The copper era., 1907-04-25
Walkers Weekly Copper Letter.

/ price Tor lake Is Z04 to Zb3 cents. the
higher figure being named by the
Calumet & Hecla company. Elec-
.trolytic is offered by Amalgamated
interests at 254 cents. I hear of a
quite probable that there is Il small
amount of copper available for July
delivery which would be sold at 81
cents. More than 10 per cent. of the
production of this country, however,
which will be available for July de-
livery, is sure to be held firmly at
approximately the present level of
prices: and there is every present
| indication that consumers will be
obliged to buy their July and August
supplies at 26-and 25t cents, respect
lively, for the two leading grades.
A very careful and thorough in
vestigation of the metal situation
this week leads me to believe that
ragged appearance for several
months TO come. The largest pro-
ducers will refuse to cut their prices
on the ground that they are unable
to supply the demands of the trade
even at the present level of prices
On the other hand, certain small in
terests will from time to time force
copper for sale, and low quotations
to be made on the Metal Exchange
and elsewhere.
A gentleman who is probably the
highest authority on the metal mar
ket says that there is no occasion
whatever for a decline in the price
of copper. There is such an extreme
scarcity of supplies that the largest
selling agency has been obliged to
default on some of its contracts for
deliveries. There is no basis for the
report, circulated this week, that
some consumers are asking to have
deliveries of copper deferred. The
largest metal people in New York
tell me they do not know of d single
instance in which request of this
kind has been N ade.
This same gentleman referred to
says that unless there is a shrinkage
of more than 20 per cent. in the
volume of general business, there
will be no occasion to mark down the
price of copper. The demand for
this metal is so much greater than
the supply that the market would
continue healthy for a very long
period without reduction in price, |
even after there had been a shrink
age of 20 per cent. in the volume of
general business.
Black copper in anodes ready for
electrolytic refining is understood to
have been offered in New York this
week at 20 cents per pound. This is
equivalent to an offer of refined cop
per at - cents for delivery i'm
August.
those who are bearish on the
metal market point to the larger
production by all the leading copper
districts in March. They assert that
the reduction of extensions by rail-
road and other industrial companies
has released sufficient labor to fill up
the mines and make possible d gen
eral increase of about 8 per cent. in
the American production. They be-
lieve, also, that d curtailed demand
for railroad equipment, with re-
trenchments IN other lines, will re-
duce the demand for copper to some
extent. Even though the price may
be maintained at its present level
during July, they feel that it is
high and that the tend
ency will be for a persistent sagging
until such time as the largest pro-
1ucers are willing to mark the price
to about the 20-cent level.
Confidence that the price of cop
per would decline led to heavy specu-
ative short selling of &c. NJ. B. " in
London, and this selling was RESPONSE
Die for the sharp decline two or
-hree weeks ago. The shorts are now I
being forced to cover. This is the
of the current advance
n London speculative prices.
Just previous to the decline in sc.
NJ. b." European consumers had be-
gun buying copper quite freely in
his country. The speculative de-
cline checked the demand referred
%: but as Europe is bare of copper,
he buying must be resumed soon.
Domestic manufacturers have COW
cred their June requirements, and
with few unimportant
exceptions, have sold all the metal
they will be able to deliver up to
July l.
The falling off of production during
the winter months made it necessary
for refners and selling agencies to
import all the scrap and blister cop
per that could be had in Europe and
refine it in this country. The result
IS that the situation is even more
strained now than it was three
months ago. 1t is probable that
there is less than 20,000,0O0 pounds of
lnsold refined copper ready for de-
livery this month and next in the en-
tire world.
Labor troubles are reported from
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