The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-10-19
Of COPPER
BEING CONSUMED
Consumption Has Mere Than
Held Its Own During
Hard Times.

Expectations that the September cop
per statistics would he favorah BILE were
fulfilled. European stocks decreased T."
l6S,ooO pounds; American, 20. .oS7 ,531; to-
tai. 21,2555 531 pourds Since July / tho
total stock has been reduced II 900 900
pounds. This manifests. at least, a turn
OF the right direction in the copper stu
alton. says the Engineering and Mining
Journal
The reduction in the stock in this
country was due to a further swelling OF
the eNportation; maintenance Of the do
mcsticc deliveries and decrease In the
production. The decrease In production
ala not reflect the curtaimcnt by the
Snellers, which has not yet had Time to
manifest itself. 1t Is to be ascribed to
refinery conditions and the status OF the
stocks OF crude copper among the re-
liners and in transit TO them.
we are under no Illusion as 10 the
huge exports or September. which In part
went undoubtedly into the invisible
stock OF Europe. but the fact remains
that actual consumption in both Europe
and America is going on at an unporal-
lelcd rate. and with the certainty OF fur
thcr decrease In the production the pros
pect Is good for further improvement In
the copper situation. The smeltcrs ig-
ures for August show A decrease OF about
100000 pounds In the production OF
North America as compared with July.
The September figures, so far as received;
are running smaller. This curlailment
should begin TO show in the refinery sta
tiStics for October.
The fear that has haunted producers
during the last month has becn the
status OF consumption In this country.
lhere mas been so much talk OF recess
sion In business in general that copper
manufacturing would naturally be expect
ed TO suffer along with other industries.
We have been persistcntly Of the
opinion that recession in business In the
United States in 1910 has been greatly
exaggerated In copper consumption
there has been no recession statistically
observable.
In 1909 the deliveries were 7o5.c51. 5al
pounds an average OF 5S,io0,000 pounds
per month. In tho first quarter OF 1910
the monthly average was 50 207 900, in
the second, 0.2iS,000, IN the third. g.
gSo.00O. Consumption and deliveries diff
fer as TO monthly comparisons. but the
statistics for the first nine months OF
1910 indicate that the domestic consump-
tion has been in the ncighborhood OF
10000 600 pounds per month, which is
The highest rate in the history of this
country. The consumption in Europe
having also been extraordinary. II is evil
dent that the low price for copper has
stimulated the use of the metal In many
hclds wherein II ordinarily suffers from
the competlllo OF other substances.
Copper consumption having thus more
than held its own during a year OF COM
mercial disturbance and reactionary ten
dencies we expect TO see 1t gain largely
when the time comes. following this late
period OF liquidation. for the Inaugural
tion of new enterprises. This condition
Will probably create an actual need for
the new production OF copper that Will
begin TO nlaterialiZe in 1911. but hardly
Will become large until 1917. In the
meanwhile monthly decrease OF
25,000.000 pounds in the accumulation.
which is not improbable, would In six
months more reduce the total to but lit
tie upward OF 00,000,000 pounds. or only
slightly In excess OF a months supply OF
the worlds present requirements, and
that situation would, OF course imply a
higher price for the metal than prevails
at present.