New Britain herald., 1917-12-07
Steel and Pig
 Iron Markets
The Iron Age says:

tons, or 1O6,859 tons a day, against 3,3O3,O38 tons in October or 106,55O tons day. So much had been made of the banking down of furnaces at Youngstown last month due to coke shortage, that a serious falling off was looked for. But other districts made up the loss which turned out to be only about 10 per cent. from the Youngstown output of October.
 So many furnaces have been work ing badly, due to frequent bankings and in part to poor coke, that more are compelled to go out for refining. The net loss was 10 in November, and tho 345 furnaces active Dec. had a capacity of 1O6, ,933 tons a day, against 1O9,O59 tons a day for 355 furnaces on Nov. 1. November just wiped out the October gain of 10 ]n active stacks.
 Railroad difficulties continue the most serious handicap of blast fur naces and steel works. The YounS'- town situation is better, but Pitts burgh is now affected more than in November by lack of coke, and there and in Ohio the Steel Corporation to- day has 20 furnaces banked. Steel output has been kept up heretofore by drawing on pig iron stocks but now the reserve of pig iron has been used up.
 The first effect of the pooling az rangement of Eastern railroads has been the cancellation of many ne" mlts both for export and domestic shipments of pig iron and steel, some plants meanwhile having practically no outlet. The special effort to 1acllltate the movement of ore coal and coke will work for betterment in the raw material supply, but the prob- lem of freight congestion, part!cu- larly at Pittsburgh, promises to dom- mate the steel industry for months.
 New calls for cost sheets have come to steel producers in the past week from the Federal Trade Com- mission. and fresh agitation of Gov ernment control and of price reiuc- tions come from the same quarter, as the Pomerene bill is brought up for Congressional action. Added to all the troubles encountered in pro luc- ton and distribution, the possibility oc fresh unsettlement just as the new price schedule was becoming effective makes the outlook by no means en :. couraging
 Exports of iron and steel have been much reduced in the working out of the Government embargoes, and while foreign business is constantly offer ed the mills at prices well above the Government schedule, few permits are granted.
 Government buying continues large, but chiefly in pursuance of programs s already outlined. The past week has seen considera ble orders for plates and for forging steel for shells, but thus far little is heard of new con- tracts for shell steel for the Allies.
 Additional rails have been houcht for shipment to F'rancc-,hou 15 GOO tons. In q recent purchase of rails for great storage operation in New Jersey the Government paid $55, bus as high as $73 was paid by domest tic road on 2,50O tons for delivery in the early months of 1918 The ur- gent need of rails for increased si l. ing and terminal facilities Is bringing rail prices more nea~ly in line with those for shell rounds, which arc largely rail mill product.
 In the plate trado it is a growing belief that the Government will take all sheared plates IA in. and heavier after April 1. Recently Governmen. orders for 5o.OoO to 6O,00o tons of uni versa1 plates were placed with Youngstown mills and for some tlnle plate shipments to the Government by one Pittsburgh company have baen at the rate of 6O,OOO tons a month.
 Most sheet mills have now covered their large trade for first quarter or first half of next year, and the Co., ernment is liberal buyer both for export and domestic needs. Tin plate contracts for the first half have been generally closed and in some cases ;t full years supply has been covered the price for the second half to be ad- justed later.
 Billet and sheet bar offerings by large producers are much restricted. One large steel company in the Gen. tral West has sold no semi-finished steel in months. apart from it's regular contracts. A 25,0OO ton sheet bay sale has just been made by a Penn sylvania mill for delivery over the next three months.
 Pig iron consumers are buying for next. year in a way indicating that they expect difficulty in getting suf- fcient metal. The scarcity of iron for early delivery is growing more acute and but for the agreement with the Government the spot market would doubtless be well above the $55 point at which the September agree n1ent found it. Many furnaces are sold up for the first half and are nov selling only for third quarter or sec ond half. Urgent inquiry for basic iron in lots of 10000 tonsi and more has appeared in the East and Middle West.
 Domestic production of ferroman- ganese fell off sharply in Novemba and British exports to this country are becoming inconsiderab able. British Alc t