Federal Reserve Bulletin August 1938
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FEDERAL RESERVE BULLETIN AUGUST 1938 Recent Business Developments Operating Ratios of Member Banks Central Bank Annual Reports— Netherlands and Argentine BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM CONSTITUTION AVENUE AT 20TH STREET WASHINGTON Digitized for FRASER http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/ Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Review of the month—Recent business developments 639-645 National summary of business conditions 646-647 Summary of financial and business statistics 649 French financial measures 650-651 Amendment of the Bank of Canada Act 652-654 Annual Report of the Netherlands Bank 655-663 Annual Report of the Central Bank of the Argentine Republic 664-679 Earnings and expenses of Federal Reserve banks 680 Operating ratios of member banks, 1937 681-696 Financial, industrial, and commercial statistics, United States: Member bank reserves, Reserve bank credit, and related items 698 Federal Reserve bank statistics 699-703 Reserve position of member banks; deposits in larger and smaller centers 704 Currency in circulation 705 Gold stock and gold movements; bank suspensions; bank debits 706 All banks in the United States 707 All member banks 708-709 Reporting member banks in leading cities 710-713 Acceptances, commercial paper, and brokers' balances 714 Federal Reserve bank discount rates 715 Money rates and bond yields , 716 Security markets 717 Treasury finance 718-719 G overnmental corporations and credit agencies; Postal Savings System 720-721 Production, employment, and trade 722-730 Wholesale prices 731 Crop Report 732 International financial statistics: Gold reserves of central banks and governments 734 Gold production 735 Gold movements 736-737 Central banks 738-741 Bank for International Settlements 742 Commercial banks 742-743 Discount rates of central banks 744 Money rates 744 Foreign exchange rates 745 Price movements: Wholesale prices 746 Retail food prices and cost of living 747 Security prices 747 Federal Reserve directory: Board of Governors and staff; Open Market Committee and staff; Federal Advisory Council 750 Senior officers of Federal Reserve banks; managing directors of branches . 751 II Digitized for FRASER http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/ Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis FEDERAL RESERVE BULLETIN VOL. 24 AUGUST, 1938 No. 8 REVIEW OF THE MONTH The recent improvement follows a period In the latter part of June and the early of five months when industrial activity was part of July prices of stocks and lower-grade declining only gradually and when inventory bonds showed substantial in- reductions were continuing in substantial Recent economic creases, and prices of most amounts. Currently inventory positions ap- developments pear distinctly smaller in many lines, such staple commodities rose con- as automobiles, steel, and textiles. The sit- siderably. There was increased buying of uation is not uniform, however, stocks of commodities such as nonferrous metals, tex- some commodities, particularly raw mate- tiles, and hides and leather, reflecting larger rials, continuing large. The reduction in in- purchases by traders as well as by manufac- ventories occurred notwithstanding some de- turers. Industrial production, as measured cline in distribution of commodities. by the Board's seasonally adjusted index, ad- In the first five months of the year ex- vanced from 76 percent of the 1923-1925 av- penditures by producers for plant and equip- erage in May to 77 percent in June and to 80 ment were being further reduced and con- or more in July. The advance in private sumers were curtailing their outlays for residential building, begun early this year, many products, particularly automobiles and was maintained and the volume of such new some other durable goods. In residential projects was somewhat larger than last building, however, there was an increase in summer. Contracts for commercial and in- activity, reflecting in part the stimulus of dustrial building remained at a low level. considerable reduction in the costs of home Distribution of commodities to consumers, ownership. Public construction early in the both in urban and rural areas, showed less year was at a somewhat reduced level; a new decline than is usual at this season. Govern- public works program, however, was under- ment expenditures increased somewhat in taken in this period with a view to increas- accordance with the new program and Fed- ing expenditures later in 1938 and in 1939. eral funds were allotted in substantial Reflecting in part the existing low level of amounts for new construction projects to be demand for durable goods, wholesale prices started later in the year. Imports showed of some products, particularly building ma- little change in June, following a steady de- terials, were at a reduced level early this year cline since the spring of 1937, while exports and steel prices were lowered in June. These were somewhat below the level maintained reductions in prices of basic materials should during 1937 and the early part of this year. encourage expenditures for capital equip- The number employed outside agriculture ment when conditions in general warrant continued to decline in June and was below such outlays. a year ago by about 3,300,000 or 10 percent. Following a sharp decline in the latter The average number of hours worked by part of 1937, industrial production declined those employed was also lower than a year somewhat further in the first ago and, with little change in wage rates, five months of 1938 > reflecting payrolls showed a larger reduction than em- ^ marked reduction in output ployment. Farm cash income, including Gov- of minerals and also some further decrease in ernment payments, continued about one- output of durable manufactures. Output of eighth smaller than last year. 639 Digitized for FRASER http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/ Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis 640 FEDERAL RESERVE BULLETIN AUGUST 1938 nondurable manufactures showed little above production. A sharp reduction in steel change from the low level reached toward stocks in various positions was one impor- the end of 1937. These developments are tant factor leading to the recent increase in shown in the following chart: steel output from 26 percent of capacity in the middle of June to 37 percent in the last INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION week of July. ADJUSTED FOR SEASONAL VARIATION In industries manufacturing such finished 1923-2S AVERAGE^100 140 durable products as machinery and railroad equipment, activity in the latter part of 1937 had declined less rapidly than output of semifinished materials, operations being based largely on unfilled orders. Subse- quently as new orders continued in small volume the backlog of orders was sharply reduced, and activity continued to decline. In the automobile industry, output had been reduced in the last quarter of 1937 but not so much as sales, and this year, in order to enable dealers to dispose of large stocks on hand at the beginning of the year, manufac- turers curtailed output further. In the first seven months of this year assemblies totaled about 1,300,000 cars as compared with 3,200,- 000 a year ago. Stocks of new cars were re- duced considerably and there was some decline in stocks of used cars. Activity in most nondurable goods indus- tries showed little change after the turn of the year. Output in the cotton and wool tex- tile industries was fairly stable at low levels, until the recent advance, as is shown on the chart, and changes in the meat-packing and tobacco industries were largely seasonal. 1930 1932 1934 1936 1938 Exceptions to the general rule were the shoe, Latest figures shown are estimates for July 1938. silk, and rayon industries, where output in- Output of semifinished durable goods, creased from the low levels reached in the last which had decreased sharply during the lat- quarter of the last year. ter part of 1937, declined only slightly dur- The marked decline in mineral production ing the first five months of 1938, as indicated this year was in large part due to sharp cur- by the indexes of iron and steel and lumber tailment at bituminous coal mines, where production, shown in the chart on the next output in the latter part of 1937 had been page. Considerable inventories of steel had sustained as consumer stocks were accumu- been acquired by manufacturers before the lated in anticipation of the fixing of higher autumn of 1937 and part of the steel used sub- prices. In May and June there was a sharp sequently in the production of finished prod- reduction in output of crude petroleum fol- ucts, such as automobiles, came from stocks, lowing the accumulation of stocks of petro- so that steel consumption was considerably leum products during the previous period of Digitized for FRASER http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/ Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis AUGUST 1938 FEDERAL RESERVE BULLETIN 641 unusually high output. In July, however, Preliminary information on employment production was increased substantially. Pro- and payrolls in the first half of July indicates duction of copper continued to decline in the that, while there was a further first half of 1938 and output of zinc and lead, decline> ^ was less than sea" which had been maintained throughout 1937, sonal. In June the number of was sharply curtailed. Stocks of these com- persons employed in nonagricultural pursuits modities in the hands of refiners continued is smaller than a year ago by about 3,300,000, at a high level but it appears that stocks in reflecting an exceptionally rapid decrease in the hands of consuming industries declined. the latter part of 1937 and a further decline this year. A large part of the decrease in employment was in manufacturing, particu- PRODUCTION IN SELECTED INDUSTRIES larly at plants producing durable goods. PERCENT PERCENT 160 160 There were considerable declines also on the 140 140 IRON AND STEEL/ railroads and at mines and some decreases in 120 1 120 the number employed in trade and service 100 A r 100 J \ industries.