(& 



Cl 



-5- 



P 



i ■ . 



spring and., therefore, no effort will be made to encourage potato growers to hold &ny 

 large fraction of their crop for spring delivery. In fact, growers are urged to mar- 

 ket freely during the early part of the season. 



' The fruit situation . Although consume?* incomes may decline slightly during 

 the coming fall and winter, the demand for fresh fruit is expected to continue suf- 

 ficiently strong so that prices of deciduous fruits, including apples, pears, grapes 

 and cranberries, will be at or near ceiling levels. However, new-crop citrus fruits 

 are expected to decline considerably from ceilings as markets become well supplied. 

 The citrus crop is expected to be about 8 percent larger than last year. 



The price-weute controversy . The general consensus of opinion is that there 

 will probably be a strike wave even worse than the present, as labor will press its 

 wage demands for Increases in pay ranging up to 50 percent. Inasmuch as employers 

 are lacking assurance that prices can be raised sufficiently to offset the wage in- 

 creases, they will probably resist the laborers' demands. The net outcome probably 

 will be a wage Increase of 15 to 20 percent, followed by later price increases. 



The government hopes that price increases can be avoided to a large extent 

 by a very Ictrge volume of business. The large volume of business would make it pos- 

 sible to spread, fixed costs over a larger number of units and to earn reasonable 

 profits without any substantial Increase in prices. Both the government and labor 

 unions are making strenuous efforts to prevent commodity price rises. Snail businesses 

 are likely to be permitted to raise their prices- or to resist the demands for Increased 

 wages. At the present time demobilization of the armed forces €tnd the closing down of 

 war pleuits is proceeding faster than civilian industries are absorbing new workers. 

 The result is a substeuitial increase in unemployment. So far, there is no great fear 

 that this situation will last long enough to initiate a severe depression. 



GLJrwd 

 11/8A5 



