New Britain herald., 1916-09-21
ENORMOUS DEMAND
 FOR STEEL IN |. s.
Higher Prices and Difficult DeliV-
 cry Are Predictions

New York, Sept. 21.-The Iron Age
 says today:
 The drift of the steel trade is
 toward higher prices and greater
 difficulties in delivery. In brief the
 situation is that Europe will take whatever amount of steel American
 mills will agree to deliver when i wanted, and that domestic buyers are 1 I Iroviding for their wants in the first i half of 1917 at prices they Were un- 1 willing to consider two months ago. : Consumers are acting on the more | definite signs that with the war pro- l 1onged through 1917 the steel works l of the country will continue to have l to choose between buyers. A signif-
 cant case is the buying of 23O loco-
 motives by the New York Central. l Deliveries are not wanted before the l last quarter of 1917. Locomotive 1 works could build them earlier, but 1 the railroad looked rather to the 1 steel situation and to the large inn pending foreign orders.
 The placing here of 1000 1ocomo- lives and thousands of cars for Russia is a matter of a short time and the car requirements of France
 and Italy are put at 2O,OOO to 3O,000. e'A V
 to be bid on, of which 2,50O are for the Missouri Pacific, 2OOO for the
 Western Maryland and 2,0O0 for the
 M K & T. Of 5000 just placed, 3,OOO are for the New York Central and the seller of these has covered for steel for the second quarter of 1917.
 To what pass the plate situation is coming is seen in the placing of three vessels at a Pacific Coast yard for the first quarter of 1918 or nearly Is months ahead On large lots of plates for delivery in the first half of next year as high as 4c has been quoted. Including 6S,000 tons on W hich the government took bids this week, nearly 5000 tons of plates nave been before the mills lately in the effort to make sure of deliveries W hen wanted
 Building suffers less from high prices August contracts took up GA per cent. of a months capacity of bridge and structural works, against 47 per cent, in July. Steel company additions are still taking large tonnage. For a Chester, Pa., power house 5000 tons is wanted and 7,500 tons for the Thames river bridge of the New Haven railroad.
 France offers 35,000 tons of rails, but is not likely to get the deliveries wanted. At Pittsburgh a road that covered it's supposed needs for 1917 fas just ordered 15,00O tons more, taking Bessemer rails, as open hearth could not be had Chicag go rail inquiries represent 5000 tons. Tn the Central West an industrial com- pany has been quoted $50 on 800 tons of standard sections. There is great activity in light rails, and discard steel is finding large outlet in this form.
 At Chicago contra cting for bars, plates and shapes has been more active, about 5O,OOO tons of bars, plates and shapes being placed by fabricators, in addition to a jobbing order for 10000 tons Of plates and bars Tn that district new business keeps pace with output, even with t],e increase due to cooler weather.
 Scarcity in wire and tin plate is in d:cated, both having been sold in a large way for export. Woven wire fence has been advanced about $2.50 per ton. Tin plate mills have made large sales for the first half of 1917 | and will have a large carry-Over from this year. Contracts are made with ] the price to be fixed later, probably 1 $550 per box. !
 The Pearson oil interests are in the 1 market for 100 miles of inch line pipe. The recent advance in wrought l nine followed liberal contracting at i the last price.
 Steel billet and sheet bar contracts 1 for the fourth quarter basis though l some belated deliveries will be made !! in October and November at the old l 7;rice Northern Ohio sheet mills are 1 in the market. One Cleveland sheet | mill recently finished, will not start l in view of the high level for raw ma- terial.
 Cast iron pipe, usually a laggard | even with pig iron moving up, has ad- 1anced $1 a ton.
 With other markets quieter, Chi ! cago reports the heaviest buying of | pig iron since the movement began. l some good export sales were included 1 and the total for the district since l September i is put at 250,OOO tons | Prices are firmer in Central Western ! districts. The smaller foundries are | Beginning to come in as the bargains Cn which the moveme ent started dis 1 appear.
 British makers of 80 per cent fer 1 romanganese are meeting prices re- gently made by domestic sellers, and as low as $164 has been done, as against $175 on the last contracts.