60 The Stock Market Crash—And After 
consumption by 26 per cent, while exports were 
down by 17.8 per cent and imports up by 3.8 per 
cent. 
The decline in export figures seems to confirm the 
cabled reports of the position of world commodity 
markets which indicate a decline ascribed to the 
forced sales succeeding the American stock market 
crash and the fall of prices in foreign stock markets. 
Commodities were reported to have been “dumped” 
in many centers in order to meet losses incurred 
through the depression of security values. 
But this effect, as will be shown below, was chiefly 
psychological and had no basis in fact. The real 
effect of the stock market on business is in facilitat- 
ing or impeding the financing of business enterprises, 
and in making available stock market profits for 
consumption. The psychological effect is naturally 
of a temporary character. In the present case, al- 
though it has done so at great expense to stock- 
holders, the stock market has so adequately financed 
our leading corporations that it should be no great 
deterrent to business, if it is more difficult to obtain 
funds for business through the stock market during 
1930. Regarding the third point, there is truth in 
the contention that stock market profits tend as a 
rule to stay in the market during periods of rising 
prices so that the makers of these profits, instead of 
cashing in, very often prefer to increase their paper 
wealth. On this account the decline in the stock 
market may not prove to have greatly curtailed con- 
sumption of commodities.