The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-07-27
STEEL MEN DO NOT
FEAR STRIKE TALK
Trade Watches Youngstown
Section Vote, but Believes
1t Not Representative.
SCRAP VALUES BOOSTED
Letting Of Big Contracts for
Fabricated Causes Slight
Market Furry.
speclai bs,petoA % rna bon.


PfrTsBuRe, July 2e.--1non and steel
men are interested ip the vote OF the
men regarding q strike In the industry
and reports from the Youngstown dis
trict indicate that the vote is running
strongly in favor OF a walkout. That
district is known as disturbing one In
the trade. and It Is not believed that
the sentiment there will be renected else
where. In the Monongahela Valley IL "
known that the organization has made
very little progress and IL IL not be-
lieved that a strike favoring vote would
be representative of the majority OF
workmen who would be affected by such
strike Several mill superintendents
say that they are averse to quarrelling
with the men, but that the eleven points
submitted by the committee on last sun
day will be resisted to the finish. Strike
talk has not been of much influence IN
any part OF the market this week and
conditions are pretty mpch as they
would have been had there been no
meeting Of the National Committee Of
the American Federation of Labor in
Tittsburg a week ago.
In the iron and steel scrap market
the dealers continue to hold heavy melt
ing steel at about dollar. ton higher
than they did two weeks ago. and it is
said that in the Youngstown district
some sales have gone through on an
even higher basis. In the immediate
Pittsburg district mills are showing but
little interest In dealers offerings. They
seem to feel that prices are 30 high
that there can be little risk in waiting
while. With dealefs talking s21 or $22
for scrap, they are mentioning approxi-
niately as high prices for scrap as pre-
dicted II it should bridge the wide gap
formerly existing between 1t ana basic
pig iron. The market is quoted at 81
ton up ON heavy melting steel, with
railroad wrought also UP 81, largely In
sympathy. and borings and turnings
twenty-five to fifty cents up.
Lock for Higher wire Prices.
II Is believed that the whole wire mar
Ret VIII advance through individual SELL
ers advancing their prices. Tho firet
move In that direction was the advance
OF IS a ton in export prices, which re-
Gently became practically universal. al
though the prices by Individual interests
were spread over about two weeks.
During last week the Youngstown Sheet
ana Tube Company made certain price
advances, and on the last day of the
week the Cambria Steel Company made
advances, but the advances by the two
companies were not precisely alike. The
Youngstown company did not advance
plain or barb wire. its advances being
IS cents n keg on nails, ~ q ton on pol
ished staples and 20 cents hundred In
the extra for covering. Cambria, on the
other hand, made 81 a ton advance on
plain and barb wire, including galvan-
iaed product. II third wire company
decides to make an advance II must
choose which advance 1t will follow or
formulate a new set Of advances for IT.
self 1t is not surnitsed that there are
at thn nj m hItvarQ
fairly well covered for the present and
presumably can keep themselves sup
piled without paying advances
Merchant steel pipe has not been adj
yanced by independents In general, and
there is no evidence that the leading In
torest viii advance. Yet there are some
observers who believe that the market
really will take an upward tendency
within thirty to sixty days. The view
that the Independents are disposed to
advance prices as soon as their order
books are 10 filled up as to make II safe
for them to be out Of the market for a
reasonable time 10 expressed here.
situation In Weld Pipe.
In lap weld pipe there are few II any
producers who are not comfortably filled
UP for four months at least. In butt
weld pipe bookings are running at less
than capacity, but are increasing all the
time and an advance In butt weld pipe
would hardly discourage buying to any
extent stocks In buyers hands being OF
moderate proportions.
There has been little activity In
sheet bars for the sheet and tin plate
mills lately the latter operating In full.
A moderate tonnage OF billet Is moving
on regular contracts, but there is no In
auiry OF any consequence In the open
market, middlemen reporting the mar
het extremely dun from their standpoint
A better tone appears in the market
for forging billets. more than 500 toni
having been sold In the local market
during the last few days. The demand
however. Is still far from normal. The
market is regarded as quotable at the
old spread OF IS above rolling billets
which would make the price $3.50. The
S51 price of March 81, representing the
war Industries Board spread OF $l2.5C
above rolling biilets, has been dead
letter for a long time.
A little furry was given to the mar
ket this week when 1t was announced
that some heavy contracts Tor FABRICATED
steel had BEEN let, among them that oil
5000 tons to the American Bridge
Company for the Hanna ONCE building
In Cleveland, the contract running Il
about 100000, Indicating price Of
500 a ton for the fitted steel.
Pig foundry is fairly active In foun
dry grades and shows little activity II
I3essemer, while basic is extremely dull
IL pig iron OF all grades. were active
there might soon be a definitely advancing
market. but demand for foundry iror
cannot swing the whole market. 1t beint
necessary that basic iron be absorbed
freely, which cannot occur until thu
steel Industry shall operate PRACTICAL,
full The pig iron market Is steady, reg
uiar prices being maintained as follows
T3essemer. $77.95 basic. s2b.Tb; foun
dry, $2675; forge, .$2b.75. Those price,
are T. o. b. Valley furnaces, the freigh
70 Pittsburg being $40.
There is considerable tonnage o.
free furnace coke In existenoe, Blu
producers are making no effort to fore
IL on the market, their asking prio'
being strictly maintained at 81. Their
IL little demand for spot coke and 4
the coke be not purchased II will be ap
ttitd on contracts, current production
being regulated accordingly.