New-York tribune., 1907-10-30
BIG COPPER DEN1ND.
Foreign Ordcrs Cause Price Of Metal
to 1dTanCc.

The deadlock in the copper market since carly
IN the summer has been broken at last and con
sumcrs are now falling over each other IN their
anxiety To bay copper at I5 cents a pound when
a week ago they refused TO nay L cents a pound
for it. according 20 the statement made yesterday
by a member Of the firm OF Phelps Dodge s Co.
the second largest metal selling agency in the
country. This man said that since last Friday,
when the upward swing in the price of the metal
began. both the export and domestic purchases
had been enormous. and n result his FIRMS
surplus accumulation Of the last four months was
entirely gone and tho Amalgamated surplus. esti-
mated at @SlCo10oO pounds nearly wiped out
we are now selling copper for no earlier than
December delivery" no continued. "aud domestic
consumers who week ago refused to take copper
from us at j cents pound now Offering Is.
The large consumers who have held aIooC from
the market. expecting the price to 20 lower, now
realize their mistake and anxious to nuy he
fore the price goes any higher The fact that the
advance in tho price Of the metal began Fri
day, when the panic was at its height shows that
inc business conditions OF the country sound
lie added that most of the copper his firm had
sold abroad had been purchased direct by con-
sumers, and was therefore not being held for spec
uatve purposes. Other well informed interests
however. pointed out that while Europe's monthly
purchases Of copper had averaged about 100000
pounds, in the last week there had been exported
from this side between 125 100000 and 100000
pounds. and declared that this big buying move
ment which had so suddenly developed was with
per circles that the demand which had forced
the price up so rapidly in the last few days had
come largely from abroad, and that the domestic
purchasers had not come into the market yet to an
appreclable extent. but the Pheps-Dodge man and
other leading producers declared that domestic or
ders also large, although they agreed that the
turn in the market originated In London
Despite the increased demand IL was said in
well informed quarters that there would be no i'm
mediate increase in the output by the mines that
had curtailed their production The demand would
have to be much heavier and money conditions
much improved. it was said before this was done
Bankers manifested considerable interest ycster-
day in the heavy sales OF copper abroad which
they declared would be a strengthening factor and
would tend to relieve the local money situation.
The value OF copper sold in Europe so far this
month is said to be within a few million dollars
OF tho value Of the gold already engaged for ship
ment TO this country.
The quoted price of copper the Metal Ex-
change continued to advance sharply yesterday
Lake up 2 cent in the bid and cent in the
asked price, ut 1894 cents to l44 cents Il pound
and there a similar advance in the bid and
asked price of electroIytic. which was quoted at
1874 cents to II cents, while castings advanced ,.
cent, being 1874 cents TO 1879 cents. The price on
the Metal Exchange do not represent actual trans
actions and generally lower than the market
price OF the metal, but advance or decline in
the quoted price of copper the exchange usually
precedes similar movement in the actual market
price OF the metal.