July 5, 1918. THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN. 27 Prices at pit (except where otherwise stated). House coal:— Best ............... Medium.............. Common.............. Furnace coal.......... Bunker (f.o.b. Partington) Best slack ...;....... Common slack ......... Current i prices. 27/ 24/6-25/6 23/ -23/6 22/6-23/ ______* L’st week’s prices. 27/ 24/6-25/6 23/ -23/6 22/6-23/ _______* 21/ upwds21/ upwds 19/6upwds 19/6upwds Last year’s prices. 22/ -23/ 19 6-21/ 18/ -18/6 17/6-18/ 16/ upwds 14/6 upwds orders on merchants* books. Meetings have been held to consider the rate of advance to the selling price of coke, following upon the recent advance in coal prices, but no decision has yet been arrived at. Prices at pit. * As per official list. Yorkshire and Derbyshire. Leeds. COAL. The great dominating feature of the position round which almost everything else centres, is the difficulty of securing supplies. On the top of the loss of output through the withdrawal of men for military service, came a strike affecting several pits in the Castleford, Fryston and Glasshoughton districts, which lasted more than a week, and caused a loss of from 20,000 to 25,000 tons of production. There was practically an entire absence of sellers with anything to sell at the market on Tuesday. Concern is manifested as to what is going to happen when the demand is on a winter scale, especially as past experience teaches that, following the increase in miners’ wages, a relaxation of effort may be expected to the further detriment of the output. House coal is in urgent demand for both London and the nearer markets. The coastwise trade for London and the south from the Humber ports is reduced to a very small compass. In some of the local markets the position is serious owing to the dearth of coal. Retail prices are generally being revised in sympathy with the advance in pit prices, and in many cases the allowance for cartage is being increased also. Pit prices for the West Riding :—Haigh Moor selected, 25s. to 26s.; Silkstone best, 24s. 6d. to 25s.; Silkstone Luse, 23s. 6d. to 24s.; other sorts, 22s. to 23s. Gas coal is quite unprocurable so far as open market is concerned, and as deliveries are no more than sufficient to cover current consumption, without margin for stocking, a gloomy v’ew is taken of the possibilities of next winter. With regard to steam coal the heavier call for France is receiving first attention, and considerable rearrangements of distribution and temporary suspension of deliveries are heard of in order to free coal for shipment. Manufacturing sorts are scarcer than ever, and the difficulties of the situation increase every week. Stocks are exhausted, and it is well-nigh impossible to meet day-to-day requirements, whilst for ordinary consumers with less valid priority claims the difficulties are greater still. The output of furnace coke is less, because of the impossibility of securing coking material in sufficient quantities, the strike already mentioned having had an appreciable effect in this direction. Pit prices are more or less nominally on the following level:— Current pit prices. Current L’st week’s Last year’s House coals:— prices. prices. prices. Best Silkstono 25/6-27/ 25/6-27/ 20/ -22/ Best Barnsley softs 23 6-24/ 21/6-22/6 23 6-24/ 18/6-19/ Secondary do. 21 6-22/6 17/ -17/6 16/ -17/ Best house nuts 21/ -22/ 20/6-21/ 21/ -22/ Secondary do Steam coals:— 206-21/ 15/6-16/ Best hard coals 22(6-23/6 22/6-23 6 17/6-18/6 Secondary do 21/6-22/6 21/6-22/6 16/6-17/6 Best washed nuts 21/ -22/ 21/ -22/ 20/6-21/ 16/3-16/6 Secondary do 20/6-21/ 15/6-16/3 Best slack 17/6-18/3 17 6-18/3 14 6-16/ 12/6-13/ Secondary do Gas coals:— 14/6-16/ 10/6-11/ Screened gas coals 21/6-22/ 21/6-22/ 16/6-17/6 Unscreened do 20 6-21/ 20 6-21/ 15/6-16/6 Gas nuts 20/6 20/6 16/ Furnace coke 32/ 32/ •25/8 small nuts, and all classes of steam-raising fuel are in most urgent demand; but only part of it can be met, and sub- division is now extremely severe all round. The deliveries to country merchants are several months in arrear. There are no stocks at pits or country sidings. 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 Current prices. 21/6-23/ 20/6-21/6 21/ -21/ 21/ -21/ 19/ -20/ 18 6-19/6 17/6-18/6 17/ -17/3 11/ -12/ L’st week’s prices.* 19/ -20/6 18/ -/19 17/6-18/6 17/6-18/6 16/6-17/6 16/ -17/ 15/3-16/ 14/6-14/9 8/6- 9 6 Last year’s prices. 16/6-18/ 15/6-16/6 16/ -17/ 16/ -16'6 15/ -15,6 14/6-15/ 12/9-13/6 12/ -12/3 6/ - 7/ kitcheners.............. 17/6-19/6 Steams, best hand picked 18/ -19/ Steams, seconds ......... 17/6-18/6 Main cobbles for kitchenersj 17/6-19/ Main breeze..............j 17'3-18/ 15/ -16/6 15/6-16/6 14/6-16/ 15/ -16/6 14/9-15/6 * Advance not included. 13/6-14/ 14/ -14/6 13/ -13/6 13/6-14/ 12/6-13/6 House coal:— Prices at pit (London) : Current prices. L’st week’s Last year’s prices. prices. Haigh Moor selected ... 24/ -25/ 24/ -25/ 20/ -21/ Wallsend & London best 23 6-24/ 23 6-24/ 23,6-24/ 19/ -20/ Silkstone best 23/6-24/6 19/ -20/ Do. house 22 6-23/ 22 6 23/ 17/ -18/ House nuts 21) -22/ 21) -22/ 16/ -17/ Prices f.o.b. Hull:— Haigh Moor best 28/ -28 6 28/ -28 6 23/ -24/ Silkstone best 26/6-27/6 26/6-27,6 22/ -23/ Do. house 25/6-26/6 25/6-26/6 20/ -21) Other qualities 23/ -25/ 23/ -25/ 19/ -20/ Gas coal:— Prices at pit: Screened gas coal 20/6-21/ 20 6 -21/ 16/ -17/ Gas nuts 19/6-20/6 19,6-20/ 15/6-16/6 Unscreened gas coal ... 19/ -20/ 19/ -20/ 15/ -16/ Other sorts:— Prices at pit: Washed nuts 21/ -22/ 21/ -22/ 17/ -18/ Large double-screened engine nuts 20/ -21/ 20/ -21/ 16/ -17/ Small nuts 19/ -20/ 19/ -20/ 15/ -16/ Rough unscreened engine coal 19/ -20/ 19/ -20/ 15/ -16/ Bost rough slacks 18/ -19/ 18/ -19/ 14/ -15/ Small do 16/ -17/ 16/ -17/ 12/ -13/ Coking smalls 16/6-17,6 16/6-17/6 12/6-13/6 Coke:— Price at ovens Furnace coke 32/ 32/ 25/8 Barnsley. COAL. Hull. COAL. On the whole, the efforts to improve supplies to take the fullest possible advantage of the favourable shipping season have been attended with some success, and were figures of exports accessible, they would probably show that this is so, and that June has been a better month than May or April. The new prices are now in full operation— best screened Yorkshire hards being quoted 35s., and West Yorkshire screened sorts 32s. 6d. to Allied buyers. A premium of 2s. 6d. and more is readily obtainable in the case of neutral transactions. The latter business is on a limited scale—very little Yorkshire coal being available to meet the active and pressing enquiry. Shipments to France are well up to the average. Chesterfield. COAL. House coal orders are coming to hand very freely, and the demand for London is as active as ever. Supplies are inadequate, and are much more difficult to secure than they have been for some time. The “ combing out ” process is seriously affecting the output, and stoppages are taking place at some collieries pretty frequently. In addition to this, the increased demand for coal for shipment to France and Italy is diverting supplies from ordinary sources, and this diversion adds very substantially to difficulties that were already pretty serious Surplus lots for the open market are unobtainable Contracts that expired at the end of June can only be renewed for reduced quantities, the reduction in many cases amounting to 25 per cent. There is an urgent demand for cobbles and nuts, and steam- raising slack is also in great request. Gas coal and steam coal for locomotive use continue in active request, aud consumers have much difficulty in securing supplies. Rail- way companies continue to load up coal from their stock heaps. The Admiralty demand for steam coal is very pressing. Coke is in strong demand, but supplies are short. All the local production is going steadily into consumption. IRON. A good business is passing in pig iron, and finished iron orders are plentiful. All the works of the district are busily engaged on war work. South Staffordshire, North Worcestershire ' and Warwickshire, Birmingham. COAL. The past week has been an exceedingly trying one for people engaged in the coal trade in the Midlands. Quantities are being diverted from the local coal fields at present to France, and what with this and the reduced out- put, accentuated as it was last week by partial strikes, supplies have dwindled to a point which causes great inconvenience and anxiety. Works are constantly having to draw upon their reserves, and complaints are rife of the precariousness of supplies. The system of priorities has been further developed in allocating supplies for essential work, blast furnaces and steel works having a first claim. Collieries are considerably in arrear with deliveries on account of contracts, and there is absolutely nothing on the open market. Slacks are exceptionally strong. The supply of house coal is still restricted, and merchants are unable to fulfil orders in full. Prices at pit. Current L’st week’s Last year’s Staffordshire (including Cannock Chase) :— prices. prices. prices. House coal, best deep ... 24/6 24/6 22/ Do. seconds deep 22'6 22/6 20/ Do. best shallow 21/6 21/6 19/ 18,' Do. seconds do. 20/6 20/6 Best hard 21/ 18/6 21/ 18/6 Forge coal 18/6 16/ Slack Warwickshire:— 13/6 13/6 11/6 House coal, best Ryder.. Do. hand-picked 21/6 21/6 19/ cobs 20/6 22/6 20/6 18/ Best hard spires 22/6 • 20/ Forge (steam) 18/6 18/6 16/ D.S. nuts (steam) 17/ 17/ 14/6 Small x (do.) ’17/ 1 17/ 1 14/6 Nottingham. COAL. An all-round shortage characterises the trade of this district. There has been little change in the demand for domestic fuel. With rationing not having been adopted so far as householders are concerned, local merchants have an accumulated list of orders on their books, but customers must wait their turn for supplies, and even then distribu- tion is on a limited scale. A fair proportion of the output is allocated to London and the southern counties. The pressure for steam-producing fuels on the collieries is con- siderable, and the daily output of all grades of steams is readily absorbed, the scarcity of nuts being an outstanding feature of this particular branch. Slacks of all descriptions are having a ready sale, but apart from contract obligations the tonnage available is comparatively small. Gas coal and coke are in very active request, all supplies being quickly disposed of. Prices at pithead. The influenza epidemic has considerably affected the attendance of workers at several collieries, with the result that the output is further reduced. The pressure for all descriptions of fuel continues to be keen, and though short deliveries only are possible, the traffic is being expedited to the extent of avoiding delay with supplies. A consider- able number of men discharged from the Army are coming back to the pits, but, generally speaking, there is much need for augmentation of the production. Considerable interference has been felt in regard to the home supplies, owing to the close attention that is being paid at the present to the needs of the Allies. This is expected to be only of a temporary character, though the demands on behalf of the Admiralty and for other preferential needs continue to be of a very extensive description. Compared with the demand, the bulk of fuel left for ordinary purposes is only small, and all descriptions of steams are particularly affected. The scarcity of nuts is very marked, and the bulk of this grade fuel is being taken for the use of munition works. A great deal of difficulty obtains in regard to supplies of small steam fuel for general purposes, the deliveries to industries engaged on ordinary work being rigorously cut down, and greater recourse has to be made to the use of gasworks coke. There is no improvement in regard to the supply of gas coal. Stocks are low, and collieries are only forwarding such quantities as barely meet the daily needs. The supply of coking slack con- tinues to be an anxious problem, and in many cases it is necessary to continue to crush nuts in order to keep the plants in full operation. The demand for furnace coke continues to be active, though for some districts the pressure is hardly so keen as of late. The rationing scheme for house coal is expected to help the situation, which continues to be one of difficulty, only short deliveries being possible, and these in no way meet the Current L’st week’s Last year’s prices. prices.* prices. Hand-picked brights 23/6-24/ 21/ -22/ 18 6-19/6 Good house coals 22/6 23/6 20/ -21/ 18/ -18/6 Secondary do 21/6-22/6 18/6-19/6 17/ -18/ Best hard coals 21/ -22/ 18/6^19/ 16,9-17/6 Secondary do 20/ -20/6 17 6-18/ 16/ -16 6 Slacks (best hards) 14/ -14’6 12/ —13/ Do. (second) — 13/ -13/6 10/6-11/6 Do. (soft) — 13/ 11/ * Advance not included. IRON. Business on the market continues to be conducted within very narrow compass by reason of existing engagements, and the uncertainty created by the advance in the cost of coal will make ironmasters less inclined than ever to pledge themselves. The increase means a serious addition to the cost of production, based on the usual calculation of 30 cwt. of fuel for the production of one ton of pig iron, and three tons of fuel for one ton of finished iron. The question of adjusting the conditions is one for the Government. The control of wire rods and the wire manufactured from them has taken effect. The price fixed for wire is <£24 a ton for 8-gauge, below which extras are charged, a big drop from prices previously ruling, but the rods are correspond- ingly cheaper. The pig iron market is cramped, especially in the foundry branches, in which supplies are not available in anything like the quantity required. Some lots of white iron, the result of inferior coke, have been sold at one shilling a ton below the maximum for grey forge. The difference in normal times is about 2s. 6d. a ton, but at the moment supplies are so scarce that consumers are willing to pay the extra. Bar makers have many special orders on hand, large quantities having been secured by the French Commission recently on the market, apart from the con- tinuously heavy demand on the part of cable, chain, and anchor firms, Makers of small rounds, squares, and flats are free to deal with their outputs to only a limited extent, so great is the demand for essential work. Prices remain at <£17 10s. for iron rounds, three'-eighths sizes, and .£18 10s, steel. The puddling industry is being carried on under some considerable difficulty. Labour is awkward, as more and more men are withdrawn from the furnaces, and there is an appreciable difference in productive capacity. The amount of business on the open market is of small dimen- sions, the policy of producers being to keep regular customers going. Leicestershire. COAL. Very far-reaching changes have been brought into active operation this week, and others are foreshadowed in the near future. The dislocation of the ordinary course of business follows as a natural result, and it is most unsettling and trying to the administration. Large orders have been placed in this district for the delivery of coal for France, which new departure will absorb a considerable portion of the output and the transport for the next six weeks. This new business is only possible by subtracting the coal from other directions where the supplies were already inadequate. The advance in prices all round by half-a-crown per ton has necessitated a great amount of clerical work. The advance to consumers will generally be 3s. 6d. per ton—the extra being due to the rise in wages and other costs of merchants. The additional Is. per ton will apply to all classes of coal delivered excepting slack, which will only be advanced 6d. per ton in addition to the half-crown sanctioned by the Coal Controller. There is a very keen demand for all classes of household for London and district, and the minimum deliveries have to be main- tained regardless of other alterations. Cobbles, large and Lydney. Forest of Dean. COAL. The market for the house coal of this district, despite the excessive heat, continues in much the same condition as reported during the past few weeks. There is still a heavy inflow of orders for both rail-borne and shipping require- Prices at pithead. Large ... House coals:— Block Forest Rubble Nuts Rough slack ....... Steam coal — Large ............... Small.............. Current |L’st week’s prices. prices. 28/6 28/6 21/6 18/ 25/ -26/ : 25/ -26/ 20/6-21 6 20/6-21/6 Last year’s prices, f 24/ \ 23/ 123/3 (.21/6 16/6 20/ -21/ 16/ -17/ Prices 2s. extra f.o.b. Lydney or Sharpness.