Masonry Magazine September 1967 Page. 29
Washington Wire
To be sure, the competitive situation that still prevails in many lines argues against price increases. As noted, though, the strength now developing in the economy promises to validate even the hastiest price actions. Even more important, in the thinking of many management men, is the desirability of establishing higher prices before Federal pressure to "hold the price line" can be brought to bear.
Any new guideline approach would be very different from the earlier version. The benchmarks would be much looser. The President's economic advisers would be very wary of fixing an unrealistic wage target such as the 3.2% of 1964 and 1965. And the White House will try harder to head off price action by private pleas-though it will criticize publicly, too. Even a tax increase may have to be augmented by moral suasion.
A REVIVAL OF THE WAGE-PRICE GUIDELINES IS BEING MENTIONED seriously, as one result of the accelerating price trend and the wage package emerging from the auto negotiations.
The impact of a 6% settlement is going to be enormous. It will ripple out to affect a vast sector of industry and even further weaken the outlook for price stability. Labor costs will jump again. President Johnson is not eager to enter the wage-price arena again. His last foray was not notably successful, and this has made labor and management even less willing to go along. But government officials say that the White House simply can not afford to stand aside and not move to brake inflation.
THE FEDERAL RESERVE WILL HOLD OFF ON TIGHTENING MONEY for as long as it possibly can, even in face of the accelerating price indexes.
Officials are growing nervous at the stirrings in wholesale industrial products. But, having called so long and loud for tax action to restrain over-exuberance, they feel that so-called fiscal policy should be given a chance to show it can do the job. In addition, it is pointed out that the faster pace in the economy hasn't hit its stride yet. And today's high interest rates provide a touch of restraint, even though money is available to those who will pay. This doesn't mean that the "Fed" won't tighten if inflation threatens to get out of hand thereby sending today's high interest rates even higher. But, for now, it will hold to a don't-shoot-till-you-see-the-whites-of-their-eyes policy.
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