The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-04-29
REVIEW Of THE
COPPER MARkE 7
Increased Sales and Exports
the Main Feature of the
Situation.
LARGE INTERESTS
ARE IN CONTROL
Small Hope for a While for
the Small, High Cost
Producer.

Coupled with the information Friday
that the sales of copper during tho past
two weeks had totalcd 100. 100000 pounds,
the price stffenng to above i cents,
were the figures Of copper exports so far
during April. For the week ending April
y, ,2S7 tons OF the metal had been eN-
ported, making a fetal TO date for the
month OF @T.037 tons as against l2,i22
tons for the same period of the previous
year. The present monthly production
of the metal. as shown by the March sta
ustlcs. is approximately 10000. 900 pounds
and the domestic stocks about lS@'ooo'ooo
pounds,
There is no question apparently OF the
adherence to the Curtailment policy on the
part of tho larger producers Ihe Anal
gamated Copper company in March pro-
duccd about 10000 600 pounds less than in
March Of 1910. and 100000 pounds less
than I'm March. 1903. The Utah copper
company during tho first quarter of 1871
produced 2l .296. 709 pounds OF the metal
which is at the rate OF about iloo.uOo
pounds monthly. and tho production rate
OF this company during the last quarter
OF 1910 was 1896. .229 pounds per month
The high month OF this company so FAR
was May, 1910. when $3.50. 900 pounds were
produced, which was before the curtail-
ment policy came into being
Nevada Con, Policy.
The fact that the March output of the
Nevada Consolidated was the largest OF
the first quarter Of 1911. has created the
Impression in many places that this com :
pany is disrcgarding the curtallmcnt pol
icy, although there apparently is no rea-
son for these interests disregarding the
curtailmcnt programme as long as prac-
tically the same people arc observing 1t
elsewhere. This company produced 5.b32.
256 pounds In March. but the average
monthly production for the quarter was
, 297 900 pounds, the quarters total being
Ia. S93. 743 pounds against 1855 ,59o pounds
during the last quarter OF 1917. The rec
ord month for this company was July,
1910. when the output reached 6,9S6. i29
pounds.
While curtallment on the part OF the
large domestic producers is physical
actuality. the figures fall TO show II ow-
Ing either to the unusual imports OF tho
metal or the quiet but effective slipping
out OF some of that unknown quantity.
the invisible supply: from It's numerous
imports for March. 1911. was. as stated.
1862, OSO pounds, or 1o.464,3l3 pounds
in excess OF the March, 1910. production.
AT the Same time the domestic deliveries
and exports OF copper for March, 1911.
were l25, ,l61 ,ol6 against l03, ,430, ass pounds
| for the same month OF 1910.
Future Control.
1t all boils down TO the point that with
anything like normal industrial condl-
| tions copper would improve more read
| ily than any other commodity, but the
ability to produce the metal doubtless
| will match the case with which the metal
| is absorbed by consumptive channels In
| the future to such an extent that no un-
due appreciation OF price per pound can
| or should be expected.
The copper situation has been reduced
| TO an exact science by which the large
producer capable of meeting low prices
| with low costs will prosper 10 the eX-
| cluslon for a long time OF the smaller
propositions. For the man of limited cap.
| ital other mining lines must be his goal
such as gold, silver, lead and zinc prop
| ositlons.