December 22, 1916. THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN. 1223 object, no doubt, is to save coal and locomotive power, and to keep the lines free for the mineral traffic at night. Works fuel is in very strong request, and local manu- facturing needs were probably never so large as they are at present. Even in this branch there is now barely sufficient for all requirements. The iron and steel works, the coke ovens and the iron ore mines, are taking all the fuel they can secure, and last week a cargo of works fuel, which was intended for shipment, had to be taken away from the dock sidings and sent to the local works. All the pits in the county are working regularly, and production is now more satisfactory than it has been for some weeks. It is not anticipated that the collieries will be idle for more than two days over the Christmas holidays. In the export trade the position is more stringent than it has been this year. Irish merchants are clamouring for coal, but supplies of all sorts are scarcer than ever. Some consumers are unable to secure more than one-half of what they require. There is an abnormal demand for both house and works fuel for Ireland, but the collieries are so heavily booked on home account that it is altogether impossible to cope with the requirements of Irish customers. The Irish market could easily take twice as much coal as it is at present receiving. One coasting vessel was delayed fully three days before it was able to secure sufficient coal, and very few of the steamers this week have sailed with full cargoes. During the week 12 vessels have sailed from Maryport with coals, all for Irish ports, and the shipments have been 2,990 tons, compared with 4,105 this time last year, or a decrease of 1,140 tons compared with the previous week. The largest cargoes have been consigned to Belfast, Cork, Londonderry, and Carrickfergus. Coke makers are very busy, and all the by-product ovens in this district aie in full blast. The entire output is being absorbed at the blastfurnaces in West Cumberland. Business is very brisk in the by-products industry, and all the works in this locality are very busily engaged. Prices are firm, and no change is at present anticipated either in home or export quotations. Best sorts at the pit are quoted at from 22s. 6d. to 23s. 4d. per ton, with best washed at from 20s. lOd. to 21s. 3d. per ton. Best export coal is 19s. 6d. per ton f.o.b. at Maryport, with best washed nuts at 17s. 6d. per ton. Best gas coal is quoted at 20s. per ton delivered in the districts. All varieties of bunkers are in very keen request. Best bunkers for foreign-going vessels are 30s. per ton, with mixed sorts at 25s. per ton. For coasting steamers, best bunkers are 25s. per ton, with mixed sorts at 21s. 6d. 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, with best washed nuts at 25s. lOd. per ton, and seconds 24s. 2d. per ton. At Workington, best house coal delivered is quoted at Is. 4d. per cwt., or 25s. lOd. per ton, with best washed nuts at Is. 3d. per cwt., or 24s. 2d. per ton. Other current quotations are as follow: — entire production is going into immediate use. Nearly all the make of Bessemer iron is being retained for use locally at the steelworks at Barrow and Workington, but a small proportion is now going to users outside of the district, the bulk of the special and semi-special iron being consigned to consumers in Scotland, the Midlands, and other parts of the country. The steel trade is brisk, and all the mills are as busy as they can possibly be. No rails are being rolled, but both Workington and Barrow are still very heavily engaged on Government work. Steel rails, light sections, are quoted at from <£12 to £12 10s. per ton, with heavy sections from £10 17s. 6d. to £11 10s. per ton, and billets are a steady trade at £12 per ton. Engineers are busy on Government account, and a number of the shops in this locality are still working overtime. The Cumberland iron ore industry is in a flourishing condition. All the local iron ore miners are fully employed, and although production is gradually expanding, the amount raised is still insufficient to satisfy the needs of local users. Nearly the whole of the production is being absorbed at the furnaces in West Cumberland and the Furness district. Prices of all sorts are unchanged. Best Hodbarrow ore is quoted at 38s. per ton, good ordinary grades are from 21s. to 30s. per ton, and better sorts are from 31s. to 36s. 6d. per ton net at the mines. The imports of foreign iron ore at the Maryport docks during the week have amounted to 4,000 tons. South-West Lancashire. COAL. The wintry weather has put everything awry, both in regard to transit of coal and the distribution of it from the various stations and wharves. Fog, frost, and railway mishaps have all been contributors, and numberless wagons are days out of time. Under the circumstances, pits are having to be stopped for lack of rolling stock, and the weather has vastly increased the absentee list where full work could have been kept on. Orders are very much in arrear. In shipping there is some extra enquiry in view of the holidays, but steamers are often late in arriving, and are subject to delays of various kinds. There is little spare coal about, and quotations for Lancashire steam coals are steady, ruling about 22s. 6d to 23s. 6d. f.o.b., with a slight hardening tendency, in cases where prompt shipment is required. In the coastwise and cross-Channel house fuel trade the merchant is an anxious buyer, the trouble being a shortage of supply and a difficulty in regard to tonnage. There is a considerable amount of pressure from gas companies for supplies, and an eagerness to purchase odd lots wherever they are available. In slacks, the available supply is all absorbed. Prices at pit (except where otherwise stated). France continues in considerable volume, but is limited by the difficulty in securing suitable boats. With regard to manufacturing fuel, there has been considerable anxiety to prepare for the holidays by increasing stocks, but efforts in this direction have met with little success. At none of the depots in Bradford, Leeds, Huddersfield, the heavy woollen district, and the Spen and Colne valleys are there any reserves worth mentioning. Coke ovens will be kept in full work during the holidays, if the supply of coking smalls enables this to be done. Current pit prices. House coal:— Prices at pit (London) : Current ’L’st week’s Last year’s prices. prices. prices. Haigh Moor selected ... 20/ -21/ ; 20/ -21/ 20/ -21/ Wallsend & London best 19/ -20/ j 19/ -20/ 19/ -20/ Silkstone best 19/ -20/ 19/ -20/ 19/ -20/ Do. house ......... 17/ -18/ { 17/ -18/ ; 17/ -18/ House nuts 16/ -17/ ; 16/ -17/ ! 16/ -17/ Prices f.o.b. Hull:— Haigh Moor best 23/ -24/ 23/ -24/ [ 21/6-22/6 Silkstone best 22/ —23/ ; 20/ -21/ 22/ -23/ 20/6-21/6 Do. house 20/ -21/ 18/6-19/6 Other qualities 19/ —20/ 19/ -20/ 18/ -19/ Gas coal:— Prices at pit: Screened gas coal 16/ -17/ i 15/6-16/6 16/ -17/ 15/ -16/ Gas nuts ; 15/6-16/6 15/ -15/6 Unscreened gas coal ... 15/ -16/ ' 15/ -16/ 13/6-14/6 Other sorts:— Prices at pit: Washed nuts...... 17/ -18/ i 1 17/ -18/ 16/ -16/6 Large double-screened engine nuts 16/ -17/ 16/ -17/ 14'6-15/6 Small nuts 15/ -16/ : 15/ -16/ 13/6-14/6 Rough unscreened engine coal 15/ -16/ i 15/ -16/ ' 13/6-14/6 Best rough slacks 14/ -15/ s 14/ -15/ 12 6-13 6 Small do. 12/ -13/ ! 12/ -13/ 10'6-11/6 Coking smalls 12/6-13/6 ! 12/6-13/6 11/ -12/ Coke Price at ovens ; Furnace coke 25/8 25/8 , 23/ -24/ Best Cumberl’nd coal at pit Best washed nuts at pit... Buckhill best coal „ Do. double-scrned washed nuts at pit Oughterside best coal at pit Oughterside best washed nuts at pit St. Helens (Siddick) best coal at pit St. Helens best house nuts at pit Best dry small at pit Best steam nuts „ Best Cumberl’nd coal, f.o.b. Best washed nuts, f.o.b. ... Best bunkers (coastwise) Do. (for foreign-going steamers) Bunkers (mixed nuts and steam coal) (coastwise) Do. (foreign) Best coal for gasworks ... Best washed nuts for gas- works Current prices. 23/4 21/3 22/6 21/ 22/6 21/ 22/6 21/ 12/6 19/ 19/6 17/6 25/ 30/ 21/6 25/ 20/ 19/ L’st week’s prices. 23/4 21/3 ■ 22/6 21/ 22/6 21/ 22/6 21/ 12/6 19/ 19/6 17/6 25/ 30/ 21/6 25/ 20/ 19/ Last year’s prices. 23/4 21/3 22/6 21/ 22/6 21/ 22/6 21/ 12/ 19/ 19/6 17/6 19/ 19/ 17/ -17/6 17/ -17/6 19/3 18/3 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/ 22/6-23/ 16/ 15/6 14/6 L’st week’siLastyear’s prices, j prices. 21/ ! 20/9 25/6 122/6-23/ 19/ -20/ | 19/ 24/6 I 20/ -21/ 18/ 24/ upwds 18/ 22/6-23/ 16/ 15/6 14/6 I 16/9-17/ .! 19/ I 17/ 20/ -21/ 14/6 13/ 12/ South Lancashire and Cheshire. COAL. The Manchester Coal Exchange was well attended on Tuesday. In view of the festive season, there is a keen demand for all qualities of house coal and other fuel. Difficulties in getting such to the consumers are at present very great owing to the fog, and other troubles on the railways. The demand for shipping coal is maintained. Prices generally are as below :— Prices at pit (except where otherwise stated). IRON. The situation in the Cumberland and North Lancashire haematite iron trade has undergone little change since last week. All the plants in connection with the iron and steel industries are actively engaged, and the chief concern of makers is to secure as large an output of metal as possible. There is a phenomenal demand for iron both on local and general home account. Requirements of all users are still expanding, and they are likely to go on increasing while the war lasts. The demand is still much in excess of the supply, and makers have so much on hand at present that they are only able to accept a small margin of the business now offering. No additional fur- naces have yet been put into blast, but busy preparations are still in progress all over the district with the object of increasing the output, and there is good reason to think that there will be a substantial increase in production, both in Cumberland and the Furness area, early in the new year. Two furnaces at Workington, it is stated, will soon be ready for lighting, and it is expected that the third furnace at the Solway Ironworks, at Maryport, will be put into blast about the second or third week in the new year. Prices are unchanged at the maximum fixed by the Govern- ment, and Bessemer mixed numbers are again quoted at 127s. 6d. per ton f.o.t., while warrants at cash are idle at 115s. per ton. Special iron is quoted at 140s. per ton, with semi-special at 135s. 6d. per ton. Ferro-manganese is still rather quiet. There are at present 29 furnaces blowing in the whole district, compared with 25 at the corresponding period of last year. Twenty of these are in Cumberland, and the remaining nine are in the Furness district. In Cumberland, the Workington Iron and Steel Company have 12 furnaces in blast - four at the Derwent works, three at Moss Bay, two at Oldside works, and one at the Lowther works at Workington, and two at the Solway works at Maryport. Millom have four furnaces in blast, and Cleator Moor and Distington have two each in operation, while in the Furness area Barrow has five in draught and Carnforth and North Lonsdale have both two furnaces blowing. All the furnaces, with the exception of two at Workington, are engaged on special and ordinary brands of iron, and the House coal:— Best ............... Medium.............. Common.............. Furnace coal.......... Bunker (f.o.b. Partington) Best slack ........... Common slack .... Current L’stweek’siLastyear’s prices. ]_ 22/ -23/ 22/ -23/ ? -i n'/z? ni I -1 rx In nt I st week s . prices. | 19/6-21/ 19/6-21/ 18/ -18/6 i 18/ -18/6 17/6-18/ 17/6-18/ 25/ -26/ ; 25/ -26/ 16/upwds 16/ upwds.j 14/6 upwds • 14/6 upwds | prices. 21/ -22/ 19/ -20/3 17/' -17/3 16/ -17/ 19/ -21/ 14/ 11/ -12/ IRON. There was a fair attendance on ’Change in Manchester on Tuesday last, but no change whatever to report in the position. All works are fully occupied on war material, deliveries and prices being arranged by the Ministry of Munitions. Yorkshire and Derbyshire. Leeds. COAL. Anxiety to secure early supplies was evident at Tuesday’s meeting of the market, but the increasing shortage of empty trucks is an important factor. With regard to the holidays, the pits will stop for two days. It is not expected that there will be any formal market on Boxing Day. Pressure from the London house coal market has, generally speaking, failed to secure the acceptance of orders by the collieries which have arrears to work off, except that buyers able to send their own trucks are on that account able to secure attention. A very active depot trade in London is reported, considerably beyond the abilities of merchants, with limited cartage facilities, to cope with. Coastwise suitable boats are scarcely to be had, and cargoes that are being loaded at Hull and Goole for the south coast and the Thames are mostly for contractors. The severe weather has stimulated the house coal trade in the West Riding, merchants having many more orders in hand than they will be able to fulfil until after the holidays. There are plenty of enquiries for gas coal, but practically no coal is coming into the open market, the output being required for contract deliveries, which are very heavy. Shipment to Barnsley. COAL. Serious trouble in regard to the working of the collieries and the forwarding of supplies has been experienced during the week. The congestion of traffic on the railway owing to the fog and wintry weather has culminated in an in- adequate supply of wagons, with the result that collieries have had to stop working on repeated occasions. Even traffic purely of a local character has been held up for an incredibly long period, and the position is almost chaotic. The traffic at this period of the year is practically at the maximum, and it is feared the block will be unavoidable for a considerable period. In some instances collieries have laid down ground stocks to keep at work in some way, but little help can be gained from this procedure. The shortage of rolling stock has warned those concerned of possible trouble, but the ill-effect has eventuated in a degree quite unexpected. It is evident a considerable number of wagons are held up at the ports owing to the difficulty in obtaining facilities for shipment, and the coal in course of transit must be of extensive proportions. Enquiries at the usual local market for supplies were numerous but unavailing, while those on contract account in arrear must by now have assumed considerable proportions. These, of course, have to be dealt with, especially in the case of supplies required for the various industries on Government work. Owing to causes already referred to, the demand for large steam coal on export account is still only moderate, and though the output is fully equal to the ordinary demand on home account the rush of orders during the present week is well ahead of the capacity of collieries to supply. Other grades of steam coal are being taken in substitution for steam nuts, which are being so extensively used by the munition and other engineering concerns, who, however, hold light stocks in view of the coming holiday; which it is hoped will be confined to a couple of days at the collieries in this district. Fortunately the gas concerns generally hold fairly satis- factory stocks of coal, or the present difficulties would have been serious. Other industies are not so favourably placed owing to the fact that the demands upon them have been continually increasing without the position being balanced in regard to coal supplies. These urgent needs, however, have to be met as far as is possible, but the hopes are not fully realised by any means. The pressure for supplies of stock suitable for coke making is still of a severe character, but the supply is still insufficient. The position in regard to house coal has become very serious, and in some districts there is almost a scarcity. The collieries have been deluged with enquiries during the week, but with the supply insufficient for ordinary contract deliveries the position of buyers is practically a hopeless one. As is usually the case, the public are showing panic, and are seeking to place orders of such proportion as to lay in stocks. The carting facilities of merchants are in addition extremely difficult, and the enquiries cannot be dealt with to give the slightest degree of satisfaction. There is little improvement in regard to the supply of furnace coke, the need for which appears to be continually increasing. Prices at pit. House coals:— Best Silkstono ....... Best Barnsley softs... Secondary do.......... Best house nuts ...... Secondary do.......... Steam coals:— Best hard coals....... Secondary do.......... Best washed nuts...... Secondary do.......... Best slack ........... Secondary do.......... Gas coals ••— Screened gas coals ... Unscreened do......... Gas nuts.............. Furnace coke............ Current |L’st week’s Last year’s prices. : prices, i prices. 20/ -22/ ; 20/ -22/ 20/ -22/ 18/6-19/ 18/6-19/ 18/6 17/ -17/6'17/ —17/6 . 16/6-17/6 16/ -17/ : 16/ -17/ ; 16/ -17/ 15/6-16/ , 15/6-16/ ! 15/6-16/ 17/6-18/6 17/6-18'6 ! 17/6-18/ 16/6-17/6 16/6-17/6 16/ -17/ 16/3—16/6 16/3-16/6 16 3-16/6 15/9-16/3 15/9-16/3 15 9-16/3 12/6-13/ 12/6-13/ 12 6-13/ 10/6-11/ 1 10/6-11/ 10/6—11/ 16/6-17/6 16/6-17/6 16 6-17/6 15/6-16/ 15/6-16/ : 15 6-16/ 16/ 16/ ( 166 25/8 j 25/8 j 23M-24/