| Show I Inside Stuff i-Stuff By PAUL MALLON WASHINGTON March 3 It 3 It Itis is Z now to say that what has een Ku II wrong Mong with business lately isIt Is weather It The current economic Is supposed to be right out- out je your window window under the snow snow The accepted theory is la that few ri rions ns buy autos when the roads covered recovered with ice Few go any farther than necessary necessary Hurts essary beyond the lie 3 but corner grocery in inthe tips sips ps Others the s snow now n o w and andIn m In muck u c k covering lt of at the United States of off and andi nd i during the thelast last 60 dast days das t is a a sound theory but the point it melts perceptibly in the glare a monthly balanced business art rt t. t Weather damage to one in- in has been offset statistically weather benefits to another an Je e autos general sales and build build- E activity have been hurt coal ads oads and winter goods have len helped sum total of it is that nature U com complicated ted everything but the tt national effect is nearly nega- nega tiel tie l f I To see how nature evens up look to the net effect of the improvement improve improve- ment nt nt on railroads alone I O increased dem demand nd for coner conner con- con emer ner er coal naturally caused the cads ads to haul more of ot it but also caused the oad railroads to use Steel more of f it ft Their Theirs s ope operating r a tI n go expenses expenses' cx- cx always SIW ap In cold weather This may plain lain the item carried the other in a financial jo journal Indicating at it the thenet net loss of an outstanding carrying J-carrying road was pr probably bably as eat this January as as' last despite ta S increased traffic But the railroads took advantage the tle lull in auto demand for tor steel placed a few big steel orders ilch ch kept the steel business from Bering ring ering at all aU from the cold Ibe lie e few sharp decreases decreases in Ja Janu- Janu und u- u rand and nd February ry percentages mean ilya a statistical reaction from rom an ormal December They really knot reflect any general change of ot ess 3 trend it t happened was that the statically sta sta- sta- sta cally influential automobile in in- itry tr produced heavily during Deo Dober Dc- Dc o ber aber and January instead of In spring So also with building 15 The law required the to let a lot of contracts De December and January when few tracts arc are awarded ordinarily hus us the December November auary uary y figures rc really represent a cal bu bump p rather than any n of oi f muscle or fat tat G ahe ie weather has brought some soine r Nation Uon within the automobile in- in As Aa soon coon as the roads road clear up they will wUl get getto Piloto to A good test of Auto what kind of market mart mar- mar t ket to expect ProF Production Pro- Pro F- F then can canI j I planned more more Intelligently No NoM Noi i M knows WB any more than that about bout flow The extent to which production M dropped Is shown by unit pro- pro on of for tor December and tor w 1 January while February V J Unu 4 on Pate Pare FllUen t i Column Six filz r Inside Stuff Continued from Page OnO One was figured unofficially 11 a few days ago around That would put February under a year ago when the figure was Every major index of ot business for tor January and February except autos will be above those of ot ofa I a year ago Officials are arc worried about the employment decrease during the thelast thelast thelast last 60 da days s 's which may turn out outto outto outto to be larger than han Indicated In the chart Steel business insiders do not know whether all nil the good things coming their way mean a permanent permanent permanent perma perma- nent turn or a f ic- ic fic- fic Steel one All Du Business lne I kinds of machin- machin I Uncertain ery business l Is I taking steel now and structural steel orders have bave picked up Good estimates about what to expect cx- cx In the building pickup are hard to get The volume will be much higher than last year but there vs Ls an increasing question about a building boom One trouble seems to be that building are not In line with rental returns A national real estate group re recently recently recently re- re put out the most optimistic statement of ot conditions it has bee been able to offer since the collapse it fl surveyed cities clUes and found real estate prices rising In 60 per cent sales Increasing In 85 per cent and two out of each three cities reported report repot ed a a. shortage of single family dwellIngs dwell dwell- ings All this leaves us today just about where we were when when the fall bulge lifted us up last October Industrial Industrial Industrial Indus Indus- trial production will average this month about 95 per cent of normal the same as M last October The other important indices are also near their I October levels levela as you will see from I the following chart Note Note All All figures represent percentages percentages percentages per per- of normality existing a athe at atthe atthe the times designated with norma normal being computed as the 25 1923 averages averages averages aver aver- ages for tor everything except prices which are based on 1926 1026 Seasonal variations have been eliminated so that the figures do not indicate th the volume of business but only the th relationship of ot the volume t to normal t-c t rn n bj tI Eo Co tD n tI r o a. a c k 3 S r s 0 2 e E g j Year Cn I I s en III 0 S rI- rI n P ge a OJ f. f s 0 1 S r 1929 average 19 1048 1091 10 1931 average 81 77 75 92 63 1933 average 76 58 67 27 1934 average 79 62 75 32 1935 average 90 70 2 63 79 37 31 1935 Janu January ry 90 64 1 64 72 27 21 February 89 89 65 75 28 October 95 83 6 5 64 77 71 48 SOfi November 98 74 5 66 81 60 I December JOt 76 6 71 84 67 1936 January 99 70 79 62 February 95 72 69 77 7 50 O Unofficial 1926 equals Copyright 1936 for tor The Telegram |
