Evening star., 1948-01-04
Record Steel Output
Fails 10 Meet Big
Postwar Demand
BY the Ass6eiotsd Press

PITTSBURGH, Jan. 3.-The Ma
tons steel industry will finish the
year in the plight of a man who set
a new worlds record for the 100
yard dash while chasing a train he
failed to catch.
Production of steel zoomed to an
estimated $4,000 900 ingot tons-a
new high for a peacetime year-and
still steel mills couldn't begin to
meet demand. Prospects are bright
for continued high output in 1948,
but steelmen shudder to think of the
headaches in store for them.
The new year will see continued
shortages of scrap, gray market"
sales, cramped transportation facili-
ties, high priced raw materials, labor
shortages and other vexation, but
1948 will likely bring also the prob
lem of wage increase demands to the
fore and probably will see steel
masters struggling to fill quotas of
steel needed for Europe under the
Marshall plan.
Another new hurdle expected Is
that of compulsory ALLEGATION of
steel to both foreign and domestic
markets. Authority to allocate steel
products already has been requested
of Congress by high Government
official despite the industry's pro-
tests that the Government should
not interfere with present distribu-
ton methods.
Output Far Above 1899.
The Woodworking trade paper,
Iron Age, predicted 1947 steel pro-
duction would be 341a per cent above
that of 1899 and about 80 per cent
greater than in 1910. The esti-
mated ingot production for this
year would be only ST. per cent
under that of the wartime peak
reached in 1944-when steelmaking
facilities were strained to the limit
and need for repairs largely ignored
and when mills could run for weeks
on single orders. =
The American Iron and Steel In
stitute, representing about 96 per
cent of all steelmaking capacity
estimated this years production at
about 81, ,000, 900 tons of finished steel
products, compared to 5000 900 tons
in 1916. The institute called the
present acute demand for certain
types of steel abnormal and tenn
porary" and said if supply and de-
mand are not brought into balance
next year the goal won't be missed
by very wide margin. Shortages
Of raw materials of the desired
quality and work stoppages were
seen as the greatest potential bar
riers to continued high production.
Regardless of production gains
this year, steel was in short supply
for everything from baby carriages
to burial caskets. Two of the hard
est hit industries were Automobile
and railroad car manufacturing.
No Slump Expected.
Irving S. Olds, United States Steel
Corp. chairman, said in late October
that his firm "sees nothing but a
continued high rate Of operations
for a long time to come" He added:
IT would say that for the next year
the outlook is one of continuing
high demand for all kinds of steel.
c. M. White, president of Republic
Steel, agreed nearly all steel items
will remain tight through 1948." He
listed sheet and strip steel as the
most critical with steel pipe In third
place. .-a ..rs.s
During the year, the industry de-
Tended itself vigorously against
charges that steel companies were
not interested in expending facilities
for fear they would be stuck with
unused steelmakng capacity after
the present pent-up demand is met.
The institute says steel companies
are spending more than $1,000, ,000,-
600 in expansion and improvements
with 2,50O,00O tons of new capacity
on blueprints or under construction.