The Elk Mountain pilot., 1917-01-25
At Opening of HostiIities Industry
Used Nine-Tenths of That
Produced.
1916 YIELDS $4,000 TONS
United States Now Able to Mine
2,4oo,ooO,ooo Pounds Year
Curtailment Feared After
the War Ends.


75 per cent of the worlds present pro-
duction is being used for war purposes.
the remaining 20 per cent going into
| commercial consumptive channels as
before the war began. At the outbreak
of hostilit,es, it is estimated no more
than 10 per cent of the copper pro-
| duced by all the countries with depos-
its of the metal went into the manu-
facture of war material. The peace
| full trades used up 80 per cent, and
this proportion existed for several
years before the upheaval in Europe.
These are significant figures, particu-
larly as regards the market for copper
after the war ends. The United States
produced copper in the autumn
months at the annual rate OF
2,400,000.0O0 pounds, compared with
about 1,900,OO0,0O0 turned out in all
of 1916. In July, 1914, the mines and
refineries of the country were turning
out the metal Mt the rate of 1,IOO,OoO,-
600 pounds yearly. From the begin
ming of the war to the present time,
| then, production has been increased
| IOO,OOO,OOO pounds. This Increase
alone is greater than the entire pro-
| duction of the rest of the world at
the present rate of output.
With talk of peace in the air, it is
natural that copper producers and con
sumers alike should devote n great
deal of thought to what may come
when the treaty of peace is signed.
With three-quarters of all the metal
of the world going into munitions, 1t
is plain enough that tremendous al
| teration of market and consumption
plans will come with peace. 1t is only
natural to assume that prices Will re
fleet substantially the change of con-
| dltions, but copper men are not per-
suaded that there will be anything like
| n slump. There will also be need for
drastic curtailment of production un-
less peace demands should suddenly
expand to level offsetting the war
demand, which experts in the trade
| hardly expect.
Next Six Months Output Sold.
The sellers of copper say they are
quite comfortable about conditions for
the first half of this year. They have
reason to be so, for practically all the
expected output has been sold, and
sold on firm" contracts-that is, con-
tracts which call for delivery and pay
ment whatever may be the conditions
marketwise. If the war lasts beyond
July /, the copper companies main
tain. business must continue good for
the allied governments have to come
to the United States for their supplies
| If they are to be adequate to the de-
| 10 Of hn 4 iS rl
fore, that the duration of the conflict
is the vital factor in the copper trade,
not only as regards consumption this
year, but n part of next year as well.
Copper prices after the war, in the
opinion of a leading seller, will not
be governed solely by the law of sup
ply and demand as hinged on war op-
erations. They will be affected sub
stantially by the attitude of the Amer
lean producer toward foreign buyers
who come seeking the metal for com
mercial uses. 1t is estimated that Ger
many, Austria, Turkey and Serbia are
| producing copper at the rate of 1O0,-
900, 900 pounds II year, all of which, and
more, is going into the war machine.
| Such reports on conditions in the cen
these nations have raked and scraped
the countries over for all copper i'm
| plementS, which means that in the end
vast requirements will need to be
made of these supplies. The cop
| per cooking utensils for 100 years or
more; roofs of churches and dwelling
houses; electrical implements and rail
road and telegraph supplies have been
thrown into the melting pot. In 1913
Germany and Austria imported from
this country 50O000,000 pounds of cop
per, and while a part of this probably
went into war reserves, much of the
metal was bought for manufacturing
purposes.
Curtailment of Buying Expected.
These factors of reduced supplies
and the known movement of copper
into the central powers in times of
peace lead up to the part which Amer
lean producers will need to play. a
great deal of the repacements, doubt
less, will have to be made in these
and other European countries, what
ever may be the cost. But 1t stands
to reason, as copper men see It, that
bigh prices and ditldent selling meth
DDS will tend to curtail buying, espe-
cially If the nations of Europe have
financial difficulties to solve. Ameri-
can copper interests are aware that
committees have been organized in sew
ernl countries of Europe to devise ways
and means of caring for their needs
on an economical basis after the
war. These organizations, with gov
ernment cooperation, obviously are
laying plans to buy their metal at
prices favorable to themselves or to
restrain buying If prices are not suit
able.
with the thought in mind that gov