The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1916-07-27
IRON AND STEEL
MARKET IS ACTIVE
Many Inquiries Continue to
Come in for All
Grades

Cleveland, July 26.-(Special 1.-The Iron
Trade Review tomorrow will say:
Buying of steel bars for first half of
next year by agricultural implement man
ufacturers continues, and there is good
authority for the statement that total
contracts amount. to 100000 tons. While
some Independent mills have sold large
tonnage at $3.50, notably one contract in
the Cincinnati district, very large per-
centage of the orders was placed at $685.
Pittsburg, for soft bars, and some hard
bars rerolled from crop ends have been
placed at SIPS, Pittsburg. A very
large amount of cropping is being done
in the manufacture of shel1s-steel. Action
of the steel corporation in declaring u
very modest extra dividend and in trans
ferring nearly forty-eight million dollars
to surplus from second quarter operations
is in harmony with extremely conserva-
tive policies of this great corporation
Car builders are more encouraged over
the outlook in their market For rail-
roads which have been holding off from
buying for number of months in the
hope of lower steel prices now are show
ing renewed interest in new lots of equip
ment.
Inquiries have increased, but a good
many of these are in tentative state,
and it is by no means certain when they
will be closed, if at all. The Western
Pacific has 1000 box cars under considera-
ton. The Minneapolis and ST Louis is
also figuring on from 500 to 1000 box cars
In the east the Lehigh Valley remains
in the market for 1900 box car bodies,
and the Delaware and Hudson for 1000
hoppers
1.-THE Gadsden car works is inquiring
for 400 underframes. Owing to strikes
at flusr spar mines, in the Illinois dis
trict which furnishes a large percentage
of this product used by open hearth
steel plants and by foundries throughout
the United States, serious shortage is
feared. These mines are closed, and
there has been a reign of terror through
out the district for several days.
Recent declines in the price of spell
ter have caused manufacturers of gall
vanized pipe to reduce prices about $40
per ton, and almost at the same time that
the lower prices were announced spelter
again started upward and another revis-
ion of pipe prices may be necessary at a
not far distant date.
Inquiries for pig iron for export are
numerous and it is estimated that about
100000 tons will probably be exported dur
ing the next six months. In the east two
more furnaces are preparing to change
from making foundry grades to Bessemer
in order to meet foreign demands South.
ern iron is weak and can be obtained at
$14, Birmingham, for number two, for last
half of year. Throughout the country
the demand for domestic uses is light
Recent floods in the south have resulted
in inquiries for considerable tonnage o.
steel for bridge work. being sent out by
several Ohio shops, which are figuring on
5000 tons of this steel, for southern rail-
roads are having difficulty in contracting
for shapes for anything like prompt de-
livery.
Extremely active demand for plates
for export has aroused domestic buyers,
and some important inquiries have ap-
peared, including one for 14,o0O tons for
Gloucester, N. j., shipyard while
Wilmington, Del, yard has increased it's
inquiry from 2400 to 5000 tons