The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-03-05
GAIN MADE INP|G
 IRON PRODUCTION
First Since September-To- tai Output 1,SSO,OOO Tons
219 FURNACES IN BLAST
Eastern Plate Mills Operating About 80 Per Cent of Capacity-South- ern Will Purchase Cars-Rail
 Orders Placed a

Cleveland, O.. March 4.-lspecial) ) lsay:
 The first gain in pig iron produc-
 tion made since last September was 1 recorded by February when the total
 output was 1.SSS,461 tons, gain of
 9OSo tons over January. February's
 gain is shown more clearly by the
 average daily production which was ST. AS, a gain of 6019 tons compared with
 January
 l On the last day of January 199 blast l furnaces were active, while on the
 last day of February 21s were in blast,
 a gain of 20. At the present unprofit-
 able price of pig iron merchant fur naces are very slow to resume and the
 net gain in merchant stacks was only two while the steel works furnaces
 made net gain of IS.
 The improvement made in January did not continue at the same rate dur ing February, which was somewhat dis appointing. The very cold weather of the past month has had tendency to check many operations and another factor in giving a less favorable as- pect to the situation is the failure to
 maintain some prices in finished ma l terials which have been announced. The recent talk of charging one point | 20 cents Pittsburg for shapes, plates and bars for this month and 1 point 30 cents for the second quarter is not ] taken seriously, but buyers who have contracts providing for 1 point price for ffrot or cents for the second quarter are
 being urged to specify before April 1 | and are being notified that unspeci- 1 fled tonnage on April will be can- cel1ed.
 The invading of the eastern market by 15,000 to 10000 tons of Canadian pig iron marks the first importation of any considerable size under the new low tariff law. The iron has been pur- chased largely by cast iron pipe makers ana IS of foundry grade which will compete principally with southern | irons Pig iron is fairly active in the New York district In the Philadelphia district there has been some activity in basic and the Lukens Iron and Steel company has purchased 1000 tons for March delivery. An inquiry for 1000 tons of basic for prompt delivery is pending and a Harrisburg consumer is understood to have taken several thou
 sand tons of southern basic In central western territory the pig iron market | is very quiet, but prices are being maintained and some advances are an- nounced. In the Chicago territory melt CTS are showing more interest in last
 half iron.
 It IS understood that the Carnegie | Steel company will supply 50000 tons
 of steel for the third tracking Af ele- vated lines in New York city Struc- | tural contracts are being let very slow | ly but heavy tonnages are pending and | It is expected that when the weather
 moderates there will be heavy con tracting. Eastern plate mills are oper- ating at about 80 per cent of capacity l Orders for about 5000 cars were placed during February, decrease of 5000 as compared with January. h. quries for about 10000 cars are pend | ing and it is expected that some or dcrs will be placed soon. Rail orders | for February amounted to about 1S5,- | 900 tons.
 The recent order of the Baltimore | and Ohio for spikes, placed with the Jones & Laughlin Steel Co.,, was for | 30, 900 kegs
 The Southern railroad, which has been considering the advisability of buying 5000 tons of steel for cars will not do so, but will purchase cars. 1 New York, March 1.-The Iron Age
 will say tomorrow Our blast furnace | statistics for February, which are re- | markedly complete, considering the ser | ious crippling of telegraph and mail I service, show plainly the increase in | steel works operations last month. The | production of pig iron in the 2s days of | February was 1,SSS.S13 gross tons, or | 67, ,45S tons @ day against 1.SS5705 tons in January, or 60SOS tons day
 | The steel companies produced 1,330,127 | tons last month or 47,505 tons day agninst 1,2s1. 4S0 tons in January or 4o,- l 691 tons a day.
 1 The steel companies blew in 20 fur | naces i'll February, the steel corpora | ton b and the independent companies l five. Four merchant furnaces were blown out. Two hundred and eighteen were in blast March i, against 197 one month previous. Production Tn January
 was at the rate of 22,2O0.0Up tons a year. In February the rate was A, 600 GOO tons
 a year. a gain of 2.40O,0oo tons or about l II per cent.
 1 The furnaces enter March at a con-
 siderable increase over February rate. Far forward buying is still the exception. l yet some furnaces and some mills are quite we'll sold through May. Pig iron producers, as the result Of conferences 1 in various districts, are asking more money but doing a very moderate bus-
 ness. In the Chicago district, malleable pig iron has sold at 9 to 70 below the