Spring Fever

As the nation's merchants had hoped, the consumer sniffed spring in the air, kicked up his (and her) heels, and came out in force to buy for Easter. Department store sales, already on the rise, last week were pushing for their best week of the year. What was even more encouraging for manufacturers was the fact that merchants were beginning to reorder. New York's Kirby, Block & Co., which acts as buyer for more than 100 member stores, reported that a quick pickup in new orders followed in spring's steps. "The fast step-up in customer purchasing,'' said Milton J. Greenebaum, Kirby, Block's president, "is revealing many thin spots in inventories. Now retailers are rushing orders aimed at filling these gaps."

The University of Michigan Research Center on the other hand found that consumers are still somewhat reluctant to step up overall spending, despite confidence in a general business upturn. But the survey cautiously noted that consumers may be persuaded by good business news "to make purchases that are being put off now." Detroit, for one, was counting on just that. Last week the auto industry increased production 17% to the highest level since mid-January.

More Orders. There was better news from all the nation's manufacturers. The Department of Commerce reported that manufacturers' sales in February were up for the first time in ten months (to $28.9 billion, a 1% gain), and that new orders have risen for the first time since a brief flurry last summer, making a 2% gain to $29 billion. Equally significant, manufacturers' backlogs of orders showed their first solid rise in more than a year. Inventory liquidation, a prudent pulling back that aggravates any recession, has slowed down. Manufacturers reduced their inventories in February by $100 million, the same as in January but far below the hefty inventory reductions of recent months.

More Gambling. While businessmen generally look to increased federal spending to help the economy along, it is also scheduled to get a solid boost this year from heavy spending by state and local governments. Non-Federal Government spending has been rising at an annual average of $3 billion since World War II as population movements and the growth of cities have added to the responsibilities of states and municipalities. In 1961. reports the Survey of Current Business, purchases of goods and services by states and municipalities will hit a record $51 billion, up $3 1/2 billion over last year.

One special industry has left the recession far behind. Nevada's Governor Grant Sawyer reported that gambling in Las Vegas in March was 16.7% higher than in March last year. Some clubs reported business up 30%.

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