The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1916-11-10
PAPER PRICES SOAR,
COSTS MILLS LESS
TRADE COMMISSION COMPLETES
INVESTIGATION ORDERED BY
UNITED STATES SENATE.
Cost of Production S1.65 Per Hum
dred; Newspapers Paying as
High as $500.


commission declares that during the
first half of the year, when prices al
ready were soaring to unprecedented
hgures, the average cost of producing
news print paper in domestic mills
was less than $165 per hundred
pounds, or below the average cost in
the past three years.
Inc commission announces that, be-
fore issuing its reports( public hear
lngS Will he conducted and manufac-
turers, publishers and others inter
ested given an opportunity to appear.
No date is set for the hearings, but
the report is said to be ready to send
to the press in the near future.
Certain facts developed by the in
quiry are made public now, because
most of the publishers contracts for
Pper are about to expire. Contract
prices rose this year from less than
~ per hundred to So and $3.50. and
on current market purchases the pub
fishers have paid ST or more for paper
bought in the same way prior to Jan
uary l for between 50 and So.
Text of Statement.
ihS Statement lOllOWS.
"The investigation of the advance in
prices of news print paper which was
undertaken by the federal trade COM
mission by direction of the senate has
been practically completed, and the re-
port will be ready to send to the press
IN the near future. Considering the
large mass of data involved, the work
has been done in an unusually short
time.
This is about the time when nego-
tlatlons for the renewal of a large
number of contracts between newspa
per publishers and news print paper
manufacturers usually take place. The
commission has, therefore, decided to
make public Immediately certain fun
damental facts which have been es-
tablished by the investigation. Some
OF the facts stated here have been as
certained through computations Which
have just been completed. No con-
cluslons are drawn from these facts in
this statement, such matters being re-
served for the official report. Befofe
the report is issued the news print
manufacturers, newspaper publishers
and other parties interested will be
given opportunity to appear before the
commission at a public hearing.
Began Early in 1916.
The price advance in news print
paper which occasioned this investiga-
ton began early in 1916, and has con
tlnued down to the present. Most
news print paper, probably about 90
per cent, is sold on contract for
periods of year or more. Before the
price advance began contract prices
Tor news print paper were generally
less than 50 yer hundred pounds. f. O.
b. mill. During the first half of 1916
contract prices for large quantities in
some instances went as high as $3.50.
Most of the contracts now in operation
will expire within three or four
months.
"On current market purchase news
paper publishers have been paying
manufacturers and jobbers very much
higher prices. Before January l, 1916,
current market prices ranged gen.
orally between So and So per hundred
pounds, delivered, depending on uuan-
tlty, freight and other circumstances.
but since that time they have gone up
as high as Sc or 81 per hundred
pounds for a considerable volume of
business, and even higher in excep-
tional instances.
Manufacturers Prices.
The average prices received by do
mestic manufacturers of print news
paper did not advance in anything like
egree that current market prices
advanced, because most of the paper
was sold under contracts previo usly
made. On the average, the actual net
receipts of domestic manufacturers
for news print paper were less than
$2 per hundred pounds during the first
half of 1916.
The average cost of manufacture of
news print paper in domestic mills
was less than $33 per ton, or S1.65
per hundred pounds during the first
half of 1916 as shown both by the
manufacturers own cost sheets and
by the costs as revised by the account
ants of the commission. Furthermore.
these average costs were slightly low
er than the average cost in any year
from 1913 to 1915.
Though the average cost declined
IN the first half of 1916, the market
prices of some of the materials of
manufacturers advanced and were un-
usually high.
Sulphite and Wood.
1t should be noted that the most
important materials which advanced
in price, sulphite and ground wood,
were produced by most Of the paper
manufacturers without an increase in
cost and not bought at market prices,
while some other manufacturers were
protected against the increase in prices
by contracts. Some of the other ma