The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1918-06-27
THE TIN PLATE INDUSTRY
DEPENDS ON IMPORTS.
MOST OF METAL COMES FROM
BOLIVIA AND ORIENT AS
CONCENTRATES.
American Economist)

American Eeonomist)
The practical suspension of the i'm
portation of pig tin into the Unite
States affects an industry turning GU
at the present time over 500. 900 90
worth OF products All of the tin use,
in the manufacture of the 500. 900 oO
worth of tin plate now produced i,
the United States is imported. NOR,
than 80 per cent of it originating ir
the orient, and with the partial sus.
pension of shipments from that pari
OF the world, recently announced, the
United States becomes more depend :
ent upon it's South American neigh :
Dor, Bolivia, which produces about 20
per cent of the worlds tin and is
practically the only world producer of
tin outside the orient.
While we consume about one-half
of the worlds tin, all efforts to de-
Velop successful tin mining indus
try in the United States have thus
far proved unsuccessful Small guam
titles have been found in Alaska and
smaller quantities in other parts of
the United States but not enough to
supply even one per cent of the large
and steadily increasing quantity re-
quired by our tin plate and other in
dustries. The quantity of tin i'm
ported into the United States has
grown from 70 million pounds in 1900
to approximately $50 million pounds
in 1917 The value of the 1900 impor-
tation was 10 million dollars and that
or 1917 IS million dollars, the price
per pound having also greatly ad-
yanced during the period in question. !
A compilation by the National City
Bank of New York shows that the
sums of money sent out of the Unit
ed States for the purchase of tin |
since the beginning of the tin plate
industry in 1S93 have aggregated ap-
700 million dollars. About
30 per cent of the tin imported is used |
In the manufacture of tin plate.
Growth of Industry
During this period the quantity of
tin plate produced in this country has
grown from AZ million pounds in 1892
to one billion pounds in 1903, 2 billion
pounds in 1912, 1,S45, 100000 pounds in
1914. and 2,766,OOO,O0e pounds in 1916
rhe value of the output of tin plate
8 stated by the census of 1899 at 80
million dollars and for 1914 68 mil
ion dollars, making it apparent that
he annual value now exceeds $780,
100000. About rs billion pounds of
in plate have been produced in the I
United States in the rs years since
he beginning of the industry. Mean
me, tin plate has assumed an i'm L
'ortant position in the list of ex- +
'orts from the United States the "
alue of the exports of domestic tin |
late having grown from one thous- a
nd dollars in 1899 to one million dol
ars in 1908, IL million in 1915, 81 mil v
ons in 1916, and AZ million dollars in Q
GIT. s
The distribution of this tin plate 4
ow exported extends to practically II
very part of the world OF the 523 D
lillion pounds exported in 1917, GA II
billion pounds went to Argentina, 30 II
lillions to India, 20 millions to the II
the tin for it's manufacture Is i'm s.
orted, II millions to Straits Settle
rents, which supply an even larger
uantity of the tin used in the manu- Ct
lcture, 20 million pounds to China, 40 o.
illions to Japan, 2 millions to Asiat- n
Russia, while even the United &c
ingdom, which ranks next to the u
nited States as a manufacturer of 10
n plate, took in 1916 "a million u
FUNDS of our output and in 1915 26 81
illion pounds. 10
Price Advances. -
Prices of the tin imported for use =.
the manufacture of tin plate have "a
eadily and persistently advanced ',
1t only during the war period but
the dozen preceding years, this in =,
ease in price being apparently due
part at least, to the increasing de-
and which has more than kept pace
It'll production. The worlds outturn ~
tin has increased but about SO per n -,
mt since 1900, while our own outturn -
tin plate has trebled in the same
riod. The prices paid in the Unit 80
States for imported tin have adj
need from less than 13c per pound
1897 to 27c in 1900; 36c in 1911, ACC
1913 and 53c per pound in Decem-
II, 1917, these figures being in all
SEES prices in the country from III
nich the tin Is imported into the NJ
lited States. "a
Most of the tin imported originates pe
the Malayan peninsula, the worlds he
rgest producer of tin. Certain of we
e Dutch East India islands in the wa
me general section of the globe also ou
pply considerable quantities of tin, IN
me of which Is shipped thence to III
e Malayan peninsula for smelling We
d reexportation. Hong Kong is al ta'
exporting comparatively small We
antilles of tin. produced in China, er'
d Great Britain produces tin from 10