THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN. 237 January 29, 1915. __________________________________ ... values are rising all round, for most collieries have com- paratively little fuel for the open market after supplies on contract account have been provided for. Household fuel is in very good request even for common grades, but the orders from merchants cannot be carried out with anything like promptitude, as stocks have practically been exhausted. On some qualities the prices have been advanced to the public by Is. per ton. So far as steam coal is concerned there is a strong demand in the home market, and the output is easily absorbed by orders on the books. The supply of some qualities is difficult to obtain. Slacks of every description are scarce in consequence of the reduced output, caused mainly by so many men in the county having enlisted. Prices at pithead. Hand-picked brights ..... Good house coals......... Secondary do............. Best hard coals.......... Secondary do............. Slacks (best hards)...... Do. (second) __......... Do. (soft)............. Current prices. 15/ -16/ 14/ -14/6 13/ -13/6 12/ -12/6 11/ -11/6 8/ - 8/6 7/ - 7/6 7/ - 7/6 L’st week’s Lastyear’s prices. 14/ -15/ 13/ -13/6 12/6-13/ 11/ -11/6 10/3-10/9 7/6- 8/ 6/9- 7/3 6/9- 7/3 prices. 14/ -14/6 13/ -13/6 11/6-12/ 11/3—11/6 10/ -10/9 7/9- 8/ 6/6— 7/ 6/9- 7/6 ________ ________ Leicestershire. COAL. The difficulties attending the output in this coalfield increase day by day, and the pressure to secure deliveries to meet urgent needs has never been so great. The delays in securing supplies are very trying to merchants who do a bag trade, and in many cases drays, horses and men have to stand idle for several days every week. . This means that businesses formerly doing a profitable trade now find their returns on the wrong side of the account, and it is impossible to meet this loss by the rise in retail prices which has taken place. Orders continue to flow in from a wide district, but it is quite impossible to entertain them at any price, old customers being naturally preferred. Of course, those firms engaged on Government contracts have the first call on supplies, assurances having been given to this effect. Prices are extremely firm all round, and the abnormal state of affairs is illustrated by the fact that many merchants are offering a premium of 3s. to 4s. per ton on the contract price in order to secure deliveries within a reasonable period. This advance applies to every class of coal except small dust, and the prices quoted in the list are subject to this condition. The frequent stoppages of output through the want of empty wagons, and the lengthy delays in transport have greatly diminished the quantity of coal available. The shortage of skilled labour, too, becomes more pronounced, and colliery managers are unable to find a remedy. The Belgian refugees who are miners cannot be turned to effective account, it being regarded as extremely inadvisable to engage them under existing systems of. working. Nearly all of them can only speak Blemish, and hence they could not be informed of what they must do or must not do, and their questions would not be understood. That is briefly the difficulty, and it is a very practical and vital one. Hand to mouth working is strictly enforced, and the aggregate output is turned to the best advantage according to the conditions which prevail from day to day. The following are the prices now generally current at the collieries in this district, but they are subject to a premium of 3s. to 4s. per ton where preferential treatment is stipulated :— Prices at pit. Best household coal .............. Second, hand picked ............................ Deep screened cobbles ............ Deep large nuts .................. Bakers’ nuts....................... Small nuts ...................... Deep breeze....................... Peas ______............................. Small dust ...................... Main nuts for London kitcheners ... Steams, best hand picked.......... Steams, seconds .................. Main cobbles for kitcheners........ Main breeze...................... Current prices. 16/ -17/ 15/ -16/ 14/ -15/ 13/6—14/6 13/ -14/ 11/6-12/ 11/ -12/ 8/9- 9/9 2/6- 3/ 12/3-12/9 11/6-12/6 10/6-11/6 12/3-12/9 10/6-11/6 L’st week’s prices. 16/ -17/ 15/ -16/ 14/ -15/ 13/6-14/6 13/ -14/ 11/6-12/ 11/ -12/ 8/9- 9/9 2/ - 2/3 12/3-12/9 11/6-12/6 10/6-11/6 12/3-12/9 10/6-11/6 ________ o----_______ South Staffordshire, Horth Worcestershire and Warwickshire. Birmingham, COAL. Difficulties with regard to coal supply have, if anything, been accentuated during the week. Shortage of labour is the chief trouble at the pits, on the railways, and for haulage purposes, but apart from this, demand has become extreme. Some of the schools of the city were closed for a day or two during the week on account of lack of coal, and householders have to be content with what they can get. Manufacturing fuel is almost as bad, there is a big rush _________________________________________________ Prices at pit. Current L’st week’s Last year’s Staffordshire (including Cannock Chase) :— prices. prices. prices. House coal, best deep ... 20/ 19/6 18/6 Do. seconds deep 19/ 17/6 16/ . Do. best shallow 18/6 16/6 14/9 Do. seconds do. 17/6 15/ 14/ Best hard 16/6 14/6 15/ Forge coal 14/ 10/6 11/ Slack Warwickshire:— 10/ 7/ 7/6 House coal, best Ryder.. Do. hand-picked 19/6 17/6 16/6 cobs ■ 17/6 15/6 14/ Best hard spires 18/ 16/ 15/ Forge (steam) 13/6 11/6 11/ D.S. nuts (steam) 14/6 10/6 10/ Small (do.) 11/6 9/ 8/3 s for it, and scarcity has led to several works having to suspend operations for short periods. Manufacturers are working from hand to mouth. In the circumstances, prices are high and so irregular that it is impossible to give any reliable list. The following is a fair average, but in very many cases premiums are paid on these. Indeed, people are willing to take coal regardless of cost. IRON. The market was well attended, and reports indicated that trade continues to make progress. The demand, if anything, increases in volume, and the trouble with most manufacturers, except those engaged on purely domestic goods, is to maintain the required production. Values in some cases are higher than a week ago. Corrugated sheets have made the biggest jump. In sheer self-defence makers have been compelled to take action. The current quotation is about <£12 f.o.b. Liverpool for export, and <£12 5s. home trade, representing an advance of 15s. on the week. The main factors, of course, are the high price of sheet bars, which have risen £2 a ton since the beginning of the war, and are now quoted <£6 2s. 6d. up to <£6 10s. in this district, and up to <£6 15s. for Welsh bars, and also the cost of spelter, which is <£36 to <£37 delivered Birmingham. Export busi- ness shows no improvement. The Scandinavian is practi- cally the only market. Some lots are going to the West Indies, but financial considerations hamper trade with that as well as with other overseas markets. Black sheets have risen in sympathy, and range from <£8 5s. to <£8 10s. for hard doubles, 24-gauge. Sales of pig iron were on a smaller scale than recently. Consumers have bought for the time being, and Staffordshire makers, as well as those in the large supply districts of Northamptonshire and Derbyshire, are heavily sold, and are not entertaining further business except at a premium on recent rates. Speaking generally, prices may be said to have hardened to the extent of 6d. on the week. Ore is difficult to get, labour is scarce, fuel is dear, and stocks are rapidly dwindling. The leading bar iron houses have as much work as they can complete during the quarter, and there is some talk of altering the <£9 basis in the imme- diate future. A considerable record of business is also in the hands of common bar makers, and quotations are <£7 15s. to <£8 delivered Birmingham, with nut and bolt iron in the Darlaston district ranging from <£7 5s. to <£7 10s., <£7 7s. 6d. being a happy medium. The demand for war purposes, combined with dear billets (<£6 2s. 6d. to <£6 5s. per ton) has sent up the price of steel strip to about <£8 10s., while for hinge strip ^8 to <£8 5s. is asked. Gas strip makers are doing better and are able to maintain the higher quotations of the last fortnight, and for small rounds few people are taking less than <£8 (three-eighths basis). An immense amount of steel of all classes is going into consumption, and values all round are up. Makers who can give delivery can get their own prices, and the general advance is 10s. a ton. The copper market also shows some animation, and sheets have been put up to <£84. A fortnight ago they stood at <£80. __________________ Forest of Dean. Lydney. COAL. The heavy demand experienced of late for the house coals of this district has in no way abated, and the collieries are all hard pressed for deliveries. All the coal raised is consigned straight away to the buyer ; there are no stocks, and delay in executing orders is inevitable. In the shipping branch of the trade a big business is being done, stems are long and vessels have to wait two to three’days for loading turn. There is a very strong demand from the inland buyers. Prices are advanced Is. per ton from February 1. All steam coals are meeting with a very heavy enquiry, and the collieries are behind with their deliveries. Prices at pithead. Current L’st week’s Last year’s House coals:— prices. prices. prices. Block 19/6 18/6 17/6 Forest 18/6 17/6 16/6 Rubble 18/9 17/9 16/9 Nuts 17/ 16/ 15/ Rough slack Steam coal:— 8/6 7/6 6/6 Large 14/ 14/ 12/6-13/ Small 8/6- 9/ 8/6- 9/ 8/6- 9/ Prices Is. 9d. extra f.o.b. Lydney or Sharpness. _______________________________________________ THE WELSH COAL AHD IR0K TRADES. Thursday, January 28. _______________________________________________ Horth Wales. Wrexham. COAL. The coal business in this district at the time of writing is pretty well in a state of chaos. Orders there are without number, but the difficulty is in executing them. The great difficulty is getting the wagons returned for loading, and, as a consequence, the pits are compelled to work short time, even though they could dispose of double the output. With reference to house coal, it is practically impossible for anyone to get anything like a sufficiency for their requirements, unless they have their own wagons, in which case a merchant has a distinct advantage over his neighbour, who has to rely on the hand-to-mouth supply in colliery wagons; and prices in this department are on the rising scale. In the case of steam coal, the local industrial concerns are still in a depressed state, and short time is the order of the day all around the district. The railway companies, however, take all they can get, and the output is so diminished that it is difficult to keep up a sufficient supply on account of contracts. The same thing exactly applies to the gas coal contracts. In the case of the shipping coal trade, things are very bad, owing to the congestion at the Liverpool docks. Vessels find it impossible to berth in reasonable time in order to discharge their cargoes, and as many as 40 vessels have been waiting in the river at one time this week waiting to obtain discharging berths. The congestion has been brought about mainly through the loss of efficient labour through enlistments. These men’s places have been more or less filled, but by men who are not so efficient. There is also a shortage of carters in the city of Liverpool, added to which the railway stations are blocked with goods owing to shortage of trucks. There is not a very good demand for slack just now, and many pits are putting in stocks. Prices are advancing all round, and considerable protests are heard in regard to same, although an advance in the present circumstances was inevitable. This week’s prices are as below :— Current L’st quot’d Lastyear’s Prices at pit f.o.r.:— prices. prices. prices. Best house coal 16/ -17/ 16/ -17/ 15/6-16/6 Secondary do 15/ -16/ 15/ -16/ 14/6-15/6 Steam coal 13/ -14/ 12/9-13/9 12/6-13/6 Gas coal 13/ -14/ 12/ -13/ 13/ -14/ Bunkers 12/6-13/ 12/ -12/3 12/ -12/9 Nuts 12/ -12/6 11/ -12/6 11/ -11/9 Slack : 5/ - 6/ 5/ - 6/3 6/ - 8/6 Gas coke (at works) Prices landsale:— 11/8-13/4 11/8-13/4 13/4-15/ Best house coal 19/2-21/8 18/4-20/ 17/6-19/2 Seconds 18/4-19/2 17/6-18/4 16/8-17/6 Slack 10/ -12/6 10/ -12/6 10/ -12/6 _______ _______ Monmouthshire, South Viales, Cardiff. COAL. The one phase of the coal market which occupies every- body’s attention is the tonnage question. For many weeks shippers have been crying out for tonnage, and during the last few days arrivals have been rather above the average, with the result that the local docks are congested, and there is .the greatest difficulty in obtaining tips. It was reported on Tuesday morning that at Barry there were no fewer than 15 steamers waiting turn for berthing accommodation, and enquiry disclosed the fact that the same state of affairs pre- vailed all round. Comments on the present situation are strong and not very complimentary, so far as the dock interests are concerned, and the lack of facilities to deal with a brisk trade is being severely criticised. The clearances for the present year are only about one-half of what they were a year ago, but, of course, the Admiralty fixtures are Prices f.o.b. Cardiff (except where otherwise stated). Steam coals:— Best Admiralty steam coals Superior seconds Ordinary do Best bunker smalls Best ordinaries Cargo qualities Inferior smalls Best dry coals Ordinary drys Best washed nuts Seconds Best washed peas Seconds Dock screenings Monmouthshire— Black Veins Western-valleys Eastern-valleys Inferior do Bituminous coals:— Best house coals (at pit) Second qualities (at pit) No. 3 Rhondda— Bituminous la^ge Through-and-through Small No. 2 Rhondda— Large Through-and-through Small Best patent fuel Seconds Special foundry coke Ordinary do. Furnace coke Pitwood (ex-ship) Current prices. 21/ 20/ 18/ -18/6 14/3 13/9-14/ 11/ -12/ 9/6-10/6 19/ -19/6 17/ -17/6 18/6-19/ 16/6-17/ 15/6-16/ 14/6-14/9 12/6 18/9 18/3 17/9-18/ 16/6-17/ 20/ 17/6-19/6 17/6 16/6 15/6 16/6 15/ 12/ -12/6 21/ 19/—20/ 30/ -33/ 25/ -29/ 20/ -22/ 27/9-28/3 L’st week’s prices. 20/6-21/ 19/6 18/3-18/6 13/6-14/ 13/ 11/-12/ 10/ 19/ -19/6 17/6-18/3 19/ 17/6 16/ 14/ 12/ 18/3 17/9-18/ 17/6 15/9-16/3 20/ 17/6-19/6 17/6 16/3 15/ 16/ 14/6 12/ -12/6 20/ -21/ 18/ -19/ 28/ -32/ 25/ -28/ 20/ -22/ 28/ Lastyear’s prices. 18/6-19/ 18/ -18/3 17/3-17/6 11/ 10/6-10/9 7/9- S/6 6/6- 7/6 18/ -18/6 16/ -16/6 16/ -16/6 15/ -15/6 14/9-15/ 13/6-13/9 11/6-11/9 17/6-17/9 17/3-17/6 16/6-16/9 15/6-15/9 21/ 18/ 17/6 15/ -15/6 12/ 14/6-15/ 11/9-12/ 8/6 22/6 20/ -21/ 27/ -28/ 22/ -25/ 19/ -20/ 20/ -23/ not taken into consideration. Charterings last week were 230,400 tons, compared with. 275,000 in the preceding six days, or a decrease of 45,100 tons. The shipments from the chief Bristol Channel ports amounted to 430,181 tons, against 520,037 -tons in the corresponding week of last year, or a decrease of 89,856 tons, but here again no mention is made of Government business. From Cardiff alone there were exported 229,001 tons, or a decrease of 109,200 tons; from Newport, 125,134 tons, or an increase of 40,076 tons; Swansea showed a decrease of 1,169 tons; and Port Talbot a falling off of 19,063 tons. The congestion during the last few days has been so great that certain collieries which had tonnage actually in dock ready for loading, were not able to provide full work at the pits, owing to the necessary number of tips not being available. Such a state of affairs is exceedingly detrimental to the trade of the port, and it is not at all unlikely, unless a move is made in the near future, that there will be a combination of interests for the purpose of providing new accommodation outside the existing authorities. The following shows the exports to the chief countries of the world and British Possessions for the 11 months ended November, and the increase or decrease compared with the corresponding period of 1913. It will be noticed that in the great majority of cases decreases are recorded :— Eleven months, ended Nov. 1914. Increase. Decrease. Tons. Tons. Tons. Russia 359,535 ... — 192,576 Sweden 189,878 ... — 18,392 Norway . 116,292 ... 16,344 ... — Denmark 44,454 ... 12,849 ... — Germany 174,423 ... — 105,331 Netherlands 73,161 ... — 38,656 Java Other Dutch posses- 20,420 ... 9 ... — sions in Indian Seas > 28,128 ... 10,690 ... — Belgium 246,922 ... — 204,291 France 6,136,324 ... — 518,804 Algeria 450,854 ... — 247,428 French Somaliland... 41,659 ... — 13,561