SURVEY of CURRENT BUSINESS October 1933 Business Indicators 1923-25 = 100
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OCTOBER 1933 SURVEY OF CURRENT BUSIN UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMER BUREAU OF FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC COMMI WASHINGTON VOLUME 13 NUMBER 10 CLEARING HOUSE OF BUSSNESS STATISTICS focts gathered from many sources and presented regularly in the Survey of Current afford a comprehensive digest of business movements, an essential background for current trends and formulating business policies. Over 200 organizations contrib- the basic statistics presented regularly in this publication. GOVERNMENTAL TRADE TECHNICAL PRIVATE AGENCIES ASSOCIATIONS PUBLICATIONS ORGANIZATIONS 44 90 33 40 SURVEY OF CURRENT BUSINESS OVER 2IOO SERIES OF CURRENT STATISTICAL DATA ASSEMBLED UNDER ONE COVER MONTHLY WEEKLY 1932. ANNUAL •17'PAGES OF CHARTS A 4 PAGE SUPPLEMENT A 3 I I PAGE SUPPLEMENT AND ANALYTICAL COMMENT] OF WEEKLY STATISTICS GIVING THE SAME SERIES TOGETHER WITH 38 PAGES AND CHARTS, AND ADVANCE AS THE MONTHLY NUMBERS OF STATISTICAL DATA. MONTHLY STATISTICS. FROM 1913 TO 1931 INCLUSIVE, ALSO A BRIEF SUMMARY OF WHERE AVAILABLE. ALSO CURRENT BUSINESS TRENDS. EXPLANATORY FOOTNOTES. EXECUTIVES STATISTICIANS BANKERS PURCHASING AGENTS ECONOMISTS SALES MANAGERS PUBLICISTS TRAFFIC MANAGERS STUDENTS ADVERTISING AGENTS Volume 13 OCTOBER 1933 Number 10 WEEKLY DATA THROUGH SEPTEMBER 23, 1933 MONTHLY DATA THROUGH AUGUST SURVEY OF CURRENT BUSINESS PUBLISHED BY UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE BUREAU OF FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC COMMERCE WASHINGTON CONTENTS SUMMARIES AND CHARTS STATISTICAL DATA—Continued Page Business indicators 2 Monthly business statistics: Page Business situation summarized 3 Business indexes 22 Commodity prices 23 Comparison of principal data, 1929 to 1933 4 Construction and real estate 24 Commodity prices , 5 Domestic trade 25 Domestic trade 6 Employment conditions and wages 27 Employment 7 Finance 30 Finance: Foreign trade 34 Credit and banking 8 Transportation and communications 34 Security and money markets 9 Statistics on individual industries: Foreign trade 10 Chemicals and allied products 36 Real estate and construction 11 Electric power and gas 38 Transportation 12 Foodstuffs and tobacco 39 Survey of individual industries: Fuels and byproducts 42 Automobiles and rubber 13 Leather and products 43 Chemicals 14 Lumber and manufactures 44 Metals and manufactures: Farm and food products 15 Iron and steel 45 Forest products 16 Machinery and apparatus 47 Iron and steel 17 Nonferrous metals and products 48 Textiles 18 Paper and printing 49 STATISTICAL DATA Rubber and products 50 New and revised series: Stone, clay, and glass products 51 Business indexes (Annalist), revised series 19 Textile products 52 Magazine advertising (Printer's Ink), revised series 20 Transportation equipment 54 Canadian Business failures, new series 20 Canadian statistics 55 Bathroom accessories, revised series 20 Index of revisions made in December 1932 and June 1933 issues 56 Weekly business statistics 21 General index Inside back cover Subscription price of the SURVEY OF CURRENT BUSINESS is 31.50 a year, which includes the 12 monthly numbers, the 1932 annual supplement, and the 52 weekly supplements. Single copy price: Monthly, 10 cents; weekly, 5 cents; annual, 40 cents. Foreign subscriptions, 33, including weekly and 1932 annual supplements. Make remittances only to Superintendent of Documents, Washington, D.C., by postal money order, express order, or New York draft. Currency at sender's risk. Postage stamps or foreign money not accepted 12167—33 1 SURVEY OF CURRENT BUSINESS October 1933 Business Indicators 1923-25 = 100 INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION !60 160 FACTORY EMPLOYMENT AND PAYROLLS CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS AWARDED ISO 200 100 TOTAL FREIGHT CAR LOADINGS FREIGHT CAR LOADINGS L.C.L. IGO 160 DEPARTMENT STORE SALES WHOLESALE PRICES 200 160 iOO VALUE OF EXPORTS VALUE OF IMPORTS 200 200 BANK DEBITS OUTSIDE NEW YORK CITY FEDERAL RESERVE MEMBER BANK LOANS* 200 160 100 9 ADJUSTED FOR SEASONAL VARIATION * REPORTING MEMBER BAMS October 1933 SURVEY OF CURRENT BUSINESS Business Situation Summarized RODUCTIVE activity, although tending down- notwithstanding the falling off in production, and Pward during August and the first 3 weeks of Septem- reflect the efforts of the National Recovery Adminis- ber, has continued relatively high. August industrial tration to increase employment and purchasing power production was more than 50 percent greater than a by means of the individual and blanket codes. year ago. Distribution of goods by the railroads de- Freight-car loadings declined last month, contrary clined slightly in August, but retail sales increased by to the usual seasonal trend, and the adjusted index more than the usual seasonal amount, partly as a dropped 6 percent. During the first half of September result of price increases. loadings failed to record the usual seasonal rise. For- Industrial production which increased in July to eign trade returns for August show a further gain in equal the 1923-25 average, fell off 8 percent in August. imports and a drop of 12 percent in exports. The recession was due to the drop in manufacturing as Construction contracts awarded in August increased, mineral extraction increased. All major manufactur- due mainly to awards under the public works program. ing industries for which data are currently available Private construction work remains extremely slow, reported declines, with the exception of the lumber in- and total awards were 21 percent less than in 1932. dustry, where production was unchanged, and the Prices continued to advance through the first 3 tobacco industry, which showed a gain of 5 percent. weeks of September, but the recent movement has been Increases in output in the coal industry were below of a more selective character. Retail prices iose seasonal expectations. All the major industries were rapidly in August, accompanied by a rise in the cost of operating at a substantially higher rate than a year ago. living. Wholesale prices averaged higher, although the Retail trade increased by more than the normal gain since the last week in July has not been pro- seasonal amount in August, the adjusted index of de- nounced. Farm prices have declined since July. partment-store sales advancing 10 percent. Sales Further steps to expand credit have been taken in- through chain stores also showed improvement. With cluding an increase in the open-market operations of the increase in sales and declining production, the wide the reserve banks which has resulted in an unpre- disparity between production and consumption has cedented growth of excess reserves, but the actual in- been reduced to some extent. Purchasing power con- crease in credit accommodations by the member banks tinued to expand in August. The Department of has been slight. The flow of funds through the capital Labor estimated the number returned to work during market has not been resumed, and new issues continue the month at 750,000, and there was a further sub- at insignificant totals. The dollar has recently fallen stantial increase in pay rolls. These gains were made to a discount of approximately 35 percent. MONTHLY BUSINESS INDEXES 4 Foreign l Factory em- Department w i trade, value, 78 Industrial production ployment Freight-car loadings store sales, al , , and pay rolls value adjusted 2 d Ne e >» Merchan- s Unadjusted 1 Adjusted 2 Total y £™ dise, l.c.1. index e adjuste , Cit contracts outsid re -i^ k n I 3 OB Ifit? X s T3 (* 3 pric Year and month 5 •3w fl> Yor i e •** w •w value 0! tc T3 05 , M !i « commoditie "«§ 5 & 3 1 5 5 ! 03 en z «D debit 1 T? k "3 £ 0> |8 3 ^3 fl 1 «s I 3 fi f •5 I types «9 o S3 ii •5* G •C? Constructio Ban 1 S % i 1" «* •^ < 1 S 3 Wholesal Monthly Monthly average, 1923-25=100 average, 1926=100 1930: August 90 88 101 90 89 96 84, 4 81.7 96 105 95 95 77 102 85 70 106. 2 81 84.3 1931: August . 78 77 82 89 78 79 74.1 613 76 81 86 86 68 89 47 54 83.8 59 72.1 1932: August 59 58 66 60 59 65 58.8 40.1 53 51 68 68 49 65 31 29 59.6 30 65.2 September 68 66 73 66 65 70 60.3 42.1 61 54 72 69 71 68 33 32 59.6 30 65.3 October 68 66 80 66 65 74 61.1 43.5 65 57 72 69 75 69 33 32 62.6 29 64.4 November 65 63 78 65 64 75 61.2 41.8 58 57 70 68 73 63 32 32 55.4 27 63.9 December 60 58 72 66 64 76 60.6 40.9 52 58 64 69 106 60 33 30 65.0 28 62.6 1933: January _, 64 63 71 65 64 73 59.4 39.2 51 56 65 69 49 60 31 29 61.1 22 61.0 February 64 63 , 76 63 61 79 59.4 40.0 51 54 64 66 49 60 29 26 52.7 19 59.8 March 60 58 -• 74 60 56 81 56.6 36.9 48 50 63 62 50 57 28 26 48.7 14 60.2 April 67 68 65 67 66 72 57.7 38.6 51 53 65 63 68 67 29 25 53.8 14 60.4 May 80 80 76 78 78 78 60.6 42.0 56 56 68 66 67 67 32 32 58.3 16 ! 62.7 June 91 93 ' 82 92 93 84 64.8 46.2 60 60 67 67 64 68 36 40 65.7 18 j 65.0 July 96 97 89 100 101 90 70.1 49.9 66 65 70 70 49 70 43 48 70.4 21 1 68.9 August _ _ _ 91 90 95 92 92 92 73.3 55.7 65 61 69 69 59 77 38 50 62.7 23 69.5 Monthly average, Jan- uary through Au- gust: 1931 85 85 84 76.9 69.8 76 88 85 58 56 96.7 69 74.4 1932 64 63 69 63 2 46 9 55 73 63 37 35 67.5 28 65.4 1933.