The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-01-20
COPPER METAL
AND ITS FUTURE
President of New York Metal
Selling Company Goes
Over the Situation.
BELIEVES SURPLUS SMALL
PREDICTS A CONSERVATIVE
LEVEL OF PRICES THIS YEAR.

Misha E. Applebaum president of the
New York Metal Selling company. dis
cusses the past years performance in the
copper metal market and the outlook for
the future in the Mining & Scientific
Press, as follows:
The year 1907 proved as sensational in
the copper industry as il did in the gem
eral world of finance. Against the most
uourishing conditions existing at the be
ginning of the year a demOraliZed state
or affairs prevailed in October and No
Nember. and ii was not until week or SO
before the present writing that the cop
per market showed a resumption. of ac-
tlVlty and hopes were felt for a substan-
tial, though gradual Improvement
AT the end OF 1896 it was the general
opinion that the stocks of copper were
very small and that a good business would
result during at least the first half OF
1907. Copper continued to advance from
the closing price of "a cents until level
OF about 26 for lake and electroiytlc
brands had been established. The subse
quent history of the market for 1907 is a
simple one.
Low Mark ia October.
During the first half of the year
good business was done in copper; then
The American consumers withdrew from
the market, and a general business de-
preston having already made itself felt,
they were not tempted by even the heavy
reductions in official prices and thus the
market declined to 25l, to y, then TO Is,
10, 1874. and finally sol din October as low
as L cents. Just at the height of the III
nancial panic a little squirt occurred in
copper and this carried the price up 10 is
cents, but with the approaching holidays,
during which most of the American con-
sUmers closed their mills for week or
ten days for the purpose OF taking inven-
tory, and their refusal to make commit
ments before money became easier and
revival of confidence took place. copper
again sagged down to IS cents. Though
the official quotation was 1873 10 13 cents
it was practically impossible to obtain
copper at that price, and some of the
American consumers having large orders
under 13 cents and being unable to OBJ
tain the metal became rather nervous
and increased their limits. with the re-
suit that on December p the only copper
obtainable was for December and January
delivery at 1895 and 1885 for February. Be
yond that it was practically impossible to
obtain copper at around these prices.
Stock Hard to Estimate.
"A good many criticisms have been di-
rected against one of the leading selling
companies for the manner in which prices
were held and broken. but II should be re-
membered that no one foresaw the panic
and therefore il is my opinion that the
decline in copper has also been one that
no one could foresee. There is also a
good deal of talk as to the amount of
copper stocks in Europe and on this side.
] do not think that in view of what has
one 10 estimate even within 25.O00O00 TO
b0.000Oo0 pounds of the actual stocks on
hand. The only public figures deserving
of credit are those quoted by the Boston
News Bureau of December 13. in an IN
terview with John Gillie. general superin-
tendent of the Amalgamated properties.
He reports an accumulation in October OF
800. 600 ana sales of 161 100000 pounds. so
that ore naturally concludes that there
are 1390O0,O00 pounds of copper still unsOld:
and one must also. consider his remark
that some of the sales have been made
into February, so that perhaps the actual
stock on hand is between 150,O00O00 and
16000O,000 pounds.
Conservative Level of Prices.
with so many mines already shut
down and only fair business doing in
copper. il is, my belief that the surplus
will shortly be wiped out and that unless
the mines are opened a sharp squeeze
will result. And since at the present mo-
ment most of the large mines can produce
copper with profit and. pay good dividends
on Il TO 10 cent market. ii is to be hoped
that when the price gets to that level the
mines will omen and a conservative and
steady level be established. enabling both
the consumer and the producer TO do bust
ness at mutually advantageous prices. At
a IA to 10 cent level the production would
certainly not be restricted OF course a
good deal deDends on the financial and
business condition of the country and II
We have seen the worst and the expected
improvement comes. we shall see a good
business in copper"