River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1880-01-01
Great Rise in Rubber.
New YORK Times.

There hes been much excitement in
the rubber trade all over the world, and
particularly in this country, for several
days. The excitement was brought
about entirely by the manipulationS Of
a certain Spanish house in the trade.
This house went to work quietly in q
determined bull movement, and ope-
rated SO successfully that they succeed
ed in creating universal feeling that
the Para (Brazil) crop would be short.
This feeling soon sent prices flying up
ward and dealers began buying in every
direction, and at all kinds of prices. The
Spaniards had been buying the Para
crop as fast as il was gathered, and had
large quantities of rubber IL the ports
of New York, Philadelphia and Liver
pool, and found little difficulty in dis
posing of it at fancy prices. In fact the
very presence of the rubber at the ports
named had been managed as one of the
means of breaking the market. For
years past rubber had steadily remained
at an average price OF so cents pound.
The Spaniards would send one cargo TO
port, consign it to-. be sold at 60 cents,
another to be sold at 20 cents, and so on.
each consignment being at higher fig.
ures than the one preceding. The ope-
rators being known to be exceedingly
shrewd, the reasons for their conduct
were inquired into, and it was soon
agreed all around that they had, upon
investigation, discovered that the crop
was partial failure, and were strength
enipg themselves against the future.
This osinion once Obtaining was quickly
circulated in all directions. The result
was that prices went up so rapidly, and
the fever to buy against q supposed
short crop became so great, that the
Spanish gentlemen found no difficulty
in either securing full advances on their
consignments or selling even at higher
figures. In four days last week the
movement ran prices from 90 cents to
81 a pound, with plenty of buyers at
the latter figure. As an instance of the
activity produced in the trade, it may
be stated that during the excitement l.
600 tons, or 1000, 600 pounds of rubber,
represented the amount bought in one
Jay by several houses in New York and
Liverpool alone, at prices ranging from
rs to so cents pound. That amount
is about one-sixteenth of the whole an
nual crop OF the entire world, showing
an extraordinary state of trade. The
truth gradually dawned upon the rubber
dealers, and prices began to drop. But
as the spectators had secured enough
of the Para crop to control the market.
they have been able to keep prices up
beyond natural level. Yesterday the
quotations opened at so, but closed at
50, with very firm market.
Investigations made by Times report
er showed that the rubber crop, instead
of being short, is in reality somewhat
greater than it was last year. The Para
district of Brazil produces about one-half
of the rubber crop of the world, amount
ing to between Is, 600, 900 and Is, 900, 900
pounds year. Africa and the East In
dies together proUuce about as much
more. The crop is gathered from Sep
TENDER until April, and is now about half
in. Although rubber is the most elastic
thing in the world, it has for years been
about the steadiest and most unyielding
article of trade, in the matter of wild
cat" speculation, in the market. This
has been mainly owing to the uniform
steadiness in improvement of the Para
crop. For twenty-five years this crop
has averaged a steady increase of about
10 per cent. every year.