The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-07-10
STEEL SHR|NKAGE
CAUSES NO CONCERN
Compensating Buying Move
ment Expected in Fall
PIG IRON DECREASE
Industry Fails to Keep Up Pace OF
Last Week-Southern Iron Sales
for June Put at 100,-
900 Tons
PIG IRON DECREASE

New York. July s.-(Speeial)-The Iron
Age will say tomorrow:
The steel trade shows little concern over
the shrinkage still going on in the vol
ume of new contracts coming to the man
ufacturers' books. Uniformly there is the
expectation of a compensatinS buying
movement In the fall; quite as general
is the belief that the summer Will pass
with little change in present conditions
In the pig iron end of the industry the
buying has apparently not Kept up at the
pace set in the preceding week
The June pig iron statistics snow that
the curtailment of production was less
than expected, output last month being b
62S.5e5 tons, or S7,S19 tons day, against
2.S22. .217 tons in May, or 9l,03s tons das,
Active furnaces on July l numbered 90
with a daily capacity of 5000 tons day
against 2S2 furnaces on June l, with a
capacity of 1920 tons a day. Indications
now are that output will be cut down fur
ther in July High coke and continued
sinking of the bottom of the pig iron
market are forcing more drastic action.
Announcements that $40 for No. south
ern is no longer to be had are not Dorhe
out bv some transactions of the week,
though 1t is known that s10.5o was the
basis on considerable business.
Southern iron sales for June are put at
10000 tons, including one or two large
lots of pipe iron. At Cincinnati a mold
ers' strike has led to some holding up OF
pig iron shipments.
In structural steel the difficulty OF
financing building projects IS more OF a
factor. New work is coming out slowly
and no immediate change in this direction
is indicated. In the east several ship
building projects recently discussed are IN
abeyance.
cleveland, O., July Especial THE
Iron Trade Review tomorrow VIII say;
The high cost of manufacturing pig
iron and the low prices are beginning
TO have effect in reducing the produc-
ton of pig iron as shown by the hg-
ures for June when the output de-
creased 100000 tons as compared Win
May.
The avera ge daily production in June
was S7,229 tons compared with 90,Soo
tons in May, loss of 1886 tons 1t is
noteworthy, however, that the proouc-
tion of coke and anthracite pig IRON
for the first half of 1918 exceeds the
production for any similar period in the
history of the trade. The total for the
first half is 16,317,S54 tons. gain of
S69.671 tons, compared with the same
period of last year
The production during the first six
months was at the rate of 32,635,0 ,0o0'
but the present outlook is that the
production for the second half VIII
not be equal that for the first.
The movement of iron ore from the
Lake Superior region last month
amounted to 7,974.404 tons. a record for
June of this tonnage 6.214,64S tons
were received at Lake Erie ports at the
present, the shipments from mines are
rather slow. but it is expected that
the movement for July will be heavy.
In spite of the holidays last week,
docks had no difficulty in handling all
the ore that came down.
Considerable activity has character
lied the pig iron market in some sec
tions of the country during the past
few days, but sales are for moderate
tonnages and many buyers are showing
a disposition to cover for early re-
quirements only.
In the south, following the sales
at $40 Birmingham, for No. which
were unquestionably made, there has
been some reaction and $10.5O now
seems to be the minimum. The Ten
nessee Coal, Iron and Railroad company
has determined not to sell at less than
s11 Birmingham for No. 2 and unless
1t can get this price, will blow out fur
naces. This action may have some ef-
feet in strengthening the southern pig
iron market. In basic the American
Steel Foundries has bought 5000 tons
for July and August for plants at Shar-
on and Alliance, at about STATS deliv-
cred and the Pittsburg Steel company
is reported to have bought 5000 tons
of basic. The eastern basic market Is
represented by a quotation of about
$3.50 delivered.
The Steel Maker in the Philadelphia
district reported last week as high
closed for some tonnage has finally
distributed about 5000 tons of basic
among eastern New York, Buffalo and
eastern Pennsylvania producers.
Coke Is being firmly held at $3.50 for
furnace get grades for last half de-
livery. An Ohio consumer has bought
10000 tons for prompt delivery at $3.50.
Some furnaces announce that they will
blow out rather than pay that price
for the last half of the year
There is some contracting for foun-
dry coke at SO. The Southern railway
is understood to have placed 10000 tons
or more of rails for this years de-
livery with the Tennessee Coal, Iron
and Railroad company is still inquir-
ing for 5000 tons which win probably
go to the Maryland Steel company. This
company is also inquiring for from so, :
600 to $1,000 rail joints. Railroad buy
ing is very limited at the present, es-
pecia1ly in cars.
The American Steel and Wire COM
pany, which makes about. 20 per cent
for the product, is holding firmly to
s1SO for wire nails, but number of
independents are freely cutting this
price 50 per ton. Improved crop pros
poets in the west have been favorable
for the wire trade and 1t is hoped that