September 3, 1915. THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN. 479 Northumberland, Durham and Cleveland. Newcastle-upon-Tyne. COAL. During last week 89,738 tons of coal and 4,016 tons of coke were despatched from Tyne Dock, a decrease of 10,195 tons of coal and an increase of 2,974 tons of coke when compared with the shipments for the corresponding week of last year. The Dunston clearances amounted to 51,257 tons of coal and 3,627 tons of coke, an increase of 2,194 tons of coal and 384 tons of coke. The Blyth shipments totalled 60,253 tons of coal and coke, an increase of 224 tons. Thus, the shipments from the three places mentioned are 4,419 tons less than those for the corresponding week of last year, and 18,671 tons down when compared with those of the week before last. The prompt market is very dull. The dearth of tonnage, the highness of freights, and the niggardly manner in which licences are being granted nowadays, all conspire towards the strangulation of business. The demand for coal output on contract account is well maintained, but there is little movement in other directions. F.o.b. quotations for prompt shipment have varied as follow, during the week:—Best Blyth steams are from 6d. to Is. cheaper, Tynes are similarly reduced, Blyth smalls 6d. cheaper, gas bests 6d. to Is. advanced, coking smalls 6d. dearer, and foundry coke 2s. 6d. increased. A fairly large quantity of best Durham coking coal is stated to have been sold to merchants for export next year at 18s. 3d. per ton, f.o.b. Immediate tenders have been invited of from 3,000 to 4,000 tons of steam coal for shipment this month to Malta, on Government account. The Paris, Lyons and Marseilles railways are, apparently, still in negotiation for their supplies of 250,000 tons of coking coals for delivery up to June next year. Enquiries are circulating for good ordinary bunkers for next year's ship- ment, but prices quoted by the collieries are not acceptable to buyers. The latest intelligence is to the effect that there is likely to ensue a wholesale refusal of licences for fuel exportation to Sweden. Under recent trying circum- stances of withholding of licences in this direction, the definite loss of Swedish business is viewed quite placidly on the market. Prices f.o.b. for prompt shipment. Steam coals :— Best, Blyths (D.C.B.) ... Do. Tynes (Bowers,&c.) Secondary, Blyths Do. Tynes (Hastings or West Hartleys) ... Unscreened Small, Blyths 4.... Do. Tynes Do. specials Other sorts:— Smithies Best gas coals (New Pelton or Holmside) Secondary gas coals (Pelaw Main or similar) Special gas oals Unscreened bunkers, Durhams Do. do. Northumbrians Coking coals Do. smalls House coals Coke, foundry Do. blast-furnace Do. gas Current prices. ; 18/ -18/6 i 17/ -18/ 1 16/6 i 16/6-17/ 115/ -16/ i 13/ 12/6 14'6 17/ -17/6 19/6-20/ 17/ 21/ 15/6-17/ 15/ -16/ 17/ -17/6 15/6-16/6 20/ 27/6-32/6 25/ 28/ -30/ L’st week's! Last year's prices. prices. 19/ 13/3-13/6 18/ -18/6 ! 13/6 16/6 ■ 11/ -11/6 16/6-17/ 11/ -11/6 15/ -16/ 1 11/ -12/ 13/6 I 8/6- 9/ 12/6 8/6 14/6 1 11/ 17/ -17/6 1 12/ 19/ 12/6-13/ 17/ 11/ -11/6 21/ ! 13/ ■ 15/6-17/ 10/9-12/6 15/ -16/ 11/6 17/ -17/6 1 11/3-11/6 15/6-16/ i 11/ 20/ 15/ -16/ 25/ -30/ 19/ -21/ 25/ 18/ 28/ -30/ 12/ -13/ Sunderland. COAL. The exports from Sunderland last week amounted to 66,081 tons of coal and 719 tons of coke, as compared with 76,180 tons of coal and 3,555 tons of coke for the corre- sponding period of 1914, being a decrease of 10,099 tons of coal and 2,836 tons of coke. Operations in the coal market are confined to very narrow limits, being entirely at the mercy of freights, which remain very firm in view of the extreme scarcity of tonnagehence business continues to be held in check. Merchants with ready tonnage and the necessary licensing permits are able to secure very sub- stantial concessions, as collieries are in want of prompt trade. Supplies of all steam descriptions are excessive, and collieries are having much difficulty in disposing of their surplus production. Best gas qualities are inclined to improve, but secondary sorts and coking and bunkering coal are plentiful and easy in price. Gas coke is held for higher figures ; other sorts coke easier. A contract has been fixed up for 20,000 tons of best Durham gas, shipment September to December, at 20s. f.o.b., and it is stated a fairly large quantity of best Durham coking coal has been sold for export next year at 18s. 3d. per ton f.o.b. Enquiries are circulating for good ordinary bunkers over next year, but the prices quoted by the collieries are not acceptable to buyers, and contract arrangements proceed very slowly in consequence. Quotations are as follow :— Prices f.o.b. Sunderland. Gas coals:— Special Wear gas coals Secondary do. House coals:— Best house coals Ordinary do Other sorts :— Lambton screened South Hetton do Lambton unscreened ... South Hetton do Do. treble nuts Coking coals unscreened Do. smalls Smithies Peas and nuts Best bunkers Ordinary bunkers Coke:— Foundry coke Blast-furnace coke (did. Teesside furnaces) ... Gas coke Current prices. 21/ 17/ 20/ 18/ 21/ 21/ 17/ 17/ 20/ 16/6 16/ 17/ 20/ 17/9-18/ 16/6 32/6 25/6 27/ -28/ L’st week’s prices. 21/6 17/6-18/ 20/ 18/ 22/ 22/ 17/ 17/ 16/9 16/6 20/ 20/ 17/6-17/9 16/6 32/ 27/ 26/ -27/ Last year’s prices. The enquiry in the freight market in all directions has been brisk, and although tonnage at the moment is more plen- tiful, owners are holding strongly, with the result that rates are fully maintained. Recent fixtures include: London, 8s. ; Calais, 18s. ; Havre, 18s. ; Rouen, 18s. ; Dunkirk, 18s.; Bordeaux, 22s.; St. Nazaire, 21s.; Cadiz, 25s.; Huelva, 25s.; Lisbon, 21s.; Algiers, 25s. ; 0ran, 25s.; Porto Ferrajo, 28s.; Naples, 29s. 6d.; Leghorn, 30s.; Genoa, 30s. Middlesbrough-on-Tees. COAL. There is a decidedly easier feeling in fuel, and business is on only a limited scale. Tonnage is scarce, freights are high, and export licences are difficult to secure. Some collieries are in want of trade, and for prompt shipment certain coals can be obtained on favourable terms, as second- hand holders are competing with the pits. Some improve- ment in demand for gas coal is noticeable, and best Durhams range from 19s. to 20s., whilst seconds are 16s. 6d. to 17s., and best Wears round about 22s. There are enquiries for ordinary bunkers over periods next year, but the prices named are not such as meet wi^h buyers’ views. A steady prompt business is passing. Ordinary Durham bunkers are in the neighbourhood of 15s. 6d. f.o.b., better sorts are quoted 16s. to 17s., and superior kinds are 20s. Prices of household coal are upheld. Coking coal is in moderate demand. Smalls are 16s., and unscreened kinds 16s. 6d. Business in coke is quiet. Many local consumers have bought what they require for the time being, and will not place further orders, except on a good deal lower terms than have been agreed upon. Durham blast-furnace coke, of average quality, is on sale at 25s. to 25s. 3d. delivered at Tees-side works, and consumers anticipate still lower prices in the near future. A fair number of enquiries for foundry coke for shipment are reported. Prices vary very considerably. Best foundry coke may be put at 30s. to 32s. 6d. f.o.b., but some sellers are inclined to hold out for even more than the latter figure. Gas coke is scarce, and the quotation is in the neighbourhood of 28s. IRON. There is little new to report concerning the iron and steel industries. Regarding Cleveland pig, the market is very sensitive, and is influenced considerably by movements of warrants, but there is a feeling that buying is at hand, and that a steady, firm warrant market for a few consecu- tive days would bring forth brisk buying of makers’ iron. As it is, traders are very cautious, and the business that is being put through is confined to transactions in small lots by second hands, makers refusing to accept prices named by merchants, declaring that such rates are altogether unremunerative. No. 3 g.m.b. Cleveland pig is 65s. 6d. No. 1, which is still very scarce, is quoted up to 71s. 6d., but buyers will not pay such a figure, and are purchasing and using No. 3 in place of the superior quality. No. 4 foundry is in fairly good request at round about 65s.; No. 4 forge is on sale at 64s. 6d.; and mottled and white are each 64s., but there is little of the two latter qualities on the market just now, the make being on a very limited scale owing to the excellent working of the furnaces. A fair number of enquiries, both on home and Continental account, are in the market for east coast haematite pig, and further substantial sales to Italy and to Sheffield customers are looked for. Both makers and merchants are selling Nos. 1, 2 and 3 at 96s. 6d. A sharp upward movement in freights has caused foreign ore values to advance, but business is still stagnant, as consumers are not buying for early delivery, and sellers with prospects of much freight trouble will not commit themselves forward. For this month’s delivery, market rates are now based on a minimum of 26s. 6d. ex-ship Tees for rubio of 50 per cent, quality. Freights Bilbao-Middlesbrough are up to Ils. 9d. and are expected to be still higher, as steamers are very scarce. Government work keeps manufacturers of finished iron and steel very busily employed, so much so that ordinary commercial enquiries receive very little attention. Quotations are welt maintained. Cumberland. Maryport. COAL. Great activity continues to characterise the operations in the Cumberland coal industry, and although business is probably not quite as brisk as it has been for the last three months, values and production are well maintained, and the present output is by no means in excess of requirements. There is still a brisk demand for smalls, slacks, and all kinds of fuels for industrial purposes, and there are now more enquiries for coal for household use, and in this branch the position is much stronger than it was a week ago. The cross-Channel trade is rather easier, and the demand for all sorts for the Irish market is not quite as strong as it has been, but at the same time, home merchants have quite as much business in hand at present as they can cope with. Irish farmers are at present busy with the harvest, and this is usually the quietest time of the year so far as the export trade is concerned, but as soon as the crops are gathered in, business in this branch will be on the increase again. One reason why the coastwise trade has been so well maintained during the whole of the year is because Lancashire and Scotland have been using so large a proportion of their respective outputs that they have been practically unable to enter into competition with Cumberland in the Irish market. Prices for all sorts are firm, but unchanged. Best Cumberland coal at the pit is quoted at from 22s. 6d. to 23s. 4d. per ton, with best washed nuts at from 21s. to 21s. 3d. per ton, and seconds 20s. lOd. per ton. Dry small is quoted at 12s. per ton, and best steam nuts at from 18s. 6d. to 19s. per ton. Best Cumberland coal, free on board at Maryport, is quoted at 19s. 6d. per ton, and with best washed nuts at 17s. 6d. per ton. Bunkers are in steady demand at from 17s. to 17s. 6d. per ton. Last week 17 vessels sailed from Maryport for Irish ports, and the shipments amounted to 4,132 tons, a decrease of 1,248 tons, a decrease of 1,248 tons compared with the previous week. The largest cargoes were for Carrickfergus, Londonderry, and Dublin. Business is rather quieter in the coke trade, but the majority of the Cumberland coke ovens are fairly well employed. Production is now much in excess of requirements, as local smelters are using larger quantities of the hard coke from the north-east coast. Work is still very brisk at the by-product works at Flimby, Maryport and Workington. At Maryport, best house coal delivered is quoted at from Is. 5d. to Is. 6d. per cwt., or from 27s. 6d. to 28s. 4d. per ton, with best washed nuts at 25s. lOd. per ton, and seconds 24s. 2d. per ton. At Workington, Buckhill best coal delivered is quoted at Is. 4d. per cwt., or 25s. lOd. per ton, with best double-screened washed nuts at Is. 3d. per cwt., or 24s. 2d. per ton. Other current quotations are as follow:— Current prices. L’st week’s Last year’s prices. prices. BestCumberl’nd coal at pit 23/4 23/4 19/2 Best washed nuts at pit... 21/3 21/3 17/1 Buckhill best coal „ Do. double-scrned 22/6 22/6 18/4 washed nuts at pit Oughterside best coal at 21/ 21/ 16/10 Fit Oughterside best washed 22/6 22/6 18/4 nuts at pit St. Helens (Siddick) best 21/ 21/ 16/10 coal at pit St. Helens best house nuts 22/6 22/6 18/4 at pit 21/ 21/ 16/10 Best dry small at pit 12/ 12/ 8/6 Best steam nuts at pit ... 19/ 19/ 15/ BestCumberl'nd coal, f.o.b. 19/6 19/6 15/6 Best washed nuts, f.o.b. ... 17/6 17/6 13/6 Bunkers 17/ -17/6 17/ -17/6 12/6 Best coal for gasworks ... Best washed nuts for gas- 20/ 20/ 15/ works 19/ 19/ 14/ IRON. The Cumberland haematite iron trade is in a fairly steady condition, and makers are probably doing as much business as they can do with the present facilities of production. The chief feature of interest this week is the extraordinary demand which is being experienced for special brands of iron for Government purposes. In this branch, business is so brisk that an increasing number of furnaces have been put on this metal, and the make of low phosphorus iron is now insufficient to satisfy the requirements of high-class steel makers employed on Government account. The market for ordinary pig iron is decidedly easier, and there is very little business passing either for forward delivery or immediate consumption. At the same time it is difficult to see how values could depreciate to any serious extent in view of the scarcity of labour and the high cost of raw materials, which are probably as firm as ever. Bessemer mixed numbers are this week quoted at from 106s. to 107s. 6d. per ton, free on board at the usual ports, with warrants at cash at 95s. per ton. Special iron is quoted at from 125s. to 126s. per ton, and ferro-manganese is firm at .£20 per ton, but there is very little business doing. There are 23 furnaces in operation, 15 in Cumberland and eight in the Furness district. The Workington Iron and Steel Company have eight furnaces in blast, Millom have three, while Cleator Moor and Distington have two each in draught. In the Furness district, Barrow has five furnaces blowing, North Lonsdale two, and Carnforth has one in operation. Both Barrow and Workington are making for local and outside consumption, and a large number of the furnaces are employed on special brands of iron, the bulk of which is being consigned to users in the Midlands, South Wales and Scotland. The steel trade is fairly well employed, and all the engineering shops in the district are busy on Government orders. Trade is very brisk in the iron ore industry, and the whole of the mines in the district are fully employed, but production is scarcely equal to requirements. South-West Lancashire. COAL. There is no change from what has been reported during the last few weeks in the demand for house coal. Forges and manufactories are taking full supplies of screened coal. Contract requirements of bunkering coal remain much as last reported, and open sale enquiry remains quiet. Prices of Lancashire steam coals still range from 17s. 6d. to 18s. 6d. f.o.b. according to quality. In the coastwise and cross- Channel trade trouble is experienced in getting tonnage to lift promptly the fuel which has been sold, and which the buyer is anxious to receive. In slacks the position is that the demand is somewhat in excess of the supply available, and this naturally results in prices being very firm. Prices at pit (except where otherwise stated). House coal:— Best ................. Do. (f.o.b. Garston, net) Medium................ Do. (f.o.b. Garston, net) Kitchen............... Do. (f.o.b. Garston, net) Screened forge coal..... Best scrnd. steam coal f.o.b. Best slack ............. Secondary slack ........ Common do............... Current prices. 20/9 22/ -23/ 19/ 20/ 16/9-17/ 18/6-19/ 16/ -17/ 17/6-18/6 14/ 12/6 10/ L'st week's pricest. 20/9 22/ -23/ 19/ 20/ : 16/9-17/ I 18/6-19/ !16/ -17/ 17/6-18/6 14/ 12/6 10/ I Lastyear’s prices. 17/ 16/6-16/9 15/3 14/6-15/ 13/ 13/3-13/9 11/6-12/ 12/6-13/3 9/9 9/ 8/ - 8/6 South Lancashire and Cheshire. COAL. The attendance on the Manchester Coal Exchange on Tuesday was below the average. There is but little demand for house coal. Furnace coal continues brisk, and there is a steady enquiry for shipping coal. Slack, on the other hand, is dull, owing to “ wakes.” Prices are as below:— Prices at pit (except where otherwise, stated) Current ! L’st week's Last year's House coal:— prices. prices. prices. Best 21/ -22/ 21/ -22/ 17/3-18/ Medium 19/ -20/3 19/9-20/3 16/ -16/9 Cnmmnn 17/ —17/3 17/ -17/3 13/3-14/ Furnace coal 16/ -17/ 16/ -17 12/6 Bunker (f.o.b. Partington) 19/ -21/ 19/ -21/ 14/ Best slack 14/ 14/ i 9/6-10/ Common slack 11/ -12/ | 11/ -12/ 8/6— 9/