September 29, 1916. THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN. 611 Prices f.o.b. Sunderland. Current L’st week’s'Last year’s Gas coals:— prices. prices. i prices. Special Wear gas coals 34/ 35/ ! 19/6-19/9 Secondary do. 28/ 26/ i 16,6 House coals:— Best house coals 40/ 37/6 20/ Ordinary do 28/ 40/ 27/6 37/ 17/6 20/ Other sorts :— Lambton screened South Hetton do 40/ 37/ 20/ Lambton unscreened ... 25/6 22/ 16/ South Hetton do 25/6 26/6 22/ 15/6 Do. treble nuts 25/6 16,6 Coking coals unscreened 25/ 21/ 15/9 Do. smalls 24/ 20/ 15/6 Smithies 25/6 22/6 ! 18/ Peas and nuts 27/6 25/6 !9/ Best bunkers 26/ 26/ 16/6 Ordinary bunkers 24 9 20/ 15,6 Coke .*— Foundry coke 40/ 40/ 27/6 Blast-furnace coke (did. Teesside furnaces) ... 28/ 281 25/ »t«,s coke 32/6 33/ 26/ The freight maiket is steady to firm.. Fixtures : - London, 12s. ; Drammen, 24 kr.; Copenhagen, 27 kr. ; Malmo, 29 kr.; Oran, 42s. 6d. ; Barcelona, 60s.; Gibraltar, 35s. 6d.; Leghorn, 72s. 6d.; Genoa, 72s. 6d. ; Alexandria, 72s. 6d.; Marseilles, 72s. 6d.; Cagliari, 7-jS. ; St. Vincent, 30s. Middlesbrough-on-Tees. COAL. The fuel trade is steadier. Less disposition is shown by second-hand holders to discount the direct quotations for coal. Steam smalls are the weakest department. Their ample supply is, in a measure, proof of the greater demand for large coal, but apart from that demand is ver> quiet, and there are strong grounds for belief that Scandinavians are receiving a good deal of their smalls from Germany. Best steam coals are round about 35s., and smalls are quoted 18s. and upward. Best and screened Durham steams have been sold to the Norwegian State Railways at 36s. 6d. for delivery over October. Demand for gas coal shows some improvement. Best Durhams run from 34s. to 35s., and second kinds are in the neighbourhood of 27s. 6d. Considerable enquiry for bunker coal is reported, and pr:ces are moving upward. Ordinary Durhams are 25s. to 25s. 6d., and best sorts are round about 27s. Coking coal is in good demand, and is realising 25s. There is now a much larger supply of coke than is needed to meet rather heavy local requirements, but the more than ample sufficiency has not caused any quotable fall in values. Average blastfurnace kinds continue to realise 28s. at the ovens, and up to 30s. 6d. at the ovens is still asked for qualities low in phosphorus. Best foundry coke for shipment is put at 42s. 6d. to 45s., and patent kinds are about 35s. Gas coke prices vary very considerably. Many sellers quote in the neighbourhood of 35s., but there are reports that purchases are possible at below 30s. IRON. Business in pig iron is quiet, but the position generally is strong. Sales of Cleveland pig to Scotland have practi- cally ceased, customers north of the Tweed having placed their orders for delivery to the end of October, which is as far ahead as they are permitted to make contracts. Foundries nearer home are booked up substantially to the end of the year. Buyers are more inclined to trade direct with makers, notwithstanding cash terms, and thus avoid payments of commission to merchants. Forge iron is fairly plentiful, and is offered rather freely, with the result that purchases of this quality could doubtless be made at below the recognised market rates. Conditions are such that it is impossible to trade with neutral countries, but a fair number of sales to France are reported, and there are negotiations with Italy and with Russia. For home con- sumption No. 3 Cleveland pig, No. 4 foundry, and No. 4 forge, are all quoted 87s. 6d., and No. 1 is put at 91s. 6d.; whilst for export No. 3 is 97s. 6d.; No. 4 foundry, 96s. 6d.; No. 4 forge, 95s. 6d.; and No. 1 round about 102s. 6d. Any No. 3 warrant iron that comes on the market for shipment, however, is at once snapped up at 100s. On the other hand, makers are reported to be still selling No. 3 to France at below 97s. 6d. There is little or nothing passing in east coast haematite iron. Stocks may be said to be nil, and makers, several of whom are in arrears with existing contracts, are fully sold over the next few months. Mixed numbers remain at 122s. 6d. for home use and for shipment to France, and for general export they are quoted 140s. and upward. Deliveries of foreign ore continue on a large scale, and consumers’ already heavy stocks are being steadily added to. Imports to the port' of Middlesbrough during September are well over 200,000 tons, Over- whelming Government demand causes ordinary commercial business in manufactured iron and steel to be still largely neglected. Quotations are unaltered. be taken out of the Cumberland pits for the Army. There is a strong enquiry for fuel in the home market, and most of the collieries have as much business on hand as they can comfortably deal with at present. House coal is rather quiet just now, and no very great improvement may be expected in this branch while the present mild weather continues. Engine fuels are in steady request, and gas coal, both for shipment and local use, is in very firm demand. There is a strong and growing demand for slacks, smalls and all varieties of coal for industrial purposes, and the bulk of the output of this class of fuel is still going to local consumers, at the coke ovens, the ’ron ore mines and the iron and steel works. The phenomenal prosperity which the coal and coke industries have enjoyed during the last two years has been due in a great measure to the boom in the local haematite iron and steel trade. 1 he demand for fuel for Ireland is not so pressing as it was a month ago. The harvest in Ireland is at present affecting the shipping trade, but there is no doubt in the course of a few weeks business in the export branch will again be as brisk as ever. During the week 17 vessels have sailed from Maryport with coals for Irish ports, and the shipments have amounted to 4,490 tons, compared with 5,045 tons at the corresponding period of last year, or an increase of 1,170 tons compared with the previous week. Local coke makers are busily engaged, and all the by-product coke ovens in the county are in full operation. Production is gradually increasing, and the entire output is being absorbed at the local blast furnaces. There is continued activity in the by-products trade, and all the plants between Maryport and Workington are briskly employed. Prices of all varieties are firm, but unchanged. Best sorts at the pits are quoted at from 22s. 6d. to 23s. 4d. per ton, w;th best washed nuts at from 20s. lOd. to 21s. 3d. per ton. Best export coal is 19s. 6d. per ton, and bunkers are in firm demand at from 21s. 6d. to 30s. per ton. At Maryport best house coal delivered is from Is. 5|d. to Is. 6d.per cwt., or from 27s. 6d. to 28s. 4d. per ton. At Workington best house coal delivered is 25s. lOd. per ton, with best washed nuts at 24s. 2d. per ton. Other current quotations are as follow: — Current quotations. South-West Lancashire. COAL. Household coal in the inland market is in greater demand than is usual at this period of the year, and there is difficulty in supplying promptly the orders on the bocks. Beyond regular contract requirements there is not much doing in steam coal for either bunkers or foreign shipment, tonnage being limited for outside business, and the continued restriction with regard to licences tends to limit business. Prices for screened Lancashire steam coals remain about the same, viz, 23s. per ton up to 24s. f.o.b. for best descriptions, but there is not a great deal of free coal in the market. The coastwise and cross-channel shipment of household coals has its own difficulties. It is not easy to get from the collieries the quantity required, and there is also difficulty in'finding suitable vessels. Indeed, some portion in the coastwise area supplied from ports on the Mersey is being supplied to some extent by rail from the same coal field. There is still here and there a little ease with regard to slack, the supply being if anything slightly in advance of the demand at the moment. 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. 21/ 25/6 19/ -20/ 24/6 18/ 24/ upwds 18/ 23/ -24/ 16/ 15-6 14/6 I?st week’s I Last year’s prices. < prices. 21/ I 20/9 25/6 ' 22/ -23/ 19/ -20/ ; 19/ 24/6 ’ 20/ 18/ ; 16/9-17/ 24/upwds 18/ —18/6 18/ 16/ -17/ 23/ -24/ : 17/6-18/ 16/ ; 14/ 15/6 ! 12/6 14/6 | 10/ Cumberland. Mary port. COAL. The Cumberland coal trade is rather easier this week. Business in the main branches is fairly active, and require- ments are still in excess of the supply, but the pressure of demand is scarcely as strong as it has been during the summer. With a fuller output the collieries have had more to offer, and therefore consumers on all accounts have been receiving better supplies. There has probably not been sufficient to satisfy the needs of all outside consumers, but more coal is now being sent to the docks for export, and during the last week or two all local users, more particularly those on Government work, have been able to secure almost as much coal as they required. All the pits in the county are working six days a week, and production is now more satisfactory than it has been for some time. There is still a great shortage of labour in some parts of the district, but a number of older men who have received exemption at the local tribunals in order to find work of national importance, have recently started work at some of the pits. It is now stated, however, that some of the younger men will shortly Current prices. L’st week’s Last year’s prices. prices. Best Cumberl’nd coal at pit 23/4 23/4 23/4 Best washed nuts at pit... 21/3 21/3 21/3 Buckhill best coal „ Do. double-scrned 22/6 22/6 22/6 washed nuts at pit Oughterside best coal at 21/ 21/ 21/ pit Oughterside best washed 22/6 22/6 22/6 nuts at pit ... St. Helens (Siddick) best 21/ 21/ 21/ coal at pit St. Helens best house nuts 22/6 22/6 22/6 at pit 21/ 21/ 21/ Best dry small at pit 12/6 12/6 12/ Best steam nuts „ 19/ 19/ 19/ Best Cumberl’nd coal, f.o.b. 19/6 19/6 19/6 Best washed nuts, f.o.b. ... 17/6 17/6 17/6 Best bunkers (coastwise) Do. (for foreign-going 25/ 25/ 19/ steamers) Bunkers (mixed nuts and 30/ 30/ 19/ steam coal) (coastwise) 21/6 21/6 17/ -17/6 Do. (foreign) 25/ 25/ 17/ -17/6 Best coal for gasworks ... Best washed nuts for gas- 20/ 20/ 20/ works 19/ 19/ 19/ South Lancashire and Cheshire. COAL. There was a good attendance on the Manchester Coal Exchange on Tuesday. House coal is in brisk demand, with little offering. Prices are firm. Furnace coal meets with steady enquiry; and shipping coal is fairly good, mostly on contract account. Slack is fairly plentiful, and at the moment in excess of the demand. Prices generaby are as below:— Prices at pit (except where otherwise stated). House coal:— Best .............. Medium............. Common............. Furnace coal......... Bunker (f.o.b. Partington) Best slack .......... Common slack ........ Current jL’st week’s Last year’s IRON. There has been no change in the condition of the Cumber- land and North Lancashire haematite iron trade. Business continues briek, and makers are busier than ever in all departments of the iron and steel industries. Require- ments are increasing on every hand, and there has rarely been such a clamour for iron. The demand for metal grows keener, and although production is gradually expanding, requirements of both ordinary and special iron are much in excess of the supply. Makers are still unable to deal with much of the business now offering, as the whole of the output is required for Government work. Require- ments of special and semi-special iron for the use of high- class steel makers are still on the increase, and with the developments which are taking place in the steel trade, the local steel works will be able to absorb all the ordinary iron that can be made in this district for some time to come. The pig iron at present in public stores on the West Coast now only amounts to 450 tons, compared with 1,200 tons at the corresponding period of last year. Prices are unchanged at the maximum fixed by the Government, and Bessemer mixed numbers are again quoted at 127s. 6d. per ton, f.o.t., with special iron at 140s. per ton, and semi-special iron at 135s. 6d. per ton, f.o.t. Warrants at cash are idle at 115s. per ton. The present output is being drawn from 30 furnaces, 20 of which are in Cumberland and the remaining 10 in tbe Furness area. The Workington Iron and Steel Company have 12 furnaces in blast, 10 at Workington and two at Maryport. Millom have four furnaces in operation, Cleator Moor and Distington have two each in blast; and in the Furness district, Barrow have six, while Carnforth and North Lonsdale have two furnaces each in draught. With the exception of the two furnaces at the Oldside Works at Workington, all the furnaces are on ordinary, special or semi-special iron. The steel trade is in a remarkably brisk condition, and the mills at Barrow and Workington are both maintaining big outputs. Steel rails, heavy sections, are from <£10 17s. 6d. to £11 per ton, with light rails at from .£12 to £12 10s. per ton. There is great activity in the engineering trade, and all the shops are busily engaged on Government work. The iron ore industry is exceedingly brisk, and the demand for native ore is keener than ever. A number of men have recently returned from the Army to work at the mines, and although production is gradually expanding, the amount raised is still inadequate for all requirements. Practically the whole of the output is now going to smelters in Cumberland and the Furness district. Prices of all varieties of local iron ore are unchanged. Best Hodbarrow ore is quoted at 38s. per ton ; ordinary grades are from 21s. to 30s. per ton; and better sorts are quoted at from 31s. to 36s. 6d. per ton net at the mines. I prices. . prices. i 22/ -23/ 21/ -22/ i 19/6-21/ ; 19/ -20/3 i 18/ -18/6 17/ -17/3 , 17/ -18/ 16/ -17/ ! 25/ —26/ 19/ —21/ 16/upwds 16/ upwds.; 14/ 14/6upwdsj 14/6upwdsj 11/ -12/ prices. 22/ -23/ 19/6-21/ 18/ -18/6 17/ -18/ 25/ -26/ IRON. There was a fair attendance on ’Change in Manchester, but no alteration to report in the general condition of the iron and steel trade of the district. All works are busily engaged on war material, the demand for which shows no signs of slacking. Prices and deliveries are, of course, ruled by the Ministry of Munitions. Yorkshire and Derbyshire. Leeds. COAL. The gathering of traders at Tuesday’s coal market was not a particularly large one, although there was a con- siderable contingent of representatives of distant markets, such as London, Birmingham, Sheffield and the Lancashire towns, who seem to be paying increased attention to the Leeds Coal Exchange. The feature of the market was its strong tone. Supplies were offered very sparingly. Full time working was reported by colliery representatives, but experience varies considerably as to the regularity of the miners. In some cases as much as 15 per cent, of absentees on certain days of the week is reported, while at other pits the men are turning up well and giving no cause for com- plaint. There is an entire absence of stocks at the ports, either in trucks or on the ground, while order books for every quality are full for weeks ahead. The supply of empty wagons is fairly satisfactory, but considerable delay is occurring in regard to long journeys on the railways, especially on the return of the empty trucks. There is a very brisk demand for house coal for London. Best coal is not being offered, and the demand for secondary qualities is such that inferior grades are being purchased. Cobbles, large nuts and other specialised qualities are in strong request for the London market. It is reported that there is considerably increased activity at the depots, the trolley trade being much better. Coastwise shipments are on familiar lines, the bulk of the business being done with merchants possessing their own boats and supplies are chiefly ex-contract. Spot lots are not frequently offered, as much better prices can be got for bunkering and for ship- ment to France and Italy. Freights continue firm in the neighbourhood cf 12s., Hull-London, for boats of about a thousand tons. In the West Riding the house coal trade becomes busier as the season advances, and attempts are being made by the larger residences to get in good supplies before the winter comes. There is not much alteration in the retail trade, but any supplies which merchants are able to secure they easily dispose of. In regard to gas coal there is little or nothing doing in the open market. Producers are endeavouring to keep up their contract deliveries, and beyond that have practically nothing to sell. Increased quantities, especially of screened gas coal, are being shipped to France and Italy, but sales to neutral countries are practically wl. Manufactur- ing fuel is characterised by all-round firmness. There is now no sign of the recent weakness in small slacks. Good quality rough slack is relatively the strongest feature, and nuts, either washed or unwashed, are unprocurable, being reserved for munition works. Reports from Bradford, Huddersfield, Leeds, the Spen and Colne valleys, and the