Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-12-25
METAL MARKETS DULL.
Few Striking Features in the Holiday
Demand, Here or Abroad.
LITTLE BUSINESS In BILLETS.
Lively Interest in Soft Steel Makers Meet
ings at Pittsburg.
A ROUND FokEIGN ORDER FOR BEAMS

ESPECIAL TELEGRAM TO THE pIsPATcH.l
New YORK, Dec 24-The Iron Age, in its
review of the metal markets for the week
will say to morrow:
American Pig-Some Southern sellers have
again become urgent, but have been press
ing the market more particularly on lower
grades. which are not largely taken in this
section. At Birmingham, Ala, large blocks
of gray forge have been sold on the basis OF
81 80. We quote Northern brands SIS 750
SIS 90 for No. 1; $l6 00G16 50 for No. 2 and
sl4 0o64 SO for gray forge. Southern iron
sells at SIC 0O@l7 90 for No. l; SIS 25Gl6 90 for
No. 9, and slS 756l4 50 for gray forge.
Spiegelisen and Ferro Manganese-The
market has been very dull. Foreign 80 per
cent ferro is quoted at s62 0O@62 80 tide
water, while spiegelisen is nominally SIC 75@
"a 90.
Biliets and Rods-Little business is re-
ported in domestic billets by sellers in this
market Considerable interest is taken in
the outcome of the meetings among soft
steel makers being held in Pittsburg. 1t is
understood that the first meeting last week
was attended only by a few producers, and
there was a free Interchange of opinion
which led to the conviction that prices have
been crowded altogether too low. 1t is re-
ported that there has already been a stiffen-
ing in the West which has been reflected by
slightly higher prices in the East. 1t is
pretty well known now that the low prices
Tor soft steel brought us good many buyers,
notably in the West, and that in the aggre-
gate a very heavy amount of business has
been booked for the first quarter of next
year. In foreign billets we NAV note that
there have been offerings at $50 IS.
Wire Rods Selling Well Out West
Wire rods are dull in the East at s36 50@37
tidewater, while a heavy business is reported
fle f1t dyo nh ho In
est prices reached. The Western trade was
particularly demoralized by the expectation
that the large mills building would become
sellers at an early date. 1t turns out now
that in one case they did not care to meet
the market, and that in another there had
been delay in completing the machinery.
Steel Rails-Eastern makers of steel rails
report little new business, and are at the
present time more heenly interested in the
light rail trade, in which there is close COM
petition and some irregularity. Some OF the
Western mills do not make the differences
in the different sections which Eastern mills
adhere to fairly well. Other works crowd
the market on the very light sections. In
the Pittsburg district there has been quite
lively demand lately for mine rails, due to
the resumption of work in the mines oil that
section which has followed the exhaustion
OF natural gas.
A Good Foreign Order For Beams
Manufactured Iron and Steel-The princi-
pal item of interest is that another round
order for beams has gone abroad. For the
first three tiers of the building in question
there was not time to wait 1or foreign
beams, so that 800 tons were placed with 4
neighboring mill. The balance of the re-
Quirerent, 700 tons. Will be foreign. Plates
are still selling at low figures and bars are
being offered at close figures. We quote:
Angles, 1902. i0c: sheared plates. ls5G2 Csc:
tees, 2.40@2.75c and beams and channels, !. lc
. aI5ae soc for shell, 24o@e Csc for flange. eco
@2I5c FOR marine and 573.a5c for frebox on
dock. Bars are L7@l9c on dock. Scrap
axles are quotable at e9aeoc delivered.
e3c; steel hoops, 1869. .05c delivered.
Merchant Steel-Weq quote hot-rolled shaft
in" 1862 l0c; machinery. 2o59a. l5c: tire,
.. 2.loae.25c, and toe calk, s.l5@a25c delivered.
The Features in Foreign Markets.
The foreign markets, by cables, are re-
viewed as follows: Scotch warrants have
receded 10 AS on sales of a few small lots,
and the market is still fat. Cleveland
warrants have advanced TO 3ss Sd, however,
and hematite to 49s, with q fair business
done, chiefly in the form Of purchases
against late short sales. Stock in warrant
stores now amount TO 800 050 tons Scotch and
l54 coo tons Cleveland.
Tin plate found a brisk sale early in the
week, but the market has since become
quiet High grade ternes met with very fair
demand and several ,nakersare now booked
three months ahead on that class of product.
BesSemer cokes of odd sizes were the most
active, however, and number of forward
contracts were secured at l2s Cd at South
Wales, against l2S ID for ordinary IA by 90
Charcoals are virtually neglected.
Pig tin advanced to f9l for prompts
early in the week, but subsequently receded
Gl despite modern straits shipments, under
the influence OF free sales OF foreign owned
metal. At the decline there was lair
amount of quiet buying.
Copper has been steadier and merchant
bar prompts sold I'D to 45 pounds lots under
the influence OF better purchases by con-
sumers and freer speculative buying of
futures. some holders have realized on the
advance hut the market has the support of
the leading firms. Recent sales of furnace
material include $50 tons Montana matte at
g. (an advance OF 3d), and 500 tons ditto ON
private terms.