Name. STOCK MARKET PRICES, JAN. 1, 1925--DEC. 1, 1926. 1925 Jan. 1-Dec. 1, 1926 Net Clos. Change Price. High. Low. Close. Inc. Burns Bros pr pf..115 1174 117 1164 + But Cop & Zc. But & Sup Cop... Butterick.. Cal Zinc Lead. 14% 16% 7% 1276-14 22 71 17% 53%+ 31 2 2% 1 1% 1284 74% 664 68% 59% 34 38 294 31 3 604 73% 55% 70 +9% 13% 18% 13% 15% + 2 147 1688 146164 + 16% 34 2% 20 14 Cal Packing Locom. 94 Cal Petrol.. Cal & Ariz. Metals Co. 10 Cal & Hecla. Metals Co pf..116 120 113112 34 Can Pac... Radiat 114% 122% 1014 110 4% Can South. 57 Radiat pf.....1264 131 129 132 +5 Case Thresh. 65 Palety Razor.. 56 704 42 60 Ship & Com.. 534 11% 5% 5% + 4 11 Cen of N J.. .305 11 4 Cent Rib Mills. Cerro de Pasco. Certainteed. Smelt.... .144 152 109% 133 Snuff pf......100 105 98 96 Sum Tob. Tel & Cb. Tel & Tel. Tobac. Tob pf. Tob B... 46 47 40 44%- 1% + 75 834 654 824 + 74 1034 110 100 108 +44 11 404 294 4042914 394 414 25 30 94 142% 150% 139 149 +6% 11474 1244111% 120%+ 6 .106 113 1061104+ 4% 1134 124 1104 1194+5% 714 74 43 61 104 WW7% pf.. 102 108410110616+ 434 Wholesale pf.. 984 100 974 100 + 14 Wat Wks.. Wool. Wool pf.. 41% 4278 19 314-104 87 894 66 86% Wig P pf.... 14 5% Zine & Lead.. 814 1214 54 14 7 pl..... 37 48% 20 4234+ 5 Z & L conda. Arbor Arbor pf.. 50% 51% 41364732- 2% 48 45 44 44- 335 666 694 644 694+3 & Co pf Del.. 97 97% 904 94 Cons & Co. 1414 314 18 26 Metal Dry Gds. Gds 1 pf. Gds 2 pf. ve Oil... ison. ilson pf. Bir & Atl. Coast Line. G & W I.. 3 + 114 1934 23 1914 23 + 3% 53 54% 37% 41% -11% .102 102 96 100/4 107 108 102 106 1 G&W I pf... 53% 564 334 38 15% Ref. Ref pf. 1084 128% 97 10935 + 116 120 115 116 + & Powder.... 57 63 54 64 8 Powder pf... 94 9716 94 8 Tack. in Nich Nich pf. 17 17 8 27% 28 94% + 7% 92 93 54 57 35 37 30 31 C, M & St P.. 104 C. RI & P7 pf.. Col Fuel & Ir pr. Col & Sou. Col & Sou 1 pf. Col & Sou 2 pf. Columbia Carb. 674 684 604 61 +34 64 +8 104 112 110 112 64 964 52 5 -59 664 74 .60 72 62 72 + 54 59 68 +8 634904 + 6% 55% 68%+10% 1184 213 1184 234 +115% Congoleum-Nairn. 17% 29% Conley Tin Foil.. +7 Cons Cig pf.. 84-8 8 Cons Dist.. 7% 84 18% Cons Gas.. Cons Textile. Cont Can.. 44 10 21 +7 › Knit Hos. Sales › Sales pf. Loco.. 44 5 404 18 43% 130 148 92% 158 118 105 118 + 92 92 70 734-184 Cont Can pf......1154 126 117 119 + 34 Cont Motors..... 11% 13 97% 114 Cont Ins Corn Prod. 133 1443412241354 + 24 42 50% 35% 4934 + 7 Peor & East. Pere Marq. Pere Mar pf... Phila Co. Phila Co 6 pf Phil Morris. Phil Jones. Phil Jones pf. Phoenix Hos pr. Pierce Arrow pf. Pleree Oil. Pierce Oil pf. Pitts Coal. Pitts Coal pf.... Pitts Steel pf. I 17 264 15% 19 + 2 19% 33 16 37 543% 49 87 85 80 358 4478 31 49 80 + 17% -10 7 56+10 44% 9% 99 103 94 102 353% 131 19 234 12% 84 13% 17% 114 1734 83 85 70 72 11 974 984 94 100 + 24 Pitts & W Va...118 Tide W Oil.. Tob Prod A Trans C Oil. Trans W Stl. Twin CRT. Un Pac pf. Unit Cig St. 44 534 3 26% 27 15 15% 11 77% 784 594 64 13% 54% 63% 434 4736-74 121 123 115 117 150 4 65 714 35 434-214 413% 58% 37% 53%+12% 168 1413 159%+ 934 814 74% 80% + 5% 120% 844 114-201 75 94 9341094 832 96 115 125 114% 124 156 171 134 162 55% 59 554 58 237 + 2 +9 + + 24 1234 98 1234-113万 United Paperbd. 32 384 174 18 119% 85 116/8 1 USCIP&F....20442484150 220 624 814 60 14 + 14 +32 + 15 81+ 194 USCIP&Fpf.100 109 1004 10674 + 6 Porto Rican Tob. Pr Steel Car... Pr Steel Car pf... Prod & Ref. Prod & Ref pf. Pub Ser CNJ Pub Ser CNJ7pf. Pullman Co... Pun A Sug. Pure Oil. Pure Oil pf. Ray Con C. Reading. Read 1 pf. 84 US Exp. 684 434 3414 4316 25 + 11 % 91 87 78 80 804 324314 334 47 34 + 434 23% 33% 41% 324 36 + 4078 4475 40 424+13 113 127 831152 107 118 106 113+54 6% Remington T 2 pr. 108 1154 105 111 +3 Reynolds Spring. Royal Dutch. St LSF... St LSW pf. Seaboard A L pf.. Sears Roebuck. Seneca Cop.. Shells Tr & T. Shell Un Oil... Shell Un Oil pf. Simms Pet.. Simmons Co 94 10% 434 432 434 95 12174 90 116+21 56 57% 47% 48% 7 61% 614 42 4834 13% 45% 48% 36% 4236- 3 99% 102 85 101 +13% 87 924 83149234+ 5 67% 74 576214-54 76 804 72 75% 90 102 73 69 21 50% 51 274 31 1914 474 484 314 38 9 235 58% 444544-180 9% 10% 3% 35-6% 48% 48% 40% 43%-4% 28% 30% 24 303+ 2% 104 114 103 107%+ 34 28 28% 15% 194 84 Wrigley. 4376 444 194 21 -22% 54 2834 333 2014 Youngs S & T... 86 954 69 85 31 31 20 234 15 *General Electric shares were split during year into 4 for 1; last quotation therefore is equivalent to 350% in comparison with closing price 1925, and an advance of 2414 on that price. SECRETARY HOOVER'S ECONOMIC REVIEW FOR 1926. Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover in his annual report for 1926 said in part: The fiscal year 1925-26 has been one never surpassed in our history in the volume of production and consumption, in the physical quantity of exports and imports, and in the rate of wages. There has been practically no unemployment. Further progress has been made in the efficiency of management and labor and in scientific research and invention, As in the preceding year, there were a few points where conditions were less satisfactory, as in the New England textile industry, two or three sections of the agricultural industry, and the bituminous coal industry. On the whole, however, the country was able to maintain the highest standard of living in its history, a standard far above that in most other countries of the world at this or any other time. This represents a remarkable recovery from the great losses incurred by the Nation in the World War. The general progress of industry and trade during the past four years is indicated by the following table of major economie indexes. Of special significance is the fact that manufacturing production, considered as a whole, showed a gain of 7 per cent., even as compared with the highly prosperous year 1924-25. The improvement was general through almost every branch of manufacturing industry. The rapid expansion of the output of electric power continues, with consequent lowering of operating costs in the many industries which are increasingly using electricity as motive force. Although the prices of commodities in the fiscal year 1925-26 were practically no higher than in the preceding year, the value of sales of retail stores and mail-order houses showed a considerable increase. These figures are particularly significant as showing an advance in the already high volume of consumption sufficient to take care of the constantly greater output of our industry. The fact that the sales of mail-order houses were more than onethird greater than in the fiscal year 1922-23 is a clear evidence of the gradual improvement in buying power among the farm population. MAJOR ECONOMIC INDEXES. (Based upon calendar year 1919-100.) Years ended June 30. 1923 1924 1925 1926 116 115 118 126 Construction volume during the past fiscal year surpassed the former high record made during the preceding 12 months. The number of square feat of floor space and the value involved in the new contracts let were each close to one-fourth greater than the year before. The actual volume of consteno tion work carried out increased by smaller propor tions, showing that the industry had a larger volume of unfinished work on hand than the year before. Notwithstanding this immense building program, building costs remained relatively stable. Both the construction industry and the owners of buildings have cooperated in the movement, to which the efforts of this department have materially con tributed, for keeping building activity more even throughout the year. This movement has re duced operating expenses and afforded more stable employment to building-trades workers. Construction activity was well distributed through out the different regions of the country. The lead ing class of building construction continues to be residential. The heavy and increasing expenditures for car struction during the past five years have been at essertial factor in maintaining and augmenting the activity of many of our most important industries including not only production of building material but also various other types of manufacturing metal mining, and railway transportation. TRANSPORTATION. The steady gain in the volume of railroad traffic characteristic of recent years, continued in 1925-26 The ton-mileage of freight increased nearly 1 per cent. over the preceding year in which it ha already marked a record. The operating revenu of the railroads increased by 5 per cent., and οι account of the greater efficiency of operation thi net operating income reached the record total o nearly $1,200,000,000, 151⁄2 per cent. greater that in 1924-25. The constantly rising efficiency of the railroads emphasized by the fact that this greater traffic wa handled with practically no change in the numbe of employees. The ton-mileage in the last fisca year exceeded that of the fiscal year of 1913 by 4 per cent, and of the fiscal year of 1922 by 34 per cent. while the number of employees was only 2 or 3 pe cent. greater than before the war and 9 per cent greater than in 1921-22, Greater economy in op eration appears in the heavier tonnage per train in the greater mileage of cars per day, in the reduce number of locomotives and cars in bad order, an in various other operating indexes. No better indication of these accomplishment can be given than is shown in the following table which shows increasing efficiency in every directionequipment, management, and personnel: 119 133 129 132 Forest products, production.... 117 122 121 124 Freight, railroad, ton-miles 109 110 110 120 Electric-power production. 136 148 158 179 Building contracts let, sq. ft.... 107 108 112 142 Rev. frt. Five-and-ten-cent stores. 152 173 196 219 Car ton Mail-order houses. 91 100 110 122 No. of Tons, miles Av. Wholesale trade. The more satisfactory relation between the prices of farm products and those of other commodities, which was gradually brought about between 1922 and 1925, continued substantially unchanged in the fiscal year 1926. The index of prices of farm products during that year averaged 52 per cent. above the 1913 level as compared with an increase of about 59 per cent, for non-farm products. A slight advance appeared in the general level of retail prices during the fiscal year, the cost of living index averaging 175, as compared with 171 in each of the two preceding fiscal years. The advance was due to higher food prices. PRICE INDEXES. (Based upon calendar year 1913-100.) Years ended June 30. 1921... 42,333 1922... 40,658 1923. 47,193 1924... 48.992 1925... 49,678 1926. 51.917 80 82 83 85 Fiscal cars av. per No. of years. I'ded. train load. day. loyees. per em ployee. In thousands. Class 1 Railways. 1924 24.4 1,870 214,667 1.17 22.9 1,643 213,960 1.238 25.7 1.770 243,523 1.126 27.3 1,850 236.074 1.121 27.3 1,765 247.788 1.108 29.5 1,783 264,152 1.092 Years ended June 30. 1925 1926 436,737 437,387 470,912 139 141 130 128 Building materials.. Chemicals and drugs. 188 182 174 174 Ave. daily car shortage. 187 554 252,410 218,778 4,793 170,546 194,519 172,250 10,838 11,514 10,478 295 485 Total oper. revs. (1,000) 1,850,000 1,765,000 1,783,000 House-furnishing goods.. Miscellaneous. 181 178 171 166 dollars). Net oper. Income 6,120,646 6,011,864 6,318,623 (1,000 dollars).... 924,674 1,033,766 1,192,455 Food... General cost of living. 143 146 150 162 It is an interesting commentary upon Governmen operation that private enterprise has been able t operate the railways with far fewer employees and at the same time load almost 15 per cent. more cars than the Government administration. In 1920, the last year of Government operation, the total number of employees rose to 1,999,000 as compared with 1,783,000 in 1925. The result of this great reorganization upon the whole economic fabric of the country has been farreaching. Rapid despatch has greatly reduced the inventories of the country, has contributed to stabilisation of production and employment, and has increased the efficiency of all production and distribution. One of the contributions to this success, and a fine example of cooperation between different industries and trades, has been the great service of the regional advisory boards created by the American Rallway Association. These boards have been organized in practically every section of the country, and are representative of all of the shippers and receivers in each territory-farmers, manufacturers, and distributers. Transportation needs have been analyzed and anticipated quarterly; car requirements are regularly estimated. The boards have also made studies of markets and marketing methods in the promotion of more even distribution of commodities; they have contributed to the solution of railway problems of better loading and higher operating efficiency. By the development of better methods of packing, the claims for damage against the railways have been reduced between 1920 and 1925 from approximately $120,000,000 to $37,000,000. An outstanding development of the year is the increasing use of the motor truck and motor bus in conjunction with other forms of transportation. Over 50 railroads in the United States and Canada are now using motor trucks to supplement their shipping service; nearly as many more are availing themselves of the motor bus. Quite a number of railroads are experimenting with store-door delivery, some 30 or more use the truck in terminal operation, and several have now replaced way freight trains with the motor truck. One of our largest railroads has replaced local freight trains on 1,000 miles of line and is serving 500 stations with the motor truck. Furthermore, over 14,000 miles of motor-bus routes are operated by electric railways. ENLARGED ELECTRIFICATION The department has laid great emphasis upon the possibilities of the elimination of waste which lay in the transformation of the power Industry through the discoveries in the science of long-distance transmission and their application by large central generation plants feeding large systems and their interconnection with each other. Such savings lay in the greater economy in power production by saving fuel and labor by the larger central plants; the reduction of the amount of reserve equipment required; a better average load factor, and thus less equipment, through pooling of the daily and seasonal fluctuations, together with wider diversification in use; more security against interruption; better utilization of water power by applying it to base loads while making steam carry the peaks; utilization of secondary power from the seasonal flow of streams to the partial relief of steam; savings In industry by replacement of factory steam plants, the increased day load supplied by the same generation equipment as night load for cities; the larger application of power in replacement of factory labor; and likewise the economies in the household and farm application of power. All of these anticipated values have been realized in an extraordinary degree through the initiative and genius displayed in the electrical industry. The electrical generating capacity in the country has increased from 14,280,000 to 23,840,000 kilowatts In five years, an increase of 67 per cent. Although 66 per cent. of our energy output is from fuel, the development of water power has been most active. Of the total of 8,300,000 water horsepower now developed and connected into the systems, 2,500,000 horsepower, or some 43 per cent., has been set to work in the last five years. The enormous savings that have been made in fuel consumption are indicated by the fact that while the electrical output of fuel-burning central stations Increased 67 per cent. in five years, the fuel used Increased less than 15 per cent. The average consumption of coal or its equivalent by such central electrical generation plants decreased from 3 pounds per kilowatt hour in 1920 to 2.1 pounds during 1925, a saving at the average rate of 11,500,000 tons per annum; new water power effected a further annual saving equivalent co 3,100,000 tons. There has been a large Increase in the application of electrical power in manufacturing, and while there has been an increase during this period of between five and six million horsepower used in factory production, there has been no increase in boilers and engines installed within these plants, the increase having been made almost entirely by electrical motors operated through purchased power. There has also been a transformation from direct connected steam equipment within factories to factory electrical generation for distribution throughout the plants until at the present moment apparently 70 per cent. of factory power is delivered to the machines electrically. The application of electrical power to home use has received enormous expansion. The number of homes served has increased in six years from 5,700,000 to over 15,000,000. The number of farms served is expanding rapidly, and in some States, such as California, farm electrification far exceeds that in any other locality in the world. This transformation has increased the productivity of our workmen beyond those of any other country: it contributes to our maintenance of high real wages and to the reduction of human sweat; it relieves the home makers of many irksome tasks and adds immeasurably to home comforts. UTILIZATION OF WATER RESOURCES. During the year the Department of Commerce, as directed by its organic act, continued to give active consideration to the commercial possibilities in the full utilization of the water resources of our country-inland water-borne transportation, power irrigation, reclamation and flood control. A broad national policy is needed for the orderly development of all river and lake systems that we may not suffer great losses through erratic development and failure in coordination to secure the maximum economic returns from each drainage basin. Water is to-day our greatest undeveloped resource. Our streams and rivers offer us a possible total of 55,000,000 horsepower, and of this less than 11,000,000 has been developed. Of our 25,000 miles of possible inland waterways probably less than 7,000 are really modernized, and the utility of much of these 7,000 miles is minimized by their isolation into segments of what should be connected transportation systems. We still have 50,000,000 acres of possible reclaimable and irrigable lands which, while not now needed for agricultural production, will some day be absolutely necessary to supply growing population. In its visualization of a policy of water development, the department has indicated seven great projects of major importance: (1) Mississippi system; (2) Columbia River system; (3) Colorado River; Great Lakes system; (5) the Great Valley of California; (6) intracoastal waterways; (7) other important developments, including the Rio Grande and Hudson River. The department during the year has vigorously advocated such a policy of water development. Actual inspections have been made on the Great Lakes system, Mississippi River system, Columbia Basin, and in the Great Valley of California. The St. Lawrence Commission of the United States (Charles L. Allen, William C. Breed, Charles P. Craig, James F. Davidson, Stephen B. Davis, James P. Goodrich, James R. Howard and James P. Noonan), under the chairmanship of Secretary Hoover, has been engaged in consideration of the improvement of the St. Lawrence River from Lake Ontario to Montreal, providing not only canalization for deep-sea navigation to the Lakes, but the development of large quantities of electrical power. A joint board of American and Canadian engineers has been actively at work on the engineering aspects and will report later this year. The Department of Commerce has conducted a searching economic study of the effects and benefits of the project for consideration of the commission. A concurrent study of an alternative route from the Great Lakes across New York State is also in progress. At the request of Secretary Hoover, negotiations were undertaken with Canada during the year which have resulted in the appointment of a joint commission to consider methods for the preservation of the scenic beauty of Niagara Falls. Concentration of water in a V-shaped notch in the Canadian Falls is breaking down the escarpment at a serious rate, denuding the wings of the falls, and threatening to ruin their scenic beauty. BANKING AND FINANCE. The calendar year 1925 showed many new high records in American financial activities in volume of the capital, deposits, loans and discounts and investment holdings of banks, in the amount of foreign loans placed (save, of course, as compared with certain of the war years), in new corporate securities issued, and in insurance written. Bank clearings and debits to individual bank accounts each for the first time exceeded $500,000,000,000, |