a decrease occurred according
to figures com piled by the United States Em­
ployment Service of the Department of Labor,
from the reports of firms em ploying 501 men
or more. Figures showing the actual and the
percentage increase or decrease in employment
in the manufacturing industries of these cities
are given in the follow ing ta ble:
Numerical Increase
or decrease (—)
in employment
during May, 1922
compared with
April, 1922

Los A ngeles............. — 197
Portland ..................
25
San Francisco......... — 222
Seattle .....................
4

dollar value in May, 1922, than in May, 1921,
according to reports received from 32 repre­
sentative department stores and mail
Retail order houses in six cities of this disTrade trict. This is the first month during
the present year in which sales have
been greater in value than in the same month
a year ago, the declines in previous months
ranging from 1.3 per cent in April to 9.1 per
cent in February. O f the 32 reporting stores,
MILLIONS

MI LLI ONS

17

17

192

0s

•••mm192 1
- 0 —1 9 2 2

\LE S
•1

1

a

li

h

li
ft

II

fi
■fr...

It

192 0 5 ALE S

.JT A
Æ 0

/<

L

V

Percentage Increase
or decrease ( —)
in employment
during May, 1922
compared with
April, 1922

%

i

V s

\

it
1
1

V

V I 921 SAI .ES

7
192 2 S M E S

—

.7
.3
— 3.0
.1

I

Sales at retail were 15.5 per cent greater in

2

3

4-

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

Net Sales of 22 Department Stores in Twelfth Federal Reserve District
(In M illio n s o f D ollars)

( L ) R e t a il T ra d e A c t iv it y —

>F RETAIL TRADE DURING MAY, 1922
Federal Reserve District No. 12
(32 Stores Reporting)

No. of reporting firm s.................................
Net sales (percentage increase or de­
crease) May, 1922, compared with
May, 1921 .................................................
May, 1922, compared with April, 1922
Period Jan. 1 to May 31, 1922, com ­
pared with the same period in 1921..
Stocks: (percentage increase or de­
crease) May, 1922, compared with
May, 1921 .................................................
May, 1922, compared with April, 1922
Percentage of average stocks on hand
at close of each month since Jan. 1,
1922, to average monthly sales dur­
ing same period .....................................
Percentage outstanding orders at
close of May, 1922, to total pur­
chases during year 1921.......................




Los
Angeles

Oakland

Salt Lake
City

San
Francisco

Seattle

Spokane

District

6

4

4

8

5

3

32

8.1

15.5
19.5

24.0
13.7

3.1
5.5

— 3.3
23.7

19.5
40.8

8 .6

3.4

4.9

— 12.5

— 14.2

.3

— 3.8

— 11.9

9.4

—

—

1.2

1.1

3.7

— 9.9

.1

2.2
— 3.4

4.8
— 8.7

— 7.5
— .4

— 3.5

— 9.0
— 6.3

433.9

602.8

542.9

450.4

435.1

694.2

462.7

1 0.0

11.4

6.9

9.1

7.9

1.8

Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco

105

A statistical record of the movement of
stocks on hand, outstanding orders, and the
rate of turnover of stocks for reporting stores
is given in the following table:

20 showed an increase in the value of sales in
May, 1922, compared with May, 1921. Com­
pared with April, 1922, May sales increased in
all reporting cities, the greatest gain (40.8 per
cent) being in San Francisco where many
large “ sales” were held.
The amount of the average sale (cash, charge
and C. O. D .) reported by 12 stores was $2.21
in May, 1922, compared with $2.27 in April,
1922, and $2.18 in May, 1921. The number of
individual sales transactions in May, 1922, was
19.9 per cent greater than in April, 1922, and
15.7 per cent greater than in May, 1921. Fol­
lowing is a statement of the average sale (cash,
charge and C. O. D .) in Los Angeles, Salt
Lake City, San Francisco and Seattle.
May
1922

April
1922

Los Angeles ...................... $2.25
Salt Lake C ity................... 1.87
San F r a n c is c o ................... 2.64
Seattle ................................. 1.69
D is tr ic t................................$2.21

1

$2.62
1.87
2.44
1.75

$2.33
2.18
3.06
1.69

$2.27

13

January,
February,
March,
April,
May,

May
1921

$2.18

Collections were characterized by reporting
firms aS follows .
Excellent
Good
Fair
Poor
Number of Firm s..............

Percentage
Percentage
increase or
Outstanding
decrease ( —)
Orders at
in the value of
Stocks at end of end of month to
month compared total purchases
during
with same month
Year 1921
of year previous

6

0

1922
1922 ..
1922 ..
1922 ..
1922 ..

3.4
— 4.3
—2.4
— 4.3
— 9.0

Annual Rate
of Turnover
of Stocks
indicated at
end of month

2.4
2.3
2.3
2.4
2.6

8.9
10.3
9.5
7.2
9.1

Table “ L ” gives in detail statistics in regard
to sales, stocks and outstanding orders as fur­
nished by 32 department stores and mail order
houses in this district (see opposite page).
Following a period of unusual dullness in
April, trade at wholesale improved rapidly in
May and the value of sales during the month
compared favorably with sales in
Wholesale May, 1921. Detailed reports reTrade
ceived from 192 representative
firms in 10 lines of business show
increases in the value of sales in eight of these
lines varying from 1 per cent in stationery to
51.4 per cent in agricultural implements. In-

(M) Wholesale Trade—
(la)

Percentage of increase or decrease (—) in net sales during May, 1922, compared with May, 1921
Agricultural

Number of re­ Implements
porting firms... 23
Los A n g e le s... . 322.1
29.4
Portland ..........
Salt Lake City. . 37.3
San Francisco.. . 81.5
Seattle .............
Spokane .......... —28.0
T a c o m a ............
District ............
51.4
(lb)

Auto Tires

Drugs

Dry Goods

Furniture

Groceries

20
9.1
4.1
.08
.6
7.4

17
5.1
6.4
60.3
9.1
— 14.8
13.6

8

14
— 2.8

16
— 5.2
6.8

7.8
31.4

3.9

*5.7

— 7.3

ii.o

20.7
10.5

1.4
3.8

32
1.1
9.9
9.9
— 2.1
41.2
— 9.5
19.3
3.4

.,
,.

1.6

Hardware

22
40.1
21.9
9.2
9.8
35.3
8.8
— 3.0
23.7

Shoes

14
15.8
13.4
— 12.9
19.2

— 2.5

Stationery

26
.6
1.0
10.4
— 6.4
10.8
— 1.0
i.o

Percentage of increase or decrease (—) in net sales from January 1, to May 31, 1922,
compared with the same period last year.

Agricultural

Number of re- ImPlements
porting firms.. 23
Los A n g e le s .... 89.5
Portland ............— 30.8
Salt Lake C ity ..— 29.1
San F rancisco...— .4
S e a ttle .......................
Spokane ............—45.2
T a c o m a .....................
District ..............— 11.0




Auto
Supplies

Auto
Supplies

Auto Tires

20
— .9
— 9.4
— 17.1
— 14.8
— 10.4
..
..
— 7.7

17
33.7
6.1
4.8
— 5.3
23.8
— 5.3
..
— 8.8

Drugs

8
..
..
..
— 2.4
..
..
..
5.3

Dry Goods

Furniture

14
— 11.3
..
..
— 2.0
36.3
..
23.4
3.8

16
— 12.1
9.3
..
2.5
..
..
23.1
3.0

Groceries

32
2.2
— 7.8
— 6.1
— 7.8
10.3
— 14.8
4.1
— 5.5

Hardware

22
27.9
— 4.5
— 15.3
— 7.6
14.7
— 16.0
— 6.4
4.6

Shoes

Stationery

14
6.0
— 7.9
..
— 8.8
3.0
..

26
— 2.1
— 9.2
— 5.8
— 19.2
8.8
— 10.0

— 5.1

— 8.5

Agricultural and Business Conditions

106

been reported as fo llo w s:

asmuch as general prices at wholesale have
been practically stationary during the past
year (the wholesale price index number of the
United States Department of Labor increased
2 per cent from May, 1921, to May, 1922) it is
probable that the physical volume as well as
the value of trade at wholesale was greater in
May, 1922, than in May, 1921.
MAY

No. of FirmstReporting Collections as
Poor
Excel'
Good
Fair
¡ellent

January ..........................
February ...................
M a r c h .............................
April ...........................
M a y .............................

4
1
3
5
7

Percentage of Past Due Accounts on June 1, 1922,Tto Total Amount
Due from Customers on the Same Date

AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS

Number of
Firms

A U T O M O B IL E S U P P L IE S

Agricultural Implements........
Automobile T ires.....................

A U T O M O B IL E T I R E S
DRUGS

5
6

1922

1921

40.9
27.1

30.5
25.5

Percentage of Collections during Month (May) to Total Amount
Due from Customers (outstanding) on First of that Month

DRY G O O D S

Number of
Firms

F U R N IT U R E

Automobile S u p p lie s....
G R O C E R IE S

Dry G ood s.......................
F u rn itu re.........................
Hardware ........................

H ARDW ARE
SH O ES
S T A T IO N E R Y

Stationery .......................
60

80

100

120

14-0

The average net increase or decrease (— ) in
the value of sales o f all reporting firms in each
line Of business Was as follow s :
Five Months
ending May 31.
May, 1922
1922 compared
with same
compared with
April
period in
May
1922
1921
1921

Agricultural Implements..
51.4
3.8
8.2
5.7
Automotive Supplies.........
8.5
Automobile T ires............... — 7.3
5.0
11.0
Drugs ..................................
6.8
10.5
Dry G o o d s .........................
3.8
5.7
Furniture ............................
3.4
13.6
Groceries ............................
14.3
23.7
Hardware ...........................
.4
Shoes ................................... — 2.5
1.0 — 2.7
S ta tion ery...........................

,

18
5
10
11
17
9
14

— 11.0
— 7.7
— 8.8
5.3
3.8
3.0
— 5.5
4.6
— 5.1
— 8.5

Collections during the past five months have

Arizona ..................... .................. 25,582
California .................. .................. 672,354*
Idaho ......................... .................. 25,800
7,192
N e v a d a ....................... ..................
Oregon ...................... .................. 93,360
Utah ........................... .................. 25,403
Washington .............. .................. 154,310
1,004,001

1921

60.9
72.8
43.0
47.8
45.8
34.2
60.2

Groceries .........................

Number of
Firms

1922

1921

24

120.8

108.1

Statements of increases or decreases (— ) in
the value of sales of 192 reporting firms during
May, 1922, compared with May, 1921, and the
five months of 1922 compared with the same
period in 1921 are shown in table “ M ” (see
preceding page).
The total number of m otor vehicle registra­
tions (exclusive of m otorcycles) in the states
of this district during the first quarter of 1922
was approximately 1,004,001,
A utom obile
compared with 863,480 vehicles
Registrations registered in the first quarter
of 1921, an increase of 16.2 per
cent. Segregated according to states, the 1922
statement reveals an increased number of reg­

( N ) R e g i s t r a t i o n s o f M o t o r V e h ic le s , P a s s e n g e r a n d C o m m e r c i a l —
January 1, 1922 to
April 1, 1922

1922

58.5
77.6
40.9
50.7
48.0
36.2
62.9

Percentage of Outstandings June 1, 1922, to May, 1922, Sales

160

Dollar Value of Sales of Representative Wholesale Houses and General
Wholesale Prices in May, 1922, Compared with May, 1921




31
36
26
17
7

One hundred and nineteen firms reported
their collections on June 1, 1922, and June 1,
1921, as follow s:

PRICES 1921=100%= M A Y 1921SALES

U.S.BUREAUOF LABORINDEX
NO. WHOLESALE PRICES

^February 1st to April 30th.

80
78
92
95
87

40
28
30
37
50

Percentage increase or

January 1, 1921 to
April 1, 1921

1921

1920

25,734
552,676*
30,979
8,000
89,217
36,297
120,577

35,049
691,344
51,264
10,820
118,615
47,485
194,983

34,559
583,623
50,861
10,459
103,790
42,571
173,934

1,149,560

999,797

863,480

decrease (—) first
quarter compared with
same period in 1921

—

.59
21.6
— 16.7
— 10.1
4.6
— 30.0
27.9
16.2

107

Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
istrations in California, Oregon and W ashing­
t o n , and a smaller number of registrations in
the Intermountain states (Arizona, Idaho,
Nevada and Utah). Comparative figures for
the states of the district are given in table “ N ”
(see opposite page).
Building permits issued in 20 principal cities
of this district during May numbered 11,266
with an estimated valuation of $28,271,238
compared with 8,525 permits issued
Building in May, 1921, with a valuation of
Activity
$17,763,732, an increase of 32.1 per
cent in number and 59.1 per cent in
value. In comparison with April, 1922, the
figures for May, 1922, represent an increase of
331, or 3.2 per cent in number and a decrease
of $2,096,126, or 6.8 per cent in value. The
number of permits issued during May was the

second highest ever recorded in this district
and indicates that the urgent demand for new
structures evident throughout the present year
has not abated. Comparing May, 1922, with
the same month a year ago, there were in­
creases in the value of building permits
granted in 16 of the 20 reporting cities.
The accompanying chart shows the number,
total valuation and average value of building
permits issued in this district since January,
1921. Comparative figures of the number and
value of building permits issued in 20 reporting
cities during May, 1922, April, 1922, and May,
1921, are shown in table “ O .”
Business failures in the Twelfth Federal Re­
serve District during May, 1922, were approxi­
mately the same in number and liabilities as in
April, 1922, but were greater in both
Business number and liabilities than in May,
Failures
1921. The total liabilities of 173
failures in May of this year were
$2,200,338 compared with liabilities of $1,908,432 for 179 failures in April. Compared with

Building! Permits Issued in 20 Principal Cities, Twelfth Federal
Reserve District, 1921-1922

(O) Building Permits—
No.

May, 1922
Value

No.

April, 1922
Value

B e rk e le y ..........
Boise ...............
Fresno ............
L ong B ea ch ...

..............
192
..............
103
..............
192
..............
301
Los Angeles... .............. 4,024
Oakland .......... .............
813
Ogden ............. .............
76
Pasadena ........ .............
297
Phoenix .......... .............
59
Portland ........ .............. 1,404
23
Reno ............... ..............
Sacramento .. . ..............
347
Salt Lake City. .............. 195
382
San D i e g o ....... ..............
786
San Francisco.,..............
78
San Jose............ ..............
Seattle............ .............. 990
Spokane ......... .............. 480
Stockton .......... ..............
147
377
Tacoma ........... ..............

$

652,400
61,705
993,500
1,502,551
9,327,504
2,243,745
139,660
851,924
119,810
2,916,755
69,190
507,210
538,105
628,883
4,377,066
166,640
1,643,030
395,817
357,810
777,933

173
98
235
350
3,983
772
34
284
43
1,366
20
305
138
395
766
85
973
408
119
388

District ............ ..............11,266

$28,271,238

10,935




$

No.

May, 1921
Value

Per Cent Increase
or Decrease (—)
in Value May,
1922 compared
with May, 1921

430,200
73,347
641,474
2,475,597
12,959,686
1,850,160
97,360
961,396
91,590
1,865,970
66,500
532,303
330,270
821,446
3,993,720
341,310
1,632,175
359,190
551,955
291,715

132
95
166
291
2,624
565
73
249
83
1,268
19
219
197
294
500
43
1,044
257
71
335

$

284,621
77,595
312,435
1,428,865
7,433,760
1,033,323
155,720
633,102
196,755
1,454,320
24,750
560,695
409,220
416,298
1,097,151
46,254
1,566,005
174,380
84,647
373,836

129.2
— 20.4
217.9
5.1
25.4
117.1
— 10.3
34.5
— 39.1
100.5
179.5
— 9.5
31.4
51.0
298.9
260.2
4.9
126.9
322.7
108.0

$30,367,364

8,525

$17,763,732

59.1

Agricultural and Business Conditions

108

May, 1921, the number of failures increased by
22, or 14.5 per cent, and the amount of liabili­
ties increased $478,861, or 27.8 per cent. The
average liabilities of business failures in May,
1922, were $12,718 compared with $10,661 in
April, 1922, and $11,400 in May, 1921.
R. G. Dun & Company's comparative figures
of the number and liabilities of business fail­
ures in the states of this district during May,
1922, and April, 1922, follow :
No.

May, 1922
Liabilities

No.

Arizona ................... 2 $ 37,200
California ...............88
1,230,002
Idaho ...................... 6
28,243
N e v a d a ...........
1
3,000
Oregon ................... 25
406,164
7
59,608
Utah .......................
Washington ........... 44
436,121
District ...................173

April, 1922
Liabilities

2 $ 33,156
76
1,019,050
5
82,571
1
700
45
380,353
8
17,582
42
375,020

$2,200,338

179

$1,908,432

The volum e of business in this district dur­
ing May, 1922, as indicated by reports of debits
to individual accounts in the principal clearing
house centers was less than in the preBank
ceding month, but greater than in
D ebits May, 1921. Total debits to individual
accounts reported by 184 banks in 21
cities during the four weeks ending May 31,
1922, were $1,802,766,000 compared with $1,9^5,386,000 in the preceding four weeks, a de-

In the year period May, 1921, to May, 1922,
the United States Bureau of Labor index
number of wholesale prices advanced 2 per
cent and it is probable that retail prices de­
clined slightly during the same period. An
increase of 3.1 per cent in debits to individual
accounts indicates, therefore, an increase in the
actual physical volume of business transacted
in May, 1922, compared with May, 1921. The
accompanying chart shows the monthly m ove­
ment of debits to individual accounts during
1921 and 1922 to date. Comparative figures of
debits to individual accounts in 21 clearing
house centers during the four weeks ending
May 31, 1922, May 3, 1922, and June 1, 1921,
are shown in table “ P.”
The total amount in all savings accounts as
reported by 75 banks in seven principal cities,
increased 58 hundredths of 1 per cent during
the month ending May 31st, being
Savings
on that date $747,296,000 compared
Accounts with $742,928,000 on April 30th.
Excepting the month ending April
30th, this is the seventh successive increase in
the monthly totals of savings accounts. Slight
decreases during the month ending May 31st in
Oakland and Salt Lake City were more than
made up by increases in Los Angeles, Port­
land, San Francisco, Seattle and Spokane. The
increase in Portland was 4.4 per cent, offset­
ting the loss that occurred in that city during
the previous month.

MILLIONS
2400
2300

2200
2100
2000

2300

2200

«1
\ 1
in
%
1

1921

2100

ff

2000

r#

\

è

9

1900

1900

« l/i

m i 1922
if*

1800

1800

V

1700

1700

1600

1600

1500

1

2

3

4-

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

!2

1500

Debits to Individual Accounts in 20 Principal Cities, Twelfth Federal
_______
Reserve District, 1921-1922

,

N ote: The figures used in preparing the above
chart are for calendar months and are partly esti­
mated.

crease of $132,620,000, or 6.8 per cent. Com­
pared with the same four weeks in 1921, total
debits to individual accounts in 20 cities
showed an increase of $54,603,000, or 3.1 per
cent.




(P) B a n k D e b i t s *Four weeks
ending
May 31.1922

Berkeley ........... $ 18,688
B oise.................
11,119
Fresno ..............
35,667
Long Beach......
26,744
Los Angeles......
463,754
Oakland............
75,652
Ogden ..............
19,299
Pasadena ..........
23,192
18,460
Phoenixf ..........
Portland ...........
112,617
Reno .................
8,884
Sacramento ......
51,165
Salt Lake City...
49,224
San D ie g o ........
34,627
San Francisco ... . 613,065
San Jose ...........
16,233
Seattle ..............
122,798
Spokane ............
42,710
Stockton ...........
18,603
Tacoma .............
31,304
8,961
Yakima..............
$1,802,766
*000 Omitted.
tFigures for 1921 not available.

Four weeks
ending
May 3,1922

Four weeks
ending
June 1, 1921

$

$

15,211
9,724
46,507
27,920
459,227
81,600
16,312
24,891
14,925
129,900
8,718
59,473
50,963
40,155
682,862
17,780
141,557
41,278
20,801
34,809
10,773

$1,935,386

10,706
8,708
35,186
19,885
374,892
77,146
11,740
19,655
128,677
9,928
44,181
45,407
29,310
682,529
15,805
118,183
39,735
16,492
33,122
8,416

$1,729,703

F ed era l R eserve B ank

109

o f S an F r a n c is c o

The increase in savings accounts during the
year ending May 31st was 4.4 per cent. In
comparison with figures of one year ago, Port­
land now shows a gain and the loss in the case
of Spokane is smaller than it has been for sev­
eral months. The greatest increases have been
in the three principal cities of California.

The changes in savings accounts in each city
from one month and one year ago are shown
in table “ Q ,” and in the accompanying chart
are shown the changes since January, 1919.
Reports received by this bank from 36 of the
principal accepting banks in the district show
a slight increase in the amount of acceptances
bought in May, 1922, compared with April,

1922, and a marked increase ($1,257,206, or 32
per cent) in the amount of bills accepted. This
latter increase was participated in by all sec­
tions of the Pacific Coast but it was particularly
large in the Pacific Northwest
Acceptances where bills accepted amounted
to $1,261,874 in May, 1922, com ­
pared with $423,487 in April, 1922 (see table
“ R ” ). The principal commodities upon which
these acceptances were based were wheat, cot­
ton, canned fruit, and sugar.
The rate on prime bank bills (3% to 3Y% per
cent) quoted during the latter part of May fell
% per cent on June 14th, reducing the selling
rate on eligible member bank bills to 3 per
cent. Several factors are responsible for this
low rate including the low rates carried by re­
cent issues of Government paper and the com ­
petition among dealers for the limited amount
of high-grade paper available.
The supply of acceptances created by Pacific
Coast banks and seeking discount in the open
market was more nearly equal to the demand
during May than has been the case in recent
months, and the transfer of bills from other
districts was unnecessary. A general classifi­
cation according to maturity of bills marketed
during the past two months shows a marked
preference among buyers for bills of 60 and
90-day maturities.
May is to
April is to
June IS

30
60
90
120

May 15

days........................
2.4%
days........................ 45.8%
days........................ 51.6%
days........................ 0.2%

19.6%
11.5%
58.5%
10.4%
Per Cent Increase

«?) Savings Accounts*—

utfxHm o«r
May 31,1922

April 30,1922

May 31.1921

May *31,1921

...................
...................
...................
...................
...................
...................
...................

Number of Banks

13
7
9
9
16
15
6

$231,821
74,990
38,239
24,548
333,494
30,321
13,883

$230,474
75,231
36,574
24,750
332,628
30,125
13,146

$213,024
72,616
37,602
24,980
317,271
35,022
14,059

8.1
3.2
1.7
— 1.7
4.9
—13.4
— 1.3

Total ...................... ...................

75

$747,296

$742,928

$714,574

4.4

Los Angeles ..............
Oakland ....................
Portland ....................
Salt Lake City............
San Francisco.............
Seattle........................
Spokane ....................
*000 O m itted.

(R) Acceptances*—

-Amount Bought—
* Created in
Amount held at
Amount Accepted
Twelfth District
All Other
Total
close of month
May, 1922 April, 1922May, 1922 April, 1922 May, 1922 April, 1922 May, 1922 April, 1922
May, 1922 April, 1922

P a cific N o rth w e st

738,000 $

50,080 $

77,525 $

N o r t h e r n C a lifo rn ia

____ $ 1,261,874 $
..

3,445,273

3,180,794

2,689,343

2,989,942

1,385,684

116,904

S o u th e rn C a lifo rn ia

..

419 ,502

265 ,162

412,364

542,109

2 ,005,736

0

0

0

0

0

O th e r D i s t r i c t s ...............
T ota l

423,487 $

579,109 $2,296,520 * $

629,189

$ 2 ,903,578 $ 2,513,606

4 ,1 15,624*

3,106,846

2,157,000

2,326,251

3,966,103

2 ,418,100

4,507,212

8,639,872

10,261,019

0

0

0

0

.............................$5,126,649 $3,869,443 $3,839,707 $3,582,131 $3,468,945 $ 4 ,661,116 $8,830,244

0

$8,243,247 $13,700 ,45 0 $ 15 ,100 ,87 6

* F ig u r e s o f o n e ban k in c lu d e d in “ T o t a l A m o u n t B o u g h t” but n o t in c lu d e d u n d e r h e a d in gs o f a m ou n t b ou g h t “ C rea ted in T w e lft h D is ­
t r ic t ” o r “ A l l O th e r.”




1 10

A g r ic u ltu r a l

Fractional declines in interest rates were re­
ported from all but one of the banking centers
of the district during May. The rate charged
on high grade customer’s paper deInterest clined from 6 to Sy2 per cent in San
Rates
Francisco, from 7 to 6 per cent in
Los Angeles, and from 7 to 6y2 per
cent in Portland. Rates on commercial paper
bought through brokers declined from onequarter to one-half of 1 per cent in all cities
except Salt Lake City and Seattle and are now
uniform at 4% to 4y2 per cent throughout the
district (Salt Lake City not included). The
general level of rates on other classes of paper
remained practically unchanged during the
month.
A statement o f the prevailing interest rate
on commercial paper in Federal Reserve Bank
and branch cities for the 30-day period ending
June 5 and May 5, 1922, follow s:
C om m ercia l
Paper o f
C u stom ers
Jun e 5 M a y 5

5y 2 - 6
San Francisco ......
6
Los Angeles ........
Seattle ..................
7
6 y2
Portland .............. . . .
Salt Lake City...... , . 7
Spokane ...............
7

6
7
7
7

7
7

Paper
B ou ght Th rou gh
B rokers
June 5
M ay 5

454 4^-4?4
4^
5
4^i
A y2
4%
4^
..
4Ya,
W a

On May 26, 1922, the Treasury Department
offered for subscription an issue of United
States Treasury Certificates of Indebtedness,
designated as Series TD2-1922,
G overnm ent bearing interest at the rate of
Financing
Zy2 per cent, dated June 1, 1922,
and maturing on December 15,
1922. The amount offered was $200,000,000,
and the subscription books were closed at noon
on the date of issue. Total subscriptions re­
ceived in the 12 Federal Reserve districts
amounting to $383,541,500. Subscriptions en­
tered with the Federal Reserve Bank of San
Francisco totaled $31,114,500, of which $14,120,000 was allotted by the Treasury Depart­
ment. The amount of subscriptions in this dis­
trict was exceeded only by the amount of sub­
scriptions in the districts of the Federal R e­
serve Banks of New York, Chicago and Phila­
delphia.
On June 8th, the Secretary of the Treasury
announced an offering of one-year 3% per cent
Certificates o f Indebtedness, Series TJ-1923,
dated and bearing interest from June 15, 1922.
The subscription books for Certificates of In­
debtedness, Series TJ-1923, closed at noon,
June 15th. The amount of Certificates offered




and

B u s in e s s

C o n d itio n s

was $250,000,000 and the subscriptions aggre­
gated $469,797,000, of which $273,000,000 were
allotted. The Federal Reserve Bank of San
Francisco received subscriptions amounting to
$32,655,000 and was subsequently authorized
by the Treasury Department to allot $17,650,000 of this amount. On June 8th an issue of
per cent Treasury Notes, Series B-1925,
dated June 15, 1922, maturing December 15,
1925, was also offered for subscription through
the federal reserve banks. The latter notes
were offered only in exchange for 4^4 per cent
V ictory Notes.
Borrowings from the Reserve Bank of 68
reporting member banks in the principal cities
of this district have continued to decline. On
June 7th they amounted to $7,060,Banking 000, compared with $14,672,000 on
Situation May 3rd, and $97,109,OCX) on June
8, 1921. There was practically no
change in the loans and discounts of the re­
porting member banks during the five weeks
ended June 7th, but their investments in­
creased $9,304,000, or 2.9 per cent. Loans and
M IL I Ut 0 1N S

Ml LU ONS

T( TAL >EPi 'SITS
1000

1000
TO TAL LOAt IS / NO [ ISC >UN rs

soo

500
400

400

300

300

200

200

100

100
II LI S Pi iYAB -E A nV*
RS ÎI5C OUh rs w

V

SO
4-0

V

50
40
..J\

30

30

20

10

20

V A*
1

2 3

A-

5 6 7 8
1921

9

to

It

12

1

2

3

4

5

*

6

10
I9 E 2

*$7 ,060,000 on June 7, 1922
T otal D e p o sits, L oa n s and D iscou n ts, Investm ents, and B ills Payable
and R ed iscou n ts o f R ep ortin g M e m b e r B anks

discounts, exclusive of rediscounts, have
changed but little during the same period. In­
cluding rediscounts, loans and discounts are
6.7 per cent less than a year ago. Total de­
posits on June 7th were $1,168,061,000, 1.3 per
cent greater than on May 3rd, and 8.4 per cent
greater than a year ago.
June statements of the Federal Reserve
Bank of San Francisco show that bills dis­
counted for all member banks were $42,024,000
on June 14th, compared with $43,279,000 on
May 10th. On June 7th bills discounted
amounted to $37,810,000, the lowest point
reached this year. If from the figures of bills
discounted by this bank, the borrowings of the

F ed eral R eserve B ank

111

o f S an F ra n cisco

68 reporting member banks be subtracted, fig­
ures will be obtained representing the borrow ­
ings of non-reporting member banks, largely
made up of banks located in the smaller cities
and the rural communities. Such borrowings
also continued to decline. On June 7th they
were $30,750,000, compared with $31,107,000
on May 3rd and $37,037,000 on February 1st.
The Federal Reserve Bank’s holdings of
United States Government securities did not
appreciably change during the five weeks
ended June 14th, but bills bought in the open
market increased from $6,091,000 to $16,764,000. The net result of changes in the earning
assets of the bank noted above has been an
increase of $9,458,000 in the total (from $109,379,000 to $118,837,000). Total reserves de­
clined $24,419,000 to $255,008,000 during the
period under review, total deposits declined
$1,420,000 to $142,591,000, and Federal Reserve
Notes in actual circulation declined $217,233,000. The amount of Federal Reserve Notes in
circulation reached its highest point ($239,-

434,000) on January 4th, and its lowest point
($212,299,000) on February 21st. The average
of the figures representing notes in circulation
on the last 24 statements of the Federal R e­
serve Bank of San Francisco is $221,566,000.
The fluctuations above and below this average
have not been great.

M arket, F ederal R eserve Bank o f San F ra n cisco

PRINCIPAL RESOURCE AND LIABILITY ITEMS OF REPORTING MEMBER BANKS IN RESERVE
CITIES IN TWELFTH FEDERAL RESERVE DISTRICT
June 7, 1922

Number o f Reporting B a n k s ................... 68

M a y 3,1922

68

June 8, 1921

68

Loans and Discounts (exclusive of rediscounts)......................... $ 853,560,000 $ 853,231,000 $ 850,853,000
Investments ..................................................... ............................ 324,471,000
315,167,000
305,194,000
Cash in Vault and with Federal Reserve Bank.............................
98,971,000
98,887,000
96,692,000
Total Deposits .............................................................................. 1,168,061,000
1,152,807,000 1,077,301,000
7,060,000
14,672,000
97,109,000
Bills Payable and Rediscounts with Federal Reserve Bank........
COMPARATIVE STATEMENT OF CONDITION OF FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF SAN FRANCISCO
AT CLOSE OF BUSINESS, JUNE 14, 1922
RESOURCES
June 1*. 1922

M a y 10, 1922

June 15. 1921

Total Reserves .......................................................................... , . $255,008,000
42,024,000
Bills Discounted .......................................................................
Bills Bought in Open Market.................................................... , 16,764,000
United States Government Securities....................................... , 60,049,000

$279,427,000
43.279.000
6,091,000
60.009.000

$201,787,000
149,889,000
3,853,000
18,086,000

Total Earning Assets................................................................
All Other Resources*................................................................

,$118,837,000
49,208,000

$109,379,000
40,581,000

$171,828,000
58,591,000

Total Resources ........................................................................

$423,053,000

$429,387,000

$432,206,000

All Other Liabilities!..............

$ 22,562,000
142.591.000
217.233.000
40,567,000

$ 22,578,000
144.011.000
226.674.000
36,124,000

$ 21,504,000
127.973.000
229.983.000
50,771,000

Total Liabilities........................

$423,053,000

$429,387,000

$432,206,000

42,357,000
35,417,000

33.851.000
30.409.000

54.763.000
41.177.000

LIABILITIES

♦Includes “Uncollected Items” .




.




B U S IN E S S , IN D U S T R Y A N D F IN A N C E
IN T H E
U N IT E D S T A T E S

M o n th ly Sum m ary b y F ed eral R eserve B oa rd
June 27, 1922

T H E outstanding features of the
econom ic development during the
month have been the continued and
noteworthy increase in the physical
volume of production and a continu­
ance of the advance in prices noted
for the month of May, the wholesale
price index number of the United
States Bureau of Labor statistics
showing an increase of five points
(or 3.4 per cent) for that month. An
increase of production is noted in
highly finished lines of manufacture
as well as in basic industries. W hole­
sale groceries and hardware show a
very pronounced advance over April
but in dry goods and shoes a seasonal
recession is reported. The retail
trade for the first time in many
months is in excess of that a year ago.
Although the production of an­
thracite coal has been reduced prac­
tically to nothing, the production of

bituminous coal of non-union mines
has increased somewhat, at the same
time that the petroleum output for
the month has shown an advance as
compared with April.
General employment conditions
have taken a very decided turn for
the better. In some lines a scarcity
of labor is now reported as, for ex­
ample, in the steel and building
trades. Demand for agricultural
labor also continues upwards.
O f fundamental interest has been
the continued downward tendency
of discount and money rates. In the
New Y ork market the charge for
call funds has been as low as 2
per
cent. Rates for commercial paper
have also tended distinctly dow n­
ward. During the month the Federal
Reserve Banks of New Y ork and
Boston reduced the discount rate to
4 per cent.