Federal Reserve Bulletin April 1928
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FEDERAL RESERVE BULLETIN APRIL, 1928 ISSUED BY THE FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD AT WASHINGTON Gold Exports and the Banking Situation Gold Holdings of Principal Countries Condition of All Banks in the United States UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE WASHINGTON 1928 Digitized for FRASER http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/ Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD Ex officio members: ROY A. YOUNG, Governor. EDMUND PLATT, Vice Governor. A. W. MELLON, Secretary of the Treasury, Chairman. ADOLPH C. MILLER. CHARLES S. HAMLIN. J. W. MCINTOSH, GEORGE R. JAMES. Comptroller of the Currency. EDWARD H. CUNNINGHAM. WALTER L. EDDY, Secretary. WALTER WYATT, General Counsel. J. C. NOELL. Assistant Secretary. E. A. GOLDENWEISER, Director, Division of Research E. M. MCCLELLAND, Assistant Secretary. and Statistics. W. M. IMLAY, Fiscal Agent. J. F. HERSON, CARL E. PARRY, Assistant Director, Division of Re- Chief\ Division of Examination, and Chief Federal search and Statistics. Reserve Examiner. E. L. SMEAD, Chief, Division of Bank Operations. FEDERAL ADVISORY COUNCIL District No. 1 (BOSTON) . ARTHUR M. HEARD. District No. 2 (NEW YORK) JAMES S. ALEXANDER. District No. 3 (PHILADELPHIA) L. L. RUE. District No. 4 (CLEVELAND) HARRIS CREECH. District No. 5 (RICHMOND) JOHN F. BRUTON, Vice President. District No. 6 (ATLANTA) P. D. HOUSTON. District No. 7 (CHICAGO) FRANK O. WETMORE, President. District No. 8 (ST. LOUIS) W. W. SMITH. District No. 9 (MINNEAPOLIS) THEODORE WOLD. District No. 10 (Kansas City) P. W. GOEBEL. District No. 11 (DALLAS) B. A. MCKINNEY. District No. 12 (SAN FRANCISCO) _._ F. L. LIPMAN. II Digitized for FRASER http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/ Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis OFFICERS OF FEDERAL RESERVE BANKS Federal Reserve Bank of— I Chairman Governor Deputy governor Cashier Boston Frederic H. Curtiss W. P. G. Harding W. W. Paddock W. Willett. J. H. Case J. W. Jones.i New York.. G. W. McGarrah Benj. Strong L. F. Sailer Ray M. Gidney.1 G. L. Harrison J. E. Crane.* E. R. Kenzel W. B. Matteson.i A. W. Gilbart L. R. Rounds Philadelphia.... R. L. Austin Geo. W. Norris... Wm. H. Hutt C. A. Mcllhenny. W. G. McCreedy.' Cleveland ! George DeCamp E. R. Fancher M. J. Fleming H. F. Strater. Frank J. Zurlinden.. Richmond- Wm. W. Hoxton.. George J. Seay C. A. Peple Geo. H. Keesee. ] R. H. Broaddus John S. Walden, jr.' Atlanta Oscar Newton Eugene R. Black.. Hugh Foster M. W. Bell. I Creed Taylor. _ Chicago l Wm. A. Heath J. B. McDougal— C. R. McKay W. C. Bachman.i John H. Blair K. C. Childs.2 J. H. Dillard.2 D. A. Jones.* O. J. Netterstrom.8 St. Louis. Wm. McC. Martin. D. C. Biggs- 0. M. Attebery. A. H. Haill.a F. N. Hall.» S. F. Gilmore.2 J. W. RinklenV C. A. Schacht.* Minneapolis.. John R. Mitchell_ W. B. Geery.. B. V. Moore Gray Warren. Harry Yaeger Frank C. Dunlop.i Kansas City- M. L. McClure... W. J. Bailey.... C. A. Worthington.. J. W. Helm. Dallas C. C. Walsh Lynn P. Talley. R. R. Gilbert Fred Harris. R. B. Coleman W. D. Gentry.* San Francisco. Isaac B. Newton. J. U. Calkins Wm. A. Day W. N. Ambrose. Ira Clerk * Assistant deputy governor. l Controller. MANAGING DIRECTORS OF BRANCHES OF FEDERAL RESERVE BANKS Federal Reserve Bank of— Managing director Federal Reserve Bank of— Managing director New York: Minneapolis: Buffalo branch W. W. Schneckenburger. Helena branch R. E. Towle. Kansas City: Cincinnati branch C. F. McCombs. Omaha branch L. H. Earhart. Pittsburgh branch _ J. C. Nevin. Denver branch J. E. Olson. Richmond: Oklahoma City branch C. E. Daniel. Baltimore branch A. n. Dudley. Dallas: Charlotte branch Hugh Leach. El Paso branch W. 0. Ford. Atlanta: Houston branch D. P. Reordan. New Orleans branch Marcus Walker. San Antonio branch M. Cramp. Jacksonville branch _ W. S. McLarin, jr. San Francisco: Birmingham branch A. E. Walker. Los Angeles branch Wm. M. Hale. Nashville branch J. B. Fort, jr. Portland branch * R. B. West. Chicago: Salt Lake City branch W. L. Partner. Detroit branch W. R. Cation. Seattle branch C. R. Shaw. St. Louis: Spokane branch D. L. Davis. Louisville branch W. P. Kincheloe. Memphis branch W. H. Glasgow. Little Rock branch A. F. Bailey. SUBSCRIPTION PRICE OF BULLETIN THE FEDEHAL RESERVE BULLETIN is the board's medium of communication with member banks of the Federal reserve system and is the only official organ or periodical publication of the board. The BULLETIN will be sent to all member banks without charge. To others the subscription price, which covers the cost of paper and printing, is $2. Single copies will be sold at 20 cents. Outside of the United States, Canada, Mexico, and the insular possessions, $2.60; single copies, 25 cents in Digitized for FRASER http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/ Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Review of the month—Gold exports and the banking situation 229 New indexes of sales of chain stores and mail-order houses 232 Seasonal variations in wholesale and retail trade 236 Gold holdings of principal countries at the end of 1927 260 Annual report of the Bank of Belgium 262 Annual report of the Bank of Switzerland 268 Condition of all banks in the United States 231,300-303 Changes in membership in the Federal reserve system 242 National summary of business conditions 244 Financial, industrial, and commercial statistics 245 Reserve bank credit (245)—Monetary gold stock of the United States (246)—United States money in circulation (246)—Money rates: Federal reserve bank rates, Open-market rates, Rates charged customers (247-248)—Member bank credit: All member banks, Reporting member banks in leading cities (249)—Bankers' balances of reporting member banks (250)—Bankers' acceptances and commercial paper outstanding (250)—Brokers' loans (251)—Commodity prices, security prices, and security issues (252)—Production, employ* ment, and trade (253)—Industrial production (254)—Factory employment and pay rolls (255)—Building (256)—Commodity movements: Freight car loadings, Agricultural move- ments (257)—Wholesale trade (257)—Retail trade: Department stores, mail-order houses, chain stores (258)—Bank suspensions and commercial failures (259). Financial statistics for foreign countries 274 Condition of central banks (274)—Condition of commercial banks (276)—Discount rates of central banks (276)—Money rates (277)—Gold exports and imports (278)—Foreign exchange rates (279)—Price movements: Wholesale prices, retail food prices, cost of living (280-282). Law department: Amendment to law regarding interlocking bank directorates 283 Revision of board's regulation regarding interlocking bank directorates 283 Changes in national and State bank membership 286 Fiduciary powers granted to national banks 286 Detailed banking statistics for the United States 287 IV Digitized for FRASER http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/ Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis FEDERAL RESERVE BULLETIN VOL. 14 APRIL, 1928 No. 4 REVIEW OF THE MONTH rency demand had come to be factors making During the month of March exports of gold for firmness in the current credit situation. from the United States to foreign countries were March was the seventh consecutive month in ~ ,, . larger than for any other month which gold exports exceeded gold imports, net ex rts for the Gold exports & J Gold stock of P° Period approxi- and the bank- on record, while gold imports the United mating $262,000,000. This fig- States ing situation were aimost negligible in ure does not, however, measure amount. A substantial part of the gold out- the actual loss of gold for the period, chiefly flow, however, represented nothing more than because there was at the same time a net the actual shipment of gold that had been increase in gold held under earmark by the previously acquired by foreign countries and MILLIONS OF DOLLARS MILLIONS OF DOLLARS held by them under earmark with the Federal 5000T 5000 reserve banks. To a considerable extent, there- fore, the recent gold exports involved no current S draft on the banking resources of the United 4000 4000 States, but after adjusting the figures for all factors affecting during March the monetary / gold stock of the United States there was on 3000 3000 final reckoning a net loss of gold for the month approximating $56,000,000. While loss in a single month of an amount greater than this has 2000 2000 occurred several times during recent years, namely, in November and December of last M()NETiARY GOLD>STOCK 1000 year and in January and February of 1925, the 1000 C)F THE UNITEDS TATES loss during March was nevertheless of excep- tional volume. Provision of a given amount of gold for export or earmark tends to deprive the 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 market of a like amount of reserve funds, or to Federal reserve banks for foreign account. cause increased indebtedness of member banks Measured by reduction in the gold stock of the at the reserve banks, except to the extent that United States, the actual loss of gold for the this influence may be offset by coincident devel- period from the first of September to the end of opments of opposite effect, notably purchases March amounted to $283,000,000, of which of securities by the reserve banks—which did $74,000,000 represented gold lost in the first not occur in March—or an inflow of currency quarter of the current year. This is in sharp from circulation. While there was an inflow of contrast with a gain, indicated by the chart, of $20,000,000 currency in the first four weeks of more than $100,000,000 during the first quarter March, there was a subsequent outflow of of 1927. The chart also brings out the fact $80,000,000, with the consequence that by the that the loss of gold in the last four months of end of the month both gold exports and cur- 229 Digitized for FRASER http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/ Federal Reserve Bank of St.