San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1923-03-25
H|GH PRICE Of
sSUGAR BLAMED
ON THE CUBANS
American Bankers Also
3 Come in for Share Of
& Responsibility.
100000 TONS HELD
Claim Tariff Is Response
ble-Hoover Sends
an Investigator.
100000 TONS HELD
BY ROBERT T. SMALL.


and to the pool of American bankers
who are financing" the Cuban crop.
This simple fact has been known in
the trade" for sometime. II also
has been known 10 the government of
the United States and the most signifi-
cant feature of the sugar furry which
has swept Washington and the entire
country the last few days is the state
ment OF Secretary OF Commerce Hoov-
er that he already had sent an invest-
gator 10 Cuba.
The domestic" producers OF sugar,
the beet interests of the Middle-West
and the cane interests Of Louisiana
and Hawaii. say they will welcome an
investigation OF the present corner
and rising market. The reasons for
this attitude are plain. The Louisiana
crop was all disposed by last Deem
Der. The beet crop has virtually all
been marketed. and only some 100000
tons remain of the 100000 ton produc-
ton. The Hawaiian crop is Just COM
ing on the market. The latter crop is
all consumed on the Pacific coast,
however. and does not affect the gen
eral market in this country 10 any ap-
preciable extent.
Interests in Control.
The situation is such as to leave
the Cuban producers and the eastern
refinery interests in this country in
control Of the market. This situation
is treated in a very frank and informa-
tive fashion in a special bulletin just
issued BY Lamborn and Company. big
sugar brokers in New York. 1t is
IN, hr1ll u
the Cuban interests are Withholding
sugar from the market, waiting for
the higher prices to develop.
f"Cuban producers" says the bulle-
tin. ARE not anxious sellers and have
firm intentions of marketing their
crop over period of months instead
of the early spring and summer be-
cause they anticipate substantially
higher prices than those existing Mt
present. They can well afford to do
this as they are in a strong financial
condition.
also we might mention that closer
relationship than ever before exists
between the raw sugar producing in
dilstry and the refined sugar industry
in this country. With only two excep-
tioIs all the sugar refiners of the At
lantic coast are interested either dl-
rectly or indirectly in -Iw sugar pro-
ducin, companies TO say nothing OF the
strength given to the raw sugar indus
try by certain powerful United States
banking institutions which control a
great portion of the crop"
In the face of an increased demand
however, Cuba has shipped out 100000
tons more of sugar this year than at
the same time last year. She also is
holding oas export stock another 500,-
600 tons.
The rising sugar market is coming
Just at time when the heavy consuH-
ing months of April, May, June. July,
Augutt and September are starting in.
With the fruit preserving season ahead
almost every American housewife is a.
fected by the rocketing prices and It Is
going to take deal of explaining 20
convince her that she should pay 1 or
5 cents more a pound this year than
she paid twelve months ago.
Warning Was Issued.
The Department Of Commerce en-
deavored few weeks ago to warn the
country that sugar consumption was
exceeding production and has succeed
ed only in getting itself charged with
helping the spectators and conspir1-
tors" to boost the price of commodity.
Secretary Hoover has explained that
the departments statement did not say
there would be a shortage of sugar,
for while it is safe to assume that the
consumption this year will be largely
in excess of production, there was n
carry-over Of sugar from last year
which can be drawn upon and which
will leave at the end of 1923 a balance
of about 4I6,000 tons still available 20
the market.
Americas most sweet tooth ran riot
in 1922 and every man, woman and
child in the country was credited with
having eaten five pounds more sugar
last year than in 1921. The consumD-
ton of sugar in the United States is
out of all proportion to the rest Of the
world. Last year it was something
like JOG pounds per capita. The Uni
ted States uses more than one-fOurth
of all the sugar produced in the world.
Germany, the greatest beet sugar
producing country in the world, with
population two-thirds that of the
United States. consumes only one
fourth as much sugar rs this couutry.
The American people will use in 1923
provided they can continue to buy in
the rising market, approximately o.
100000 tons of sugar. British India
with population four times as great
is the worlds next largest consumer
using something like 100000 tons.
Government officials admit that the
sugar situation is a difficult one t.
deal with at this time. The govern
ment has not at its command the wal
powers with which it succeeded il
breaking the sugar corner in 1920
when retail prices ran UP in the neigh
borhood Of 80 cents a pound. Th,
Cuban producers were offered % g..
cents a pound for their sugar, bu
they held it for "a.
100000 Tens Imported.
Meantime the government, through
the sugar equalization board. hrougn
about the importation of 100000 ton
Of sugar from Peru and the Argent M
This importation broke the market AM
the Cubans were left high and dry
they are their financial hackers SUI
fered heavy losses. It is the conten
don of the American producers ;oda
shat the bankers and producers VIII
krffered in the 1920 slump are MT
tempting now to recoup some of thei
losses.