The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-12-29
Much Inquiry for Last Half of
Year
CAR SHORTAGE TROUBLE
Holiday Season viii Make consump-
ton of Iron Comparatively Light
During Next TWO Weeks-Pro-
duction in 1906 Phenomenal,

yards because of the scarcity of cars.
at about $40 on No. 2 basis and the
price for the fourth quarter is $40. Spot
iron will bring almost any price the sell
Ter sees fit to ask.
Rogers. Brown & Co.'S Cincinnati re-
port for the current week follows:
The week has shown no change in pig
iron prices for various deliveries. The
feature has been the increased inquiry
and buying for delivery during the last
half of next year Inquiries and orders
continue for prompt delivery or for ship
ment during January by those foundries
which have either underestimate their
consumption or find themselves con-
fronting a shortage on account of lack
of deliveries on contracts previously
made. The only iron that can be offered
for really prompt shipment is the for
eign iron, which is coming over in fair
quantities, although the tonnage is not
large and the unusual delay of one of the
vessels coming into Philadelphia last
week caused much inconvenience among
consumers in that neighbrhood.
Consumption during the next two
weeks will probably average lighter than
any other weeks in the year, on account
of the position of the holidays making
it almost compulsory with many plants
to close down from Saturday night until
Wednesday. This Is being done in a
number of instances and will influence
consumption accordingly.
On account of irregularity of car sup
ply and consequent difficulty in obtain
ing continuous and reliable supply of raw
material, many furnaces are running on
whatever they can lay their hands on
in both iron ore ana coke, and such
practice naturally has resulted in the
making of a larger percentage of low
grade iron than would be usual. 1t is
possible, of course, to sell these low
grade lots promptly and at a good figure,
but makes it impossible to ship on con-
tracts calling for higher grades which
under ordinary conditions furnaces could
be very easily expected 10 manufacture.
Conditions tending toward anything like
satisfactory manufacture and shipment
in the south are very bad, with little
prospect of Improvement. 1t is reported
that there is a largely increasing accu-
mutation of iron on furnace yards at that
point, every pound of which is sold and
consumers anxiousy waiting its ship
ment.
The year passes out with phenomenal
record for production and consumption in
all lines. Records have been broken
without number, and while the tonnage
of uncompleted contracts for both raw
and finished material carried over into
1907 will be larger than ever, the business
accomplished during 1906 has been on
such a large scale that high records will
be made. Pig iron production in the
United States is yariously estimated at
from twenty-five million to twenty-five
and a half million tons. When actual
figures are obtanable 1t would not be
surprising to see the latter figure moro
nearly reached than the even million.
Coke continues strong and in excellent
demand, with production and quality
much hampered by irregularlty in car
supply and lack of labor Lack of labor
may be said TO be an absolute truth
during the present week, as this is the
one time when labor in the coke fields
is practically Irresponsible
Matthew Addy e. Co.'S Cincinnati report
says:
Today the absorbing topic of interest
in the pig iron trade is what prices will
be during the latter half of next year.
AS for the first half of 1907 there can be
no question. The great bulk of the iron
that can be delivered during that time
=
beyond change. Never before in the his
tory of the iron trade have the furnaces
entered the new year with their order
books so well filled as at the present
time. Probably 80 per cent of all the
iron that can be made during the first
quarter of the year has been already
sold, and it is likely that considerably
more than IS per cent of the iron that
can be made during the second quarter
of the year is under contract.
The bulk of the buying recently has
been for delivery over the third and
fourth quarters of the year, and the
great and vitality important question that
consumers are asking themselves is
whether to buy now FOR that far ahead
delivery, or TO take their chances and
man who has taken his chances and
waited has found that he has paid beavi-
ly for his delay Every week that he
put off buying cost him money. SO some
consumers have dearly realized that de-
lays are dangerous. The furnaces arc
asking between three and four dollars
more for spot iron than for iron for
shipment July through December of next
year. so that it is possible to contract
for future delivery without paying the
present top of the market Many of the
consumers who are putting off buying
argue that the present prices of iron
will necessarily tend to check consump-
tion and in this way will cure them
selves. There are others who believe
that the prosperity of the country Is so
great and so widespread that the de-
mand for pig iron will keep on indehnlte-
ly as 1t is at present, and therefore that
existing strenuous conditions are not
likely to end for long time to come.
Some of the best. posted men in the
country take this view of the situation,
and a few of them affirm that 1t is their
conviction that prices of pig iron will be
$50 before they are less. There are others
who believe that abundant crops are real
ly the barometer of business, that until
we know what the harvests of next year
are going to be we cannot predict prices
of pig iron for the last half. Then there
is the mechanical argument that pig iron