The full text on this page is automatically extracted from the file linked above and may contain errors and inconsistencies.
MONTHLY REVIEW
OF
BUSINESS CONDITIONS
ISAAC B. NEWTON, Chairman of the Board and Federal Reserve Agent
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
Vol. X V
San Francisco, California, June 20,1931
No. 6
S U M M A R Y O F N A T IO N A L C O N D IT IO N S
Prepared by the Federal Reserve Board
Industrial production showed little change
between April and May, follow ing upon in
creases for four consecutive months, while fac
tory employment declined by the usual sea
sonal amount. The general level of wholesale
prices continued to decline.
Production and Employment. V olum e of in
dustrial production, as measured by the Board’s
seasonally adjusted index, was about the same
in May as in April, 9 per cent larger than in
December, and 14 per cent smaller than in May,
1930. Steel output continued to decline more
rapidly than is usual at this season, and con
sumption of cotton by domestic mills was also
curtailed, while w ool consumption continued to
increase, contrary to the usual seasonal ten
dency, and shoe production, which ordinarily
declines in May, showed little change. Daily
average output of automobiles, according to
preliminary reports, was about the same as in
April. During the first three weeks of June
activity at steel mills declined further. In the
first five months of the year taken as a whole,
output of textile mills and shoe factories has
been in about the same volume as in the corre
sponding period last year, while output of steel,
automobiles, and lumber has been about onethird smaller.
Changes in employment from the middle of
April to the middle of M ay were of the usual
INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION
Index numbers of industrial production adjusted for seasonal varia
tions (1923-1925 average=>100).
seasonal character in many manufacturing in
dustries. In the iron and steel industry at carbuilding shops, and at establishments producing
machinery, however, employment declined con
siderably, while it increased in the automobile
and tire industries. A t textile mills employment
increased somewhat, contrary to the seasonal
tendency, while in the clothing industry the
number employed decreased.
The value of building contracts awarded in
May was slightly less than in April, reflecting
chiefly a decline in awards for public works and
utilities. In the first half of June, daily average
value of contract awards increased slightly, due
to larger awards for public works and utilities,
which were offset in part by decreases in awards
for other types of construction.
Distribution,. Sales by department stores de
creased in May, contrary to the usual seasonal
tendency, and the Board’s index declined to the
level prevailing before the sharp increase in
April. Total freight carloadings increased
somewhat less than usual.
W holesale Prices. The general level of whole
sale prices declined 2.7 per cent further in May,
according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics,
reflecting large decreases in prices of agricul
tural products, textiles, non-ferrous metals, and
building materials. In the first half of June
prices of livestock, which had declined rapidly
WHOLESALE PRICES
Indexes of United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (1926—100).
42
MONTHLY REVIEW OF BUSINESS CONDITIONS
in April and May, advanced, while prices of
petroleum continued to decline.
Bank Credit. Loans and investments of re
porting member banks in leading cities declined
further by about $285,000,000 in the four weeks
ending June 17, due chiefly to reductions of
B IL L IO N S
O F
June, 1931
was $120,000,000, of which $90,000,000 was
added during the last week. Payments of cur
rency into circulation, accompanying bank sus
pensions in the Chicago District, absorbed a
large part of the funds arising out of the addi
tions to the gold stock, with the consequence
D O L L A R S
11
A L L
--------------------- 1n
O T H E R
" ......
L O A N S / " '*
A
1D N
L O A N S
S E C U R I
TJ £ S
'
V
A
/
'
. /
v
j
T
J
/
\
'
IN I/ E S T M E N T
1 9 2 7
1 9 2 8
1 9 2 9
1 9 3 0
1931
MEMBER BANK CREDIT
Monthly averages of weekly figures for reporting member banks in
leading cities. Latest figures are averages of first three
weeks in June.
loans on securities. A ll other loans (largely
com m ercial) have shown little change since the
early part of May.
The banks’ investments, which reached a new
high level late in April, were reduced somewhat
during M ay and have fluctuated between $7,800,000,000 and $7,850,000,000 since that time.
During the four weeks ending June 17 there
were imports of gold from Argentina and Can
ada, and in addition a large amount of gold
previously earmarked for foreign account was
released in the United States. The total increase
for the period in the stock of monetary gold
FEDERAL RESERVE BANK CREDIT AND PRINCIPAL
FACTORS IN CHANGES
Monthly averages of daily figures for twelve Federal Reserve Banks.
Latest figures are averages of first seventeen days in June.
that there was little change in the volume of
reserve bank credit.
M oney Rates. M oney rates in the open mar
ket continued at a low level during M ay and the
first three weeks of June. There was a further
decline in prevailing rates on commercial paper
from a range of 2-2J4 per cent to a level of 2 per
cent, while rates on bankers’ acceptances were
unchanged at % of one per cent. Rates paid on
deposits by banks were further reduced and
clearing house banks in a number of financial
centers established a rate of
of one per cent
on bankers’ balances.
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 C O N D IT IO N S
Expansion of business activity in the
Tw elfth Federal Reserve District from April to
M ay was not quite as great as is usual between
those months. Industrial operations increased
by slightly less than the seasonal amount, and
trade activity changed little. There were few
drastic reductions in prices of individual com
modities, but declines were widespread and
average wholesale com m odity prices continued
to move downward sharply. There was an in
crease in the amount of Reserve Bank credit in
use in the District during the last week of May
and discounts at the Federal Reserve Bank of
San Francisco averaged higher during the first
20 days of June than at any time since last D e
cember. Further reductions in interest rates
paid on deposits were announced during the
first half of June while rates charged customers
advanced slightly.
Less favorable grow ing conditions— princi
pally insufficient soil moisture and irrigation
water— resulted in a decline in the condition of
most of the District’s crops during May. The
June 1 estimate of winter wheat production,
while considerably larger than last year’s har
vest, was well below the M ay 1 estimate. M ost
deciduous fruit crops in California were re
ported to be in good condition on June 1 and
the present outlook is for crops only moder
ately smaller than in 1930, in which year de
ciduous fruit production in the Twelfth District
was unusually large. Livestock have been
maintained in fairly good condition throughout
the District by shifting from one range area to
another. Ranges generally show the effects of
lack of sufficient rainfall. There have been few
outstanding changes in the level of agricultural
prices during the past month, and relatively low
prices prevail for most farm products.
Lumber production increased seasonally
during May and output of flour mills declined
less than is customary during that month.
There was a small increase in the output of
crude oil. Reduced activity at petroleum re
fineries and increased consumer demand re
sulted in a further substantial reduction of
gasoline stocks. A slight decline in copper
production was accompanied by a decrease in
June, 1931
FEDERAL RESERVE AGENT AT SAN FRANCISCO
stocks of blister copper, but refined inventories
increased considerably during the month. In
creases in building activity in San Francisco
and in several of the medium-sized cities of the
District were more than offset by declines in
most large cities and the total value of building
permits issued in the District declined during
the month, contrary to the usual tendency. En
gineering contracts awarded were smaller in
value than in April. A relatively small part of
the year’s fruit and vegetable canning has been
done, but operations of canneries thus far have
been at a lower rate than in 1930. Employment
increased seasonally in a few industries during
May, while further wage reductions were re
ported.
Sales at wholesale and the volume of inter
coastal trade showed some contraction between
April and May, after allowance for seasonal
tendencies. The adjusted index of carloadings
advanced moderately and registrations of new
automobiles and retail trade showed little
change.
Reserve Bank credit employed in the Twelfth
District expanded considerably during late May
and has been substantially larger in volume
since the beginning of June, than during any
similar period since the first of this year. The
increase in credit extended by this Bank fol
lowed an outflow of funds from the District in
settlement of trade balances. Partly as a result
of these inter-district payments, both demand
and time deposits of reporting member banks
were reduced substantially during the four
weeks ending June 17. Banks and individuals
in the Twelfth District were allotted approxi
mately 35 million dollars of the United States
Government bonds issued June 15. As a result
member bank holdings of Government securi
ties increased sharply as did Government de
posits, since the bonds were purchased to a
considerable extent with deposits credited to
the account of the Treasurer of the United
States.
Agriculture
The outlook for production of crops and live
stock in the Tw elfth District during 1931 has
become less favorable during the past six
weeks. In the Pacific Northwest the condition
of all crops for which data are available is be
low the average of recent years, while in the
other states of the District the condition of
crops grown on unirrigated lands is poorer and
yields are expected to be less this year than last.
Irrigation water is inadequate in many parts
of the District. Except in Arizona, livestock
ranges are supplying less feed than usual.
Unfavorable grow ing conditions during May
were reflected in a reduction in the estimate of
the District’s 1931 winter wheat crop from
78,934,000 bushels on May 1 to 75,803,000 bush
els on June 1. In 1930 the harvest of winter
43
wheat was 70,389,000 bushels. This year’s pro
duction estimates for other field and grain crops
are not yet available. Scant rainfall and drying
winds in late April, May, and early June, how
ever, have retarded the development of spring
wheat, and field and grain crops generally are
in poorer condition than at this time last year.
CON DITION OF GRAINS A N D H A Y
(Per cent of normal)
Spring Wheat
Barley
Oats
June 1,
June 1.
June 1.
1931 1930 1931 1930 1931 1930
90
93
88
93
California
52
84
56
84
. . . 84
94
86
94
87
94
92
. 84
91
74
93
85
90
82
92
...7 8
94
84
U t a h ................ .. . 83
93
84
94
86
93
Washington . . . . , 68
75
83
86
80
80
United States . . . 67.9 85.7 84.7 83.2 77.2 86.4
Tame Hay
June 1,
1931 1930
90
93
79
89
80
88
74
87
85
92
70
86
84
75
77.4 77.7
Source : United States Department of Agriculture.
Deciduous fruit crops in California are in
good condition and production estimates as of
June 1 indicate that the size of crops this year
will not differ greatly from the harvests of
1930. In the Pacific Northwest, fruit crops are
in poorer condition than in 1930 and early esti
mates of production during the current season
are smaller than last year. A decline in the
expected production of apples, due chiefly to
the bearing habits of some varieties which have
a so-called “ off year” following each year of
heavy production such as 1930, contributes
heavily to this decrease.
DECIDUOUS FRUITS AND NUTS - California
<---- Condition---(Per cent of normal) f— Production*-----■»
Junel, Junel, Forecast
Actual
1931
1930 Junel, 1931
1930
76
Apples ........
, , 77
ll,644t
Apricots
. . 80
57
2 5i
200
Cherries
59
24
18
Grapes ........
2,182
Raisins . . .
77
87
1,308
T a b le ........
78
89
388
W in e ........
. . 83
88
486
Peaches
729
796
Clingstone
, . 86
516
542
Freestone .
83
213
254
P e a r s ............
, , 63
77
220
272
Plums ..........
. 80
82
73
82
62
77
198
254
. 82
63
14
Walnuts ..........................
. 71
65
31
*In thousands of tons, f i n thousands of bushels.
Note: In 1930 large amounts of peaches and grapes remained
unharvested because of price stabilization schemes applied
to these crops.
Source: California Crop Report.
It is now estimated that the 1931 Valencia
orange crop in California will be 17,890,000
boxes compared with 10,930,000 boxes in 1930
and 17,500,000 boxes in 1929. Shipments of this
crop during May, 1931, were 6,810 carloads as
compared with 4,775 carloads of the smaller
1930 crop shipped in May a year ago. Lemon
production for 1931 is estimated to be 6,340,000
boxes. In 1930 and 1929, 5,150,000 boxes and
5,200,000 boxes, respectively, were produced.
During May, orange and lemon prices f.o.b.
California were lower than a year earlier but
approximately the same as the prices received
in May, 1929.
44
MONTHLY REVIEW OF b u s in e s s c o n d it io n s
Consumption of dairy products has been
stimulated during recent months by the low
prices which have been prevalent. Receipts of
butter at Pacific Coast markets from January 1
to June 1, 1931, were 6 per cent greater than
for the same period in 1930, and at the end of
this period in 1931 storage holdings were 26
per cent less than on June 1,1930. A somewhat
different situation prevails in the marketing of
eggs. Since March, 1931, receipts of eggs at
Pacific Coast markets have been declining, a
contrary to seasonal movement, and storage
holdings on June 1 were 10 per cent less than
on June 1, 1930. This non-seasonal decline in
egg receipts and storage holdings may be at
tributed to decreased egg production, a result
of the culling of poultry flocks which has ac
companied the unfavorable market conditions
during most of the past year.
The condition of the District’s ranges is rela
tively less satisfactory than is the condition of
livestock, except in Arizona. In that state,
ranges as well as livestock are in good condi
tion, reflecting weather conditions which have
been favorable to growth of range forage dur
ing recent months. The maintenance of cattle
and sheep in relatively better condition than
ranges has necessitated the use of supplemen
tary feeds in some instances and the frequent
shifting of stock from one range area to an
other. The 1931 calf crop equals the average
of recent years. A large number of cattle
which are usually marketed off the District
ranges during the spring months as “ grass
fat” cattle are now being fed in feedlots to ob
tain the desired market quality. Quotations
for cattle at the Chicago market during late
May and early June were lower than at any
time since 1911.
The usual movement of spring lambs from
Employment—
------- Cal iforniia------t—------ -OregonNo. of
No. of
No.
No. r -Employees
Employees —>
May,
May,
of
May,
of
May,
1930 Firms
1931
1930
Industries
Firms 1931
20,175
24,035
All Industries* . . . .1,115 149,393 176,964 137
(-15.6)
( -16,1)
Stone, Clay and
211
5,928
7,119
4
137
Glass Products. 55
(— 16.7)
( - -35.1)
Lumber and W ood
11,978
50
14,896
Manufactures .. 148 19,396 24,614
(— 21.2)
( - -19.6)
8
1,088
1,230
2,270
19
2,181
T e x tile s ................
(— 3.9)
( - -11.5)
Clothing, Millinery
375
388
140
12,367
13,004
8Î
and Laundering.
(— 4.9)
( — 3.4)
Food, Beverages,
1,521
37
1,695
and Tobacco . . . 258 31,071 34,579
(— 10.1)
( - -10.3)
Public Utilities .. 39 55,221 60,635
(— 8.9)
Other Industriesf. 447 70,254 85,295
(— 17.6)
5,076
8,196 10,083
30
5,615
Miscellaneous . . . 48
(— 18.7)
( —9.6)
Wholesale and
Retail .............. 143 35,915 39,594
(— 9.3)
*Public utilities and wholesale and retail figures not included in
this total. $Laundering only, flncludes the following indus
tries : metals, machinery and conveyances; leather and rubber
g o o d s; oils and paints; printing and paper goods.
Figures in parentheses indicate percentage change from May,
1930.
June, 1931
California to eastern markets has been com
pleted. During the 1931 shipping season it is
estimated that 508,640 head of live and dressed
lambs were shipped out of that state, while the
movement during the spring of 1930 amounted
to 499,340 head. Early spring lambs from
Idaho, Oregon, and W ashington are now being
marketed. Nearly all the 1931 w ool clip has
beeji sheared and is being moved to Pacific
Coast and eastern markets. Returns to the
grower for this season’s w ool have been sub
stantially below those of 1930.
Industry
There was some recession of industrial ac
tivity in the Twelfth District during May.
Changes in production of lumber conformed
with the customary seasonal movements and
the output of petroleum remained unchanged,
while flour production did not decline as much
as usual. Except in some of the medium-sized
cities of the District and in San Francisco, how
ever, the value of building and construction
declined substantially. Mining operations un
derwent still further curtailment during the
month.
Employment in some industries, notably lum
bering and food canning and preserving, in
creased seasonally during May. A t the same time
the tendency to reduce wage rates, which has
been noted during recent months, continued.
Records for both Oregon and California showed
a reduction in the average weekly wage received,
reports from Oregon indicating that about 12
per cent of the reporting firms reduced wages
by amounts ranging from 6 to 13 per cent. Less
precise information from other states indicates
a similar situation throughout the District. It
is reported that the number of laborers on
farms is smaller than usual this spring, par
tially because prevailing low returns to produc-
Industry—
Indexes of daily average production, adjusted for seasonal variations
(1923-1925 daily average« 100)
1930
1931 General :
May April Mar. May
99
Carloadings— Industrial ................ . . . 68
63
64
157
159
Electric Power Production............
168
Manufactures :
60
108
65
150
139
165
Refined Mineral Oilsf ..................
94
94
120
92
78
84
Slaughter of Livestock......................
. , . 72
83
81
93
66
56
74
W ool Consumption! ......................
Minerals:
Petroleum (California)f ..................
80
80
93
Copper (United States) $ ................ . . . 68
70
90
70
71
Lead (United States) Î .................. . . . 78
104
79
54
63
Silver (United States) $ ..................
81
Building and Construction§
770
62
. .. 75
85
Value of Building Permits
Twenty Larger Cities ................ ., . . 31
33
36
51
Seventy Smaller Cities ................
43
67
45
Value of Engineering Contracts
Awarded
157
158
108
Excluding B u ild in g s................ .
2860 308
107
t Not adjusted for seasonal variations. {Prepared by Federal Re
serve Board. §Indexes are for three months ending with the
month indicated. ORevised.
ers of agricultural products have discouraged
anything more than minimum expenditures by
farm operators.
The total value of building and construction
declined, contrary to seasonal expectation dur
ing May, chiefly because of a reduced level of
activity in most of the larger cities of the Dis
trict. As compared with May, 1930, important
declines were recorded in Long Beach, Los
Angeles, Oakland, Portland, and Seattle, while
in San Francisco, Sacramento, Santa Barbara,
and Stockton, California, and Yakima, W ash
ington, the value of building permits showed
substantial increases. The value of engineering
contracts awarded declined considerably, due
principally to a falling off in the value of con
tracts for commercial buildings and streets and
roads. Contracts for waterworks, bridges, and
Government buildings increased in value, but
these groups comprise only a small part of the
total.
Output of lumber increased seasonally dur
ing May. Shipments also increased during that
month and both production and shipments ex
ceeded new orders, which decreased substan
tially. There has been little change in
inventories of lumber during recent weeks.
New wells in the Kettleman Hills field ac
counted for a slight increase in the total pro
duction of crude oil in California during May.
Production in the remainder of the state de
clined. A smaller volume of crude oil was run
to stills in May than in April and the output of
refined oils decreased. Stocks of gasoline were
substantially smaller at the end of May than
at the end of April, 1931, or May, 1930. Stocks
of crude and fuel oils remained practically un
changed during the month, and were slightly
lower than at the end of M ay last year.
M ining activity declined in May. A few im
portant producers of copper and lead ceased
IN D E X
N U M B E R S
45
FEDERAL RESERVE AGENT AT SAN FRANCISCO
June, 1931
operations entirely, but since these shut-downs
came in the later part of the month, total output
for May was not reduced appreciably. Stocks
of refined copper in North and South America
increased sharply during May, establishing a
new all-time high point considerably above any
previously recorded.
The District’s flour mills operated at a
slightly lower rate than in April, whereas there
is usually a substantial decrease between that
month and May.
The spring pack of canned spinach in Cali
fornia amounted to 1,339,700 cases this year,
compared with the small pack of 1,565,496
cases last year and the record pack of 4,193,742
cases in 1929. The canning of asparagus is
still in progress. Trade factors anticipate a
smaller total pack of asparagus this year than
last, chiefly because of the curtailment pro
gram in force this year. The annual exodus of
the salmon fishing fleet to Alaskan waters oc
curred during May. As a result of the unusually
low prices being quoted for salmon, however,
early preparations for canning are less active
than in other recent years.
Trade
Trade activity has not changed appreciably
during the past three months. In May, season
ally adjusted indexes of department store sales
and new automobile registrations remained
practically stationary. There were moderate
decreases, after allowance for the usual AprilMay movements, in intercoastal traffic and
wholesale trade. Freight carloadings increased
somewhat.
After allowance for the fact that May, 1931,
had one less trading day than did May, 1930,
department store sales (with no allowance for
price changes) showed about the same relation
IN D E X
CRUDE AN D REFINED OILS — California
Indexes of daily average production (1923-1925average =* 100). Figure for refined oils for May 1931 is preliminary.
N U M B E R S
46
to last year during May as in the first four
months of this year. As compared with April,
seasonally adjusted indexes of sales in all of
the larger cities of the District except Los A n
geles and Seattle declined. Apparel and furni
ture stores continued to report larger year-toyear declines in sales than did department
stores.
RETAIL TRAD E—Twelfth District
,--------- NET SALES*--------- >
STOCKS*
Jan.1 to
May, 1931
May 31,1931
May, 1931 *
compared
compared with
compared
with
Jan. 1 to
with
May, 1930
May 31,1930
May, 1930
Department S toresf.— 12.0 ( 65)
— 9.5 ( 65)
— 12.2 ( 50)
Apparel S t o r e s ........ — 21.8 ( 28)
— 12.8 ( 27)
— 18.8 ( 18)
- Furniture Stores . . . — 16.0 ( 42)
— 13.5 ( 41)
— 14.1 ( 32)
All Stores ................ — 13.3 (135)
— 10.3 (133)
— 13.0 (100)
* Percentage increase or decrease (— ■). Figures in parentheses
indicate number of stores reporting, flncludes dry goods
stores.
W holesale sales declined in value during
May. It is possible that part of this decline
represents a postponement of the decrease
which usually comes in April but which did not
occur this year. Sales (unadjusted for price
changes) in all lines for which data are re
ceived continued well below sales in 1930, al
though comparisons over the year period were
less unfavorable in the automobile equipment,
dry goods, shoe, and hardware lines than in
other recent months. On the other hand, sales
of wholesale grocers showed the largest yearto-year decline since November, 1930.
An increase during May in the amount of
freight carried on District railroads interrupted
the steady decline in carloadings which, after
allowance for seasonal tendencies, has persisted
since December of last year. Loadings of both
industrial and merchandise freight were larger
Distribution and Trade —
t-------- 1931 1 1930
Mar. May
May Apr.
f------ Index Numbers*------- ^
Carloadings^:
77
80
104
Total ................................................
111
Merchandise and Miscellaneous .., . 93
91
95
Foreign Trade®
821Í
86ÏÏ
112
T otalf ..............................................
7711
86ÏÏ
109
Im ports! ...................................... .
80
88
113
Exports ..........................................
Intercoastal Trade0
71
76
81
Total .............................................. . 68
86
86
109
Westbound .................................. .
67
Eastbound ...................................... . 63
73
73
Retail Trade
Automobile Salest
76
72
102
Total ............................................ , . 76
71
67
98
Passenger Cars ........................ . 72
127
Commercial V e h ic le s .............. .. . 113
123
140
Department Store
107
111
115
Sales$ ........................................
92
Stocks§ ......................................
104
890
-Actual Figures
■^
Stock Turnover|| ......................
.26
.27
.25
C ollections#
Regular .................................. , 44.0
43.7
44.7
43.5
16.0
15.9
15.0
Installment ............................ , 15.7
* Adjusted for seasonal variations, 1923-1925 average=100. 0In
dexes are for three months ending with month indicated.
fExcluding raw silk. $Daily average. §At end of month.
||Proportion of average stocks sold during month. # P e r cent
of collections during month to amount outstanding at first
of month. IfPreliminary. ^Revised.
June, 1931
MONTHLY REVIEW OF BUSINESS CONDITIONS
than in April. The entire advance was occa
sioned by increased rail traffic in the Pacific
Northwest where there was a heavy movement
of grain and a greater than seasonal increase
in shipments of forest products. After allow
ance for the customary May expansion, rail
roads in California showed little change from
April in the volume of freight carried.
This Bank’s adjusted index of waterborne in
tercoastal traffic for the three months ending
with May was lower than in April. Shipments
from the eastern coast increased by about the
usual amount between the February-April and
the March-May periods, while Pacific to A t
lantic trade decreased after seasonal adjust
ment.
Registrations of new passenger automobiles
declined slightly less than seasonally during
May, in contrast with a sharp reduction in the
number of trucks sold.
Prices
The marked recession of com m odity prices
continued during May and early June. The
Bureau of Labor Statistics’ index of wholesale
commodity prices dropped sharply from 73.3
(1926=100) in April to 71.3 in May, a figure
within 1.5 points of the 1913 annual average.
Retail food prices in principal District cities
declined further between April 15 and May 15
and on the later date were but 13 per cent above
their 1913 average.
Prices for many commodities of considerable
Bank Debits* —
Arizona
Phoenix .......... $
California
Bakersfield . . .
Berkeley ........
Long Beach .. .
Los Angeles. . . .
Oakland ..........
Pasadena ........
Sacramento . . .
San Bernardino.
San Diego . . .
San Francisco. .
San Jose ........
Santa Barbara.
Stockton ........
Idaho
May,
1931
33,681
$
May,
1930
40,341
<
— First Five Months —>
1930
1931
$ 164,728 $ 204,758
9,402
18,160
18,560
38,602
806,687
196,796
30,112
46,445
8,315
45,342
980,477
21,433
12,322
16,598
12,892
20,812
27,957
50,472
1,092,843
194,630
35,915
50,180
11,172
55,926
1,267,849
25,480
15,818
24,425
57,775
82,573
110,235
219,222
4,289,091
960,823
164,414
230,999
44,527
252,479
5,154,483
118,862
67,668
87,633
68,114
101,958
197,386
249,352
5,338,461
978,666
186,188
241,724
55,353
293,650
6,535,69 7
136,777
77,974
125,553
11,568
13,581
61,234
67,970
10,017
10,472
47,675
54,643
5,603
167,382
7,661
202,821
27,396
728,946
34,226
887,109
13,541
55,699
16,269
74,098
70,574
307,344
84,404
379,765
6,358
8,589
194,480
36,815
32,961
11,524
9,762
12,979
235,206
52,856
47,414
14,753
34,451
46,561
986,593
207,875
171,652
62,247
46,978
66,783
1,218,984
264,457
228,726
71,001
Nevada
Oregon
Eugene ..........
Portland .......... .
Utah
Salt Lake City.
Washington
Beliingham . . .
Everett ............
.
Spokane ..........
Tacoma ..........
Yakima ..........
______ T otal............ $2,837,469
* In thousands of dollars.
$3,624,585 $14,758,060 $18,196,657
Tune, 1931
f e d e r a l reser ve a g e n t a t s a n f r a n c is c o
commercial importance in the Twelfth District,
a large number of which are produced in this
area in substantial quantities, have declined
markedly during the past year. Some, such as
silk, copper, silver, and rubber, for example,
have reached exceptionally low levels, even
when compared with quotations prevailing in
the years prior to the W orld W ar.
W heat prices declined sharply in early June,
the September contract at Chicago reaching
56^4 cents per bushel on June 4. This quota
tion, which was approximately 5 cents under
quotations prevailing during most of May and
the lowest since 1896, followed reports that
Federal Farm Board purchases of wheat had
definitely ceased and that estimated heavy
yields from winter wheat plantings are mate
rializing. Although most of the disparity be
tween foreign and domestic prices for wheat
has recently disappeared, the volume of wheat
exports from Pacific Coast ports has not in
creased appreciably. A further advance in Cali
fornia barley prices has been recorded during
the past six weeks.
WHOLESALE PRICES—Representative Grades and Markets
Current Quotation One
or Averagef Year Ago
$ 0.966
. $ 0.584
Wheat Futures, b u s h e l........
11.870
8.500
7.725
9.550
12.000
8.085
0.640
0.490
W ool, domestic, lb.................
2.300
3.850
Silk, Japanese, lb................... . .
0.139
0.089
8.160
5.031
Oranges, California, b o x . . .
7.590
4.844
Lemons, California, box. . . .
2.200
Peaches, Canned Calif., dozen. .
1.525
0.091
0.068
Coffee, lb..................................
0.244
0.366
Butter, lb.................................
0.165
0.223
Eggs, dozen ..........................
4.450
4.600
Sugar, beet, cwt.....................
0.080
0.120
Copper, lb................................
0.038
0.054
Lead, lb....................................
0.268
0.338
Silver, ounce ........................
0.033
0.044
Zinc, lb.....................................
11.000
15.250
Lumber, 1,000 ft. B.M ...........
2.130
Cement, bbl.............................
2.280
57.000
62.000
Paper, newsprint, r o l l s ........
0.650
0.880
Petroleum, crude, bbl...........
Gasoline, refinery, gal...........
0.032
0.076
0.064
Rubber, plantation, lb...........
0.134
1913
Averages
$ 0.816
8.580
8.450
7.790
0.540
4.130
0.122
4.420
5.770
1.700
0.113
0.317
0.268
4.400
0.155
0.044
0.598
0.056
7.920
1.350
40.000
0.350
*
0.8’20
t All quotations for June 20 or average of latest week or month.
* Not available.
A slight advance in lamb prices during late
May accompanied a reduction in market re
ceipts of lambs, which have been unusually
large in number this year. Prices for cattle have
continued the decline in evidence since last
January. Prices paid for wool produced in this
District have declined slightly since the last
week in May, following several weeks of steadi
ness. Quotations for cotton and silk have also
moved downward, the former reaching the low
est levels since 1914 and the latter selling below
any previously recorded figure.
Notwithstanding larger shipments of oranges
and lemons during May than in April, prices of
these fruits increased slightly during the later
month.
Quotations for canned California
peaches were reduced substantially during late
47
May. This decline reflected in part the expecta
tion of a canning peach crop nearly as large as
the record-sized crop of 1930, as well as a heavy
carryover of canned peaches. Prices for coffee,
sugar, hides, and rubber have increased slightly
during the past six weeks, while further de
clines in quotations for butter, potatoes, and
flour have been recorded.
Prices for all of the more important nonferrous metals declined between May 15 and
June 15. The quotation for refined copper,
Connecticut Valley delivery, set a new record
low at 8 cents per pound on June 3, although
few sales were made at that level.
Further small declines in average quotations
for lumber and cement have been recorded dur
ing recent weeks.
Crude oil and gasoline prices remained at the
unusually low levels of April and May until
June 19, when a sharp rise in prices was an
nounced.
Credit Situation
A s a result of an adverse balance of commer
cial payments between the Twelfth District
and other regions, deposits of reporting mem
ber banks decreased in late May and early June.
This withdrawal of deposits was accompanied
by increased discounting at the Federal R e
serve Bank of San Francisco.
FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF SAN FRANCISCO
(in millions of dollars)
— Condillion —— .----------------^
r
June 17, June 10, May 20, June 18,
1931
1931
1931
1930
Total Bills and S ecu rities........
79
87
68
71
Bills Discounted ..................
22
29
6
12
Bills B o u g h t ............................
8
9
13
22
49
United States Securities . . . .
49
49
37
Total Deposits ............................
184
187
191
178
Total R eserv es............................
289
286
308
279
Federal Reserve Note Circulation 169
167
167
155
Ratio Total Reserves to Deposit
and Note Liabilities Combined
82.1
80.9
85.9
83.8
The four weeks beginning May 21 may be
divided into three periods in discussing the
volume of borrow ing at the Federal Reserve
Bank. From May 21 to May 25 discounts aver
aged $6,300,000 daily, and nearly all of these
were for country banks. From May 26 to the
end of that month discounts averaged $13,400,000, the increased borrowing com ing from city
banks. There was a further increase in dis
counts, principally for city banks, early in June
and the daily average has been $24,500,000 since
the beginning of the month. The increased bor
rowing did not result from the purchase of
investments by the banks in eastern markets,
since their holdings of non-government securi
ties declined slightly and to only a small extent
did it reflect a shift in bankers’ balances which
decreased but slightly.
The principal reason for the expansion in
discounts was a continued loss of funds to other
48
MONTHLY REVIEW OF BUSINESS CONDITIONS
districts because of commercial and financial
transactions initiated by customers of the
banks. These losses were reflected in a reduction
of 44 million dollars in deposits of reporting
member banks (time deposits declined 27 and
demand deposits 17 million dollars) between
M ay 21 and June 17. A m ong other factors con
tributing to the reduction in deposits of report
ing member banks were a 5-million dollar deP E R
C E N T
P E R
C E N T
31
13
L O S
A N G E L E S
S A N
^ F R A N C IS C O
I_____
- N E W
■I. 1. .1 I ..I . I - l —LJ—L L
J9 2 9
Y O R K
L.J_L...I .1 I -L i—1-J..L
1 9 3 0
I il 1 I I I
were paid for largely by crediting the deposit
account of the Treasurer of the United States.
Rates of interest charged customers did not
change appreciably during the second half of
May and the first half of June but open market
rates in New Y ork City and rates paid on de
posits in both eastern and Tw elfth District
cities continued to decline. On June 13, ninetyday bankers’ acceptances were quoted at %
per cent compared with 1-1^ per cent four
weeks earlier. Follow ing reductions in rates
paid to depositors by New York City banks, Los
Angeles banks further reduced rates paid on
demand deposits and on bankers’ balances to
one per cent, effective June 8. Rates paid on
savings deposits by most of the leading San
Francisco banks, as well as by banks in some
other cities of the District, have been lowered
from 4 per cent to 3]/2 per cent effective July 1.
Rates paid on demand deposits were also re
duced by San Francisco banks.
S E C U R IT IE S
TR A D ED
M IL L IO N S O F D O L L A R S
M EM B ER SH IPS
5 0 0 "
5 0
1931
INTEREST RATES ON BANKERS* BALANCES
Prevailing rates paid on active checking accounts of correspondent
banks.
cline in Reserve Bank holdings of locally pur
chased acceptances, a reduction of 15 million
dollars in loans made within the District, an
increase of 5 million dollars in pocket currency,
and payments of 19 million dollars to other
districts by checks drawn against individual
accounts. A s a rule there is little change in
either deposits or loans during late May and
early June, and it is not customary that there
should be a pronounced net gain or loss of
funds by this District through transactions
with other sections of the country at this time.
Investments other than government securities
declined slightly between May 21 and June 17.
These transactions were consummated outside
the Tw elfth District and had no effect upon
local bank deposits.
REPORTING MEMBER BANKS — Twelfth District
(In millions of dollars)
f-----------—— Con<iition---1
June 17, June 10, May 20, June 18,
1931
1931
1930
1931
1,979
1,992
1,972
Loans and Investments— Total. . 1,986
1,227
1,237
1,351
. 1,223
334
340
453
333
On Securities .................... .
898
890
893
897
All O t h e r ............................
621
763
752
755
Investments— Total ..............
341
391
401
391
United States Securities ..
280
364
361
362
Other S ecu rities................
104
109
113
105
Reserve with Reserve B a n k ...
738
734
751
733
Net Demand Deposits ............
1,011
1,071
1,084
1,057
Time Deposits ..........................
210
196
189
186
Due from Banks ......................
257
244
263
246
Due to B a n k s .............................
23
0
5
Borrowings at Reserve B a n k ..,
15
On June 15 banks and individuals of the
District were allotted $34,621,000 of the $821,000,000 3 % p er cent Government bond issue.
This caused a substantial rise in the Govern
ment security investment account, but involved
only a moderate outlay of cash, since the bonds
June, 1931
A
4 0 0
4 0
O F
K/1 E M B E R S H I I 3 S
V A L U E
ê V -------------------
3 0 0
0
1
/
200
100
IAX l>
/
—
J
I92?
J
30
\
11
20
•
1
1
»
r
j
A
I0
^
A L U E O F S E C U R IT IE S / 'T R A D E S / s ^
___________ .. i .............. ..
1
IÔ2Ô
Ì93Ò
/
'1WTT
0
V A LU E OF SECURITIES TRAD ED AND V A LU E OF STOCK
E X C H A N G E M EMBERSHIPS— Twelfth District*
Value of memberships is obtained by multiplying price of last sale or
average of latest bid and asked prices prior to date of computation
by the number of seats on each exchange and adding the results.
Prices of securities traded on the principal
stock exchanges in the Twelfth Federal R e
serve District declined during May, but, as in
New York, have advanced during June. The
total value of shares sold on District exchanges
increased somewhat during May, however, this
being the first substantial increase since D e
cember, 1930. The peak in the value of shares
traded on Pacific Coast exchanges was reached
in May, 1928, since when there has been an
irregular but sharp decline. In contrast, the
total value of memberships on stock exchanges
operating in the District increased until Sep
tember, 1929, as is shown upon the accom pany
ing chart. There was only a slight decline in
the value of memberships during late 1929 and
the first half of 1930, but between August and
October in the later year, the aggregate value
of memberships dropped precipitately. Changes
in both the total value of shares traded and the
total value of memberships have been slight for
the past half year.
* Includes San Francisco Stock Exchange, San Francisco Curb
Exchange, Los Angeles Stock Exchange, Los Angeles Curb
Exchange, California Stock Exchange (L os Angeles), Seattle
Stock Exchange, and Portland Stock Exchange.
@FedFRASER