282 



FINANCIAL REVIEW OF 1896. 



$4.83* to $4.89 for short. The success of the Gov- 

 ernment loan led to some buying of securities for 

 European account, and comparatively high rates 

 for money kept the tone heavy. The premium on 

 gold was "from -^ to \ of 1 per cent., and the im- 

 ports of the metal were $9,754,476, while the ex- 

 ports were $1,897,845. In March exchange opened 

 at $4.87 to $4.88 for sixty-day and $4.88^ to $4.89 

 for sight, and there was no special change until 

 the 23d, when the tone grew firmer and it closed at 

 $4.88 to $4.89 for long and $4.89^ to $4.90 for 

 short. These were the opening rates in April, and 

 there was no change until the 14th. when there was 

 a fall of half a cent followed by a prompt reaction, 

 and the market closed at the opening figures and 

 $2,200,000 gold was shipped to Germany on order. 

 The market was remarkably steady during May at 

 $4.88 to $4.89 for long and $4.89| to $4.90 for 

 short. It was quite bare of commercial bills and 

 the supply of bankers' drafts came almost wholly 

 from exports of gold. The shipments of the metal 

 were made generally on order, and they amounted 

 to $19,158,000. The market was again steady in 

 June, opening at $4.88 to $4.88| for long and $4.89 

 to $4.89i for short, and closing at $4.88 for the 

 former and $4.89 for the latter. The supply came 

 chiefly from blocks of securities placed in Europe. 

 Exports of gold were $6,350,000. The market was 

 weak early in July, rates falling from $4.88 for 

 long and $4.89 for short at the opening to $4.87 

 to $4.88 for the former and $4.88A- to $4.89 for the 

 latter by the 6th, but on the 13th there was an up- 

 ward reaction and the tone was strong until the 

 Bankers' syndicate, formed for the purpose of pre- 

 venting exports of gold, began operations on the 

 23d. Then there was a fall, followed by a slight 

 reaction, and the market closed at $4.88 to $4.88 

 for sixty-day and $4.89 to $4.89i for sight. The 

 exports of gold were $5,045,000, but none of the 

 metal went forward after the 23d. The market 

 was directly influenced in August by the operations 

 of the Bankers' syndicate, which, in addition to tak- 

 ing effective measures to arrest the outflow of gold, 

 undertook so to manipulate the exchange market as 

 to take advantage of the movement of cotton and 

 breadstuff s later in the season. Bills were judi- 

 ciously sold early in the month at the ruling rates, 

 which were $4.88^ for long and $4.89|- for short, 

 and also at the subsequent advance to $4.88 to 

 $4.89 for the former and $4.89| to $4.90 for the 

 latter, but on the 10th the rates began to fall, influ- 

 enced by dear money, by an expected early move- 

 ment of cotton, bills against which were made 

 available, and by improved foreign trade condi- 

 tions, imports being light and exports, especially 

 of grain, large, and after the middle of the month 

 there was an unsettling decline in rates which kept 

 the market weak to the close, and then rates were 

 $4.82i to $4.84 for sixty-day and $4.84| to $4.85| 

 for sight. Imports of gold were $2,235.344, and at 

 the end of the month it was estimated that there 

 were $17,500,000 in transit. The market was weak 

 during September, influenced by a large movement 

 of cotton and of breadstuffs, the latter in response 

 to an urgent European, Australian, and Indian de- 

 mand. The Bank of England rate of discount was 

 advanced from 2 to 3 per cent., thus widening the 

 difference between long and short bills. The mar- 

 ket opened at $4.82i to $4.84 for long and $4.85 

 to $4.85 for short, and there was no material 

 change until the 14th, when there came a fall to 

 $4.82 to $4.83 for the former and $4.841 to $4.85 

 for the latter, and these were the rates to the close. 

 Imports of gold were $33.136,694, and the amount 

 in transit at the end of the month was estimated at 

 $10,000.000. Early in October there was a premi- 

 um of \ to \ of 1 per cent, on gold, induced by a 



desire to procure the metal for hoarding through 

 fear of the possible election of Mr. Bryan. Grad- 

 ually the premium rose, and then foreign bankers 

 imported gold for sale, in almost every instance 

 disposing of it to arrive, and the movement was not 

 checked by a rise in the Bank of England rate to 

 4 per cent. At the same time rates for exchange 

 were weak, influenced by offerings of commercial 

 bills against cotton, by loan drafts, and by active 

 money. The market opened at $4.83 to $4.83| for 

 long and $4.85 to $4.86 for short, and it gradually 

 fell to $4.80^ to $4.82 for the former and $4.84 to 

 $4.844 for the latter, the lowest since August, 1893. 

 Subsequently there was a reaction due to a check 

 to the outward movement of wheat and cotton by 

 the high prices, and though money was very active 

 it had no effect upon the tone. The market closed 

 at $4.82 to $4.82i for sixty-day and $4.85J for sight 

 with a good demand for investment, and also to 

 insure against possible loss resulting from the elec- 

 tion of Mr. Bryan as the feature. Imports of gold 

 for the month were $29,307,150. In November the 

 market opened at $4.82^ for long and $4.86 for 

 short. The day following the election there was a 

 sharp fall to $4.81i for the former and $4.844 for 

 the latter, due to the offerings of some of the bills 

 which had been bought for insurance against loss, 

 but before the close of the day there was a reaction, 

 and thereafter for the remainder of the month 

 there was a good demand for long sterling for in- 

 vestment to hold until it ran to short for the pur- 

 pose of making interest, rates for money being low 

 here and discounts high in London. As the market 

 rose more of the bills which had been bought pre- 

 vious to the election were sold, but these were 

 promptly absorbed and early in the month there 

 was an inquiry to remit for securities sold for 

 European account, including $4,000,000 of Govern- 

 ment 4-per-cent. bonds. The market closed at 

 $4.84 to $4.84i for sixty-day and $4.87 to $4.88 for 

 sight. Gold imports were $9,132,000, including 

 $4,310,000 at San Francisco from Sydney, New 

 South Wales, and from Australia. In December 

 the market opened at $4.84 to $4.84J for sixty-day 

 and $4.87| to $4.88 for sight, and the tone was 

 heavy until the 18th, when it grew firmer at $4.85 

 for long and $4.88^ for short in consequence of a 

 demand for remittance and also for investment, and 

 there was some expectation that gold would be sent 

 to Germany via London, but soon after the tone be- 

 came easier and the market closed at $4.84 to $4.844, 

 for long and $4.87 to $4.874 for short. The foreign 

 trade continued to show a large balance in favor of 

 this country, and the comparatively high rates for 

 exchange were chiefly due to dear discount rates 

 for money in London and low rates here. 



Manufacturing Industries. All bi-anches of 

 manufacturing were more or less depressed during 

 the year, reflecting the check to business caused by 

 the agitation of the Cuban question in Congress in 

 the first quarter and the anxiety regarding the out- 

 come of the presidential election and the stability 

 of the monetary standard in the ensuing six months, 

 and it was not until the result of the election was 

 announced that there was any decided revival. 

 Then mills started up all over the country, manu- 

 facturing establishments which had been employing 

 a limited number of people increased their working 

 force, and the era of prosperity which was promised 

 by the Republicans during the presidential cam- 

 paign seemed to be dawning. But the revival was 

 soon checked by speculation concerning the pro- 

 posed changes in the tariff, consumption did not 

 keep pace with production, and at the end of the 

 year the markets were glutted, and one feature 

 was an immense overproduction of print cloths at 

 Eastern mills, the stocks increasing from 200,000 





